Unsheathed
Chapter 485: Reunions

Chapter 485: Reunions

The Skeleton Shoal immortal ferry station was an important central hub of the Northern Complete Reed Continent's southern region. It was a bustling place where business was thriving, and Chen Ping'an couldn't help but look forward to the future of his own Ox Horn Mountain ferry upon seeing this.

As the ship began to approach the ferry station, the more impatient passengers were unable to wait for even a moment as they began flying off the ship en masse. According to the rules, passengers disembarking at the ferry station had to do so on foot, regardless of their cultivation base or status.

This rule applied to the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, the Parasol Leaf Sect, and even Stalactite Mountain, yet things seemed to be different here. Even those who were following the rules were pushing and shoving those ahead of them, and the majority of the passengers were simply disembarking aerially atop flying swords, immortal treasures, or flying steeds, resulting in a chaotic rabble.

The administrators on the ship and those at the ferry station began swearing profusely at these people who were blatantly disregarding the rules, and a Sea Observation Tier cultivator with a particularly short temper at the ferry station lashed was unable to resist the urge to lash out, striking down a Qi refiner that was flying directly over him.

Chen Ping'an could only look on in shock and exasperation. If these people were behaving this way right under the Flax Robe Sect's nose, how lawless and chaotic were things going to be elsewhere?

Chen Ping'an wasn't in a hurry to disembark, and the old shopkeeper was still telling him about some places that he had to visit on the Skeleton Shoal. The shopkeeper was extending him the courtesy of introducing these places to him, so it would've been rude for Chen Ping'an to cut him off and leave. Hence, he continued to listen patiently.

He was intrigued by the chaos unfolding from the passengers disembarking from the ship, but ever since he was a child, he knew that it was rude to look around while someone was speaking to you in earnest, so he only took a few glances before returning his attention to the old shopkeeper.

Having run this shop for close to three hundred years, the old shopkeeper had seen countless people and developed a very sharp eye.

He quickly moved on from the previous subject, smiling as he explained, "Our Northern Complete Reed Continent appears very chaotic, but once you stay here for some time, you'll come to like it. It's true that you could end up with inexplicable vendettas, but there are also many people here willing to lay down their lives for friends that they've only just met. You'll come to find out all of that for yourself as you explore this continent."

A hint of irrepressible pride appeared on the old shopkeeper's wizened face as he spoke.

Chen Ping'an was reminded of someone upon seeing this, and a pang of sorrow welled up in his heart.

There had once been two women who had taken great pride in the fact that they lived on the Northern Complete Reed Continent, even though they had only been a pair of cultivators of the Lower Five Tiers and were only maidservants on the Ceremony Mountain immortal ship.

After a brief hesitation, during which the old shopkeeper recalled his private meeting with Wei Bo, he said, "Young Master Chen, may I say something that may not be to your liking?"

"Please do, Shopkeeper Huang," Chen Ping'an prompted with a smile.

"Our Northern Complete Reed Continent is a rather xenophobic place, so the cultivators here are prone to infighting, but we become extremely unified in the face of common enemies, and there are several types of outsiders that the people of the Northern Complete Reed Continent detest the most, the first of which are Confucian scholars who have traveled here from afar.

“The people here feel like such scholars are very pedantic and annoying. The second type of people are cultivators from wealthy and powerful immortal sects, who are regarded as far too arrogant for their own good. The third type of people are foreign swordsmen, who are regarded as having death wishes for daring to come to the Northern Complete Reed Continent to hone their swordsmanship."

The old shopkeeper heaved a faint sigh here, then continued, "Out of those three groups of people, the second is considered the most detestable. There are countless young cultivators throughout history who were accustomed to being able to do whatever they please under the protection of their seniors or Dao mentors, only to be taught a stern life lesson when they tried to behave the same way on the Northern Complete Reed Continent.

“The lucky ones manage to escape with their tails tucked between their legs, while the less fortunate ones have their bridges of immortality and shattered, and there are many who have lost their lives altogether.

“Among those are cultivators from the Mount Longhu Heavenly Master Residence, direct disciples of the Heavenly Master Residence, the final disciple of an Ascension Tier patriarch from the Flowing Dawn Continent, and even the younger brother of the wealthiest man on the Pure White Continent was beaten to death here.

“There are countless examples of such scandals throughout our continent's history, and to this day, the families and seniors of many of the victims still haven't even managed to uncover the identities of the perpetrators."

"I will be sure to keep that in mind, Shopkeeper Huang," Chen Ping'an replied with a nod.

The old shopkeeper's smile returned as he cupped his fist in a salute and said, "These restrictions are only like lengths of thin rope, they cannot bind someone truly destined for great things. The Northern Complete Reed Continent never turns away true heroes. I wish you the best of luck in finding what you've come to the Northern Complete Reed Continent for, Young Master Chen!"

Chen Ping'an returned the salute as he replied, "Thank you, Shopkeeper Huang!"

After that, he put on his conical bamboo hat and departed from the intercontinental ship.

According to Shopkeeper Huang, there were three places in the Skeleton Shoal that had to be visited. Otherwise, it would be a waste to have come here at all.

One of those places was the Swaying River Temple, which wasn't a river god temple of a very high caliber, but it was an enormous place, and the deity statue inside was even more grandiose and majestic than those of the vast majority of river gods that were loftier in status.

There was also a massive city that stretched from the entrance of the Flax Robe Sect at the foot of the mountain all the way deep into the underground. The city was called Mural City, and it had eight imposing walls that bore extremely detailed and life-like paintings of eight of the most beautiful celestial maidens from ancient times.

There were also rumored to have been fated opportunities within the city that could be claimed irrespective of cultivation base, coming down solely to fate and fortune. Those eight celestial maidens were soul remnants of female officials from a certain palace in the ancient Heavenly Court, and if anyone appreciating their mural were to catch their eye, then they would emerge from their mural to serve that person for life.

At the moment, only three of the eight celestial maidens remained, while the spiritual energy in the remaining five murals had already completely dissipated, and the remaining trio all varied in cultivation base. The most powerful one among them was at the Unpolished Jade Tier, while even the one with the lowliest cultivation base was a Golden Core Tier earth immortal.

Furthermore, there were treasures in those murals that would be taken with them once they emerged, and the Flax Robe Sect had once invited powerful cultivators from far and wide to make rubbings of the murals in an attempt to obtain the treasures depicted within them, but the murals were riddled with complexities, and no one was able to successfully obtain those treasures.

In addition to the fated opportunities encapsulated within those three murals, there were also many treasures and yin entities sold in the city that were extremely sought after for all ghostly cultivators. Even the average immortal abode often visited the city to purchase some well-disciplined heroic spirit puppets that could serve as a type of alternative door god or personal guardian that would be absolutely loyal to their owners.

Furthermore, there were many vagrant cultivators trading their possessions in Mural City, often powerful treasures concealed within their collections. There was a young sword immortal who had already traveled to the Sword Qi Great Wall, and his meteoric rise had begun after he obtained a pseudo-celestial sword from a vagrant cultivator that had failed to realize its worth.

Finally, there was the Malicious Ghost Valley, the most alluring place in the Skeleton Shoal for swordsmen and pure martial artists. That valley was home to all of the malicious spirits that had proven too difficult for the Flax Robe Sect to refine.

As opposed to freeing those malicious spirits to continue their paths of destruction, the sect had cast them all into that valley, and anyone could enter the valley for a fee, but they were responsible for their own survival.

Chen Ping'an's plan was to visit the nearest Mural City first.

Following his departure from the intercontinental ship, an elderly cultivator of the Flax Robe Sect appeared beside Shopkeeper Huang.

He was a long-renowned Nascent Tier cultivator of the Skeleton Shoal, and a very senior figure in the Flax Robe Sect's ancestral hall, but he was very reclusive and very rarely made public appearances.

At the moment, his aura was completely restrained, and he smiled as he said, "Some businessman you are! You basically just told him that he's not welcome on this continent!"

At the moment, Chen Ping'an was the sole owner of roughly a third of the Jewel Small World's mountains, and even the Great Li Empire's Northern Mountain God had personally made an appearance of his sake, so he had to have fallen into at least one of the three categories of people that Shopkeeper Huang had mentioned earlier.

If he had a short temper, then perhaps he would've been of the opinion that Shopkeeper Huang was intentionally trying to intimidate him.

Shopkeeper Huang smiled as he stroked his own beard. Even though his cultivation base was far inferior to that of his Nascent Tier friend, he remained casual and relaxed as he said, "If he were a vain and short-tempered young man, then he wouldn't have been so reclusive during his time on the ship, and he would've already left the ship after hearing about the three noteworthy locations to visit, rather than listen to an old man like me ramble for so long.

“If he had shown himself to be the type unworthy of hearing my kindhearted warning, then I wouldn't have issued it."

"How do you know you're not judging a book by its cover?" the Nascent Tier cultivator asked.

Shopkeeper Huang burst into laughter and replied, "I'm just a businessman. If I can accumulate a bit of good karma, then that's a win for me. This is why you aren't cut out for business, Old Man Su. The Flax Robe Sect has truly put this intercontinental ship to waste by having you oversee it. You could've easily established a vast network of connections by now, but you've let all of those golden opportunities slip by without capitalizing on a single one."

"It would've been even more of a waste to send an earth immortal with hopes of reaching the Upper Five Tiers here to while away their days. Besides, is it really a good idea for cultivators to be constantly dealing with interpersonal affairs?" the Nascent Tier cultivator sneered.

Shopkeeper Huang pretended not to have understood what the Nascent Tier cultivator was implying as he rested his elbows on the railing to look out at the scenery of his homeland.

His constant travels on the intercontinental ship allowed him to see countless pieces of scenery from all over the world, but ultimately, he was still most fond of the scenery of his home.

He grinned as he said, "Don't treat me like a trashcan, I'm not going to stomach any of your complaints."

The Nascent Tier cultivator wasn't bothered, and a thought suddenly occurred to him as he asked with furrowed brows, "What's the deal with the Jade Tablet Sect? Why have they moved their lower sect to the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent? In the wake of Du Mao's demise, the Parasol Leaf Sect is only just barely holding itself together.

“If Xun Yuan were to take advantage of the situation and establish the lower sect somewhere near the Parasol Leaf Sect, then the latter would most likely completely fall in no more than three hundred years. Why did he pass up such a golden opportunity? No matter how much potential the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent may have, surely it can't match up to the prospect of conquering the majority of the entire Parasol Leaf Continent.

“I've heard that this Xun Yuan was a really promiscuous man when he was young, could it be that he's gone stupid from having his head squeezed too forcefully between some woman's thighs?"

Shopkeeper Huang shook his head as he replied, "Anyone else in the Jade Tablet Sect may be stupid, but Xun Yuan is most definitely an exception. I've never met Xun Yuan, but just the fact that he was able to tame Jiang Shangzhen alone tells me everything I need to know about him.

“Even back when he was just a Golden Core Tier earth immortal, Jiang Shangzhen had traveled our Northern Complete Reed Continent alone, screwing over countless sects and celestial maidens, and in the end, he was able to get away unscathed.

“There's nothing that really keeps me up at night outside of the state of my aunt-master, who used to be such a vibrant woman, but has been left a depressed shell of herself by Jiang Shangzhen. If she hadn't served as my Dao guardian in my younger days, I would already be long dead by now.

“That accursed Jiang Shangzhen... Shit, I can't help but get mad whenever I think of him, but at the same time, I have to concede that he's a remarkable man."

The old shopkeeper normally spoke in a refined and elegant manner unbefitting a cultivator of the Northern Complete Reed Continent, but the mention of Jiang Shangzhen had him gritting his teeth in resentment.

"My trashcan is full," the old Nascent Tier cultivator said with a gleeful look of schadenfreude on his face.

Shopkeeper Huang spat viciously onto the ground, seemingly trying to spit out all of his pent-up resentment.

A curious look then appeared on his face as he said, "From the looks of it, it seems like the Song Clan intends to elevate the Ox Horn Mountain ferry station and has no intention of expanding the ferry station at the Palace of Eternal Spring. Who will you have to deal with when the time comes? A military general of the Great Li Empire or a guest elder cultivator?"

The Nascent Tier cultivator shook his head as he replied, "The Great Li Empire strongly detests any outsiders who try to gather intelligence from them. Our ancestral hall has warned everyone that many of the strategies that we commonly use everywhere else are not to be used in the Great Li Empire in order to avoid souring the relationship.

“The Great Li Empire is far more powerful than it once was, and it possesses the power necessary to keep out the ships of our Skeleton Shoal if they so wish. Hence, I still don't know who they've chosen. In any case, it's all the same to me. I have no interest in such matters anyway.

“Back when the Great Li Empire's first immortal ferry station capable of receiving intercontinental ships officially began operation, all of the cultivators and generals stationed there were among the cream of the crop in the Great Li Empire. All of them were extremely important figures that possessed lofty statuses, yet in our presence, they had to bow and put on fawning smiles in order to appease us.

“It hasn't even been all that many years since then, and look at them now. That Northern Mountain God is called Wei Bo, right? Has he bowed even once in our presence? The tables have turned, and it won't be long before we have to appease them."

All of a sudden, the old Nascent Tier cultivator's expression stiffened as he gave Shopkeeper Huang a warning glance. The latter immediately tensed up, only for the Nascent Tier cultivator to shake his head, indicating that he didn't have to be overly anxious.

This was the Flax Robe Sect's territory, and its mountain-protection formations certainly weren't just there for show.

The two of them turned as a middle-aged man wearing a golden crown and a jade belt around his waist stepped onto the ship against the flow of disembarking passengers. He looked around as he strode along, seemingly a little disappointed.

After catching sight of Shopkeeper Huang and the old Nascent Tier cultivator, he smiled as he asked, "What's the name of your aunt-master? Perhaps I know her."

Shopkeeper Huang's expression instantly darkened at this provocative remark, and he spat, "Who the hell do you think you are? Scurry back to where you came from!"

The man was fluent in the official language of the Northern Complete Reed Continent, and he declared, "I am Zhou Fei of the Spring Tide Palace."

"If you're not Jiang Shangzhen, then piss off!" Shopkeeper Huang shooed.

The middle-aged man pondered his own identity for a moment, then smiled as he said, "Alright, I'll be pissing off then."

With that, he really did turn to depart.

Shopkeeper Huang turned to the Nascent Tier cultivator, still looking rather tense and apprehensive, and he asked, "Was that a Nascent Tier cultivator as well?"

The old Nascent Tier cultivator pointed a finger upward.

Shopkeeper Huang remained relatively composed despite his situation, stroking his own chin as he mused, "Perhaps I should go and hide in your ancestral hall for a month or so. If a battle really does take place, I'll be sure to pay for the damages. Having said that, seeing as we go way back, can you give me a 20% discount?"

The old Nascent Tier cultivator patted him on the shoulder as he said, "I'm afraid you'll have to pray for your own safety. Whoever that was, he's still not too far away yet, so how about you catch up to them and apologize? You're a businessman, so surely there's no shame in bowing down to someone more powerful than you."

"If that man really has the guts and the power, then let him strike me down where I stand!" Shopkeeper Huang spat in disdain.

All of a sudden, the old Nascent Tier cultivator reached out to make a pinching motion with his index finger and thumb, seemingly trying to catch something, but he reacted just a split second too late.

A vibrant, green willow leaf was hovering right in front of Shopkeeper Huang's heart, and a voice rang out from the ship's railing.

"You've already used up all of your goodwill with me. Keep running your mouth, and my willow leaf won't stop there next time."

The leaf then vanished in a flash.

A short while later, the Nascent Tier cultivator said, "He's truly gone this time."

Shopkeeper Huang was silent for a long while, then asked, "How much money do you think I'll be able to earn if I sell this piece of news?"

"I strongly advise against it, or you won't be alive to spend the money," the old Nascent Tier cultivator chuckled.

Shopkeeper Huang slammed a palm down onto the railing of the ship, fighting back the urge to yell to the heavens that Jiang Shangzhen had returned to the Northern Complete Reed Continent to ruin more women.

The entrance to Mural City at the foot of the Flax Robe Sect was packed with people, and only after walking for several minutes did Chen Ping'an finally reach a relatively more peaceful area.

He removed his conical bamboo hat, then had some lunch at a streetside stall, and right as he was about to pay the bill, he noticed that someone had already paid for him.

"Have you come here to intercept me?" Chen Ping'an asked as he picked up his conical bamboo hat.

The man smiled as he said, "I felt the need to personally make this trip and explain some things to you. Otherwise, I'm worried that our brotherly bond could be soured by some misunderstandings."

Chen Ping'an faltered upon hearing this. He was certainly not so close with this man that he would consider them brothers.

"My apologies," Jiang Shangzhen chuckled. "I stayed on the Northern Complete Reed Continent for some time in the past, and now that I'm back, I can't help but fall into the habit of referring to everyone as my brother."

The two of them made their way toward the entrance of Mural City as Jiang Shangzhen communicated with Chen Ping'an through his mind's lake.

Right as they reached the entrance, Jiang Shangzhen finished what he had to say and took his leave before turning to depart, declaring that he had to get back to Bamboo Scroll Lake.

Following his departure, Jiang Shangzhen returned to the Flax Robe Sect intercontinental ship, then sought out Shopkeeper Huang for an "amicable chat." Only after that did he truly return to the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent on his own private immortal ship.

Chen Ping'an made his way down a long slope that was several kilometers in length and almost imperceptible as he entered the underground Mural City. The streets were lined with immortal lanterns that illuminated the surroundings to be as bright as day, and the light that they gave off was both gentle and natural, like the pleasant sunlight of a winter's day.

All the while, Chen Ping'an was pondering what he had heard from Jiang Shangzhen.

Right at this moment, a woman clutching a porcelain vase quickly rushed past him, and he quickly sidestepped her, continuing onward without a second thought.

To his surprise, the woman collapsed to the ground and began bawling her eyes out, while the porcelain vase laid shattered beside her.

Chen Ping'an leaned back slightly, instantly backstracking to the woman's side before slapping her across the face, leaving her in a daze. With another slap, her cheeks were left burning with pain.

At this point in her well-rehearsed sequence, she should've thrown her arms around Chen Ping'an's legs and begun demanding that he pay for her shattered vase, but she didn't dare to continue bawling as she turned to her group of accomplices on the side of the street with a timid expression.

She felt like surely she couldn't have just been slapped twice for nothing, and she was thinking that her accomplices should swarm the man and demand that he at least pay a couple of snowflake coins. Besides, this "authentic Flowing Dawn Vase that was worth three lesser heat coins" was worth two taels of silver on its own.

In the end, all she received was a kick from one of her accomplices, who demanded that she pay the three taels of silver for the broken vase.

The woman protested that it was only two taels of silver, only to receive another kick to the face as the leader of her accomplices declared that the extra tael of silver would serve to make up for their travel expenses.

After that, the group of men departed without so much as a backward glance at the woman. One of them had ordered a bowl of wonton soup from the same stall that Chen Ping'an had dined at earlier, and he was the one who had deemed Chen Ping'an to be an easy target.

Even as blood came trickling down from the corner of the woman's lips, she hurriedly pulled out a large piece of cloth from her sleeve, then gathered up the porcelain shards before scurrying away. There were many people walking along the street, and if she were to get in the way of the wrong people, then she would be on the receiving end of more than just a few kicks and slaps.

She departed from the entrance of Mural City and made her way into an alley, where there was a small house, at the entrance of which was plastered with some faded door gods and couplets.

She wiped the blood from her face and smoothed down her clothes, then forced a smile before entering the courtyard, where there were two children playing inside.

She closed the gates, then made her way into the kitchen to cook up a meal, heaving a faint sigh to herself at the sight of the thin layer of rice left at the bottom of the jar.

After cooking up a meal that could only have been described as modest at best, her two children suddenly rushed into the kitchen, and the older one was ecstatic as he held up a pair of snowflake coins to her.

"Look, Mother! I found these two coins at the entrance of the courtyard! Did the door gods spit them out?"

The woman was instantly rooted to the spot.

Where had these two snowflake coins come from?

Those who were wealthy had no interest in pranking her family. She was far from physically alluring, and her two children were also completely ordinary, so who could've left those snowflake coins there?

Chen Ping'an made his way out of the alley as he murmured to himself, "This is the only time I'm doing this. From now on, there's no need for me to know the stories of others."

He turned to see two children running out into the alley behind him with all their might, joyous yelling to themselves that they would be able to eat tanghulus every day from now on.

A faint smile appeared on Chen Ping'an's face, and a hint of warmth surfaced in his eyes as he compromised, "Alright, maybe I'll do it one more time."

For some reason, after making a decision to stick his nose into someone else's business one more time, he suddenly felt as if the entire world had opened up to him, and that only in this state could he truly go anywhere that he pleased.