Chapter 368 (2): Unspeakable Hardships

"You can only state one request, and it must be within reason."

The young woman mustered up some courage, then said, "In that case, I want you to spare him and stop oppressing his sword heart."

Zuo You nodded in response, and he really did withdraw his sword qi, thereby lifting the immense pressure on the young man.

Unbeknownst to the young woman, Zuo You wasn't intentionally targeting the young sword profigy's sword heart. Instead, the problem was that his sword heart wasn't sufficiently pure to begin with. Otherwise, for a swordsman to stand in Zuo You's presence was an enormous blessing, and he should've only benefited from basking in Zuo You's sword qi.

A smile broke through the young woman's tears, but she then hurriedly caught herself and put on a stern expression, determined to not display any gratitude or good will toward this enemy of the sect.

Zuo You turned to continue on his slow and methodical rampage of destruction, but before he left, he suddenly turned around and said, "I was serious when I said that Du Mao is going to lead the sect to its destruction. All of you will find out what I mean soon."

The young woman was rather perplexed to hear this, while the young man was swaying unsteadily, just as his sword heart was.

Zuo You sped away without another word.

Meanwhile, the phenomena unfolding in Parasol Tree Small World were becoming more and more pronounced.

You want to ascend? You'll have to ask me for permission first!

An intercontinental ship from Northern Complete Reed Continent had already arrived on Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

It was traveling extremely quickly, albeit at the cost of an immense amount of immortal currency, and all of the passengers were naturally very happy to see this. After all, who didn't want to get to their destination sooner?

Apparently, the ship was able to travel so fast thanks to a huge sum of money issued by a generous old Nascent Tier cultivator.

One of the ship's passengers was a short and stocky man who lived in one of the cheapest bottom floor rooms, and he very rarely came out.

He appeared to be a pure martial artist, but no one could tell his exact cultivation base.

The fact that his cultivation base was unidentifiable was more than enough to tell some of the smarter Qi refiners on the ship that he was not to be messed with.

It was said that there were three separate sub-tiers for tenth tier martial artists, namely the Thriving Qi Tier, the Simplification Tier, and the Divinity Tier.

After leaving Lion Peak, Li Er's aura had been steadily climbing the entire time, and he had somehow reached the Simplification Tier.

This was good news for Li Er, and he now felt more confident in his ability to demolish the ancestral halls of those who had wronged Zheng Dafeng.

Over in Old Dragon City, the Fan Clan continued to stay put, and in the eyes of most of the people in the ancestral hall, this was no different from rolling over and waiting to die.

The Sun Clan was also keeping a low profile. Even though it had chosen to pledge its subordination to the Fu Clan very early on, it didn't seem to be eager to make any displays of loyalty.

As usual, the Dust Medicinal Shop was like an independent restricted area left alone by everyone.

Chen Ping'an was seated behind the counter with the smallest of the three pieces of Dragon Slaying Platform placed on it.

First and Fifteenth were sharpening themselves as they flew back and forth over the piece of Dragon Slaying Platform in a joyful fashion, sending sparks flying in all directions.

Meanwhile, Chen Ping'an was making a tally of his belongings.

The golden jade pendant that carried the inscription of "nurturing the noble spirit" was a small world that could be strapped to his waist and absorb the natural spiritual energy of heaven and earth on its own.

However, he couldn't wear it at the moment as it conflicted with the formation in the Dust Medicinal Shop and the Zhao Clan yin soul's innate yin energy.

He would only be able to bring it out once he went somewhere else with abundant spiritual energy.

Pei Qian was very fond of the jade pendant, and while standing by the counter, she had stroked and admired it for a very long time, but ultimately didn't have the heart to ask Chen Ping'an if she could take it away to play with.

At the moment, Chen Ping'an could only temporarily hide the jade pendant.

However, compared with the jade pendant, Du Mao's yang soul avatar was a much greater concern for Chen Ping'an. It was the body of a true immortal, much like Cui Dongshan's current body.

There were many stipulations that had to be followed when it came to using this body, and if he could use it well, then it would benefit him immensely, but even the slightest mistake could ruin the body and turn it into something completely useless.

Compared with refining a bonded item, this was an even more difficult task.

The first step was known as "opening the door." An immortal body was a truly indestructible body, one that even an all-out attack from the bonded flying sword of a Middle Five Tiers swordsman wouldn't even be able to leave a mark on.

The second step was that of occupation, which involved planting a new soul into the body, just as Cui Dongshan had done when possessing his new body. The soul had to be complete and sufficiently powerful, and it also had to belong to someone with immense mental fortitude.

Otherwise, there was a very good chance that Du Mao would be able to wrest back control over his body, and if he was allowed to return to Parasol Leaf Sect, then the consequences would be catastrophic.

The third problem that had to be addressed was the body's maintenance. A vacant immortal body could easily be stored for thousands of years with no problems, but once it became possessed, the maintenance was going to become extremely costly.

The fourth issue that had to be considered was how this new Du Mao was going to develop and what cultivation path he was going to choose. If none of this was thought out in advance, then the body would go to waste.

In mortal empires, a piece of praise that was often thrown around was that one had the makings of a prime minister. However, that didn't mean that one was necessarily destined for great things. There was still a very long way to go, and a lot of luck involved.

Chen Ping'an had enquired the Zhao Clan yin soul on this subject, but the latter had only given him a very ambiguous response. This was a matter that concerned many sensitive secrets, so he didn't dare to reveal too much.

At the moment, he owed Fan Junmao fifty grain rain coins, and there weren't many gold essence copper coins left in his little cloth pouch.

The recent expenditures had been far too high, and at this rate, it wouldn't take long before he completely ran out of money.

Earlier, Pei Qian had made a rather interesting remark about how time passed like a flying sword, whizzing past in a flash before vanishing without a trace.

Chen Ping'an felt like the money in his pocket was vanishing even faster than a passing flying sword.

He heaved a faint sigh as he stowed the jade tablet away. There weren't going to be any customers visiting the medicinal shop anyway, so he simply allowed First and Fifteenth to continue sharpening themselves as they pleased.

First and Fifteenth had both endured many battles of late, and as a result, their blades had become much duller than before. According to the Zhao Clan yin soul, if he were to continue to use them in this fashion, then eventually, their blades would become chipped, and that would be a major problem.

However, the problem could be remedied by allowing them to "devour" this piece of Dragon Slaying Platform.

It was only a tiny piece of Dragon Slaying Platform, but it was something that countless swordsmen in the world could only dream of obtaining, and it could be sold for a large sum of grain rain coins.

There was a reason why almost all swordsmen without powerful backers were extremely poor.

Even A'Liang had accumulated some massive debts during his travels across Middle Earth Divine Continent prior to going to Stalactite Mountain. Having said that, not all of his expenditure had been for sword maintenance purposes. In fact, most of his spending had been dedicated to covering the costs of the repairs carried out by the oppressed and underprivileged sects that he came across.

It was common knowledge that swordsmen had the hardest time saving money. The reason for this was both simple and complicated.

It was simple in that the only thing that they had to spend money on was their swords, so they didn't even have to think about any other treasures.

Having said that, a flying sword was much more difficult to maintain than any other treasure used by Qi refiners. If a Qi refiner truly found themselves lacking in funds, then they could always sell off some of their belongings for money, but what could a swordsman sell? Their bonded flying sword?

Pei Qian couldn't bear the pain of bodily conditioning, but she still wanted to learn martial arts. She was willing to learn any form of martial arts as long as it didn't hurt.

For example, on this day, Pei Qian had gone to Lu Baixiang for martial arts instruction. Wei Xian didn't want to teach her, and he had become very frustrated by her constant nagging, so he had retreated to his room and rolled himself up in his blankets to sleep. Pei Qian was furious and prodded at him insistently with her hiking pole, only to be completely ignored, so she could only turn to Lu Baixiang instead.

After making his way out into the courtyard, Lu Baixiang paused momentarily to consider what he was going to teach Pei Qian, then began imitating Chen Ping'an's six-step walking meditation, carrying it out in a very elegant and graceful manner.

As he performed the walking meditation, he turned to Pei Qian with a smile as he said, "It might sound a little counterintuitive, but when it comes to practicing fist techniques, the footwork is actually the most important thing. Out of the four of us, Zhu Lian is the one with the most exceptional footwork. His footwork is both fast and meticulous, allowing him to adjust to all types of situations on the battlefield."

After completing the six steps, Lu Baixiang threw a punch that appeared to be quite gentle, but created a loud thump in the air, and he continued, "Only by drawing upon power from all directions can your fist aura shake the heavens."

He then unleashed a sweeping kick, and after completing a light and graceful landing, he continued, "One's spine is like a dragon vein between heaven and earth, and that's why the concept of Examining the Dragon exists in martial arts. It's not particularly profound, but it's extremely important. The vertebrae of the spine resemble the flexible body of a dragon, allowing one to generate explosive power.

“A single breath of pure True Qi can circulate hundreds, even thousands of kilometers through one's acupoints and meridians, activating all of the skin, muscles, tendons, bone, and blood in one's entire body to maximize the power of each attack."

Zhu Lian was seated on a bench under the eaves, reading a "romantic" story about a loving couple, and a pleased smile appeared on his face upon hearing the praise that Lu Baixiang was directing toward him.

Lu Baixiang was an extremely patient teacher, and he smiled as he asked, "Can you understand what I'm saying? If not, I can break it down into even finer detail for you."

Pei Qian nodded vigorously in response.

"I can understand everything, but I don't want to learn to walk."

"If you don't first learn how to walk, how will you be able to run or fly?" Lu Baixiang asked with a smile.

Pei Qian took a glance at Halting Snow, strapped to Lu Baixiang's waist, and she said, "But I just want to learn the best swordsmanship under the heavens. If I can't do that, then saber techniques will suffice as well."

At some point, Chen Ping'an had sat down onto a nearby bench to watch the lesson, and Lu Baixiang turned to him with a resigned expression as he said, "I can't teach her."

As soon as Pei Qian caught sight of Chen Ping'an, a fearful look immediately appeared on her face as she hurriedly said, "In that case, I'll learn how to walk first."

"If one is constantly sitting on the fence, they'll never know to stand up for themselves," Zhu Lian mused.

Pei Qian raised her hiking pole with a furious look on her face as she objected, "Don't think that you can talk trash as you please just because you can cook some good meals! Come and fight me if you dare!"

Zhu Lian closed his book and rose to his feet as he declared, "Fine, if you want a sparring match, then I'll give you one! I'll have you know that I'm the most capable fighter among all of the chefs in the Dust Medicinal Shop!"

Pei Qian wasn't fearful in the slightest as she demanded, "Alright, then let's compete to see who can make the fastest transcriptions!"

Zhu Lian sat back down onto his stool and continued to read his book.

Chen Ping'an paid no heed to their bickering as he smiled and rose to his feet, and for the first time since being dealt those horrific injuries by Du Mao, he was in a pleasant and relaxed mood.

He gently drifted over to the center of the courtyard, and even though his complexion still wasn't looking that great, he appeared to be in high spirits.

He slowly performed his six-step walking meditation in conjunction with his Deity Drumming Technique, and his fist intent was extremely natural, exuding from his body without any conscious effort.

It was a very simple six-step walking meditation routine, but when performed in earnest by Chen Ping'an, Pei Qian felt like it was very pleasing on the eyes, almost like a visual treat.

Zhu Lian raised his head with an impressed smile as he sighed, "What remarkable fist intent at such a young age."

"Indeed, I can't even begin to compare," Lu Baixiang replied with a nod.

After completing his six-step walking meditation, Chen Ping'an looked around with a smile as he said, "It's your turn now, Sui Youbian, Wei Xian."

Sui Youbian was standing in silence by the window, and she turned and made her way back to the table before sitting down, while Wei Xian remained in the room as he praised in a half-hearted manner, "That was an incredible display."

Pei Qian fell to the ground and began chortling with mirth. These people had no spines at all, yet they dared to call her a fence sitter!

To everyone's surprise, Zheng Dafeng suddenly appeared at the entrance of his room, and he looked up at the sun while holding onto the door frame for support as he sighed, "I can finally move a little. I was about to start growing mold if I kept lazing around."

"You can walk now, Zheng Dafeng?" Pei Qian exclaimed with a surprised expression. "Don't force yourself. If you fall and break your back again, you'll be back to square one."

"Can't you wish something good upon me for once?" Zheng Dafeng groaned in an exasperated manner.

"I was just looking out for you," Pei Qian replied with a roll of her eyes.

Chen Ping'an gave Zheng Dafeng a nod, then sat back down onto the bench, and Pei Qian immediately brought some sunflower seeds to him like an obedient little puppy. The two of them sat on the bench together, and she was holding a handful of sunflower seeds aloft in front of Chen Ping'an on her little hand.

Zheng Dafeng walked very slowly, taking small steps as he strolled under the eaves, and it was clear that he had no intention of forcing himself to go beyond his current capabilities.

His back remained hunched over.

Everyone continued with what they were doing as if they couldn't even see him. Lu Baixiang carried the Go board and stones over to Sui Youbian to play another game, Zhu Lian continued to read his book, Wei Xian was sleeping in his room, and Pei Qian was eating sunflower seeds with Chen Ping'an.

A festive air had descended upon the little medicinal shop.

One day, at around noon, the Dust Medicinal Shop welcomed its first customer that wasn't Fan Er or Fan Junmao.

This was a true customer.

It was an old man with a foreign accent, and he bought a lot of medicinal ingredients from the shop, but complained that the prices were a little steep.

The Zhao Clan yin soul cautioned Chen Ping'an through voice transmission that he could only tell that the old man had a very solid and condensed Dragon Gate Tier cultivation base.

Chen Ping'an was unfazed. Having already faced the Ascension Tier Du Mao, he had become far more composed in the face of powerful cultivators.

Chen Ping'an had been struck by some enlightenment after hearing the message from the Scholarly Sage recounted to him by the sword spirit.

The principles of the world were ever-present, and some people treated them like precious treasures to be cherished, while others treated them with disdain and would perhaps even go out of their way to trample upon them.

It wasn't the principles that were wrong. Instead, the problem lay with the people.

In particular, the sword spirit had spoken in some detail about the elderly Confucian scholar presiding over the northern region of Parasol Leaf Continent. It seemed that the consequences he was suffering for his transgressions were quite severe, and there was a chance that he would be evicted from the Confucian temple altogether.

Chen Ping'an couldn't help but contemplate the complexities of human nature after hearing about this.