Chapter 527 (4): Calm and Free of Depraved Thoughts

Over at Downtrodden Mountain...

One morning, the tanned young girl who should have gone to the second floor of the bamboo building sprinted to the foot of Downtrodden Mountain, sitting on the steps and secretly wiping away her tears.

She would be leaving Downtrodden Mountain if she took another step forward.

She sat there and zoned out.

However, she knew that she would suffer even more pain if she were late to the bamboo building.

When she slowly stood up and planned to climb back up the mountain, Pei Qian discovered that the old cook was sitting on the step behind her.

Pei Qian grabbed her hiking pole and raged, "Old Cook, are you afraid of me secretly running back to the shops on Dragon Riding Alley? Am I that kind of coward?"

Zhu Lian shook his head and replied, "I don't think it's a bad thing even if you run back to Dragon Riding Alley."

Pei Qian sat back down and placed the hiking pole horizontally across her knees, after which she placed her hands behind her head and silently fumed.

Still sitting on the step behind her, Zhu Lian smiled and said, "If you're afraid of Young Master being disappointed, then I feel like there's no need to feel this way. Young Master won't feel disappointed in you simply because you gave up halfway when practicing fist techniques. He certainly won't feel angry either. Rest assured, I'm not lying to you. Young Master will only feel disappointed if you become lazy and stop transcribing texts."

Tears immediately streamed down Pei Qian's cheeks.

Every time she woke up in the tub of medicinal bath after being carried out of the bamboo building by Chen Ruchu, Pei Qian would insist on sitting down to transcribe texts no matter how much pain she was in. However, her soul would shake and her entire body would shake, so how could she possibly stop her hands from shaking to properly transcribe texts?

Even so, she had gritted her teeth and tried all kinds of methods recently, for example, tying the calligraphy brush to her hand. However, she had still failed to write a single straight character, causing her to build up a pile of "transcription debt."

Zhu Lian looked at the skinny young girl and continued, "However, becoming lazy comes in two forms, with the mind becoming lazy being the more terrifying form. If you're able to clear your debts one day after practicing fist techniques, then you wouldn't have truly become lazy. Rather, your master will feel like you've done well. This is because your master has always felt like human power is limited, and there are always things that a person can't do well, and not for a lack of trying. This shouldn't be viewed as a wrongdoing. If one is able to address these matters after finding the time and developing the ability, then that will naturally be even better."

Pei Qian wiped away her tears and silently stood up before sprinting up the mountain.

Zhu Lian remained sitting on the step as he looked back at the young girl.

One day, Zhu Lian's intention was slightly different as he cooked a meal in the kitchen, and he meticulously prepared a large number of seasonal dishes.

This was because a tanned young girl who looked like she was about to collapse at any moment was standing at the entrance. Her face was deathly pale and her arms were hanging limply by her side, and after swaying back and forth as she walked here, she had said that she was feeling slightly peckish today.

Thus, Zhu Lian decided to reward the tummy of the tanned young girl.

While he was cooking, Cen Yuanji came over and informed them that a guest was visiting Downtrodden Mountain. This guest was from Old Dragon City, and his name was Sun Jiashu.

Still wearing his kitchen apron, Zhu Lian nodded in response and replied that Clan Leader Sun could wait for a while. If this wasn't possible, then she could loudly call Wei Bo's name a few times and ask him to entertain the guest first.

"Old Cook, you can attend to the important matters now," Pei Qian said after hearing this. "You've already cooked quite a few dishes, and this is more than enough to eat. I'll ask Mili to bring the dishes to the table."

The little water monster helping Pei Qian hold her hiking pole in the courtyard immediately stood up straight and said loudly, "Zhou Mili, Temporary Right Guardian of Dragon Riding Alley's Pastry Shop, has received the order!"

Pei Qian nodded in acknowledgement before turning around to look at her, saying with a stern expression, "If you perform well, I'll put in some good words to Master when he returns home. There's a chance that I might promote you to the right guardian of Downtrodden Mountain."

Zhou Mili stood up even straighter, cracking a wide grin when she heard this. However, she quickly wiped the smile from her face.

Over in the kitchen, Zhu Lian didn't turn around as he said, "I feel like the matter at hand is a very important matter."

Pei Qian hesitated for a moment before saying, "Old Cook, you should head over to meet that guest, whatever his name is. You've already cooked so many dishes, so what should we do if we can't finish them?"

Zhou Mili was just about to say something righteous, but Pei Qian immediately turned around and shot a glare at her, causing her to immediately announce, "I'm not feeling hungry today!"

Only after hearing this did Zhu Lian put down his wok spatula and take off his kitchen apron, leaving the courtyard to greet Clan Leader Sun.

Over in the main building, Pei Qian instructed Zhou Mili to bring the dishes over one by one. However, what Zhou Mili found strange was the fact that Pei Qian also asked her to bring an extra bowl and an additional pair of chopsticks, telling her to place them at the main seat that was facing the entrance.[1]

Zhou Mili retrieved a large bowl and filled it with rice, after which she sat down on the same bench as Pei Qian. This was because Zhou Mili needed to feed Pei Qian. This was a common occurrence recently, and Right Guardian Zhou Mili often needed to do these meritorious deeds. Pei Qian said that she would record Little Mili's deeds in her notebook of merits, and when her master returned, it would be time to reward Little Mili according to her merit.

Zhou Mili would wolf down rice and meat each time she fed Pei Qian a mouthful of food. When she looked up, she saw Pei Qian gazing at the empty seat where the extra bowl and pair of chopsticks were placed. Pei Qian appeared slightly happy when she retracted her gaze, and she swayed her head and shoulders as she asked Zhou Mili to fill up another small bowl of rice for her. She was going to eat a bit more today, and this would give her more energy to endure a few more punches tomorrow.

Zhou Mili stood up and giddily ran away with the empty bowl, placing it on the small chair beside the rice bucket before scooping some rice inside.

The little water monster secretly sniffed and wiped away some tears when she stood with her back facing Pei Qian. She wasn't truly stupid, and she knew that Pei Qian was hurting all over with each bite of rice that she ate.

Today was the fifth day of the fifth month.

————

Today was a good day for cultivators to visit famous mountains.

Chen Ping'an came across a scholar and his attendant deep in the mountains of the Sacred Lotus Nation. Both of them were mortal humans, and after failing the imperial examinations, the scholar had read some supernatural novels and literary works, learning that mighty figures who had attained Dao would often be elusive as they cultivated in seclusion in the mountain forests. Knowing this, the scholar was determined to find one or two mighty figures, wanting to try his luck and see if he could learn some immortal techniques. He was convinced that this would be easier than succeeding in the imperial examinations and returning home after achieving great deeds in the imperial court. As such, he was searching hard for ancient temples and monasteries, as well as old men living in the desolate mountains, facing many hardships along the way.

When Chen Ping'an encountered them on a small path in the mountains, the scholar and his attendant already appeared weak and emaciated. The sun was blazing in the sky, and the young scholarly attendant was struggling as he tried to catch fish with his hands in a mountain stream. Meanwhile, the scholar was hiding under the shade of some trees, occasionally asking his attendant whether he had caught any fish yet. The young attendant felt extremely pained and miserable, but he didn't voice these negative emotions.

Chen Ping'an was lying on the branch of an old pine tree and resting his mind with his eyes closed, also practicing standing meditation and sleeping meditation at the same time. In the end, the young scholarly attendant finally managed to catch a prickly fish after much difficulty, becoming elated as he held the fish in his hand and exclaimed that it was very big. He excitedly looked at his young master and waited for praise, yet his hands were suddenly stabbed by the fish spikes and subject to excruciating pain, causing him to let go and lose his catch.

The young scholar tossed away the large leaf he was using as a fan, and he was just about to walk over to check out the so-called big fish. However, the young scholarly attendant immediately sat down in the stream and burst into tears. The young scholar sighed and consoled him, saying that there was no need to beat himself up over this. After all, it would be good fortune if they could catch some fish, but it would be fate if they failed to catch any fish. Unexpectedly, the young scholarly attendant started to bawl even harder after hearing this, causing the young scholar to also squat down and pull his hair in anxiousness beside the stream.

Chen Ping'an retrieved his bamboo bookcase and placed it on his back, also holding a brand-new bamboo hiking pole as he gracefully jumped onto the mountain path and slowly walked forward. When he "coincidentally" encountered the scholar and his attendant, he put down his bamboo bookcase and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and trousers, not saying a single word as he entered the stream and found a location with a relatively large number of fish. He started to move some stones around, building a small dam that tightly hugged the bank near the upstream region, with the stones placed in a very specific pattern. After finishing this, he started to fish in the newly created area where the water was only palm deep, and it wasn't long before he managed to catch a decent number of fish.

The young scholarly attendant's eyes lit up upon seeing this, and he felt like according to the words of his young master, this was called obtaining sudden enlightenment in the cultivation world. When senior martial artists took a fancy to a certain junior's aptitude, they would pass on their cultivation results of sixty years to these juniors. In the mountains, this would be a case of immortals placing their hands on the juniors' heads to teach them the methods of immortality!

The young attendant forgot about the searing pain in his hands as he copied Chen Ping'an's technique, moving stones around and scooping water away. Sure enough, it wasn't long before he enjoyed success as well, catching some fish that he didn't even know the names of. Even though his results couldn't be compared to those of his "senior," there was definitely more than enough fish to make lunch for him and his young master.

However, the young scholarly attendant remembered at this moment that they had already run out of flame sticks, so how could he start a fire to cook the fish?[2] The young scholar and his attendant started to stare at each other with blank expressions again. If they hadn't strayed from their planned route, then they were still fifty or so kilometers away from the nearest county city, with all of this being mountain paths. They genuinely hadn't seen any chimney smoke for a very long time. They had detested the incredibly annoying calls of roosters and barks of dogs at the beginning of their journey, yet they were starting to miss these sounds more and more.

Thankfully, the young man in azure — who didn't look like a bad person at all — taught the young scholarly attendant another brilliant technique. He plucked a few strands of dog tail grass and skewered together the fish that he had already disemboweled and cleaned, after which he placed them on a large rock near the bank and allowed them to sear in the sun. The young scholarly attendant couldn't care less about the effectiveness of these techniques right now, and he immediately copied Chen Ping'an's actions and cleaned the fish he had caught, some of which were palm-sized and some of which were pinky-nail-sized. After doing this, he skewered them and placed them on a piping hot rock on the bank of the mountain stream.

The young scholar introduced himself as Lu Dun from the Sacred Lotus Nation's Peony Prefecture, and he invited the young man in azure to enjoy the shade with him. Meanwhile, the young scholarly attendant squatted nearby and looked at the dozen or so fish resting on the large rock and basking under the blazing sun nearby, secretly chuckling to himself as he did so. The young man in azure said his surname was Chen, and he had come from a small nation in the south and traveled all the way here.

Lu Dun started to casually chat with Chen Ping'an, hoping that the traveling and studying Young Master Chen could travel with him and his scholarly attendant to his hometown in Peony Prefecture. Otherwise, he was already out of money and out of food, so how could he possibly cover the last remaining two to three hundred kilometers? In reality, there were two powerful and renowned clans that were relatively friendly with his clan on the journey back, places where he could borrow some money to make ends meet. However, could Lu Dun bring himself to ask them for money?

Someone a similar age to Lu Dun from the closer clan had placed very high in the spring examination in the capital, so how could he have the face to knock on the door and ask for money like a beggar? As for the other clan, there was a beautiful lady there whom he always thought about. She was elegant and gentle, and she was renowned for her beauty in the region. As such, Lu Dun was even more embarrassed to visit this clan to ask for money.

Chen Ping'an retrieved some dry rations from his bamboo bookcase and handed them to the young scholar and his attendant.

The young scholar thanked Chen Ping'an and accepted his goodwill, not turning down the offer out of politeness. He then handed half of the dry rations to his attendant.

The three of them ate dry rations together.

As they ate, Chen Ping'an explained that the fish could be directly eaten after being dried under the sun. This was something that could somewhat alleviate hunger.

A look of realization spread across the faces of Lu Dun and his attendant.

Lu Dun was a scholar, after all, so he remarked that he had once read about a similar technique in a book titled

Miscellaneous Techniques of the Western Regions

. The description in the book had said that the blazing sun was fearsome, and placing flattened dough on brick walls would cause them to cook in just a short amount of time.

The young attendant felt extremely proud.

Sure enough, his young master was a very knowledgeable person.

Chen Ping'an patiently listened to Lu Dun's recollection of what he had read in the

Miscellaneous Techniques of the Western Regions

. At the same time, he slowly chewed on his dry rations and contemplated some of his own matters.

He had purchased a set of grain rain cards representing the twenty-four solar terms at the Green Oriole Nation's Dragon Head Ferry Station, but these cards hadn't been expensive even though there was a large number of them. They had only cost twelve snowflake coins. What was expensive was the grain rain tablet, which had an asking price of forty-eight snowflake coins. Chen Ping'an had spent a great deal of effort haggling the price down by two snowflake coins.

Chen Ping'an had also purchased three bamboo cricket cages in the Southern Thorn Nation, a place where cricket fights were incredibly popular. He planned to give these cricket cages to Pei Qian and Zhou Mili. Of course, he wouldn't forget Chen Ruchu, the little girl in pink, either.

The three small porcelain pots he had purchased from the Orchid Residence Nation could be used to plant mini pine trees, orchids, and other miniature bonsais of the Orchid Residence Nation. This was something that was renowned throughout the dozen or so nations. Just like the bamboo cricket cages, there was also one each for Pei Qian, Zhou Mili, and Chen Ruchu. However, Chen Ping'an surmised that even if Pei Qian and Zhou Mili planted something in the small porcelain pots, it would end up being Chen Ruchu who looked after all three plants. Pei Qian and Zhou Mili would quickly lose patience and tire of watering their plants and moving them in and out all the time.

Chen Ping'an had also purchased an imperial oil burner that originated from a nation preceding the Golden Gate Nation, and had additionally purchased an extremely intricate golden ball that was hollow on the inside and contained even more hollow balls. There were nine hollow balls in total, with each placed inside another in a cascading manner.

Chen Ping'an ultimately didn't agree to Lu Dun's request to travel together to Peony Prefecture.

Even so, he gifted his dried fish to the young scholar and his attendant, also giving them some fishing hooks and fishing lines. Lu Dun and his attendant thanked Chen Ping'an again before setting off and continuing on their journey.

Chen Ping'an sat beside the mountain stream and started to cultivate.

He had traveled far and wide for many years.

He had come across many people, and he also admired many people.

However, during his most difficult time at Bamboo Scroll Lake, a seemingly unremarkable person — a measly passing guest on a muddy path in the mortal world — had left a very deep impression on Chen Ping'an.

This was an old lady living in a rural area and had suffered a difficult life. Back then, Chen Ping'an had been paying off Gu Can's debts with Zeng Ye and Ma Duyi.

After nearing a stream beside some village, Chen Ping'an had seen an impoverished and hunchbacked old lady dressed in very clean clothes. Her clothes had been patched many times, yet there was no unfixed wear and tear on them.

The old lady had been returning home after washing her clothes at the stream, and as she had walked along the path with a large bamboo basket in her hands, the ghost of her deceased grandson had possessed Zeng Ye's body and run to her, immediately falling to his knees and furiously kowtowing on the ground.

Seeing this, the old lady had hurriedly placed her full bamboo basket of clean clothes on the muddy ground, squatting down and attempting to help up the young man whom she didn't recognize at all.

That scene...

That scene was one that Chen Ping'an would remember for a lifetime.

In fact, it could be said that to Chen Ping'an, the old lady was like an infinitesimally small but very warm speck of light in the pitch-dark Bamboo Scroll Lake.

The old lady had allowed Chen Ping'an to clearly experience the power of two words for the very first time.

Calmness and composure.

Even if all of the formless regulations and hardships in the world were to land squarely on the old lady's shoulders, it was as if they would still be minor and barely worth a mention.

The world was separated into those in the mountains and those outside the mountains, just as it was separated into those who were wealthy and those who were impoverished. However, the severity of hardships couldn't necessarily be measured in an objective manner, with each person reacting to them differently. A person might feel troubled by other people's remarks, but the same remarks could very likely cause someone else to feel excruciating pain as if they were stabbed by a knife. This was very difficult to explain with principles and reason.

However, maintaining calmness and composure had always been a difficult task.

Chen Ping'an suddenly opened his eyes, surprisingly being forced out of the internal observation technique of cultivators. His mind shook violently.

However, this wasn't the chaotic aura of a martial artist going overboard and falling to demonic ways.

Chen Ping'an's sleeves billowed, and he was completely unable to suppress his fist intent from flowing outward.

It was as if a deity were beating a large drum at his heart and his abdomen.

Chen Ping'an stood up and stumbled forward, striding into the stream before gritting his teeth and standing still, one foot on the mountain and one foot in the water.

The fiery dragon in his acupoint swum around as his body rumbled, as if a burst of spring thunder were naturally exploding throughout the small world that was his body.

After the thunderous rumbling subsided...

Chen Ping'an now had a Hero's Gall.

1. In Chinese culture, the main seat at the dining table is the one that directly faces the entrance. ☜

2. Flame stick (火折子) is a type of ancient Chinese lighter. ☜