Chapter 627: Land Immortal Ascension Chart

As autumn rain fell in showers, Yu Dilong felt his master resembled a scoundrel who had come to freeload.

The child dared not enter the house and squatted on the steps outside the threshold. Looking up, he saw a dark, bluish-black curtain of rain hanging from the eaves. The rain, splattering noisily on the ground, splashed onto his trouser legs. Yu Dilong sighed softly, suddenly missing the older sister who carried a large wooden sword-box. Hearing faint footsteps, Yu Dilong turned to see the woman—whom he wasn't sure whether to call "sister" or "auntie"—carrying two small stools. She placed one beside him and sat on the other herself. Yu Dilong hesitated but then sat on the stool, sitting properly and attentively, looking straight ahead. Pei Nanwei, ostensibly in widowhood here, observed the child's rigid posture and softly asked, "What do you do?"

Yu Dilong thought seriously for a moment, then shyly replied, "I am my master's disciple."

Pei Nanwei was amused. "Could you possibly be your master's master?"

Yu Dilong's mouth opened slightly, and he blushed.

Pei Nanwei said nothing more, watching the muddy courtyard with the child. She murmured to herself, "It should have been paved with flagstones. Over a dozen pounds of flower soil, just dug from Yanwozi Ridge, simply washed away."

Yu Dilong listened to her murmuring, not finding it annoying. Perhaps because he had been an orphan since childhood, Yu Dilong felt a strange warmth.

A voice came from behind them, "Dinner's ready."

By the small square table, Xu Fengnian had already served the food and set out the bowls and chopsticks. Pei Nanwei and Yu Dilong carried their stools into the house. Pei Nanwei sat opposite Xu Fengnian. The child thought for a moment, then didn't dare sit at the table to eat. Instead, he sat on the threshold, holding his bowl, and continued watching the rain fall into the mud. In that moment, the child, who had dreamed of saving enough money to build a house since he could remember, decided that if he ever built one, it would be just like this courtyard.

"You still know how to come back?"

"Mm."

"What did you go out and do? Did you unite the jianghu, kill the Liyang Emperor, or flatten Beimang?"

"None of that, actually. But haven't you heard the news?"

"As a commoner, what should I have heard?"

"I fought Wang Xianzhi and luckily survived. Then I went to Wudi City in the East Sea and took all the weapons. On my way back to Beiliang, I met the great-grand-elder of the Wu Family Sword Mound. After staying less than a day in Qingliang Mountain, I went north to Liangzhou, and finally, here I am, eating with you."

"You've been busy."

"I just didn't earn much silver to bring back. That's still the same sack of rice Zhu Zhenglin carried here last time, isn't it, in the rice jar? You eat so little, yet I haven't seen you lose weight. Now it's time to gain weight for autumn again, so watch yourself. If you're thin, you can still wear old clothes, they'll just be a bit loose. But if you get fat, that'll be an extra expense."

*Smack!* A heavy sound. Yu Dilong quickly turned to look, seeing her smack her chopsticks hard on the table.

"The Bishan County Yamen has already stopped your salary. I went to collect it at the beginning of the month, but they refused to give it. They also said you took leave without reason and went to Wudang Mountain to relax. The Prefect of Yanzhi Commandery was furious when he heard about it, and it seems he wants to dismiss you from office."

"Go and try to get it again."

"Are you sure it won't be a wasted trip?"

"If you can't get it, then forget it. Anyway, the monthly salary is less than ten taels of silver."

This time, she slammed the bowl.

Yu Dilong suddenly felt like laughing.

Afterward, Xu Fengnian washed the bowls, chopsticks, and plates. To Yu Dilong's surprise, the master did not linger long in this small county town. He grabbed a meal and then left in the night rain. The woman didn't try to stop them; instead, before they left the house, she brought out a rain hat woven from bamboo leaves and a straw cape. But these weren't for Yu Dilong's master; she handed them to the child, insisting he put them on. Yu Dilong timidly glanced at his master, and Xu Fengnian merely smiled. The hooves of two horses clattered on the bluestone ground of the alley. Because it was a night of heavy rain, the sound of the hooves was muffled and not noticeable. Although Yu Dilong was slender, his frame was exceptionally tough. Wearing the bamboo hat and straw cape, he didn't feel them heavy or cumbersome, though they didn't fit him, making him look comical. Yu Dilong looked back at the courtyard. For some reason, the child felt no attachment to the Northern Liang Princely Manor, nor did he consider it his home. Yet, he felt an inexplicable closeness to this humble courtyard, and deep down, he harbored a strange thought he couldn't share: if only that woman were his mother.

Yu Dilong plucked up his courage and called out, "Master."

Xu Fengnian slowed his horse and looked with slight confusion at the wide-eyed child.

Yu Dilong, thinking quickly, swallowed the words he was about to say and asked, "Where are we going?"

Xu Fengnian calmly replied, "Wudang Mountain. I need to consolidate my physique and spiritual energy in a Grotto Heaven and Blessed Land there."

Since Yu Dilong could discern the strength of Wang Sheng's and Lu Yunzhang's auras, and having spent day and night with his master, he naturally knew a secret: his master's aura had been constantly weakening. Simply put, his master's martial arts cultivation was like drawing water with a bamboo basket; it was constantly leaking. If not quickly mended, not a drop would remain, and it might even cause irreparable damage to the basket itself. This was also why Chu Lushan had proposed five hundred cavalry to escort him at Huaiyang Pass, why he fought Wang Xianzhi to the death, killed Zhao Huangchao, laid siege to Wudi City, and confronted Wu Jian; Xu Fengnian's strength had been declining with each passing stage. If it weren't for this, the great-grand-elder of the Wu Family Sword Mound wouldn't have needed to go to such lengths, pretending to obstruct Xu Fengnian at the border of Youzhou and Hezhou.

Yu Dilong suddenly looked solemn, turned, and called out "Master" again.

Xu Fengnian nodded and was the first to stop his horse on the secluded, muddy road.

Yu Dilong's eyes widened as he saw the uninvited guest over a hundred feet away. She was a young woman in white clothes, barefoot. Normally, with the heavy rain pouring down, her clothes should have been soaked, but her feet were several feet off the ground, and her robes fluttered. Behind her, a white rainbow formed a supreme, mysterious vase body. As such, the radiance she emitted was like a full moon descending upon the human world. Yu Dilong immediately felt as if he were facing a formidable enemy. The woman's aura, though not as fierce and terrifying as that of the Northern Liang cavalry commander with the prominent lower eyelid, was deeper and more profound. Xu Fengnian stared expressionlessly at this spiritual qi cultivation genius from the South Sea Guanyin Sect who had been "collecting remnants" along the way. She had first forcibly snatched a hundred long swords from the lake at Youyan Mountain Villa. Later, she observed the "tigers fighting on the mountain" outside Shenwu City, probably intending to "fish in troubled waters." She never expected Han Shengxuan to suddenly die from Sui Xiegu's borrowed sword, and she failed to absorb the dissipated qi-luck after his death, subsequently disappearing without a trace. But after he defeated Wang Xianzhi, this woman began to absorb his constantly dissipating qi. When it came to "fattening up for autumn," there was no glutton in the world who could compare to this woman, nicknamed "Charcoal Seller Girl." However, Xu Fengnian had an agreement with the old woman from the South Sea Guanyin Sect previously, and since the other party was quite polite, Xu Fengnian did not deliberately stop the woman's "theft." Everyone in the world has their own karma and destiny, and Xu Fengnian didn't feel he had to monopolize the jianghu's qi-luck. As long as she didn't provoke him, whether this eccentric woman, a born sword embryo like Wang Sheng, became a Sword Immortal and the martial world's leader, or if Xuanyuan Qingfeng's demonic path advanced by a foot where the Dao advanced by an inch, taking the top spot, what did it matter to him?

After obtaining Xu Fengnian's lost qi, Charcoal Seller Girl thrived like a fish in water. She was at a much higher realm than at Youyan Mountain Villa. After appearing, she met Xu Fengnian's gaze, a condescending, playful smile curving her lips. She extended a hand and swiped it in front of her.

A magnificent scroll painting, as if drawn by a celestial being, unfurled before them.

One by one, lifelike, ethereal figures appeared under Charcoal Seller Girl's hand: Wang Xianzhi, the burly old man who rode the tides of the East Sea; Deng Tai'a, leading a donkey and carrying a peach branch; Cao Changqing, the West Chu official and Go master, pondering deeply over a move; Han Shengxuan, the 'Man-Cat,' with red threads fluttering from his sleeves; the spear-wielding man, somewhat resembling Qingniao; and Li Chungang, walking with his hands behind his back, riding his sword...

This scroll painting depicted about forty-odd figures, each one a grand, influential figure from the jianghu over the past century.

Figures whose images were dim were those who had died. Those who still shone brightly were the ones still alive.

Xu Fengnian recognized most of them. After the scroll unfurled, he himself was ranked second, and Tuoba Pusa was third. However, the positions of those who had already passed away remained unchanged, while the portraits of those still alive began to subtly shift positions, a dazzling sight. The most significant change was undoubtedly Tuoba Pusa displacing Xu Fengnian from his second-place ranking, becoming the second person from the left on the scroll. Among them, Huang Sanjia's sudden appearance on the list presented an ominous sight, sometimes bright, sometimes dim. Moreover, this Spring and Autumn Great Devil's image was vividly colored, unlike the black and white of the others.

After Charcoal Seller Girl revealed this display, she said with a grin, "This is our Guanyin Sect's most prized treasure. It can subdue demons and devils, and also command immortals and summon gods. Back then, my master — yes, the one defeated by Li Chungang — was supposed to shine brightly during the Spring and Autumn period by relying on this item."

Xu Fengnian calmly said, "I know. It's the Terrestrial Immortal Chart."

Charcoal Seller Girl clicked her tongue. "Well, well, Xu Fengnian, you've even heard of this?"

Xu Fengnian remained silent.

The Charcoal Seller Girl, whose origins were unknown, chuckled. She pointed a slender finger at the figure at the top of the scroll. "Xu Fengnian, don't you want to know who this person is?"

Xu Fengnian shook his head.

The white-robed woman narrowed her eyes and spoke to herself, "One thing overcomes another. Back then, that nameless Daoist sealed away the peerless Gao Shulu, who was unrivaled in the world. The Celestial Master's Mansion of Longhu Mountain suppressed Liu Songtao, the demonic overlord of Zhulu Mountain. Wang Xianzhi suppressed Li Chungang. And in the end, you subdued Wang Xianzhi. So, aren't you curious who will suppress you next?"

Xu Fengnian frowned.

Charcoal Seller Girl let out a small, surprised "oh." Looking at a fresh portrait that appeared out of nowhere on the scroll, she glanced at Yu Dilong, then stared at Xu Fengnian and continued, "Xu Fengnian, don't you want to know who Qi Xuanzhen and Hong Xixiang, both reincarnations of Patriarch Lu, were born into the world to suppress?"

Xu Fengnian looked at the portrait at the top of the scroll, which was inconsistent with the other figures. This person was blurry, but he could vaguely be seen wearing a scholar's robe, sitting cross-legged, his head bowed, gazing at a plain white bowl of water in front of him, about half full, with the surface gently rippling.

Charcoal Seller Girl, who had been performing a solo act, asked tirelessly, "Xu Fengnian, I ask you, why is it that among the Sages of the Three Teachings over the past century, the Confucian Sage has been the most difficult to appear suddenly? Xuanyuan Jingcheng ascended to this realm for less than half an hour, Huang Longshi was the same, and even Cao Changqing is a dying man."

Xu Fengnian fell into thought.

Charcoal Seller Girl, who had received no response, like a woman complaining about an unromantic lover, stamped her foot and grumbled, "Xu Fengnian, would it kill you to answer me?!"

Xu Fengnian merely sneered, an uncontrollable, intense murderous intent rising in his heart.

His intuition told him that if he answered the woman, he would truly die, unless he was at his peak.