Chapter 11: Uncle

“Dingding has grown taller again.”

“Yuanyuan, you’ve gotten fatter.”

Uncle Lin Yong and his wife teased each other, making Jiang Yuan resist in annoyance.

On the family dinner table were only Sprite, orange juice, and other drinks; except for the brief period when Jiang Ding lived with his father, Lin Wanshu’s entire family had never liked alcohol since their grandparents’ time.

Lin Yong’s smile faded as he asked, “Dingding, how have your grades been lately?”

Jiang Ding didn’t feel any annoyance at the question.

Uncle Lin Yong had a square, upright face and a tall build; as a teacher, he understood the awkwardness of middle and high school students and offered patient listening, making him very popular.

“Same as always.”

“Good!”

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This implies an extreme endorsement of the Immortal Sect’s ideological system—at least both society and the Central Array Spirit computer regard it this way—enabling one to easily claim the moral high ground in Immortal Sect politics.

Seeing the three figures charging toward him, Jiang Ding felt a latent bloodthirsty craving stir within him.

Those who saw the boy in green robes, sword at his waist, all avoided him, none daring to approach.

“Sis, there’s something you should consider.”

“Mom, do we have enough money?” Jiang Ding asked; perhaps he should accelerate exploration of the other world, at least to acquire some currency.

“He brought it up himself—otherwise how would we even know about these things?”

Jiang Ding replied honestly: “Moral and ideological scores are high—I feel I can still improve, and I have some confidence in nearing full marks; for other cultural subjects like math, physics, geography, progress is minimal.”

Along the way, whenever someone blocked him, a single flash of his sword eliminated the obstacle—even when surrounded by several attackers, each left with only one wound.

“That’s right, sis,” his wife chimed in. “You and Lin Yong are siblings—don’t be so formal.”

The Immortal Sect is a rule-of-law society, yes; public urban areas are under constant surveillance by regional Array Spirit computers, yes; historically, even high-cultivation cultivators who severely violated criminal law were swiftly punished—even executed—making the system extremely reliable.

Are you not sufficiently loyal to the Immortal Sect? Do you harbor other intentions? “Ah, what a pity.”

Lin Wanshu sighed: “A younger brother is truly reliable.”

Jiang Ding frowned—he disliked this social atmosphere.

His wife felt uneasy but didn’t stop her husband.

Jiang Ding was absorbed in watching the spectacle when a thunderous shout reached his ears.

He stepped to the edge of the battlefield, hand resting on his sword, silent but with a faint roar echoing around him.

The shout wasn’t a warning—using it as cover, two crossbow bolts flew through the air, then three burly masked men charged forward with long spears in a triangular formation, highly disciplined.

“You can nearly reach full marks in moral and ideological studies?” Lin Yong froze—he knew his nephew wasn’t boasting.

The Immortal Sect market has many spiritual pills and herbs, but if one takes any that damage one’s foundation—even with high cultivation or excellent grades—the Dao Studies department will never accept them.

He stepped sideways, easily avoiding being surrounded by the three.

The Immortal Sect has two currencies: Spirit Coins and Common Coins.

The Immortal Sect’s industry is highly advanced; many alchemy, artifact forging, cultivation plant cultivation, and talisman-making processes involve large numbers of commoners and industrial machines for preliminary processing—for example, at Lin Wanshu’s Rongcheng Steel Plant, many semi-magic artifacts are engraved by Inner Qi cultivators using optical array engraving machines.

Jiang Ding was surprised: “There are really Inner Qi cultivators weaker than Gong Caiyu?”

By the end, a smile appeared on his face—he felt deeply relieved.

Zooming in, there were a dozen donkey carts, over ten people, heavily laden with goods, using the carts as cover to resist dozens of masked attackers; behind them, not far off, stood a towering tiger-skin banner, imposing and fierce.

Therefore, fewer people knowing meant less risk of exposure.

He knew well the importance of nearly full marks in moral and ideological studies.

Most importantly, they felt no trace of the distinctive Inner Qi energy signature.

He stood still, hand on his sword for a moment, then stepped onto the narrow path, walking toward the mountains’ outer edge.

Jiang Yuan pouted. The whole family cleared the table, cleaned up, and threw out the trash; Jiang Ding returned to his room.

Especially the masked Inner Qi cultivator—he swung an iron spear with terrifying force, heavy and brutal; a moment’s inattention left a fist-sized hole gushing blood in a victim’s body.

Many goods require both currencies.

“Wow, Jiang Ding, you’ll soon be slicing a whole potato into threads with one sword!” Jiang Yuan exclaimed, drawn to another direction.

The masked men didn’t answer—they attacked even harder.

“Who are you? Daring to rob the Four Seas Trading Company’s cargo?”

Perfect—he felt that even if he concealed himself, he’d still stand out too much; he wanted companions to enter the city together, and these people were just right.

Step-Sword Style! The sword tip slashed diagonally—the masked giant’s eyes widened in shock; before the two spears could retract, another horizontal slash followed.

“Who are you?”

“Great hero! The Four Seas Trading Company operates across Yue State—we always seek harmony and profit, and we have many connections with fellow travelers. Is there some misunderstanding here?”

Lin Wanshu sighed; for her, clothing could be saved, use could be saved, but food was unbearable to cut.

Behind him, the three masked men stiffened, then collapsed silently; their spearheads clanged against the ground, three nearly identical slashes appearing on their throats, thick streams of blood gushing out, quickly soaking the earth.

“Ghost!”

Lin Yong sighed again—his cultural subject scores were low; cultivation subjects were decent, but clearly couldn’t make up for the huge gap in cultural subjects.

The difference was simple: any goods involving cultivator labor or spiritual materials required Spirit Coins; goods involving commoner labor or materials required Common Coins.

He wasn’t planning to tell his family about the other world—for now.

Vast mountains stretched out; the mountain wind stirred waves of green. The remnants of yesterday’s bonfire were still visible via drone. Lin Yong said proudly: “Yes, sis—it’s the Blue Flower Foundation-Establishing Pill.”

Some dodged, others ignored him—he walked straight ahead.

Three bandits thrust their spears simultaneously at throat, left flank, and right abdomen—as if a six-armed giant struck all at once.

“I’m just passing through.”

Lin Wanshu hesitated: “Yuanwang’s talent is far superior to Dingding’s; his future potential is greater too—if we delay his cultivation...”

“Then... thank you so much.”

Lin Wanshu nodded slowly: “I still have some savings—I’ll transfer them to you tomorrow. Ah, thank you, Yuanwang.”

All were throat-slits! The bandit leader glanced at the corpses on the ground—his heart turned cold.

“If Common Coins aren’t enough, I can lend you some.”

Jiang Ding ignored him; wherever his sword went, blood sprayed—bandits fell one after another.

Among the masked men was one Inner Qi cultivator; the rest, except a few, wore tattered clothes and were weak in combat—only their bloodlust stood out, and they had numbers.

Shhh! Shhh!

Jiang Ding and Lin Wanshu spoke in unison.

Under siege, the caravan guards kept dying; the Inner Qi supervisor bore multiple wounds, escape impossible, his face filled with despair.

In the drone’s view, several hundred meters away on the road, people were fighting—blood was spilled, people falling frequently.

If it were some army, sect, or school, he’d seriously consider his next move—but “Tiger Mountain” sounded like an insignificant name, unlikely to disrupt his plans.

He sheathed his sword and walked toward the center of the battlefield without looking back.

Though outnumbered, the situation wasn’t one-sided.

The Immortal Sect isn’t a demonic sect—it doesn’t have direct lethal prohibitions.

!.

“Don’t worry, sis!” Lin Yong waved his hand. “Yuanwang’s in the Dao Studies Department at Qianling University—this amount of Spirit Coins means nothing to him, and he’s your own nephew—what’s wrong with helping out?”

Lin Wanshu gently patted her, signaling her not to interrupt adult conversation.

Soon, the bandit leader noticed the commotion—he smashed his spear away from the caravan chief and roared: “Tiger Mountain Bandits at work! Stay clear!”

He parried the last spear aimed at his chest, then stepped forward abruptly, nearly brushing the masked giant’s robe.

Lin Yong paused, then said: “You know, Yuanwang has settled in at Qianling University. Yesterday he told me there’s an opportunity to exchange for Blue Flower Foundation-Establishing Pills—he’s earned some Spirit Coins, but still needs 200,000 Common Coins to get one for Dingding. What do you think?”

Jiang Yuan hesitated, then reluctantly raised her hand, her face scrunched up like a crumpled cloth.

But if the profit is great enough, some will still take desperate risks.

Whether for work or study opportunities, if scores are close, any superior who doesn’t choose Jiang Ding will face criticism.

“In cultivation subjects, I can reach Inner Qi within a few months.”

Bandits fell in waves, defenseless; morale began to collapse—yet all eyes remained fixed on the bandit leader.

“Blue Flower Foundation-Establishing Pill?”

“That pill is too precious.”

…

“Killing so casually...”

“About right—we’ll just have to cut back on expenses for a while.”

Several hours later, the mountain path widened; the small grasses along the road vanished, and travelers became more common—mostly farmers gathering firewood or hay.

It was all because the caravan had an Inner Qi cultivator whose life energy was noticeably weaker than Gong Caiyu’s.

“You’re in charge of buying vegetables from now on!”

“Who are you?”

“I have some savings...”

Saw off Uncle’s family.

Clang! Drew sword, Show-Sword Style!

Jiang Ding’s expression shifted slightly.

A brilliant arc slashed diagonally, deflecting two powerful crossbow bolts; the sword pointed downward.

The other guards were also fairly capable.

“Die!”

Put on your gear and open your eyes.

Lin Wanqiu froze, then asked urgently: “Is that the Blue Flower Foundation-Elevating Elixir that can enhance a martial artist’s talent without damage?”

It was something even he could not accomplish.

The space around Jiang Ding emptied; no one dared approach. He shook the blood from his sword and turned his gaze toward the internal qi martial artist holding the iron spear.

“It’s hot! Run!”

The bandit leader didn’t look back, and the surrounding bandits scattered like birds and beasts.

Update time: 15:30

(End of chapter)