Chapter 630: Resuming the Old Trade

"..."

Not to mention others, even Shen Yi was taken aback for a moment.

He had merely mentioned it offhandedly; after all, doing business is all about haggling over the price.

Having just arrived in Shenzhou, he was already burdened with two major troubles.

First was the matter of killing a True Immortal; if discovered by the Immortal Court, it would be regarded as treason, a grave crime punishable by a thousand cuts.

Second was Princess Ziling; this woman, to protect her reputation for chastity, did not even spare her own birth father, let alone other living beings in Hongze.

To resolve these two troubles, one must possess either sufficient strength or sufficient status.

Tsk, now he can't even find a job; how difficult it is to raise one's status.

As for strength...

After completing the Dao-Integration Realm, a cultivator would earn the title of Loose Immortal.

It sounds related to the word "Immortal," which seems quite nice.

In fact, the more important character is that "Loose."

Without a master, without connections, unable to enter the Immortal Court as an official, one could only spend a lifetime as a wandering Loose Immortal.

According to the casual notes left by the Eastern Dragon King.

The most orthodox path is, of course, the Puti Sect and the Sanxian Sect within the Three Teachings, leading straight to Yuan Tongtian, with a bright future.

The next best option is the various Xian Sects that once heard the Dharma in those two sects and forged their own unique paths; perhaps they cannot become top-tier Immortals, but at least they can remove the "Loose" from their title, becoming Taiyi Zhenxian, and even attaining the Taiyi Dao Fruit is not impossible.

Shen Yi, having just left Hongze with no connections whatsoever, originally planned to first join the Divine Dynasty; with an identity, it would be easier for him to understand and contact cultivators from other Xian Sects.

He never expected this Puti Sect practitioner to agree so readily, leaving him somewhat at a loss.

Could this be a trap?

Shen Yi's old habit struck again.

"It's settled then." The ascetic monk smiled, clasped his palms, and bowed again in this direction: "I am Monk Zhikong; this journey will be a burden on you, benefactor."

As the words fell, Ziyang, who had just been eager to agree on Shen Yi's behalf, now had an increasingly strange expression; loosening his sleeves, he transmitted a voice: "Wait, are you really going?"

There is no such thing as a pie falling from the sky in this world.

Shen Yi rolled his eyes at this Rain-Prayer Envoy and transmitted a voice calmly: "Do I have any other choice?"

He did not mind traveling with Ziyang to visit mountains and rivers, seeking the Dao at the various Xian Sects, but how many days could that heavenly stable hold Princess Ziling?

To take a step back, even if he truly learned these livelihood skills, just lingering in the Divine Dynasty, casting clouds and rain every day, competing with that woman on whose status rises faster?

Thinking of this, Shen Yi looked back at the ascetic monk, nodded slightly: "Please lead the way, Master."

"..."

Ziyang watched the two walk away with his own eyes, stood in place for a moment, and finally could not help but stomp his feet, stepping forward with the intention of following them.

Although his strength was not as great as Shen Zongzhu's, at least he knew the outside world better; following along, they could at least assist each other.

Just then, Ziyang felt his right arm firmly gripped; no matter how he struggled, his figure could not move a fraction.

"Don't bother; I am Eighth Rank."

Hearing the lazy, hoarse voice by his ear, Ziyang turned back and saw that the one gripping him was precisely that diminutive Earth God.

The immortal rank of Earth God, while not dangerous, is also difficult to promote; reaching Eighth Rank is enough to show how deep the other party's seniority is.

"That person's blood carries wind; he is no good sort. Meddle less in these matters and do your job as a Rain-Prayer Envoy well."

The Earth God of Jianyang Prefecture lowered his eyebrows, looking listless, and dragged Ziyang back to the front of the Earth God Temple.

"You know nothing." Ziyang retorted immediately; of course he knew how much blood Shen Zongzhu had on his hands, but for what reason was that blood shed? Did this old thing ever know?

He could never forget the gentle look on that young man's face as he, clad in a black robe, stepped into the main hall of the Eastern Dragon Palace and gently closed his father's eyes.

But anger aside, the moment those words left his mouth, Ziyang immediately sensed something was wrong, and his face instantly became embarrassed.

He, a wild dragon from a remote great marsh, had no qualification to speak disrespectfully to an Eighth Rank Immortal.

However, the Earth God merely rolled his eyes at him, raised the wooden cane in his hand, and struck his forehead hard: "Considering your clan has no brains, I will let this one slide."

Hearing these words, Ziyang was stunned for a moment, finally realizing.

So this person was also an acquaintance of his father?

He quickly forced a smile: "This young one speaks without restraint, with absolutely no ill intent; I hope the Earth God will forgive me... but my elder brother is truly a good person; please help him find a suitable job in Jianyang Prefecture."

Upon hearing this, the Earth God's expression remained unfluctuating, simply saying calmly: "It is too late."

A simple sentence, yet it made Ziyang's heart skip a beat: "What does the Earth God mean by this?"

The old man lifted his gaze lightly: "How many demons and evil spirits are there in Jianyang Prefecture? This is an internal matter of the Puti Sect; a villain daring to steal the sect's techniques is not something a young ruffian who just descended the mountain can deal with."

"Of course, that practitioner lacks experience, but his strength is real; his life is safe. As for your elder brother... he had better truly be skilled at subduing demons."

The Earth God said no more and slowly entered the temple.

Leaving only Ziyang with a pale face; looking back again, where was the trace of Shen Zongzhu?

Jianyang Prefecture, Chengxi.

The ascetic monk, accompanied by a young man, paused briefly before a bustling tavern, waiting for a young couple to arrive.

"These two are a chivalrous couple from the Ziyun Sect, practicing in the mortal world; they are most skilled in the technique of seeking Qi. Entrusted by this humble monk, they have come to assist. This is Shen Xianyou from the General Nanyang Sect, a master of demon-slaying."

Monk Zhikong stood in the middle, introducing both sides: "Thank you all, benefactors."

General Nanyang Sect?

The young couple pondered for a moment, then awkwardly and perfunctorily clasped their hands: "We have long heard of you... to relieve Master Zhikong's worries is our honor; please do not mention thanks again."

The two had no intention of exchanging many pleasantries with Shen Yi; on the contrary, the woman secretly glanced at him with a look of apprehension, seemingly worried about being overshadowed in front of Master Zhikong.

Such an opportunity to befriend members of the Puti Sect is extremely rare and must be grasped well.

If they can befriend the Puti Sect, this trip down the mountain gate will not be in vain, and they will have capital to brag about upon returning to their sect.

As for the Demon-Slaying Expert... in the lands of the Divine Dynasty, only Master Zhikong would believe that a loose immortal could be the Demon-Slaying Expert.

"We have already found that person's scent, Master, please follow us this way."

The man turned slightly, blocking Shen Yi, leaving the already inconspicuous Shen Zongzhu acting like a complete invisible person.

His Daoist partner and he had worked hard on this matter; for a newcomer to try and get a share through deception and fraud was simply thinking too much.

"..."

Shen Yi followed silently behind, having no interest in going up to argue out of jealousy.

In his view, it would be best if nothing needed to be done and the cultivation method was obtained directly; that would be truly comfortable.

Under the guidance of that Daoist couple, the group crossed the long street, stepped into an increasingly remote alley, and stopped before an utterly ordinary gatehouse.

"Master Zhikong, that aura appeared right here." The Daoist couple tactfully stepped back half a pace.

"Thank you, benefactor."

Monk Zhikong knocked gently on the door a few times, then stood politely outside waiting.

Soon, only the sound of a creak was heard.

A woman cautiously pushed the door open a crack and looked outside; upon seeing Zhikong's attire, panic surged in her eyes, and she warned cautiously, "You have the wrong place."

With that, she slammed the door shut with a bang.

"This..."

Monk Zhikong stood dazed at the door, palms pressed together; he seemed not yet to have had the chance to explain his purpose.

Although this descent from the mountain had not involved dealings with many people, begging for alms was expected, yet he had never encountered such a situation.

After pondering for a moment, he tried to make his expression kinder and reached out to knock on the wooden door again: "Benefactor, this monk is not a villain, merely seeking to ask a question..."

Before his words ended, the wooden door was shoved open violently.

A man resembling a ruffian rushed out, without a word delivering a round of punches and kicks, desperately pushing Zhikong outward while cursing, "I said you have the wrong place! Go beg alms somewhere else! There are no leftover meals here!"

With Zhikong's realm, let alone making a move, even if a trace of his aura leaked out, it could shatter this man into minced meat.

Yet he was full of shock, retreating step by step behind while protecting the man, stammering an explanation: "This monk... this monk did not come to beg alms..."

However, the man gave him no chance to finish, pushed him down the steps, and slammed the door shut again with a bang.

"..."

Monk Zhikong turned to look at that Daoist couple.

The Daoist couple also looked at each other; as cultivators of the Xian Sect, since descending to the mortal world to train, they had not been respected everywhere, but they had never suffered such humiliation.

If it had been a demon or evil spirit, they would have simply drawn their sword and struck.

But this was Jianyang Prefecture, the other party was merely a mortal, and indeed there was no scent of demons.

"How about I go exchange for some mortal gold and silver?"

"I have quite a few immortal jade pieces here."

The Daoist couple forced a smile; using wealth to open the way was never wrong.

The woman took out a precious jade and handed it to Monk Zhikong.

"I—"

Monk Zhikong reached out to take the jade, somewhat unaccustomed; the so-called distinction between immortals and mortals meant that for cultivators like them to casually scatter wealth among mortals and interfere in human affairs was a great taboo.

Just then, he finally saw the young man in black robes standing not far away.

He saw this Shen Xianyou standing silently in place, a faint look of shock on his Bai Xi and handsome face, watching the three of them with a strange gaze.

As if... as if looking at a Bai Chi.

Zhikong cast a pleading look: "Does Shen Xianyou have a solution?"

"Huff."

Shen Yi closed his eyes and let out a long breath.

Immediately, he stepped forward, reached out, and took the jade tablet from Zhikong's hand.

The next moment, under the dazed gaze of the three, he did not even use his cultivation power but suddenly kicked the wooden door flying.

Boom—

The husband and wife who had been lying behind the door eavesdropping were sent flying out unexpectedly.

Before they even hit the ground, the woman began screaming like a slaughtered pig: "Murder! Murder! A monk is murdering! Quickly report to the authorities!"

The man rolled several times on the ground, then rushed up like a madman, wanting to repeat on Shen Yi the same tactics he had just used on Zhikong.

However, just as he rushed to the front, his neck was tightly grasped by five slender fingers.

Looking at the black-robed youth's handsome face, expressionless and shrouded in surging murderous intent, the man suddenly lost his voice, followed immediately by his crotch becoming wet.

"Crazy... attacking mortals in Jianyang Prefecture without cause?"

The Daoist couple swallowed hard; if this matter escalated to the Prefect, not only the two of them, but even the Ziyun Sect behind them would suffer misfortune.

Did they really think the Human Emperor's rule over Shenzhou was just a joke?

Those mortals could treat cultivators with an ordinary heart not for any other reason, but simply because of the imperial court's methods of killing and suppression.

Cultivators not interfering in mortal affairs is an iron law!

Zhikong finally came to his senses and rushed forward, wanting to stop him.

However, Shen Yi was already holding that man, walking slowly to the woman, slightly bending down, extending his palm, and waving the jade tablet between his fingers before her eyes.

He said not a word, yet the woman stared fixedly at the jade tablet, looking at the obscure text she could not read on it, then at the youth, sensing that familiar scent on him, and even her voice stuttered.

Without bullying hundreds of small vendors on the streets, one could absolutely not cultivate such a reckless and shameless aura.

"Of... Officer my lord..."

"Will you confess yourself, or shall I search personally?" Shen Yi put away the jade tablet, casually threw the man onto the ground, his expression calm.

"We really did nothing, my lord, please investigate clearly!" The husband and wife were already kneeling on the ground, banging their heads repeatedly.

"..."

Shen Yi glanced indifferently at the two, stepped into the inner room, and left only a cold remark: "I found one place; I want one of your hands."

Hearing this, the two suddenly raised their heads, faces full of terror.

To be honest, using Dao Realm cultivation to deal with two mortals was truly a bit of a loss of face.

But with Shen Yi's current strength, even if the fine hairs on their faces moved slightly, they could not escape his perception.

Guided by the man's changing expression, he walked straight to the corner of the bedroom, then lightly crushed the wall; watching the stone skin peel away, he revealed the altar within, and the statue covered by red cloth.

Shen Yi lifted the red cloth, gazed down at that rat statue, and said softly: "One place."

The couple who had just chased in instantly went limp, knelt with a thud right where they stood, faces deathly pale, without a trace of color left.

Shen Yi turned and walked to the bed, pressed his hand to crush the bedboard, took out a gilded small booklet, and slapped it onto the man's face: "Two places."

Precious experience left behind when the previous owner stripped the people of their fat and marrow.

Where these people liked to hide things could be found without even needing to use one's brain.

Shen Yi stopped searching; after all, a person only has two hands.

He stepped over the couple trembling like a sieve, reached toward the three who stood by the door as if struck by lightning, and drew a Immortal Sword from the sword sheath of the knightly couple.

With one hand holding the sword and the other grabbing the man, Shen Yi slammed him violently onto the table.

The entire process was smooth and effortless, making it impossible to doubt he had done it ten million times before.

Under the reflection of that cold, harsh sword light, a pig-slaughtering scream finally rang out in the room.

The man's body hair stood on end, his voice nearly breaking: "I'll talk!!!"

Shen Yi released the man's neck, tossed the Immortal Sword back into the knightly couple's arms, sat calmly on the chair, poured himself a cup of warm water, took a slight sip, then glanced toward the Monk at the door: "Ask."

It was truly outrageous; if he hadn't come out of Hongze, he would absolutely not believe that an existence comparable to a Taiyi Zhenxian could be stopped by a small wooden door.

It almost made Uncle Shen laugh.

"Ah?"

Master Zhikong's mouth had already gaped wide, staring blankly at the jade plaque on the table.

If the other party hadn't just taken it from his own hand, judging by Shen Xianyou's demeanor and conduct, even he would think this person was an actual envoy of the Divine Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)