Chapter 23: Wealth Should Not Be Exposed, Carefree and Content

On the south street of Guyang, two women strolled along, each holding a snack in one hand and occasionally glancing at the street-side stalls, looking carefree and content. Behind them, a man dressed in a white gauze Daoist robe looked, at first glance, as ethereal as a banished immortal, yet he was carrying so many brocade boxes that his face was completely obscured, and he even had an ancient sword strapped to his back.

Despite this, he was still able to follow the two closely with steady steps, as if he had eyes on the brocade boxes in front of him; every passerby who saw this could not help but cast a sidelong glance.

Yet the woman in front seemed accustomed to it, chatting and laughing, completely unaware.

"Aren't these little Lingxiang and Xiaomaidong? Who have you picked up this time? Come, come quickly, Granny just made some fresh osmanthus shortbread, come and have a taste!" At a street stall, an old woman with white hair saw the two and called out busily.

"That's right, Shen Popo, this is a little servant I just picked up; he has quite a lot of strength." Lingxiang hurried to the stall, picked up a piece of osmanthus cake, and took a bite. "Mmm~ Granny's osmanthus cake is still the best, fragrant but not greasy, and incredibly crispy."

Xiaomaidong chuckled inwardly upon hearing this: The Yuanqing Sect had not appeared in public for a long time and had recently reformed its clothing style; if everyone knew that this person was their own master, wouldn't their jaws drop?

Over there, Fuyin Zhenren could not help but feel stifled, yet he let out a soft laugh: Lingxiang was always so reckless and spoke without restraint, relying on the affection of her senior brothers to act wildly all day long.

The so-called wild behavior of Lingxiang did not mean she was doing evil; on the contrary, although Lingxiang's actions seemed willful, she always had a sense of propriety. Moreover, she was kind-hearted and always loved to help the weak, which was why the senior brothers in the sect understood her character and indulged her.

Just like Shen Popo here: she lost her husband in her early years, and her son went to the army, leaving only the mother-in-law, daughter-in-law, and a nursing child at home. Previously, she was plagued by illness and had no means of making a living; the farm work relied entirely on the daughter-in-law, yet they were repeatedly bullied by local thugs. Fortunately, Lingxiang stepped in, taught the local bullies a lesson, cured her illness, and even set up a stall for her.

The people of the south street were simple and honest, and all had, to some extent, received help from Lingxiang. Because she was approachable and kind, they all liked her very much and would always praise her whenever she was mentioned.

Shen Popo wrapped two solid packages of osmanthus cakes in oil paper and gave them to Lingxiang. After Lingxiang accepted them and thanked her, she quietly left some copper coins and headed toward Youran Abode with Xiaomaidong and her master.

"Master, why didn't you tell City Lord Zhao the truth?" Xiaomaidong asked thoughtlessly.

"What? Tell what truth?" Lingxiang asked vaguely while chewing a large mouthful of osmanthus cake.

"Fate is as it is, why add unnecessary trouble for others..." Fuyin Zhenren sighed softly, the brocade boxes obscuring his face, making him inscrutable.

"But Qiao Shi Furen, she..." Xiaomaidong wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by Lingxiang.

"Someone as infatuated as City Lord Zhao has deep obsessions. I suppose the City Lord's wife also understands her husband's character, which is why she keeps silent... Besides, Ajin is there, so I expect there won't be any trouble."

"Ajin? Isn't Ajin just a Divine Envoy? Why does Master respect him so much?" Xiaomaidong was puzzled.

"Although he is currently a Divine Envoy, I presume this must be his tribulation. If the opportunity arises in the future, he will surely attain the Dao, ascend, and be ranked among the True Gods."

"You don't read much, and all you think about all day is eating or money. Now you know how ignorant you are," Lingxiang teased.

Xiaomaidong wouldn't have it, and the two began to bicker. Fuyin laughed out loud, making Xiaomaidong even more embarrassed.

"Master! Even you are making fun of me!"

Fuyin Zhenren smiled without answering, and his thoughts turned to Ajin. Since ancient times, nine-tailed foxes were common, but nine-tailed cats were rare. He supposed the name "Ajin" was his tribulation...

"I remember reading in a book of strange tales when I was young that it mentioned the Nine-tailed Cat. Since ancient times, spirit beasts have cultivated to become demons, monsters, or immortals, yet Ajin cultivates the Ancient Divine Dao. That is a realm you and I can never reach. The hardships involved are known only to him. How many Cat Spirits have abandoned their original hearts and fallen into the demonic path because of this? Yet Ajin's eyes remain clear. If he can truly become a True God one day, perhaps he could even offer me some guidance," Lingxiang laughed.

"No wonder you suddenly started cozying up to Ajin; so you had this devious plan all along!" Xiaomaidong huffed and started tickling Lingxiang.

Hearing this, Fuyin felt a wave of sadness in his heart: Lingxiang's situation was known only to her master and a few senior brothers, and her master had once ordered that she must never be told about it. Seeing Lingxiang laughing and joking all day, everyone actually knew how much she had paid for her own cultivation. If she were to learn everything about herself one day, then...

Fuyin shifted the brocade boxes, revealing half his face to look at Lingxiang: It was not just the indulgence of her senior brothers; this girl was truly heartbreaking.

"Lingxiang," Fuyin Zhenren said hesitatingly, "so much time has passed, isn't it about time to return to the sect?"

Xiaomaidong looked at her with a worried expression. Lingxiang froze at the words, then shouted like a cat with its fur standing on end.

"Return? Return to what! That old man Shangqing refuses to give me the position of Treasure Keeper, but instead gives me the title of Palm Furnace Elder. Palm Furnace, Palm Furnace, why not just call me a cook! Isn't that just watching a furnace? Why! I'm not here to tend fires and cook, what furnace am I supposed to palm!"

"The Sect Leader also has his own difficulties," Fuyin said, unable to laugh or cry, feeling helpless—so this was what the girl cared about?

Xiaomaidong, however, was thoughtful: she understood Lingxiang best. Although she said this, the real reason was definitely not this, even though she didn't know what had happened in the great hall that day.

"Forget it, you people with such profound cultivation wouldn't understand even if I told you."

Lingxiang suddenly changed the subject. They had arrived at the door of Youran Abode. Looking at the small wooden door under the plaque, Fuyin suddenly felt a sense of unease.

Xiaomaidong looked at her master with sympathy: Lingxiang hadn't continued to dwell on the matter, which meant she was definitely going to use her sharp tongue to mock her master.

"Hey, back then you all looked down on my Youran Abode, and now the dignified Punishment Elder of the Yuanqing Sect is actually gracing my humble home with his presence. It truly makes my humble abode shine!"

Sure enough, this dead girl loved to find loopholes to mock others.

Xiaomaidong hurried to open the door, wanting to smooth things over for her master, but was shocked by the scene inside: the medicine cabinet used for storing herbs had been turned upside down, the tables and chairs were not in their original places, and the floor was covered with broken tea sets and porcelain shards that had contained pills...

Seeing this, Lingxiang rushed to the backyard, and only felt slightly relieved when she saw the medicine field was safe and sound.

These precious Spirit Plants that she had worked so hard to obtain must absolutely not be damaged...

Seeing Lingxiang rush in regardless of the danger, Fuyin Zhenren was afraid that the thieves hadn't left and might harm her. He hurriedly put down the brocade boxes, told Xiaomaidong to wait outside, and followed her in a rush.

"Thank goodness, you're all okay."

"The house has been trashed like this, and you only care about these Spirit Plants?" Seeing her only concerned with her medicine field and nothing else, he couldn't help but feel a mix of amusement and frustration.

"Of course, these are rare items I worked so hard to get, especially this Nine-leaf Chonglou, which cost me one Life-Prolonging Pill and two Marrow Cleansing Pills," Lingxiang said, picking up the Chonglou plant beside her.

Fuyin Zhenren then noticed that it was indeed a Chonglou, but a Nine-leaf Chonglou...

"You went to the Taishang Sect?"

"Yes." Lingxiang looked down at the Chonglou in her arms; it had truly grown nine leaves, not in vain of her watering it with Spirit Vein Water.

Hearing that she had been to the Taishang Sect, Fuyin pondered for a moment and asked, "You just said you used a Life-Prolonging Pill? What exactly happened?"

Lingxiang thought for a moment and told Fuyin the whole story.

A cultivator who uses dual blades is a rare sight indeed!

It is true that some cultivators have weapons they excel at, but most use swords, whisks, or staffs. Ruthless weapons like blades are mostly not used by cultivators, unless...

Fuyin and Lingxiang had been quiet for a long time, so Xiaomaidong cautiously entered the room. Hearing their conversation and seeing her master's grave expression, she felt something was amiss.

"The Life-Prolonging Pill is a rare treasure. Using it so openly, you have likely already been targeted by evildoers. Now that they have found your residence, Youran Abode is no longer safe. Why not come up the mountain with your master and me?"

Lingxiang thought for a moment and felt this made sense: her own cultivation was not deep. If it were truly evildoers like the last time, she feared it would be difficult to escape. Although that stubborn old man Shangqing was a bit annoying, he could at least protect her. That brat Long Qi had already entered the sect, so she could take the opportunity to see the results of his recent cultivation.

Thinking this, she nodded in agreement.

Seeing Lingxiang agree, Fuyin Zhenren breathed a sigh of relief, though he still felt a sense of unease in his heart. He would have to go back and discuss this matter with the Sect Leader and the other senior brothers.