Chapter 95: True Fishing Enthusiast: Ze

The pavilion is picturesque, with natural Spirit Rhyme.

A faint sound of a zither drifts from the pavilion; before even ascending, one feels their Divine Soul grow clear.

In a trance, it is as if one sees high mountains and flowing waters, with clouds and mists rolling and unfurling.

A faint fragrance also descends from the pavilion; upon smelling it, one feels their mind and spirit grow peaceful.

Treading on the clear breeze, standing at the entrance of the pavilion, the boy transformed from a carp reaches out toward Li Xiang, making a gesture of invitation.

Seeing Li Xiang enter, the boy transforms back into a swimming fish, leaps lightly from the pavilion, and jumps from the air into the Spirit Pool below.

Without bias or deviation, it lands exactly in the seventh pool counting down from the top.

The next moment.

A fishing rod extends from the side, a white line drops down, gently coils around this carp bearing Golden Scales, and tosses it into the sixth Spirit Pool.

The carp wags its tail repeatedly in the water, bowing continuously toward the pavilion to express its thanks.

Afterward, with a flick of its tail, it swims comfortably in the water, mingling with the school of fish, looking quite at ease.

Li Xiang sees that in the sixth Spirit Pool, thousands of swimming fish live there.

On their bodies, they all grow Golden Scales to a greater or lesser extent.

Some have six, some have seven, and some fish even have ten Golden Scales growing on their bodies.

The fish that was just tossed up by the fishing rod only has one Golden Scale on its body.

Moreover, its form is relatively small; it stands out somewhat like a chicken in a flock of cranes, appearing rather special.

Withdrawing his thoughts, Li Xiang looks up toward the front.

He does not know who the master of the pavilion waiting for him might be.

However, considering it is a perfect-level encounter, he does not feel troubled in his heart, and lifting his legs, he walks inside.

The pavilion is not large, but it is extremely elegant.

The decor is simple, carrying an air of detachment from the world.

After entering the pavilion and looking around, Li Xiang's gaze falls upon a fishing platform at the very front of the pavilion.

There, a cultivator in white clothes has his back to Li Xiang, holding a fishing rod, angling for the Spirit Fish in the Spirit Pool.

It was he who just lightly waved the fishing rod, tossing that carp with one Golden Scale from the seventh pool into the sixth pool.

He bestowed a stroke of good fortune upon that carp.

Beside him are two other boys.

One boy and one girl; the boy plays the zither, and the girl burns incense, serving on either side.

How detached from the world it is.

Looking around again, Li Xiang sees that the entire pavilion is suspended in the air, just level with the Dragon Gate, allowing one to overlook the nine Spirit Pools below.

In every pool, many swimming fish live.

The bottom-most layers only contain ordinary carp; they leap from the water with shallow Spirit Rhyme below, jumping onto the Spirit Platform to live.

These carp, nourished by the Spirit Rhyme, seem very intelligent.

They wander and dwell in the pools, and occasionally one can see strong swimming fish following the flowing water, wanting to leap into the middle Spirit Pools.

In the middle layers of Spirit Pools, there are basically only carp that have grown Golden Scales, more or less, distinguishing them.

The fish in the sixth layer have grown a few scales, while the fish in the fifth layer are already almost entirely covered in Golden Scales.

By the fourth Spirit Pool, the Spirit Fish within are already entirely covered in golden scales, swimming against the current, wanting to rush into the third Spirit Pool.

And the three Spirit Pools closest to the Dragon Gate seem to have already attained divine brilliance.

Not only are they covered in Golden Scales, but their bodies have also undergone some changes.

The fish in the third layer have grown claws.

The fish in the second layer have grown short horns.

By the very top, on that purple-gold platform, the fish have already undergone earth-shaking changes.

Their bellies have grown claws, their heads have grown horns, and their entire bodies are covered in Golden Scales, looking very divinely brilliant.

They appear to be fish bodies, yet they are not fish bodies.

From time to time, they even spit out a bright pearl from their mouths, absorbing the power of the Spirit Spring, as if they are cultivating.

The higher one goes in these Spirit Pools, the scarcer the fish become.

By the top layer, there are only four divinely brilliant fish, inhaling and exhaling Spirit Rhyme near the Dragon Gate.

As Li Xiang ascends the pavilion, the cultivator with his back to Li Xiang lightly flicks his wrist, retracting the fishing rod.

The end of the fishing line is empty; it seems to be a hookless rod.

The cultivator retracts the rod, places it to the side, turns around to look at Li Xiang, and reveals a faint smile.

"Fellow Daoist, you have arrived."

This person is fair-skinned, with a face like a youth, very handsome, and appears quite dashing.

The only pity is that the scholarly air is a bit heavy, and his brows are tinged with a hint of effeminacy.

On top of his head, he also has two curved horns pointing backward, and white whiskers; he does not look like a human, but rather a demon cultivator.

"This Daoist calculated today that an honored guest would ascend the pavilion."

"It is just that my hands were slightly busy, as there is a fish-dragon about to emerge from the water."

"I failed to welcome you from afar; I ask that you forgive me, Fellow Daoist."

The cultivator stands up and smiles toward Li Xiang.

Li Xiang nods slightly, signaling a return of the greeting.

"This Daoist is Li Xiang; I have met you, Fellow Daoist."

Immediately, the cultivator stands up.

"I ask that you forgive me, fellow Daoist; my name involves certain Causality."

"Since we have met, it is fate; I have no intention of dragging you into this Causality."

"You may simply call me by one character: Ze."

The cultivator in white said softly.

He did not seem displeased that Li Xiang was human while he himself was a demon.

"I have been fishing in these mountains for a hundred years and have not descended for a long time."

"Having a guest visit today truly brings joy to my heart."

"This Daoist has prepared some wine and food; I wonder if you, fellow Daoist, would be interested in having a drink with Ze?"

Seeing Li Xiang ascend the pavilion, this cultivator in white seemed very delighted.

He nodded to signal the two boy attendants to remove the long zither and the Incense Burner.

They replaced them with a round table, and with a slight flick of his fingertips, several small dishes and a pot of clear wine appeared on the table.

Li Xiang smiled slightly, and without standing on ceremony, he walked forward and sat down.

"That is excellent!"

"Very good!"

Never mind what kind of demon cultivator he is.

He has even seen Hongjun; would he be worried about a small scene like this?

A perfect-level encounter—he just needs to lie back and watch the show.

Ze poured the wine and placed it before Li Xiang.

"Fellow Daoist, please!"

The two raised their cups and tapped them lightly in the air, then Li Xiang drank his in one gulp.

As the wine entered his throat, he felt a burst of fragrance.

Although it was called wine, it was closer to honey; a sweetness swirled in his throat, overflowing with fragrance.

At the same time, Li Xiang clearly felt a breath of clear, spiritual energy circling his body, rushing straight toward his Spirit Platform.

The Divine Soul on the Spirit Platform trembled slightly, and like parched earth meeting sweet rain, it began to absorb these Spirit Rhymes on its own.

He tasted the small dishes again, which were also full of Spirit Rhyme.

These dishes seemed to be Spirit Fruit from the mountains, roughly processed.

Although they were not particularly precious Spirit Fruit, they were filled with Spiritual Qi.

Just like that.

Li Xiang's Immortal Dao cultivation began to grow unconsciously.

"Good wine!"

"Good food!"

He said comfortably.

Looking at the cultivator before him, his gaze softened quite a bit.

Was today's banquet his own fortuitous encounter?

The wine was Spirit Wine, the food was Spirit Dish; after eating this meal, he figured he would have collected enough Spirit Rhyme to break through to the Eighth Grade.

"Haha, I am glad you like it, fellow Daoist."

"I am bored staying on this mountain on ordinary days, so I collected some dew from the plants to brew some wine, and had the attendants pick some Spirit Fruit to serve as snacks."

"If you do not blame me for my poor hospitality, Ze will feel at ease."

This cultivator drank with Li Xiang.

They talked a little about the origin of this place, and he learned why this demon cultivator was here.

This place was the location of a Dragon Gate, though its specific history could no longer be verified.

This Dragon Gate was hidden within a small world, spitting out a Spirit Spring and nurturing nine Spirit Pools below.

The spring contained True Dragon Spirit Rhyme, and all creatures with scales and armor could swim against the current to change their own bloodlines.

If one could leap over the Dragon Gate, one could transform into the legendary Divine Dragon; it was an extremely precious opportunity.

These fish leaped over the Spirit Pools, their bodies and bloodlines changing, shifting toward the form of a dragon.

A hundred years ago, Ze was traveling through the mountains and rivers, accidentally discovered this place, and caught a Dragon Fish to taste.

The taste was extremely delicious, and unable to resist his appetite, Ze built a pavilion here to fish for dragon-fish.

After a hundred years of this, meeting Li Xiang here today made him extremely happy.

Having not spoken to anyone for a hundred years, he was truly delighted to see a guest today.

Good heavens, Li Xiang's expression changed repeatedly as he listened.

He did not know whether to call it admiration or something else.

Fishing for a hundred years.

A true "fishing enthusiast"—Ze!

He had not left the mountain for a hundred years, just to fish for these dragon-fish.

He had just secretly used his Confucian Divine Ability to check this guy's cultivation, only to feel a vast demon aura, vaguely giving him the feeling of facing Su Qin and Zhang Yi.

Su Qin could beat up a First Grade Profound Bird for fun.

Then this Ze must also be an incredible Great Demon with formidable cultivation.

Yet such a person could actually fish in obscurity for a hundred years, just to satisfy his appetite.

He was a bit curious about what these dragon-fish tasted like, to have obsessed this Great Demon to such a degree.

After drinking three cups of wine.

Ze suddenly spoke up.

"Fellow Daoist, having traveled from afar, today I shall have you taste my Fish Dragon Feast."

Li Xiang gave a grunt of acknowledgment, appearing slightly puzzled.

"Fish Dragon Feast?"

"Yes! The Fish Dragon Feast. I had intended to descend the mountain to welcome you personally today, but there is a fish dragon about to be hooked by this Daoist, and I could not bear to leave."

"Once I have reeled it in shortly, I will let you have a good taste of it."

As he spoke, Ze stood up and walked toward the fishing platform.

At the same time, he reached out to beckon Li Xiang.

"Fellow Daoist, are you interested in joining me for a spot of fishing?"

"Only by hooking a fish dragon yourself will you know just how delicious that flavor truly is."

Li Xiang was stunned for a moment, casting his gaze toward the fishing rod Ze had picked up.

"That sounds excellent."

"However, Fellow Daoist Ze, your fishing rod has no hook; can you truly catch these fish that have attained spirituality?"

Now that he was closer, Li Xiang was certain he had seen correctly.

The fishing rod in Ze's hand had no hook tied to it, just a white line.

Seeing Li Xiang's confusion.

Ze suddenly began to laugh.

"I dare not use a hooked fishing rod to forcibly pull the fish out of the pool; if I did, this Dragon Gate would drive me out."

"And from then on, I would never be able to eat such delicious fish dragons again."

He laughed heartily, gave his hand a light flick, and the fishing line was cast out.

It landed straight into the Spirit Pool on the fourth level.

"Furthermore, who says that without a hook,"

"one cannot catch a fish?"

(End of this chapter)