Chapter 22: Volume One: Mountain Ghost Rumor, Chapter 22: Nothing Beats a Drunken Life

Volume One: Mountain Ghost Rumor, Chapter 22: Nothing Beats a Drunken Life

Bai Youjun said in a low, at-a-loss voice: "If... if the Young Master joins the Xuanwei Sect, will he and I become strangers?"

"Zhao Chan is now a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slaying Division; you are already strangers."

"No! It's different. I can leave my name on the *Baize Jade Record*," she decided.

Bai Yuqing sighed: "Qing, you have only met Zhao Chan a few times! You don't even understand his character! Why be so infatuated and pay so much? You saw it when he killed the Chang Ghost just now—you are infatuated with him, but he is full of wariness toward you."

"If we spend more time together, the Young Master will naturally understand me and be willing to treat me well."

"You..."

"I really don't understand! It was clearly Sister who told me to get close to the Young Master and said we were a good match, but now you are breaking up the mandarin ducks and won't let me see him. What exactly do you want me to do?" Bai Youjun asked, pouting.

Bai Yuqing was stunned: "It is my fault."

"Sister, please help the Young Master. I beg you, I don't want him to join the Xuanwei Sect because of a Mold Ghost. Those Mountain Sects are hypocritical; the Young Master will suffer a great loss."

Seeing Qing's pitiful appearance, Bai Yuqing softened and explained: "I have already helped him."

"Ah?"

"He wanted me to kill the Mold Ghost. Do you know why I refused?"

"I don't."

"The mold of that Mold Ghost has not yet fully matured. He is in the Middle-Grade Body Refining Realm, and with that strange peach branch, he is capable of killing it once he finds it."

"But, but Sister could also kill the Mold Ghost directly!"

Bai Yuqing said seriously: "Qing, Zhao Chan, like you, needs to grow. Without experiencing the bitter cold, how can one stand alone? If he realizes my good intentions in the future, he will likely treat you even better."

Bai Youjun was instantly happy, realizing her sister was doing this for her own good, and said coyly: "Sister, why didn't you say so earlier? You made me misunderstand."

"Heh, I thought you would be able to see it."

"But the Young Master doesn't know now. What if he agrees?"

"Qing, I have only met Zhao Chan a few times, but I understand his character better than you do. This person seems honest and loyal, but in reality, he lacks none of the cunning he should have."

"Sister is not allowed to say that about the Young Master!" Bai Youjun puffed out her cheeks.

Walking up to the second floor of the Xizhao Inn.

Xie Wan glanced at the youth whose expression remained calm.

To be able to "not let joy or anger show on one's face" to this extent at such a young age was already excellent.

When she was Zhao Chan's age, she couldn't do it at all, and even now, she couldn't.

Zhao Chan caught a slight scent of blood and scanned his surroundings with a puzzled look.

"What are you looking at?" Xie Wan asked with a shy smile, covering her red lips. "Are you looking for my boudoir?"

"Sister Wan'er, you misunderstand," he smiled. "I smelled something."

"Fresh blood?"

"Yes," Zhao Chan admitted, as if he had no guile at all.

Xie Wan explained casually: "A performer in the troupe accidentally got injured and lost quite a bit of blood. The smell you caught must be from him."

"So that's how it is."

"Come this way, A Ping is in my boudoir."

Zhao Chan had never been to her boudoir and slowed his pace, fearing he might lose his manners.

Seeing the youth acting as if he were heading to the execution ground, Xie Wan couldn't help but joke with a bit of mischief: "Little Toad, you look quite handsome. Why not sleep in my boudoir tonight?"

Unexpectedly, Zhao Chan didn't take the bait: "Sister Wan'er, you said there was a knife in the room. I'm afraid you might cut me."

"Haha..." Xie Wan laughed heartily. "That knife is a pressing-clothes knife, sharp enough to cut iron without a sound, and it could chop you up easily."

Pushing open the door to the boudoir, Xie Wan leaned against the door frame: "A Ping, Little Toad is looking for you."

A Ping was sitting cross-legged on the bed, healing his wounds. He opened his eyes and said with surprise: "Are you willing to join my Xuanwei Sect now?"

Zhao Chan bowed respectfully: "I wanted to ask you two questions, Sir."

He didn't know what to call A Ping, but calling him "Sir" was never wrong.

"Alright, ask."

"How do you view the people of Youju Town, Sir?"

Xie Wan immediately narrowed her eyes and stared at Zhao Chan's back, not knowing what he was thinking.

A Ping weighed his words: "I pity them very much."

Putting himself in his shoes, from the perspective of a Mountain cultivator, it was indeed pitiful that the common people lived such difficult lives.

Zhao Chan continued to ask: "The second question: if a demon were about to harm the people of Youju Town, would you intervene, Sir?"

"..."

A Ping fell silent.

If it were anywhere else, if a demon were wreaking havoc, he would definitely intervene to slay the demon. Killing those four small Jiao dragons from the Wangqing River was proof of this; he didn't even mind the Wangqing River Jiao Clan hunting him down—he would kill one for every one that came. His internal injuries were from killing an old Jiao dragon that had been hunting him.

But Youju Town was different.

The Xuanwei Sect had ordered him to retrieve a fake Demon-Illuminating Mirror.

That was a low-grade Spirit Tool, which was above a Dharma Artifact and extremely precious.

With this Demon-Illuminating Mirror, he could kill more demons and save more people.

Youju Town was not large, and there were few people; compared to the countless people who would live because of him in the future, this was not worth mentioning.

Therefore, A Ping shook his head: "I won't hide it from you. An old Jiao dragon has already arrived outside Youju Town. The reason it doesn't dare destroy the town is because I am here. But I have internal injuries; once I intervene, that old Jiao dragon will see through my true state. At that time, let alone me, everyone will have to be buried with me."

He deliberately scared Zhao Chan. The Wangqing River Jiao Clan had two old Jiao dragons hunting him; he had killed one, and the other was still on the way, delayed.

Zhao Chan heard this unexpected news, froze for a moment, then nodded calmly: "I understand."

A Ping said: "You can choose to join the Xuanwei Sect and apprentice under me. With your talent, you won't need ten years to be able to act freely and seek revenge."

"I appreciate your kindness, Sir."

Xie Wan added: "Don't be in such a hurry to refuse. Think about it carefully. A Ping will be staying at the Xizhao Inn for this period. Come find him whenever you have made up your mind. Little Toad, you don't know what kind of massive power the Xuanwei Sect possesses! If you apprentice at the Xuanwei Sect, your life will become completely different!"

Zhao Chan turned to her: "I will keep Sister Wan'er's words in mind."

"Good boy, you must believe that I would never harm you."

"Sir, is that Jiao dragon very powerful?"

A Ping nodded: "Once I heal my wounds, it will not be my match."

"While you are healing, will the Jiao dragon wreak havoc in Youju Town?"

"It will not; it is afraid of the consequences."

"Thank you for your answers, Sir. I still have to return to the Demon Slaying Division. Farewell."

After saying this, Zhao Chan turned and left.

Xie Wan grabbed him: "Even if you become a Demon Slayer, the people of the small town will still look down on you. If you apprentice at the Xuanwei Sect, you will become a true person above others! No one will ever dare to look down on you again!"

Zhao Chan retreated a few steps and bowed meticulously: "Thank you, Sister Wan'er."

Immediately, he walked down the wooden stairs without a hint of reluctance.

From beginning to end, the youth didn't even mention the words "Mold Ghost." He understood in his heart that if A Ping truly cared about the common people, he would have asked what kind of demon it was. If he didn't care about their lives, mentioning it would be useless.

Listening to the sound of the youth's footsteps on the wooden stairs, Xie Wan sighed: "Little Toad is unwilling to apprentice at the Xuanwei Sect."

A Ping smiled: "That is not up to him."

"Those two sisters might hinder us from taking Little Toad away," she said.

"Let us wait and see whether they are more powerful or we are a cut above."

"Young Master!"

Bai Youjun lifted her skirt and ran to him: "You... you didn't agree, did you?"

To distinguish between the two sisters, Zhao Chan asked: "Which matter is Little Miss Bai referring to?"

"Apprenticing at the Xuanwei Sect."

"I did not."

"Young Master, you must not agree. If you join the Xuanwei Sect, you will no longer be your own master. Besides, the Xuanwei Sect has a corrupt style, and they will try every means to harm you," Bai Youjun exaggerated.

"Thank you for the reminder, Little Miss Bai. It is getting late, and I still have to return to the Demon Slaying Division, so I won't accompany you any longer." He ran out of the inn.

Bai Youjun returned to Bai Yuqing's side, smiling like a flower: "Sister, the Young Master called me Little Miss Bai."

"I heard."

"What a fresh form of address."

Bai Yuqing stroked the rim of her cup: "Did he call me Big Miss Bai?"

About fifty paces from the Xizhao Inn was the only wine shop in town, and the Private School Teacher happened to be walking out of it.

Zhao Chan hurried to bow respectfully: "Teacher."

"Going to the Demon Slaying Division?"

"Will you still be holding classes during this period, Teacher?" he asked, ignoring the question.

The Private School Teacher smiled: "What kind of talk is that? How can a teacher not hold classes?"

Zhao Chan approached him and whispered: "It is not peaceful lately. I hope you will take refuge for a while, Teacher. A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall."

"You student, you are actually using the knowledge I taught you to advise me," the teacher asked in return. "Your Demon Slaying Division guards Youju Town. If this place is not safe, where could be safe?

What exactly happened? What made you, who have always been steady, lose your composure?"

With the teacher's reminder, Zhao Chan realized that his mind was indeed in a state of panic.

First, the demon that possessed Sun He said things he didn't understand; then Bai Yuqing pointed out that a Mold Ghost was living in Nongsui Lane; and immediately after, A Ping refused his request for help and threw out the news that a Jiao dragon was lurking outside Youju Town.

As for the Xuanwei Sect, it was an existence he didn't even dare to imagine.

Given all these things, for a mountain youth who had been struggling to survive to not have lost his composure completely was already commendable.

The Private School Teacher sighed: "You are a child with your own ideas. When your parents passed away, you couldn't afford the tuition and preferred to drop out rather than study. I tried to persuade you in every way, but you wouldn't agree to stay in the private school. Could it be that you really think I, your teacher, couldn't guess your thoughts?

It was nothing more than not wanting to cause trouble for me. Most of the students in the private school are from Daguan Lane; they all paid tuition to study there. Why should you, living in Nongsui Lane, be able to listen to me lecture on the wisdom of the sages without paying tuition?

Zhao Chan, the wisdom of the sages is the best thing in the world, and it requires us to spend our whole lives to comprehend it. But some truths, however shallow and base, are always with us."

The youth bowed deeply and said sincerely: "Please enlighten me, Teacher."

The Private School Teacher helped him up and patted his shoulder: "You know these simple truths. I don't know what you have experienced that made you throw them to the back of your mind."

"I am all ears, Teacher."

"Many things in the world are not under your control. Just do your best, and leave the rest to time. Zhao Chan, you are only fourteen this year?"

"Yes."

"A fourteen-year-old youth who has learned much wisdom from the sages by auditing in the private school, who is not afraid of hardship to support himself by gathering lacquer, and who is not afraid of demons to join the Demon Slaying Division and become a Demon Slayer—you have already done very well. Do not add more burdens to your shoulders; that should not be your business."

The teacher didn't lecture on grand principles, but spoke as if chatting about daily life.

"I am indeed your teacher who imparts the wisdom of the sages, but I am also a mortal of flesh and blood, and I am equally terrified of demons."

He paused.

He carried the wine he had bought from the shop and walked toward the private school, saying self-deprecatingly: "People, living in this messy world, must accept their fate. Zhao Chan, if you don't want to accept your fate and want to save more people, you have to force yourself. Heh, don't blame me for speaking incoherently. The truths of us ordinary people are in every move, every word, and every action of our lives—timidity, cowardice, greed, courage, diligence, kindness, etc., are all our own truths. If you want to achieve something great and are not afraid of your shoulders being crushed, you must keep your heart unstained by dust at all times, and you must be obsessed to succeed!!!"

"Zhao Chan, you are too steady. You always leave yourself a way out when encountering things. This is a mature way of doing things, it is true, but it will also make you trap yourself! There are countless things in the world; how can you seize the initiative in everything and plan before you act?"

The teacher stopped and turned back to walk toward Zhao Chan, handing him the wine he had bought: "You don't look like a fourteen-year-old youth; you seem like an old man who has experienced the vicissitudes of life. I don't like it; it's too dull. A youth should have the high spirits of a youth!"

Opposite the wine shop was Taoli Lane.

The teacher's Confucian robes fluttered as he stepped into it without looking back.

Zhao Chan looked down at the small earthenware wine jar, pulled out the stopper, and gulped it down.

"Little Toad! You can drink too!" the wine shopkeeper laughed, his upper body bare.

Drinking until he was satisfied, Zhao Chan put the stopper back, shook his head, and stepped into the wine shop: "Uncle Zhou, help me fill the jar."

"How does my wine taste?"

He couldn't say why; this was his first time drinking, so he had to say: "It stings the tongue."

The shopkeeper laughed until he was bent over, grabbed the small earthenware jar, and said: "This jar is too shabby. I'll give you a good one. Wait!"

Before long, the shopkeeper stuffed a wine gourd into Zhao Chan's arms: "I've filled it for you. Go."

"I haven't paid yet..."

"What money? This is a gift from me. Get out of here," the shopkeeper pushed him out of the wine shop. "Little Toad, I think the way you drink is truly like a man!"

Zhao Chan scratched his head, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly, and then he grinned, his brows flying high.

Since his parents died of illness, he had never laughed like this.

The full wine gourd was hung at his waist, right next to the peach branch with its new buds.

Zhao Chan carried the Green Snake Sword on his back and, instead of going to the Demon Slaying Division, returned to Nongsui Lane.

Only the bottom of the wine remained in the earthenware jar, which he poured into his mouth, then let out a satisfied burp.

He didn't know if his thoughts were clearer after drinking, or if he had finally understood...

Bai Yuqing had said before that once the Mold Ghost's mold matured, ordinary cultivators would not be its match, but she didn't say that now!

She deliberately left him the words "unless"—unless what?

Unless he went to kill the Mold Ghost right now! Before its mold completely matured!

Besides, the peach branch Lao Liu gave him was mysterious and unpredictable, capable of killing even a tiger demon; he didn't believe it couldn't kill a Mold Ghost.

"Fine, fine, fine. If you won't kill it, I will!"

The young man was drunk.

Yet he was at his most high-spirited!

Bai Yuqing watched the drunken youth walk back to Nongsui Lane.

Killing intent was overflowing! ===== CHAPTER 23 =====