Chapter 298: I'll Fly You There

Pan Yun flew back to the mountaintop, and deliberately put on an aerial show in front of Wang Feiyin—looping left, right, front, and back in an artistic flight pattern—before finally landing steadily. She said proudly, "How about it, Senior Brother? I told you I could fly, didn't I?"

Wang Feiyin turned his head and said solemnly to Wang Cong and the others, "Remember this—you must not tell outsiders about your Little Xiao Shishu's fear of heights, nor let any outsider notice. Otherwise, your Little Xiao Shishu will be in danger!"

Wang Cong and the other two answered solemnly in assent.

Pan Yun: "..."

Wang Feiyin turned back to look at her. "What are you still dazed for? Get out here, quick!"

Pan Yun slowly climbed out of the medicine cauldron, and once she was on the ground she finally found something to say. "Senior Brother, that's not a fear of heights—I'm just dependent on railings."

Wang Feiyin nodded perfunctorily. "Fine, fine, fine—whatever you say it is, it is. But this problem of yours, is it physical or psychological? If it's physical, I'll find you some medicine to cure it. If it's psychological, you'll have to overcome it yourself."

Pan Yun said nothing.

Wang Cong gave a light cough and changed the subject. "Father, Little Xiao Shishu, it looks like it's time to eat. I'll go call Third Xiao Shishu and Fourth Xiao Shishu."

Miao Zhen: "I'll go wipe the table."

Miao He: "I'll go set out the bowls and chopsticks."

Xiao Hong floated over and served them dishes.

Miao Zhen also ladled out a bowl of rice for her, and brought an incense candle, lit it, and stuck it in front of her.

Wang Feiyin first cupped his fists in thanks to Xiao Hong, letting her first take in a whiff of the food's fragrance, and only then picked up his chopsticks.

Only then did Pan Yun and the others pick up their chopsticks in turn.

Tao Ji asked them, "Just now I kept hearing shouts one after another—what were you all doing?"

Pan Yun picked up a piece of spare rib and put it in his bowl. "Third Martial Brother, you look much better—your injuries must be almost healed, right?"

Tao Ji's attention was immediately diverted. He nodded and said, "Right, another two days of rest and I'll be about there."

Pan Yun looked toward Master Xuanmiao again, but before she could speak, Master Xuanmiao had already said, "I'm fully recovered, and the formation disk is finished too. I'll deliver it to Old Man Liu as soon as we go out."

"Senior Sister, remember to collect the money—five thousand taels!"

Wang Feiyin looked up at once. "What kind of formation disk could be worth five thousand taels?"

Pan Yun: "A defensive formation array, combining an illusion formation and a killing formation into one."

Wang Feiyin frowned. "Why would you sell a formation disk like that to outsiders? Once it gets tangled up in taking lives, that all becomes karmic debt."

A person who truly wishes to cultivate the Dao will not want to have too many entanglements with the mortal world, because the bindings are many.

One careless slip and you incur enmity and karma, and when you undergo Tribulation Crossing, all of it must be repaid.

Pan Yun said, "It's for defending against pirates."

Wang Feiyin opened his mouth, his gaze swept over the children at the table, and in the end he did not object further.

Enough, enough—the bitterness of this world, once you've tasted enough of it, you can gain enlightenment. "As long as you all are happy now, that's enough."

Pan Yun seemed to know Wang Feiyin's worry and said firmly, "We'll be happy in the future too."

Wang Feiyin merely tugged at the corner of his mouth, but when he turned to look at Wang Cong he was fierce. "Bring Tao Yanbai back before sunset tomorrow."

Wang Cong's hand stiffened. "Father, from here to Tao Family Village takes four hours..."

"Can't you run faster? A head full of business sense—when I told you to learn martial arts and cultivate, where did all your practice go? Now your Fourth Junior Sister and Fifth Junior Sister are both about to surpass you. Aren't you ashamed, acting as their Senior Brother?"

Wang Cong silently lowered his head. "Understood. I'll set out at the hour of Yin."

Pan Yun looked at him with eyes full of sympathy and quietly gave him a wink.

After that, no one dared speak again, and everyone silently lowered their heads to eat.

After the meal, everyone stopped Xiao Hong, who was about to clear the table. Led by Wang Cong, with Pan Yun and the others assisting, they tidied up the bowls and chopsticks and the kitchen.

Pan Yun, while washing chopsticks, squeezed over to Wang Cong's side and whispered, "I'll fly you over tomorrow. We can leave at the hour of Mao."

Wang Cong: "... Can't you not step on a flying sword?"

Pan Yun whispered, "Just now your father waved his hand and put the medicine cauldron back in the pharmacy."

Wang Cong: "... Little Xiao Shishu, that medicine cauldron is my father's dharma artifact. The moment you touch it, he'll know."

"So what if he knows? Your father isn't a strict person—even if he knows, he'll just pretend he doesn't."

Wang Cong didn't really want his father to know, so he whispered, "How about... you try flying with the alchemy furnace that Third Martial Brother and the others use for pill-refining?"

Pan Yun: "I myself wouldn't have a problem, but that alchemy furnace can fit one of me, yet it can't fit you, can it?"

Miao Zhen, who had been pricking up her ears the whole time, immediately said, "I want to go too!"

Miao He: "Me too."

Wang Cong glared at them. "What nonsense is this? I'm going to fetch your Third Martial Brother, not to play around."

Miao He: "Senior Brother, don't think we don't know—you're going to Tao family to pick a fight."

Miao Zhen: "The Tao family lives as a whole clan. How can you, alone, out-argue them? You need us added in."

Pan Yun said, "When the time comes, you can hide inside the medicine cauldron's belly. I looked inside today—if you curl up a bit, you can fit, and it's windproof too."

Wang Cong hurriedly said, "Then can it still fit me standing up?"

"Standing up, of course it can. When Third Martial Brother was squatting, he could still fit Miao Zhen and Miao He inside. At that time Miao Zhen and Miao He were also squatting—if it weren't for wanting to hold Hong Yan, they could have gone into the cauldron to rest completely."

Pan Yun thought it over for a moment, then said, "Actually, I think I'm quite suited to the medicine cauldron too—it's just that I'm not very good at alchemy."

And that was putting it mildly—she was the sort of talent who could even burn a hole through the furnace just stoking the fire.

Wang Cong said, "How about you build another house to carry with you? Don't you know how to inscribe spatial formation arrays? When the time comes, just carve out a space specifically to hold it."

That wouldn't be necessary—the Spirit Realm space was large enough to fit it completely. Wang Cong continued, "I'll look around for some lighter materials for you, see what to use as a base, and I can refine this flying house for you."

Pan Yun raised an eyebrow. "You're interested in artifact-refining?"

Wang Cong hurriedly said, "I don't know how to refine dharma artifacts, I just happen to know a fair bit about some materials, that's all."

"It doesn't matter—there's always room to learn," Pan Yun said. "You wait, I'll copy out a treasure manual of artifact-refining for you later. Read it carefully. If you can learn it, you'll be the pride of our Three Pure Ones in the future."

Wang Feiyin came over carrying a bucket, saw four people gathered around a wooden basin washing dishes, yet somehow hadn't produced a single bowl in ages, and said irritably, "What are you doing? Is this work or is this chatting?"

Three of the four immediately stood up, and one went to fetch the bucket. "I'll go get some more water to rinse them once more."

"I'll go wipe down the stove."

"I'll go wash the pot."

Pan Yun stayed squatting, slowly rubbing the chopsticks in her hands, setting them aside once clean, then picking up the three bowls the three of them had been handling for so long, giving them a quick rinse and setting them down.

Wang Cong brought back the water, lifted the wooden basin and dumped it into the ditch, then began rinsing the bowls and chopsticks a second time.

Wang Feiyin watched, gave another snort, then stepped forward to take the pot lid, drew half a bucket of hot water, and left. "Add some more water. It's almost dark—you all hurry up and wash and get to bed."

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The four obediently agreed.

Cold water was added, and the stove was kept going.

Pan Yun: "It's settled then. At the first quarter of the mao hour, we'll meet at the door of the pharmacy—no missing."

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He excitedly agreed. Wang Cong said nothing, and everyone took that as his silent assent.

After washing up, Pan Yun lay in bed. Before sleep she glanced at Pan Xiaohei and saw it lying in its nest with long, steady breaths, spirit Qi drifting around its body—she knew the Kai Zhi Dan had been useful to it after all.

Pan Yun couldn't help but tap her own head with a bent finger. "I just feel like it didn't do much for me. I don't really feel anything."

But never mind—she was already this smart; there was only so much room left to develop.

Pan Yun closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Before sleeping she had set up a simple arrangement. At the exact mao hour, the hourglass in the room sank, and a round ball rolled out of a bamboo tube, striking the drumhead of the rattle-drum with a clear but not sharp sound before dropping into the sand basin.

Pan Yun opened her eyes, slowly pushed herself up on her hands, stretched her waist hard to wake her body up, then grabbed the warm water jug by the bed and poured herself a bowl of warm water, drinking it down in one go.

She dressed nimbly, gave her face a quick wipe, scooped up Pan Xiaohei, and opened the door to head out.

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He next door were just opening their doors too; the three of them poked their heads out at the same time and glanced at each other.

Then they quietly stretched out their legs, gently closed the doors, and headed briskly toward the pharmacy together.

Master Xuanmiao, who shared the same courtyard with them, turned over in her sleep without the slightest awareness and continued to slumber.

Wang Feiyin, however, who was in the courtyard next to theirs, opened his eyes when they passed the courtyard gate, then closed them again, pulled up the blanket and turned over, muttering: "I'm not angry, I'm not angry—only by not getting angry do you live long…"

Three people and one cat crossed the main hall, quietly pushed open the great door, and gently closed it behind them.

Once the great door was shut, they raced toward the direction of the alchemy well under the moonlight.

The moonlight was very bright, as if a layer of frost-sugar had been spread across the ground, illuminating the path ahead clearly.

Pan Yun set Pan Xiaohei on her shoulder, and the three of them happily crossed the square and the bamboo grove. Arriving at the pharmacy, they saw the door tightly shut—not even a single shadow of a person in sight.

Pan Yun frowned. "What's going on? Did Senior Nephew abandon us?"

The pharmacy door suddenly opened from inside, and a head popped out, making the three of them jerk backward in fright.

With their backs to the moonlight and their faces in shadow, Wang Cong couldn't see the terror on their faces. He kept snickering at them and whispered: "I'm inside—I've been waiting for you two quarter-hours already…"

Pan Yun, unable to contain her anger, went in and kicked him the moment she entered. "Couldn't you have waited outside? Give us some kind of signal—how did I not even hear your breathing?"

Wang Cong took the kick without flinching. "I muted my presence, just afraid my father would notice I hadn't gone down the mountain. Little Martial Aunt, when do we leave?"

Pan Yun lowered her voice as well. "Right now."

Wang Feiyin's medicine cauldron stood in the middle of the room.

Pan Yun climbed in first, then gestured for Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He to come up.

Wang Cong lifted Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He in, and once they were all hidden inside the cauldron, he leapt up and stood inside as well.

Pan Yun silently recited the incantation. Yuan power flowed from her feet into the medicine cauldron, and the cauldron shot upward with a jerk, then whooshed out the door and straight into the clouds—

The wind hit them head-on. Wang Cong immediately cast a spell to block the wind, blocking it for Pan Yun as well, and called out loudly: "Little Martial Aunt, wrong direction—Tao Family Village is that way."

The medicine cauldron traced a half-circle in midair and whooshed off in the direction Wang Cong had indicated.

She laughed heartily: "I knew I could do it—I can handle the overload too."

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He were far too curious about the world beyond, and unwilling to keep sitting inside the cauldron. They carefully stood up and squeezed a head out from in front of and beside Wang Cong…

Wang Cong could only look helpless, shielding them from the wind and turning sideways so the two of them could poke their heads out.

Four people stood in the tiny mouth of the cauldron, looking down at the quiet mountain villages under the moonlight and the green of the earth below. The clear breeze that Wang Cong's spell couldn't fully block blew across their faces, and the two of them both shrieked with excitement.

Pan Yun also felt wonderfully exhilarated.

Seeing Miao Zhen shouted loudly: "I want to break through to First Marquis too, I want to ride objects and fly—I want to fly—"

Miao He also cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted toward the distance: "I want to fly too—"

But because Wang Cong's spell blocked the wind, it also blocked out most of the sound, so the voices just bounced around inside the formation, nearly stunning Wang Cong with the ringing in his eyes and ears.

His cultivation was already not high, and the moment he relaxed, the spell broke outright. A fierce wind blew in, and the four of them let out a scream at once—but the scream quickly turned into joyful shouts.

Even Pan Yun was screaming "Ahhhh!" and urging the medicine cauldron to fly even faster.

Good night

(End of chapter)