Chapter 518

Pan Yun raised her hand: "Senior Brother, please speak."

Wang Feiyin grew serious: "The Imperial Academy is reopening. Due to Japanese pirate raids and the treasure map, Long Hushan and the Jianghu Alliance are cooperating to resist the pirates."

Pan Yun gripped her still-dizzy head with both hands: "I know—in Jingcheng, I found Qu Le's letter."

Wang Feiyin: "Lin Mengzhu's ancestral home is Taizhou."

The four of them lifted their small faces, bewildered, expressing one clear meaning: they didn't understand.

Wang Feiyin gently tapped Pan Yun's head: "These past years, the Japanese pirates have grown bolder. Each time they land, the coastal prefectures force civilians to retreat several li inland—the maritime ban grows stricter, and life for coastal folk grows harder by the day."

Pan Yun frowned.

Wang Feiyin stroked his beard: "There are many reasons for the maritime ban, but Japanese pirate raids are undoubtedly the primary one."

Pan Yun said flatly: "I've heard that eighty percent of the Japanese pirates along Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Fujian are actually Great Ming civilians in disguise."

Wang Feiyin: "Not quite eighty percent, but sixty percent is likely. They collaborate with small nations along the southeast coast, smuggle looted goods out through them, and partner with major coastal merchants to bring the money back into Great Ming."

"Lin Mengzhu has long wanted to exterminate these sea bandits. Since they're using the Japanese pirate banner, we might as well treat them all as pirates," Wang Feiyin shook his head slightly: "Too bad, the imperial court's troops are mostly stationed in the southwest and north—there's no spare manpower or funds to deal with these sea bandits."

Last year's joint suppression campaign gave Lin Mengzhu his chance."

Pan Yun gripped her head, blinking: "We're going to suppress bandits? Will the navy agree?"

Wang Feiyin smiled faintly: "Children don't need to worry about such matters. The Jianghu Alliance and Long Hushan will handle it—you just follow orders and kill the bandits."

Pan Yun's eyes darted: "So it's already been arranged above? No wonder Fourth Sister cut her way through the bandits, seized a ship, and sailed out—no official questioned it."

Wang Feiyin's smile faded slightly; he shot her a warning glare: "Even though we gave notice, don't get too reckless."

He hinted: "Especially certain things—do them secretly if you can. Don't be too showy."

Pan Yun nodded vigorously, glanced around, then leaned close to whisper: "Senior Brother, I've planned it all—we'll fly to retrieve the treasure, wu wu wu…"

Wang Feiyin clamped his hand tightly over her mouth: "Don't tell me. I know nothing."

Pan Yun looked at him with innocent eyes.

Wang Feiyin's expression was even more innocent than hers.

Only when she nodded did he release her, then grimacing, snatched up her sleeve to wipe the saliva from his palm.

Pan Yun yanked her sleeve back immediately, glaring at Wang Feiyin with equal disgust.

Wang Feiyin couldn't resist, tapped her head again, then began pulling things from his sleeve: "Fighting inevitably leads to injury—I've prepared something for you."

All medicine.

He must've known they'd used up their life-saving pills—he pulled four porcelain vials from his sleeve with a pained expression: "I exhausted my entire stock to brew these two batches. Use them sparingly. Don't keep getting injured when you're out there…"

The four nodded obediently: "Senior Brother, we haven't been injured at all—the life-saving pills were all given to others."

Wang Feiyin looked at them, speechless: "You're well-behaved now."

He paused, then added: "Remember to ask them for money. Ask for more."

The herbs alone were expensive, not to mention the energy I spent refining them!

Wang Feiyin's words reminded Pan Yun.

She extended her hand toward the three of Seeing Miao Zhen.

The three instantly understood, pulling a bundle of silver notes from their space and placing them in her palm.

Pan Yun handed them to Wang Feiyin, grinning: "Senior Brother, these are the funds I had them smuggle back for me. I knew Wang Cong couldn't carry much cash, so I split it ahead of time and kept portions with them."

Wang Feiyin took them, counted, and was satisfied: "Good. Now I can buy more herbs."

He immediately used all of it to stockpile herbs in the Daoist temple's storage, recording them as temple assets—so the loss wouldn't fall on him.

Wang Feiyin was satisfied.

Pan Yun had merely passed them along—she wouldn't bear the loss either, and was equally satisfied.

The two siblings turned together to look at the three of Seeing Miao Zhen, nodding approvingly: Good, good—the kids are still useful.

Seeing Miao Zhen felt her scalp prickle; Miao He chuckled and said: "Little Auntie, next time you earn money, still 'give' it to me to carry."

Pan Yun beamed: "Sure!"

The night fell completely.

Wang Feiyin grew impatient to stay longer, waved his hand: "Return to Huicheng yourselves."

Pan Yun froze, then remembered: "The city gates are closed, right?"

Wang Feiyin: "What does it matter to you if the gates are closed?"

"True—I didn't want to walk back anyway," Pan Yun couldn't help but flash a radiant smile, proud: "I have a flying artifact—I'll fly back!"

Wang Feiyin waved wearily: "Go."

Everyone immediately scrambled into the pot. Wang Feiyin barely managed to call out: "Don't show off too much—don't flaunt your wealth…"

Before he finished speaking, the pot soared into the air and shot off with a *shoo! *

Wang Feiyin's final words choked in his chest; he stared silently at the vanished pot in the distant sky.

Their meeting spot was near the city gate; in a flash, they saw it—but Pan Yun didn't enter. Instead, she made the Three Treasures Cauldron circle halfway around and fly over the city wall, soon arriving above the inn.

The pot was large; Pan Yun hung it midair, slightly above the rooftops, tossed out Hong Yan, then lifted Tao Yanbai in one hand and Miao He in the other, leaping down—Seeing Miao Zhen leapt down on her own.

Pan Xiaohei was held in Miao He's arms.

The four people and two beasts landed on the ground. The pot in midair shrank, shrank again, then shot *shoo! * back toward Pan Yun.

Pan Yun landed, raised her hand, caught it, shoved it into her sleeve—above, a window opened, and Zhang Ziming leaned out to look.

Pan Yun looked up, saw him, and grinned until her eyes vanished: "Senior Brother Zhang? You know I flew back on my own?"

Zhang Ziming's gaze swept over her sleeve: "You have a flying artifact?"

"Mm-hmm," Pan Yun grinned broadly, pulled the pot from her sleeve, and held it up for Zhang Ziming to see: "It's called the Three Treasures Cauldron!"

Zhang Ziming studied it a moment: "Looks a bit like a pot."

Pan Yun said seriously: "A pot is also called a ding!"

True enough, Zhang Ziming couldn't tell what material it was made of, but at a single glance, the artifact gave him a strong impression—it was likely of high rank.

Zhang Ziming's expression was complex: "Master Wang really is generous—you're still so young, and he's crafted such a fine artifact for you."

Pan Yun said proudly: "Of course he is—he's my senior brother!"

Pan Yun put away the Three Treasures Cauldron and led her junior disciples around to the front of the inn.

Zhang Ziming smiled, glanced at the empty alley behind, and shut the window.

Li Wenying sat inside the inn drinking wine, idly listening to others boast.

Seeing Pan Yun and the others return, he swept them with a glance and raised an eyebrow: "Has Master Wang left?"

Pan Yun: "Yes, my senior brother came to deliver my flight artifact and left right after."

Li Wenying: "Didn't Liu Zhen already give you a sword forged from meteoric iron? Can't it fly?" That sword had become her spirit blade, and Pan Yun loved it dearly—she would never favor one over the other—so she replied seriously: "This is specialized use: the sword is for combat, the flight artifact is for travel!"

Li Wenying: "You're quite particular."

Pan Yun pulled out her Three Treasures Cauldron. "Senior Brother Li, look—this is my flight artifact: the Three Treasures Cauldron."

Li Wenying nodded vaguely: "Good name."

Pan Yun: "I named it."

Seeing Miao Zhen and Miao He pushed her on either side: "Little Auntie, let's go wash up and sleep."

"Alright." Pan Yun put away the Three Treasures Cauldron and went upstairs, just as An Chen was coming down. She beamed at him: "An Platoon Leader, you know I flew back, right?"

An Chen looked baffled.

Pan Yun looked disappointed. "Never mind—you're not a cultivator. You wouldn't understand."

An Chen: …

No error. One line. One content. One look!

The next day, Pan Yun woke early, skipped cultivation, and directly grabbed Pan Xiaohei to go shopping.

Except for food vendors, no merchant opened at Chen Hour.

So Pan Yun wandered around but bought nothing she wanted—though her stomach was well filled.

Pan Xiaohei held a warm steamed bun in both paws, chewing happily, beside it a small bowl holding seven or eight tiny fish.

It bit into the bun, then dipped its head to roll up a fish—fish with bun, delicious beyond measure.

It sensed something, lifted its head and glanced down the street, tapping Pan Yun with a paw: "Someone's watching you."

Pan Yun, sitting on the ground munching a bun, looked up and dismissed it: "It's fine. Let them watch."

Pan Yun didn't leave after eating—she waited until the cloth shop's Shopkeeper arrived to open, then brushed off her clothes, stepped inside, spent three cash on a bundle of thread, and left satisfied.

The cloth shop's assistant smiled broadly, seeing her to the door, then shook his head once she was out of sight: "What a strange person—came so early, waited so long, just to buy a bundle of thread."

Pan Yun returned happily to the inn, pulled out the multicolored silk threads: "I carefully picked these out—what colors should I use on my Three Treasures Cauldron?"

"Wow, these colors are beautiful!" Miao He was instantly captivated by the thread's hues.

Pan Yun beamed: "Of course—they took me a long time to choose. I plan to weave a cord to tie it and hang it at my waist."

The three of them racked their brains to suggest designs, but each was more rustic than the last, their ideas poor even to themselves—let alone convincing Pan Yun.

Finally, Hong Yan couldn't stand it anymore, transformed into human form, and helped them choose colors: "But I can't weave it—Little Red can."

So Little Red emerged from the golden hairpin.

A group of demons, spirits, and ghosts huddled together muttering for a long while, finally finishing the cord.

Zhang Ziming had endured them long enough; seeing they hadn't emerged past noon, he stepped forward and banged on the door.

Little Red and Hong Yan scrambled in panic—two loud thumps, one reverted to a fox, the other dove back into the hairpin.

Pan Yun then calmly walked forward and opened the door.

Zhang Ziming pretended not to smell the fox's musk or see the lingering yin energy in the room, and said gravely: "Are you leaving or not? School starts soon—there's much to do at the Academy."

"We're leaving. Give us two qing—just need to pack."

Once they brought them back to Long Hushan Academy, Zhang Ziming and Li Wenying's task was done.

No demon dared come to the Academy to snatch someone.

The journey was peaceful; Zhang Ziming was slightly disappointed: "I thought we'd get to fight on this trip, but they're so cowardly—just seeing us and they won't strike."

Li Wenying snorted: "They're not afraid of you—they're afraid because you're a Zhang."

Zhang Ziming boasted: "Being born into the right family is a skill—you can't beg for it."

Li Wenying refused to respond.

Zhang Ziming remembered something and turned to Pan Yun: "Have you heard about Li Li?"

Pan Yun glanced at him, silent.

Zhang Ziming: "So you've heard. Get ready—you're second-year students, strong in combat—you might be chosen for field training."

Pan Yun pulled her horse to a stop before the Dismounting Pavilion: "Zhang Yuanzhu, my senior sister's Dao name is now Master Xuanmiao."

Zhang Ziming: "Zhang Li!"

"Master Xuanmiao!"

"Zhang Li!"

Watching the two on the verge of fighting, Li Wenying rushed between them: "Enough, enough—there are too many people around. Are you two embarrassed?"

He turned to An Chen: "An Platoon Leader, I've arranged rooms for you—will you stay on the mountain or at the base?"

An Chen said: "We take our leave—we return to Jingcheng to report."

Pan Yun whirled to stare at him: "Return to Jingcheng? Has the matter in Jingcheng been settled?"

An Chen bowed: "Congratulations, Daoist Pan—Lord Pan's injustice has been cleared. He has been restored to his post."

Pan Yun was overjoyed, quickly calculated the days: "Classes start in three days—given my cultivation, I can fly… Oh no!"

Li Wenying grabbed her wrist and yanked her into the Da Shangqing Palace: "Stop thinking—go register right now!"

Pan Yun wasn't unable to break free, but she let him drag her to the Academy before pulling her hand away, frowning: "What does this mean?"

Li Wenying extended her hand toward Zhang Ziming.

Zhang Ziming frowned: "That's intelligence from the Celestial Master's Mansion…"

"Give it to me," Li Wenying reached straight into his chest and pulled it out, then tossed it to Pan Yun: "It's not classified—why can't you show it?"

It was a tri-fold booklet; Pan Yun opened it.

Inside, densely written notes recorded much intelligence—all about Jingcheng.

From trivial matters—such as who criticized whom for wearing their hat crooked during court, violating propriety—to major events—Yang Shiqi submitted his resignation, and his son Yang Ji was imprisoned by imperial decree.

Pan Yun leaned closer in surprise: "Yang Shiqi resigned?"

Li Wenying: "I don't understand politics—I don't know the Emperor's reasoning, nor the struggles between civil and military officials, nor the thoughts of eunuchs and outer ministers—but I can see clearly: the court is now a tangled mess, and the Emperor has lost control."

Li Wenying didn't understand, but Zhang Ziming did. He said: "When young and full of vigor, one believes they can overcome any obstacle, turn clouds into rain and rain into clouds—but never imagined they couldn't control it, and instead turned a slightly knotted thread into a complete tangle, now impossible to untangle or straighten out, leaving no choice but to step back."

Zhang Ziming said: "He's furious and humiliated. Stay far from the capital now—he'll remember your good deeds; if you return, he'll recall only your offenses."

Everything started with you—be careful he blames you for it all."

Pan Yun pressed her lips together, carefully memorizing the intelligence, thinking to herself: If I won't go to Jingcheng, can't I still go to Qianxi Tower?

(End of Chapter)