Crimson_Lore
patreon
Chapter 42: The Pride of a Directionally Challenged Person
🕑 Added 2025-03-10 12:47:59 +0000 UTCFour days later, Du Rong carried a rattan suitcase, following behind Chen Xiao as they lined up to board the ship. Their other luggage had already been marked and handed over to the crew, who would deliver it to their cabin shortly.
Their cabin was located in the central part of the ship, on the second level. This was one of the better spots when sailing, it remained relatively stable, unlike the cabins near the sides that rocked with the waves. However, there was a downside: cabins in the inner section lacked windows. To get fresh air, they would have to leave the door open occasionally, which compromised both security and privacy.
After presenting their tickets and receiving their room key, Chen Xiao and Du Rong walked down the ship's corridor, one after the other. The hallway was somewhat cramped and low-ceilinged, though at least it was wide enough not to feel suffocating.
Following the room numbers, they found their assigned cabin. Chen Xiao stepped forward and unlocked the door. The room was not as small as he had imagined. It was about the size of a standard twin room in a budget hotel, equipped with two bunk beds. The bed frames were firmly fixed to the walls, ceiling, and floor. Chen Xiao gave one a shake, it didn’t budge at all.
At the foot of the beds stood two tall cabinets that reached the ceiling, each divided into upper and lower sections. In total, there were four compartments, each secured with a brass lock and key, assigned according to the corresponding bunks.
Besides the beds and cabinets, there was a foldable wooden board attached to the wall between the bunks. When lowered, it could serve as a table. Chen Xiao thought that if they had a deck of cards, playing a few rounds here would definitely help pass the time.
Apart from these, the cabin had no other amenities. If they needed to use the restroom, they had to go to a shared facility in the corridor. The area had several stalls with communal toilets, as well as designated spaces for washing up and bathing. There were no personal sinks, only a few brass pipes providing running water all day. Beneath them were basins, plugging the drain would allow for washing clothes. As for bathing, there were separate stalls with wooden tubs. However, getting hot water required fetching it from the designated heating room, which was far from convenient.
After stowing their luggage in the cabinets and locking the door, the two decided to explore the ship.
This ship was called the Ascending Tide. The name had no special meaning—it was simply named after its captain. The Ascending Tide charged expensive fares, but in return, it provided a full range of services. The deck was spacious, and there was even a dedicated training room. It not only offered secluded meditation chambers for closed-door cultivation but also had shops selling pills, weapons, and equipment. Chen Xiao curiously peeked inside, but before he could take a closer look, Du Rong, whose face had turned slightly pale, dragged him away. The reason? Everything here could be summed up in one word: expensive.
Beyond the cultivation-related areas, there were places where both cultivators and ordinary passengers could gather, such as restaurants and teahouses. These were further divided into different tiers: the lowest catered to regular cultivators, the middle-tier served higher-ranking cultivators and those on a budget, while the highest-tier was reserved for aristocrats, powerful sects, and influential figures. Entering these establishments was free, but ordering food or drinks came at a hefty price, one that increased proportionally with the establishment’s tier.
Initially, Du Rong worried that Chen Xiao might feel uncomfortable about this hierarchical treatment. However, to his surprise, the young employer remained completely unfazed, showing no trace of resentment or frustration. This deepened Du Rong’s appreciation for Chen Xiao’s composure and mindset.
Most of the ship’s facilities were beyond Chen Xiao’s reach, but he wasn’t particularly concerned. He merely toured the ship out of curiosity. The final destination of their exploration was the place he cared about most—the ship’s cafeteria.
After all, with such high ticket prices, providing free meals was the least they could do. However, rather than being served in an elegant restaurant or teahouse, meals were offered in a place with a much humbler name—the cafeteria.
The food served was also tiered based on ticket class. But in reality, most wealthy passengers wouldn’t bother eating here, so the differences weren’t too glaring. At most, the higher-tier meals included an extra dish of meat or an additional bowl of soup.
Since the food was designed to be suitable even for cultivators, it was bound to taste decent. As someone with a fondness for good food, Chen Xiao eagerly stepped through the cafeteria doors, only to stop dead in his tracks.
Du Rong looked at him curiously. “Boss? Why aren’t you going in?”
Chen Xiao’s voice was uncertain. “Look over there… isn’t that Tong Nuonuo?”
Tong Nuonuo had bought a ticket alongside them, so it was expected that he would be on the same ship. Earlier, when they saw that the storage cabinets in their room were empty, Chen Xiao had worried that he might have gotten lost again and missed the departure. Yet now, here he was, or at least, someone who looked like him, inside the cafeteria.
Why only looked like him?
Not far ahead, someone sat sideways at a table, several plates of food in front of them, eating ravenously. There was not even a trace of an Immortal Master's dignity, if anything, they looked quite disheveled.
Du Rong hesitated. Even when he had gone without food and water for days during a wilderness training, he hadn’t eaten this desperately. They had only been apart for four days, how could someone change so drastically in such a short time?
Seeing Du Rong remain silent, Chen Xiao simply walked over. The person, still hunched over their food, sensed someone approaching and lifted their head.
Their round face looked a bit thinner but was still largely round. Their single-lidded eyes were bloodshot, clearly from lack of sleep. A low nose bridge, slightly upturned nose tip. Their plump lips were stuffed full of food, glistening with oil.
Chen Xiao nodded to himself in confirmation, there was no doubt about it. This was Tong Nuonuo.
"Immortal Master Tong?" Du Rong's voice was full of disbelief.
Tong Nuonuo was just as shocked to see them. His eyes widened in panic, his face flushed red, then turned deathly pale. Just as Chen Xiao was about to say something, Tong Nuonuo suddenly jumped up and started rushing around frantically.
Du Rong was completely baffled. He lowered his voice and asked, "What is he doing?"
Watching the flustered youth rummaging around in a panic, a realization suddenly struck Chen Xiao. He smacked his forehead in frustration and shouted, "Quick! Get some water, he's choking!"
After a brief moment of chaos, a gulp of water and several forceful thumps on the chest later, Tong Nuonuo's face finally returned to normal.
Du Rong, looking apologetic, said, "This is our fault. We startled you."
Tong Nuonuo wiped his mouth, took a deep breath, and replied, "It’s not your fault, I just ate too fast."
Du Rong sat across from him, and seeing this, Chen Xiao also found a seat. Du Rong, still concerned, asked, "Immortal Master Tong, what happened? Why are you in such… a state?"
Perhaps because of the earlier act of kindness, Tong Nuonuo visibly let down his guard. For the first time, he didn’t look at Chen Xiao with his usual wariness.
With an embarrassed smile, he said, "After we parted that day, I got lost by accident. Catfish City is too big. I tried asking for directions a few times, but I just couldn't find the right place."
For someone who could even get hopelessly lost in a small town marketplace, a city of this scale was practically a labyrinth from hell.
"In the end, I had no choice but to spend all my remaining money to hire a carriage to take me to the docks."
Hearing this, Chen Xiao felt a bit relieved, only for the next words to send his heart sinking again.
"But I arrived too early. The ships hadn’t even come into port yet. I had no money left to hire another carriage, and I was afraid I’d get lost again and miss the departure. So, I decided to stay in one spot and not move as much as possible. I ended up starving for two days. The moment I got on the ship, I asked the crew to bring me straight to the dining hall."
After hearing the full story of Tong Nuonuo’s four-day ordeal, Chen Xiao had only one thought:
What kind of heartless master lets someone this hopelessly bad with directions wander around alone?!
Du Rong was at a loss for words, only managing a sigh.
Chen Xiao said, "If you don’t mind, while we're on this ship, why don’t you stick with one of us at all times?"
Letting a walking disaster like him roam alone would just feel criminal.
Without hesitation, Tong Nuonuo replied, "I would be extremely grateful!"
After he finished eating, the two led him back to his cabin. Having him memorize the room number was useless, so one of them had to stay and help him fetch water and wash up.
Living in the same space naturally provided opportunities to understand one another better. Now that Tong Nuonuo was no longer forcing himself to maintain a serious front, he quickly became familiar with Chen Xiao and Du Rong.
Chen Xiao eventually asked him why he had been so wary of him at first.
Without hesitation, Tong Nuonuo admitted, "I was too overconfident before. I thought that as a cultivator, ordinary people couldn’t possibly harm me. But I got burned badly because of that. Ever since then, I instinctively become alert around mortals."
It had happened the first time he left his master’s side for independent training.
Having spent his whole life under his master’s wing in the same place, he had never truly realized how bad his sense of direction was. Filled with ambition, he had set himself a far-off destination.
At first, he had joined a team of fellow cultivators in a nearby town, traveling together. But because he kept getting lost, missing meeting times, wandering off constantly, his teammates grew frustrated with searching for him. Before they even reached their destination, they politely suggested he leave the group.
Despite being directionally challenged, Tong Nuonuo still had his pride! So, he decided to continue the journey alone.
It turned out to be a terrible idea.
He had to ask for directions at every turn, and eventually, in some remote place, he ended up asking the wrong person.
That seemingly ordinary man turned out to be a heartless swindler. Seeing Tong Nuonuo’s naive face, he tricked him into following him straight into a black-market mine.
When Tong Nuonuo realized he had been deceived, he killed the corrupt mine boss on the spot and freed all the enslaved laborers.
The rescued miners wept with gratitude, thanking him profusely as they ran toward their newfound freedom.
And as for the unfortunate Tong Nuonuo?
He followed them, only to lose sight of them in an instant and get hopelessly lost in the twisting mine tunnels.
For days, he wandered aimlessly, his rations dwindling, before he finally stumbled upon the right path and saw the light of day again.
