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Chapter 40: A Faint Pain
🕑 Added 2025-03-10 12:46:40 +0000 UTCChen Xiao listened from the side, feeling a deep sense of surprise. He had never known that people around Xi Yunqing had always suffered misfortunes to varying degrees since childhood. The first time he saw Xi Yunqing use his baleful aura to punish the head of the Fan family, he had been astonished by his ability to shift between two distinct powers but hadn't thought much beyond that. Now, after hearing these fragmented pieces of conversation, he found it difficult to understand.
With Xi Yunqing's commanding presence, logic dictated that those around him should experience an increase in fortune, not the opposite. This contradiction defied common sense, leaving Chen Xiao perplexed.
"...It must be that as his cultivation level grows, this innate ability strengthens as well," Zhao Fang muttered, wiping his face with a somewhat muffled voice.
Junior Brother Geng hesitated for a moment before saying, "Immortal Master Xi is only in the Golden Core stage right now. When he reaches the Nascent Soul stage, who would even dare stand within three feet of him?" After this recent journey, no one believed Xi Yunqing could fully control this ability.
After those words were spoken, silence fell again in the adjacent room. A third voice eventually broke it: "This isn't something we juniors should concern ourselves with. Right now, our priority is bringing these disciples back. The other elders and immortal masters have already begun training their batches for three months. These disciples have already fallen behind."
A fourth person added, "No need to worry. Since this delay was due to special circumstances, the Administrative Hall has decided to issue supplementary elixirs upon their return to help them catch up with the earlier arrivals."
Zhao Fang said, "With two senior brothers escorting us this time, safety is more assured. The ship is ready, we set sail this afternoon."
Junior Brother Geng let out a dry laugh. "You mean ensuring the apprentices' safety after they fall into the sea?"
Zhao Fang shot him a glare. Some thoughts were best left unsaid, why voice them?
Junior Brother Geng straightened his chest, as if gathering courage, and said, "Actually, I have a suggestion... why don’t we travel separately from Immortal Master Xi?"
It was as if a binding spell had been lifted in the next room, suddenly, no one moved.
Geng swallowed hard and lowered his voice, continuing, "Normally, since he’s leading the group, Immortal Master Xi must travel with us. But now that the Administrative Hall has sent two senior brothers, they are qualified to temporarily take over his duties. If we split into two groups, we can get the disciples back to the sect faster…"
At this rate, the senior disciples could endure the delays, but these young disciple would likely suffer casualties. No one wanted to see that happen.
After Geng voiced his suggestion, the others at the table considered it carefully. To his surprise, no one opposed it. There was just one problem.
Zhao Fang spoke slowly, "…Then who’s going to tell Immortal Master Xi?"
As if reaching a unanimous decision, the other three all turned to look at him.
"Obviously, you! As his fellow sect member, it has to be you!"
Zhao Fang’s expression immediately twisted into one of reluctant misery. The gazes fixed on him carried a mix of encouragement, coercion, and pleading. In the end, he sighed in resignation.
"Fine… I'll go now. We can’t delay the departure. The rest is up to you three."
The four of them stood up and left.
Chen Xiao only turned around after they exited the Hall of Knowledge, scanning his surroundings.
Though his encounters with Xi Yunqing had been brief, the impression left on him was profound. He saw Xi Yunqing as an imposing yet contemplative figure, outwardly cold, yet remarkably approachable in private. Chen Xiao had already begun to regard him as someone worth befriending, though he knew that was unlikely to ever happen.
Hearing how the others avoided Xi Yunqing to this extent left him with a heavy heart.
If he were in Xi Yunqing’s place and discovered their plan, he would certainly feel hurt.
Xi Yunqing shouldn’t be treated this way!
Chen Xiao clenched his fists and slammed his leg in frustration. He hated that he had no tools at hand and that much of his former knowledge had been rendered useless. Even if he wanted to help suppress Xi Yunqing’s baleful aura, he wouldn’t know where to begin.
He stared down at his hands. If only he knew more…
For the first time in his life, Chen Xiao felt an overwhelming desire to help someone he barely knew.
Du Rong returned and sat directly across from Chen Xiao. Seeing him lost in thought, he called out, "Master, I’m back."
Chen Xiao snapped out of his daze and looked up. "Uncle Rong, how did it go?"
Du Rong nodded first, then shook his head. "The situation is better than I expected. There's an immortal master in charge of this matter who made things much easier. However, they set a clear price, five Spirit Pearls for a temporary disciple’s medallion."
"Five Spirit Pearls?!" Chen Xiao was taken aback.
Had Du Rong not looked so composed, Chen Xiao would have suspected that immortal master of having X-ray vision. Otherwise, how else could they have set the price so perfectly at exactly five Spirit Pearls?
"This price is too steep!"
Du Rong had thought the same. Yesterday, Chen Xiao had only shown him a single spirit pearl, which was already beyond his expectations. He hadn’t believed his employer would have more.
With a solemn expression, Du Rong said, “The Zhishi Hall likely set up this process specifically for cultivation clans and powerful elites. Those families and influential figures are wealthy, five spirit pearls mean nothing to them.”
Chen Xiao recalled the middle-aged cultivator from the City Lord’s manor, who had casually taken out a large handful of spirit pearls to purchase the bronze cauldron. Clearly, five spirit pearls were insignificant to people like him.
“Five spirit pearls won’t work,” Chen Xiao shook his head. He only had five pearls and twenty-seven spirit coins on him. If he used the pearls for the identity plaque, he wouldn’t have enough left for the boat ticket.
Du Rong glanced at Chen Xiao and said in a low voice, “Master, there’s no need to worry. Since we know there are immortal masters who specialize in this kind of business, there must be a way. The Zhishi Hall is the official route, but behind the scenes, there are certainly immortal masters who charge much less.”
Chen Xiao immediately understood, so even immortal masters weren’t all rigid and above worldly matters.
“I’ll inquire thoroughly,” Du Rong continued. “I will certainly find the right person to get the temporary identity plaque for you.”
This wasn’t something Chen Xiao could help with, so he left it to Du Rong. The two of them left Zhishi Hall, and since it was still early, Chen Xiao suggested they go see the ships that traveled to cultivator cities.
The outer harbor docks were far larger than the inner river port, and the ships here were generally much bigger. The vessels on this sea route made regular stops for resupply, so they didn’t need to exceed ten thousand tons. According to the information Du Rong had gathered, this particular ship was a six-story tower ship with a crew of two hundred, eighty inner cabins, one hundred and twenty outer cabins, and a capacity of over eight hundred passengers, bringing the total onboard to over a thousand.
Chen Xiao had seen even larger modern ships before, but those were made of steel. The massive vessel before him, towering over twenty meters high and stretching more than fifty meters long, was built entirely of wood!
Unlike the other docked ships, the most striking feature of this tower ship was that it had no sails, it wasn’t powered by the wind. Chen Xiao guessed it operated similarly to that magical stove, using spirit stones as an energy source. No wonder the tickets were so expensive and only available to cultivators.
The tower ship had a dedicated docking area, separate from the other sea vessels. From a distance, Chen Xiao could see people maintaining order at the pier, while a queue of over a hundred young people was slowly boarding. They all seemed to be of a similar age, but he couldn’t tell if Wu Xinzhi was among them.
His gaze swept through the crowd, searching for a familiar face. He watched for a long time, until the last few young cultivators boarded, his eyes growing sore, yet he still didn’t see the person he was looking for.
Rubbing his eyes, he blinked a few times. When he looked again, he suddenly spotted a lone figure in a dark robe standing a short distance from the pier, silently watching the tower ship.
Just as Chen Xiao tried to get a clearer look, the figure abruptly disappeared.
That was Xi Yunqing. He was certain of it.
The thought of her standing there, watching the group she was supposed to return with leave without her, left behind, all alone, sent a faint pang through his heart.
“Master, what are you looking at?” Du Rong asked in confusion.
Chen Xiao turned away and said casually, “Nothing. Let’s go.”
Back in his previous life, when the backlash from his injuries had eased enough for him to get out of bed, his master had once told him: the stronger a feng shui master’s abilities, the more compassion they should have.
Chen Xiao wondered, was this what he was feeling now?
For the next three days, Du Rong went out daily to make inquiries, while Chen Xiao stayed in his room to avoid unnecessary trouble. Du Rong discreetly contacted several immortal masters, whose prices ranged from four spirit pearls to two.
Chen Xiao frowned. “Try to get it down to one spirit pearl. If that’s impossible, then go with the one offering it for two.” Since they had no idea what to expect in the other city, they needed to conserve as many resources as possible.
Those who were willing to take on this job all had some connection to Zhishi Hall. They were merely trying to earn a little extra on the side without angering the hall’s management too much. Even after paying off Zhishi Hall, two spirit pearls was already the lowest they could offer.
Du Rong took a deep breath and said firmly, “I’ll do my best.”
Meanwhile, the clothes Chen Xiao had ordered from the tailor in the capital were almost ready. Du Rong, now growing more frugal himself, asked Chen Xiao for permission to make a quick trip back to pick up the clothes and their belongings left at the inn.
Chen Xiao nodded in agreement. Every little bit saved counted.
A day and a half later, Du Rong returned, but he wasn’t alone. Behind him was a round-faced boy with a serious expression, trying his best to look like an adult.
Chen Xiao stared, dumbfounded. He looked at the boy, then at Du Rong, and finally asked, “What’s going on here?”
Du Rong looked relaxed, a hint of amusement at the corners of his mouth as he explained, “Fellow Daoist Tong is a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He has agreed to help obtain a temporary identity plaque, as long as Master covers the cost of twenty spirit coins for a boat ticket.”
Chen Xiao’s eyes widened in astonishment. He turned to look at Du Rong with newfound admiration.
Uncle Rong, you’re amazing. Absolutely incredible!
