Three Companions

Liu Xuanfeng cleared his throat and said, “Idle gossip from the streets is not to be believed.”

Consort Qi gave a charming smile and replied, “If you truly want it, I’m sure my sisters wouldn’t refuse you.”

“Forget it, I have no desire to break any taboos,” Li Miao quickly shook his head.

The three laughed as they mingled with the crowd, making their way to the edge of the field beneath the high platform.

“Everyone is here.”

After a short wait, the Daoist Priest Songshi on the stage announced, “Then I shan’t waste any more words. Let us begin today’s duels.”

“Next is the third round of the tournament, first match. Would Daoist Luo Jing from the Hall of Fiery Refinement and Master Yu Yu from the Lingyang Sect please take the stage.”

A cheer arose from those below.

Luo Jing and Master Yu Yu, both cultivators at the mid-stage True Condensation realm, entered the arena, saluted each other, and then unleashed their techniques to begin the battle.

Their cultivations were on par, and their methods equally matched. However, Master Yu Yu was advanced in years, and after a quarter of an hour of combat, he began to show signs of exhaustion and ultimately conceded with regret.

“Thank you for letting me win, Master.”

The victorious Luo Jing, beaming with satisfaction, cupped his fists.

Master Yu Yu, panting, showed no anger at his loss and said kindly, “The waves of the Yangtze push forward, and the old must yield to the new. I concede wholeheartedly.”

The two withdrew from the field.

“The third round, second match: Daoist Master Kaize from Azure Cloud Monastery versus Shi Xuan of Tiger Roar Sect.”

Battle after battle commenced and concluded. By the sixth match, Liu Xuanfeng faced Lu Zijing in a spectacular duel, both employing their full arsenal. In the end, Liu Xuanfeng summoned the superior magic treasure, the Ghostly Claw, to secure victory.

Then came the seventh match: Li Miao versus Wang Ruhuo.

Wang Ruhuo’s cultivation was slightly higher than Liu Xuanfeng’s, but still far less than Lu Yan’s. Before the match even began, a group from the Hall of Fiery Refinement wore grim faces.

Li Miao glanced their way and noticed the absence of Lu Yan and his daughter, Lu Yingshuang—clearly, the sword wound that had pierced his chest had not yet healed. Such an injury was not fatal to a cultivator, but certainly would not mend within a day or two. Even though Lu Yan was at the Purple Mansion stage, not even a body-refining cultivator could recover so quickly from such trauma; certainly not overnight, unlike Li Miao.

Daoist Songshi announced the contestants.

Li Miao stepped into the arena with composure, not even bothering to draw his saber. He stood calmly at the center, waiting for Wang Ruhuo to approach.

The latter knew well he was outmatched but harbored the hope of testing whether Li Miao had recovered, and so went forth. The outcome was as expected—within only a dozen breaths, Wang Ruhuo was felled by a single punch, spat two mouthfuls of blood, and could not continue.

The third round concluded swiftly.

The final four were: Li Miao of Shaoyin Sect, Liu Xuanfeng of Shaoyin Sect, Luo Jing of Hall of Fiery Refinement, and Daoist Master Kaize of Azure Cloud Monastery.

From there, the outcomes left little suspense.

By midday, the fourth round began.

Li Miao faced Luo Jing; Liu Xuanfeng faced Daoist Master Kaize.

In the first match, Li Miao triumphed easily. Luo Jing’s strength was inferior even to Wang Ruhuo’s and withstood only a few exchanges before falling to Li Miao’s iron fists.

In the second match, Daoist Master Kaize displayed astonishing power. Liu Xuanfeng, losing by a narrow margin, was defeated.

After a brief rest, the afternoon’s contest for third place began.

This pitted Liu Xuanfeng against Luo Jing. Though Liu Xuanfeng was aided by a superior magic treasure, Luo Jing’s own treasure was nearly as formidable, and the Hall of Fiery Refinement’s domineering spells were hard to counter. After a fierce battle, Liu Xuanfeng suffered internal injuries and was forced to concede.

The final match: Li Miao versus Daoist Master Kaize.

Though the latter was no weakling, within the mid-stage True Condensation realm he was merely strong; compared to Lu Yan at the late stage, he was a whole level below.

The duel ended swiftly. Li Miao pressed his assault, one saber strike after another, overwhelming his opponent and claiming victory in short order.

When Li Miao’s triumph was announced, the assembled cultivators were silent for a long moment before thunderous applause erupted like a raging sea.

Although few present were familiar with Li Miao, or even knew whence he came, his strength alone earned him the respect and admiration of many.

Despite being only at the early stage of True Condensation, he had defeated numerous mid- and late-stage opponents, becoming the tournament’s greatest dark horse.

Such an event may not be seen again in a hundred years.

Realizing this, the crowd felt fortunate to have witnessed such a remarkable contest—an experience sure to become a tale to recount in days to come.

The enthusiastic cheering lasted a long while before settling.

Meanwhile, the results from the Newcomers’ Arena were also decided.

First place in the Newcomers’ Arena went to Cao An, an elite disciple of the Hall of Fiery Refinement; second place to Zhu Lan, the tiger-taming maiden of Tiger Roar Sect.

Thus the tournament concluded, and the division of the resources left by the Sun Estate was settled.

The results: Fallen Flower Lake, Hundred Herbs Sect, and Cold Mountain Valley each received fifteen percent.

The remaining fifty-five percent was distributed according to ranking: Li Miao of Shaoyin Sect ten percent, Daoist Master Kaize of Azure Cloud Monastery nine percent, Luo Jing of Hall of Fiery Refinement eight percent, Liu Xuanfeng of Shaoyin Sect seven percent, Shi Xuan of Tiger Roar Sect six percent, Wang Ruhuo of Hall of Fiery Refinement five percent, Master Yu Yu of Lingyang Sect four percent, Lu Zijing of Tianxin Hall three percent, Cao An of Hall of Fiery Refinement two percent, and Zhu Lan of Tiger Roar Sect one percent.

In other words, Shaoyin Sect emerged as the greatest beneficiary, securing seventeen percent of the Sun Estate’s cultivation resources. Next were the three great sects and the Hall of Fiery Refinement, each with fifteen percent.

While the lesser sects received smaller shares, each gained substantial profit.

After the grand event, most of the several hundred cultivators in the eastern city were filled with joy. Aside from the few sects that performed poorly and gained little, the majority were satisfied.

Even the disciples of the Hall of Fiery Refinement, who had been bested by Li Miao three times and lost the top prize, smiled broadly.

After all, they too had gained a substantial share—fifteen percent was enough to greatly enhance their sect's strength.

But the liveliest spot was around Li Miao.

Many cultivators came to congratulate him and Liu Xuanfeng, hoping to make his acquaintance and forge connections.

Yet, Li Miao was not one for social niceties. Surrounded by the crowd, he felt not pride but discomfort, entirely ill at ease.

He quickly found an excuse to brush them off and slipped away.

The crowd was dense and noisy.

Taking advantage of his tall stature, he quickly pushed his way out.

Just then, Consort Qi caught up, calling, “Master Li, please wait.”

“Why are you here?” Li Miao asked in surprise.

The tournament had only just ended, and with Shaoyin Sect in the spotlight, she should be helping Liu Xuanfeng with the other sects; why had she come after him?

Consort Qi halted before him, looked up, and asked, “Are you leaving Longling soon?”

Li Miao nodded.

With matters here resolved, he had nothing left to do and could leave at any time.

“The resource allocation can be handled by you all. Other than fighting, I’m no use. Staying serves no purpose.”

“Oh.”

A hint of disappointment appeared on Consort Qi’s face, and biting her lip, she asked, “Will you come back to see us?”

Li Miao replied calmly, “I suppose I will.”

Apart from Guo’er learning from Ji Lingyu, there were two other reasons he must return to Longling: the annihilation of the Zhongyun Mountain sect, and Lingdie.

He had promised that, should he ever obtain the treasure guided by the Spirit Butterfly, he would reward Consort Qi handsomely.

The Spirit Butterfly symbolized the ancient Tomb of the Great Void, rumored to hide priceless relics from a bygone era.

Yet that treasure had only been revealed once in tens of thousands of years; he had little confidence he would see the next opening of the Tomb.

Thus, he could not say when he would return.

Receiving his ambiguous answer, Consort Qi smiled faintly. “That’s good. I look forward to seeing what kind of figure you’ll be when you return—perhaps by then you’ll be a supreme master.”

“Let’s hope so,” Li Miao replied, his own heart stirring with anticipation.

The noise around them persisted.

Seeing several others heading his way, clearly hoping to curry favor, Li Miao decided to make his escape.

“Go help your uncle,” he said. “I’m leaving.”

“Oh,” Consort Qi replied softly, a trace of sorrow in her tone. “Take care of yourself.”

“And you as well—until we meet again.”

With a cupped fist, Li Miao turned and strode away.

Consort Qi remained where she was, watching his tall figure recede and vanish into the distant crowd. A faint sadness appeared on her gentle face.

Amid the hubbub, a soft sigh was heard.

As the noise faded, Li Miao had already left the eastern part of the city and was headed south.

He departed decisively, not even bidding farewell to Liu Xuanfeng—only a few words to Consort Qi before leaving.

Perhaps such behavior would cause other powers to harbor ill will toward Shaoyin Sect, but he trusted Liu Xuanfeng’s shrewdness to handle any consequences.

He had spent quite some time in this remote corner of Longling County and now longed to venture out, to see the vast and colorful world of cultivation, to witness the wonders only cultivators could perceive.

What’s more, ever since discovering his primal energy could manipulate cultivators’ magic treasures, he had become deeply interested in their arts—spells, formations, alchemy, and artifact forging. He yearned to study these paths and learn the ways of this world’s mighty.

Though primal energy encompasses all, and is the most fundamental force in the universe—capable of evolving into countless origins—this does not mean practitioners of primal energy are always the strongest. The universe is vast and full of marvels.

Every civilization has its unique brilliance: primal energy warriors can create the Heart of the Cosmos and the Sacred Body of the Star River; cultivators can devise equally, or even more, powerful methods.

As the saying goes, “Among three people, there must be one I can learn from.”

The weak are not always worthless in all things, nor are the strong always masters of everything.

South of Longling.

A great river stretched before him, coming from the east and flowing westward, its end unseen.

This was the Cangyun River, famed throughout Dragon Spring Prefecture, originating in distant Moyue Mountain, coursing through Pangshan, Tianxia, and Fengxian counties for nineteen thousand miles before emptying into the renowned Wasteland Sea.

Following the river downstream would take one through the Pangshan county seat, though the journey was long and would require many days drifting with the boats.

At the Longling docks, numerous vessels were moored, porters busily loading and unloading cargo, merchants shouting orders and boasting.

No matter how lively the tournament, the dock’s work never paused; cargo and passengers continued to come and go as always.

Li Miao arrived at the docks, eyeing the ships, and thought, “Should I go see Guo’er?”

Guo’er was just there, on the largest ship nearby, likely studying some ancient secret art.

With her talent, she must be progressing rapidly.

After some thought, he dismissed the idea.

They had only been apart two days; if he visited Guo’er now, she might miss him and lose focus, and Ji Lingyu would surely disapprove.

Besides, their separation this time was only three months—one to hone her skills, one to roam the world. The time would pass quickly; they would soon meet again.

Opportunities to learn from the strong are rare. He did not wish to distract Guo’er, so he resolved to leave quietly.

“Boatman, where is your vessel bound?”

Li Miao approached a medium-sized boat, seven or eight zhang in length, and called up to the crew.

The owner, a lean man in his thirties, answered, “This trip is headed for the county seat, passing Annan, Hongsha, and Tianmen counties. We’ll be going downstream for over twenty days, then wintering in the county seat. Next spring, we’ll spend two months making the return trip upstream. Are you coming, brother?”

Li Miao smiled, “Yes, I’m going to the county seat.”

Traveling overland from Longling to Pangshan County required over five thousand li, but the river route was only three thousand or so.

Though he could cover the distance on foot in less than twenty days, traveling by boat was far more comfortable.

Satisfied, the boatman said eagerly, “Good! Please, come aboard and rest in the cabin. We’ll depart in half an hour.”

Li Miao boarded, paid fifteen taels of silver for a one-way ticket, and entered the passenger quarters.

This vessel carried both cargo and passengers. The lower hold was packed with bags of spices, raw silk, and herbs from Longling County. The upper deck was divided into a main cabin and dozens of smaller rooms for guests.

When Li Miao boarded, there were already a dozen or so people in the main cabin—mostly ordinary folk, with only one or two showing faint signs of cultivation.

He did not linger, but followed the attendant to his assigned cabin in the rear.