Going Out / It's All Been Developed into a Tourist Attraction

"That's fine too. Your disciple here can just work a little harder."

Qing He Miao waved it off, completely unconcerned. Talking had made him a little thirsty, so he picked up the small glass in front of him and took a sip.

The liquor was fiery, but it turned into a warm current as it went down his throat.

He was serious, though he wasn't necessarily all that fixated on reaching the realm of "Feathering and becoming an immortal."

As the saying went, a kindness received should be remembered for a thousand years.

In this life, old Master Chai might not have been particularly capable, and there wasn't much that stood out about his personality either. He was just an ordinary old countryman.

But he had truly given his disciple his heart and soul, holding nothing back and harboring no ill intentions.

As far as Qing He Miao was concerned, that simple bond between master and disciple was enough.

If he could, without too much trouble, bring a little more glory to the old man who had taught him and passed on his knowledge in this life, what was wrong with that?

He'd spoil his own master, of course!

And hearing his disciple speak so casually, as though ascension were a small matter that would naturally follow in due course...

Master Chai smiled and shook his head, taking it for the high spirits peculiar to the young.

Who hadn't once been young and thought nothing in the world was too difficult, that where there was a will, there was a way?

It was just that his disciple really did have the talent to say such things.

Even if he ultimately failed to recreate that legendary miracle, which had been beyond reach for centuries or even millennia, as long as he could grow up safe and sound, his future achievements would surely be far beyond anything an old geezer like him could match.

Thinking of his disciple's future, Master Chai felt much of his lingering self-pity wash away.

He tapped out his pipe, suddenly remembered an important matter, and grew a little more serious:

"Right, that thing I mentioned before—there's been some progress."

Qing He Miao looked up, a questioning expression on his face.

"I've told you before about the Grand Headmaster of our branch's biggest hall in the lands beyond the pass, right?"

Master Chai lowered his voice, a trace of excitement barely perceptible in it:

"As it happens, the 'leader' she invited comes from the same line as the Madam White our family venerates. They're distant relatives! Our White Lady happens to have a connection there! A few days ago, I swallowed my pride and asked White Lady to pass a message along..."

He paused, his face glowing red:

"White Lady thinks highly of you too. We might get a reply in a few days! If it works out, you'll come with me and make a good showing! If the Grand Headmaster takes a liking to you and gives you a pointer or two, or offers you an opportunity, that really would... that would bring our little hall a whole lot of face! Keep your wits about you when the time comes, kid, and you won't miss out on the benefits!"

Qing He Miao's heart stirred, and he immediately understood whom his master was talking about.

It was none other than Guan Shihua, the woman known as the "Shaman": a representative figure of the Horse-Riding Immortals beyond the pass in this era in the original story, and one of the highly respected Ten Elders of the Outcast World!

Thinking of this, Qing He Miao couldn't help feeling that the workings of the Horse-Riding tradition in his homeland really were rather interesting.

Nowadays, as the world's environment changed, fewer and fewer spirits were awakening their intelligence and embarking on the path of cultivation to "become demons."

Moreover, every spirit needed to spend a long stretch of time cultivating before it could achieve anything.

Thus, within the limited "circle of spirits," regardless of their cultivation or the size of their halls, they all knew one another to some degree. Their connections tangled together like roots and knots, forming a vast, hidden network.

Chapter 12: Going Out

Every successful Shaman Disciple and the hall behind them was like a local "snake" or "powerful clan," backed by one or more connections among the Immortal Families.

On this black soil beyond the pass.

Just about anyone one could think of could be reached through some connection, with the "old immortals" each hall venerated acting as go-betweens.

That was why a distinctive way of settling matters often appeared in stories about the Horse-Riding Immortal trade.

Rather than readily coming to blows or battling with spells, they would first "trace connections," reveal their backgrounds, and compare their networks, seeing whose "old immortals" had more face and stronger connections.

Much of the time, settling trouble and resolving disputes depended not on who had greater magical power, but on who had more "face"—who could invite a more influential person or member of an Immortal Family to speak on their behalf.

This practice was exactly like the local social habit beyond the pass of "first thinking about whether you know someone or can pull strings, whatever you're doing."

It gave the whole thing a particularly authentic, down-to-earth feel.

If a formally ordained Daoist wanted to meet someone like Zhang Zhiwei, the current Celestial Master, apart from pretending to be an ordinary tourist and getting a photo with him from afar on Mount Longhu...

Ordinary connections simply weren't enough to secure a meeting.

But in the Horse-Riding Immortals' own little patch of ground, things were very different.

Leaving aside what the other party's eventual response might be, as long as one was willing to swallow one's pride and pass a message through a roundabout chain of connections among the Immortal Families one venerated...

It was even possible to establish a direct connection with the Grand Headmaster who currently led the Horse-Riding Immortals beyond the pass.

This was the unique network woven from geography, inheritance, and connections among the Immortal Families.

Qing He Miao, however, rather disagreed and wasn't particularly intent on making contact with characters from the original story:

"Master, why bother? Cultivation is a personal matter. Isn't cultivating in peace and freedom a proper path too? Even if I meet those big shots, all they can do is give me pointers. Don't I still have to temper my own 'life and soul'?"

In The Outcast, there was a very clear rule: mechanics couldn't compete with stats pushed to the extreme.

That was the so-called "Life and Soul Dual Cultivation."

Or rather, before "life and soul" pushed to the extreme, those so-called mechanics were nothing but flashy offshoots.

It was just that a person only had so much prime time for cultivation, and they were bound to be troubled by all the affairs of the mortal world, leaving them without that much energy.

If they leaned toward one direction, their abilities in the other would naturally fall behind.

How to balance those two directions depended on the skill of the individual and their sect.

And Qing He Miao, who possessed a system, was precisely the kind of person who could lie low and raise his stats.

One could say that from the moment he learned the basic Qi Refining Formula, there would surely be a period in the future when he stood "below one alone."

"You don't understand, do you? Miao, this isn't about climbing the social ladder. It's about 'getting to know the door'!"

Faced with his disciple's ideas, Master Chai was rather pleased with himself. He lectured him in the tone of someone addressing a child who had yet to be beaten up by society:

"Even if you can cultivate into a Great Luo Golden Immortal, you have to stay alive long enough to do it, and avoid being crippled."

Qing He Miao was usually so clever and sensible that there wasn't much Master Chai could teach him.

Having a disciple who caused him no trouble was nice, but it did leave him feeling a little short of accomplishment.

Now that he could teach his disciple something about life experience, he proudly tapped the edge of the kang and spoke solemnly:

"In our circle, what matters is having a clear lineage and known roots. With talent as good as yours, if you really make something of yourself one day and go out into the world, people will ask who taught you. If you say you're Chai Ningshen's disciple, they might have to stop and wonder who the hell I am.

"But if you can get your name on Grand Headmaster Guan Shihua's books and show your face, even if you only become someone she vaguely recognizes, things will be different when you travel around beyond the pass! That's the rule, and it's also paving the road for you! Even if you go out and offend someone, they'll have to think twice and spare your little life."

As his master, Chai Ningshen knew perfectly well that he had already taught Qing He Miao everything he could of his meager skills and knowledge.

Before long, those probably wouldn't be enough to impress his disciple.

Qing He Miao's talent really was astonishing. Perhaps, as he himself occasionally joked, he could grind his way to an extraordinary achievement through patient, painstaking effort.

But precisely because of that, as his master, no matter how little ability he had himself, he couldn't neglect to give more thought to his disciple's future.

Doing his best to find his disciple a better platform and give him a broader view of the world was the only thing he could do now, and what he felt was his duty.

Otherwise, when he passed on, he might well be reproached by his own master.

Seeing the unusual stubbornness in his master's eyes, Qing He Miao knew those were the social rules of Master Chai's generation, and that he truly had his best interests at heart.

With no other choice, Qing He Miao could only go along with it.

"All right, all right, I'll listen to you."

He relented and raised his glass in a small gesture:

"Anyway, I'm just going on a trip with you to broaden my horizons. There's nothing to lose."

Master and disciple chatted over peanuts and sunflower seeds for a long while longer. Only when darkness had completely fallen outside and the lights in the village had gradually gone out did Qing He Miao take his leave and return home by moonlight.

His master's wife had wanted him to stay for a meal, but he had politely declined.

There was no helping it. His master and his wife were old, and they liked their food cooked too soft and mushy.

He had a perfectly good set of teeth now, and he really couldn't get used to eating it.

What Qing He Miao hadn't expected, however, was for his master to get things done so quickly.

Summer vacation had barely begun, before he'd even had time to warm up to the holiday, when Master Chai showed up right on cue. He said he was taking him on a long trip, and they might have to stay away for a while.

Knowing that both his parents had "real skills," Master Chai also gave them a sincere explanation of the whole affair involving Qing He Miao.

It amounted to taking the boy to visit a highly respected senior and broaden his horizons—a proper matter within their "line of work."

Qing Fu and Qing Mu were full of reluctance and worry at the thought of their son traveling far from home, but seeing Master Chai's serious manner and their son's own resigned composure, they could ultimately only nod their agreement.

They packed his luggage simply: just a few changes of clothes, some toiletries, and all sorts of food Qing Mu had insisted on stuffing in.

Early the next morning, Qing He Miao slung an old schoolbag, packed until it bulged, over his back and prepared to set off.

Before he left, Qing Mu straightened her son's collar and reminded him again and again:

"When you get somewhere, remember to find a phone somehow and let us know you're safe... Do you have enough to eat and drink in your bag? Oh, should we buy you a mobile phone? It would make it easier to keep in touch later."

Qing He Miao hefted the heavy schoolbag in his hand. For a real fourteen-year-old to carry that weight all the way would have been torture.

At that age in his previous life, he would probably have started complaining long ago.

"Mom, it's really enough. Don't forget, your son was born knowing things. I'm not an ordinary kid."

He could only smile wryly and reassure his mother:

"To put it bluntly, vast as the world is, there may be quite a few people or things that can defeat me right now, but there's absolutely nothing that can keep me from coming back."

His tone was calm, yet it carried a certainty beyond his years:

"As for a mobile phone, since my safety is assured, I can go anywhere in the world and I'll definitely be able to come back whenever I want, there's no need to rush to keep in touch.

"Cheap mobile phones these days aren't much use, and the good ones would be a burden on our family. Let's wait another two or three years. By then, a model called a 'touchscreen phone' will have become widespread. We can buy one when they get cheaper."

Chapter 13: It's All Been Developed into a Tourist Attraction

Under ordinary circumstances, he kept his Stand, [Cream], equipped in his Stand slot. With a thought, he could swallow his entire body into the alternate space inside it, completely isolating himself from the outside world.

If he really encountered a danger he couldn't resist, probably ninety-nine percent of the methods in this world would be unable to do anything to him in that state.

At that point, he could disregard everything and drive [Cream] straight ahead in one direction.

What kind of formation or encirclement could stop him?

Of course, that was his last trump card for preserving his life, and the consequences could easily be severe.

If he really charged straight through without regard for the consequences, whatever lay in his path—houses, vehicles, or even crowds of people—would probably be impossible to avoid, inevitably causing indiscriminate destruction and casualties. That was the last thing he wanted.