"When away from the sect, my own cultivation must come first."
"No matter what, I must not let anything delay my cultivation."
Jiang Sheng forcibly suppressed the tangled thoughts in his heart, sat cross-legged atop Qingping Mountain, and began his midday cultivation after taking a pill.
Barring exceptional circumstances, Penglai cultivators never skipped their daily morning and evening practice.
The more diligent among them also practiced at midday.
Although noon was the height of yang for the day, when the sun shone at its fiercest and brightest, and ordinary cultivators would never absorb its supremely forceful, blazing essence at that hour, absorbing the spiritual qi drifting through the world or taking pills posed no problem.
Pills existed to make it easier for cultivators to practice day and night.
In ancient times, cultivators could only gather dawn radiance in the morning and moonlight in the evening. Now, they could cultivate without interruption through all twelve double-hours of the day. The advent of pills had undoubtedly been crucial.
The pill Jiang Sheng took was an Essence-Gathering Pill, the kind most commonly used by Dao Foundation cultivators.
The Essence-Gathering Pills produced by Penglai not only contained the least pill toxins but also maintained consistent quality, with no risk of a poisonous batch.
What cultivator traveling away from home would not exercise extra caution when buying pills or magical artifacts from others?
Who could guarantee that those pills, seemingly flawless and of excellent quality, were truly free of poison?
Rogue cultivators had few choices and almost no ability to assess pills. Aside from stealing them from others, they could only buy them from pill shops, with no way to be certain of their condition.
Cultivators like Jiang Sheng, who came from the Xuanmen Orthodox Sect, could instead purchase pills from their own sect.
This could be considered a hidden benefit. Whether buying pills or magical artifacts, purchasing from one's sect always offered the greatest peace of mind, without fear of hidden consequences.
This had been the most peaceful stretch of time Jiang Sheng had enjoyed since leaving his sect.
Every morning, he gathered the purple qi of the dawn radiance as the sun first rose. At noon, he took an Essence-Gathering Pill, and at night, he gathered the lunar qi of moonlight to cultivate.
His cultivation steadily advanced, while the Daoist temple halfway up the mountain continued to undergo repairs. In just a short time, it had already begun to take shape.
The people of Qingping Town confined themselves to repairing the temple halfway up the mountain each day. None dared approach the summit to disturb Jiang Sheng's cultivation.
Although a few more hunters had appeared in the mountains, they too knew their limits and did not dare disturb him.
In cultivation, the state of one's mind mattered most. Those who could not subdue the monkey of the heart or rein in the horse of the mind, who could not settle their hearts to cultivate, were doomed to make no progress and could not continue climbing the great path to immortality.
Jiang Sheng's composure had always earned praise from his sect's elders. Moreover, he greatly enjoyed cultivating alone in peace, undisturbed by the outside world.
Unfortunately, such days were always short-lived.
After Jiang Sheng had enjoyed a rare month of peaceful cultivation, the people of Qingping Town finally came looking for him.
That morning, Jiang Sheng was absorbing the purple qi of the dawn radiance as usual. Before he could finish his practice, Tian Guofu arrived with several attendants, all panting for breath.
Seeing that Jiang Sheng was cultivating, Tian Guofu did not interrupt him. He stood quietly to one side and waited until Jiang Sheng had finished before saying, "Daoist Jiang, the temple is finished."
Jiang Sheng's heart was as still as water, his expression calm. "Completed in little more than a month. Mayor Tian, you certainly worked quickly."
Tian Guofu gave an awkward smile. "Everyone was grateful to you for ridding us of that menace, Daoist Jiang, so they all worked very briskly."
Jiang Sheng slowly rose, exhaled a breath of stale air, and turned to face Tian Guofu. "Grateful? If you refrained from secretly cursing this humble Daoist, I would already be thanking you from the bottom of my heart."
Under the gaze of Jiang Sheng's eyes, Tian Guofu felt sweat soak his back. It was as though someone had seen straight through him, as though none of his thoughts could escape those star-like eyes.
"How—how would we dare? You jest, Daoist Jiang," Tian Guofu said with an awkward smile.
Jiang Sheng nodded. "You would not dare. That is not the same as not wanting to."
"The people of Qingping Town helped build a temple for this humble Daoist partly because I slew the tiger demon in these mountains. But your chief reason was that you believed I could also rid you of the River God in the Taiping River."
"And when I did not agree, resentment arose in your hearts. You felt that I had taken your money without doing the work."
As he spoke, Jiang Sheng walked down the mountain. "But Mayor Tian, do you know that this humble Daoist has never owed you anything?"
"You volunteered to build that temple for me after I rid the mountains of the tiger demon. I did not force you to build it. I will not use a favor to demand repayment, and I hope you will not expect to use a temple to pressure me either."
Seeing Jiang Sheng walk farther away, Tian Guofu grew anxious and hurried after him. "Daoist Jiang, neither I nor the people of Qingping Town ever intended to pressure you!"
"Good, then. In that case, you may all go down the mountain," Jiang Sheng said calmly.
Tian Guofu froze briefly. Not daring to say more, he obediently led his people down the mountain.
Back in town, Tian Guofu explained the outcome and could not help sighing. "This Daoist Jiang truly has ability."
"So many Daoists came before him to slay demons and vanquish evil, only to be swallowed by the tiger demon. Yet Daoist Jiang managed to kill it. That alone proves he has genuine skill."
A wealthy member of the local gentry said discontentedly, "So what if he has genuine skill? He still will not rid us of that demon in the Taiping River."
"Remember, this year it is our turn to provide those six pairs of young boys and girls."
An elderly scholar suddenly said, "We cannot persuade him because our standing is insufficient. Daoist Jiang does not consider us worthy of his notice."
Though unwilling to accept it, everyone had to admit that this was indeed the case.
Tian Guofu asked, "Then what would you advise us to do, sir?"
The old scholar stroked his beard and smiled. "Did our new county magistrate in Qingshan County not say that he intended to distinguish himself in office and rid the Taiping River of its demon?"
"Mayor, why not inform the magistrate of this matter and have him send someone to extend an invitation? Surely that would befit Daoist Jiang's standing?"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, in Qingshan County, the newly appointed county magistrate, Zhang Qingyun, was seething with anger.
"I have only just arrived in Qingshan County, yet they already treat me with such contempt!"
Zhang Qingyun had only recently taken office as magistrate of Qingshan County. He had thought he would be able to put his ambitions into practice upon assuming his post.
At first, the county seat's gentry and wealthy merchants had indeed welcomed him warmly, leading him to believe that the local gentry would cooperate with his administration.
Who could have imagined that, while these people addressed him as magistrate and appeared utterly respectful, his decrees would never be carried out at all?
The gentry relied on their decades, sometimes centuries, of local roots. Moreover, they controlled every aspect of the annual River God Grand Sacrifice, and nearly all the townspeople obeyed them.
The wealthy merchants colluded with the gentry, keeping all of Qingshan County firmly in their grip, from the county offices to every shop in the county seat and every town beyond it.
They left Magistrate Zhang no room whatsoever to exercise his authority.
On the surface, these people treated him respectfully, but behind the scenes, the gentry were the true masters of Qingshan County!
This left Zhang Qingyun feeling utterly humiliated. He, a county magistrate, had actually been reduced to a figurehead by those beneath him!
Just as Zhang Qingyun found himself at his wits' end, someone suddenly came to report.
"Magistrate, Tian Guofu, the mayor of Qingping Town, has something to report."
A clarification from Lin Yuan: Jiang Sheng was a cultivator, not a chivalrous hero eager to champion justice. Cultivators had always acted according to their own hearts, for good or ill; they possessed the power to do as they pleased. This was a world where great power resided in the individual. Jiang Sheng had a good disposition and came from the Xuanmen Orthodox Sect, but that did not mean he was a good person in the purest sense. Saving someone could be a casual act, rather than an obligatory one.
(End of chapter)
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