Would You Like to Be the Sword-Wielder, Young Lady?

When Xiao Ran returned to Sword-Wielding Mountain, it was right in the middle of the afternoon.

Master had gone to the Imperial Capital to buy wine and had yet to return. Judging by her temperament, Xiao Ran wouldn't be the least bit surprised if she had stopped along the way to listen to some brothel tunes, throw dice at a gambling den, or flirt with women in the palace.

The autumn radiance at the summit of Sword-Wielding Mountain was dense, but not oppressive.

Standing by the cliff to look out over the Zongzhi Mountain Range was like gazing at a timeless, ethereal ink wash painting; the scenery was magnificent.

Yet looking down at the very feet of Sword-Wielding Mountain, it was barren like a toddler's scribble, truly unsightly.

Xiao Ran thought to himself that Master spent all day rejecting this and rejecting that for being ugly, yet the very place where she meditated, slept, and relieved herself was the ugliest of all. Had she damaged her eyes from drinking too much fake wine?

He resolved to thoroughly remodel Sword-Wielding Mountain, making it even prettier than Hundred Herbs Peak and turning it into the most livable renowned peak in the Zongzhi Mountain Range.

Today was a bumper harvest.

First, Xiao Ran brewed wine.

He fetched two stone vats.

One stone vat was used to hold mashed Black Yeast Mushrooms to extract natural yeast.

The other stone vat was used to hold Malt Mold, hops, and mashed malted grain starch.

Half an hour later.

The first vat of yeast extraction was complete.

The second vat was wrapped in gauze, and the wort was squeezed out from it.

The two vats were mixed, filtered through diatomaceous earth, semi-sealed with bamboo strips, and then buried in the warm earth where the spiritual meridian passed to begin fermentation.

Right at the start of fermentation, it entered the high-krausen stage. When the malt wort was particularly vigorous, a rustling sound could be heard, and at the same time, the aroma of wine could be smelled.

If the spiritual energy was abundant, the geothermal heat stable, and luck on his side, he would be able to drink malt clear wine before midnight.

With the brewing finished, all that remained was to wait for the malt to ferment.

Next, Xiao Ran prepared to clear some wasteland.

The area at the summit of Sword-Wielding Mountain was about the size of four or five football fields.

The Disciple Quarters and the Broken Sword site in the middle were slightly higher, while the rest could be considered flat ground.

After conducting an on-site survey at the peak, Xiao Ran made a flawless plan.

The south side.

The south side faced the doors of the Disciple Quarters.

The terrain on the south side was the flattest and the space the largest, accounting for about one-third of the peak.

Seas of flowers, medicinal fields, wheat plots, and grain lands would all be arranged here.

The moment the gates opened, the vast, bountiful, and rolling fields would connect in an unbroken line with the sea of clouds.

Therefore, the designation for the south side was: The Planting Zone! The east side.

By the east cliff, there were jagged rocks and lone pines, which was the place where Master drank most often.

On the east side, there was also a node of underground cold water, where a deep pool could be dug, channeling water to create a stream that flowed among the strange rocks to form a small waterfall.

The landscape of strange rocks and lone pines would instantly acquire a profound artistic conception.

In addition, the pool could be used for raising fish or fishing.

Pavilions and chess tables could be built around it, providing ample comfort.

The vegetation would be covered with pines, maples, and cherry blossoms, offering sufficient serenity.

Therefore, the designation for the east side was: The Leisure Zone! The west side.

The west cliff was the discharge site for domestic wastewater, which could be turned to waste by building a vegetable garden and fruit orchard on the west side, or perhaps raising some spirit beasts and the like.

Therefore, the designation for the west side was: The Fruit and Vegetable Zone! The north side.

The terrain on the north side was slightly higher; planting Giant Bamboo here could create the feel of a back mountain.

Among the bamboo forest, some shade-loving flowers and plants could be grown to attract small animals like rabbits and squirrels, occasionally allowing for a meat dish.

The north cliff had steep terrain, facing Hundred Herbs Peak where True Person Yinyue resided.

This happened to be the convergence point of warm waters, where a hot spring pool could be dug.

With heavenly light, seas of clouds, and curling water mists, coming here at night after strenuous labor to soak in a hot spring and relax body and mind, tsk tsk...

Therefore, the designation for the north side was: The Health Preservation Zone! The planning was complete.

Xiao Ran inspected his storage space.

Tools, seeds, trees, saplings, and fertilizer were all fully equipped.

Pity that he was still a mortal; the workload was too massive to finish in a single day, taking at least a week to complete.

The time had already reached dusk.

The evening glow dyed the western half of the sky red.

He came to the west side.

Since he needed to eat and drink every day, Xiao Ran picked the most urgent vegetable plots to begin.

Routine vegetable planting and yeast mushroom cultivation both had to be arranged as soon as possible.

He took out a hoe.

Draped in the setting sun, Xiao Ran began to clear the wasteland hoe by hoe.

A short while later, he suddenly heard a soft, cold female voice come from behind him.

"Jiang Chuyan of Little Qiong Peak requests an audience with Elder Lingzhou."

Jiang Chuyan? Xiao Ran was slightly startled.

Was she that young girl who was rejected by Master because her talent was too high?

Good grief! The Disciple Challenge didn't start until tomorrow, yet she was already coming to pick a fight today?

If Chen Gongxing had been an accidental encounter, then this Jiang Chuyan was making an active offensive. What kind of surprise would Ye Fan bring him then? Xiao Ran only felt his head throbbing as he continued tilling the soil without even turning his head.

"Master has gone far away on business. Please go back."

Unexpectedly, the soft female voice behind him suddenly surged with vigor.

"That's just perfect—I've come looking for you!"

There was no dodging it.

Xiao Ran turned around, leaning on his hoe. In the setting sun, her features were unclear, and he could only vaguely make out a petite figure.

Her height was probably around five-foot-one, with a pair of slender legs poking out into the air, straight and long though they were.

Was she a child?

Xiao Ran suddenly felt the mindset of an elder.

"Looking for me? Address me as Martial Uncle first."

The girl's voice was soft and sweet, carrying a trace of faint hoarseness, while her tone remained cold.

"You killed my Xiao Hong, and you still expect me to call you Martial Uncle?"

Xiao Ran was taken aback.

"Xiao Hong refers to the Red Spotted Tiger?"

The soft, cold voice trembled slightly.

"So you really are the one who killed it!"

Goodness! Was the timing today not too coincidental? If not for the suppressed anger in the girl's tone alongside her not-so-bright figure and voice, Xiao Ran would have suspected she was using the tiger as bait to intentionally lure him into a trap.

"It wanted my life. Should I have kept it instead of killing it to worship like an ancestor?"

Xiao Ran stated bluntly.

"You—"

The girl was left speechless. Matters had reached this point, and since the Red Spotted Tiger was gone, it was gone, but she was determined to seize this opportunity and vow to stay on Sword-Wielding Mountain even if it cost her life. She put on a stern little face and stubbornly argued.

"You have your reasons, and I have my stance. You killed my Xiao Hong, so naturally I cannot let you off."

Facing the blood-red setting sun, Xiao Ran smiled.

"And just how do you plan not to let me off?"

In an instant, the spiritual pressure of the Golden Core Realm slowly enshrouded Sword-Wielding Mountain. The girl's expression sank as she icily feigned coldness. "Considering that you are temporarily an elder, I will allow you to make the first move—draw that filthy, obscene longsword of yours. This will be the last time in your life you get to possess it!"

Huh? How did proper words come out sounding so wrong when spoken from your mouth?

Xiao Ran's original plan was to restrict their cultivation levels during the Disciple Challenge so that each would only compare sword arts, engaging in a fair duel to reveal their levels of talent.

As a result, this Jiang Chuyan actually took the initiative to come knocking on his door on the grounds that her Red Spotted Tiger had been killed. With Master absent, she could completely execute him first and report later.

Even if she didn't dare to injure him, she could easily defeat him with her Golden Core cultivation, subject him to fancy humiliation, and then spread it far and wide so that he would never again have the face to stand in the Zongzhi Mountain.

He was about to be absolutely killed off!

Xiao Ran kept his composure, gripping his hoe as though it were a sword, and began his journey of bluffing.

"Would you like to be the sword-wielder, young lady?"

Though the young girl harbored romantic thoughts, her mind was meticulous, and she didn't fall for this routine at all.

If you can't beat them, bluff? Did she look like an idiot to him?

"The Sword-Wielding Elder has always been cold and detached in casting people aside. As long as I snap your sword in two, the Elder will surely cast you aside without mercy. Looking across the entire sect, is there currently anyone more suited to be a direct disciple than me?"

Cold and detached in casting people aside?

His inventory of bizarre vocabulary had increased once more!

Maintaining his composure, Xiao Ran said with a calm expression:

"Do you know why Master rejected you?"

"Because of prejudice, because I am a woman."

When she uttered those words, Chuyan trembled all over with rage. In the deep autumn, she broke out in a cold sweat all over, her hands and feet ice cold, and tears almost welled up unbidden.

Xiao Ran shook his head.

"No, it's because you cannot fathom Master's true intentions."

The girl rubbed the corners of her eyes to avoid actually shedding tears.

"What intentions?"

Seeing that she was interested, Xiao Ran took his time.

"Let me give you an example. The meat of your Red Spotted Tiger was exquisitely tender; it could soak into the Dantian, nourish the skin, and is exceptionally good for a woman's body. Furthermore, Master loves to drink. Have you ever heard of tiger whip soaked in wine? If I had a Red Spotted Tiger, I would have butchered it long ago to offer to Master out of filial piety. How could I have ever raised it to be so big?"

The girl was stunned and almost believed Xiao Ran's nonsense! "That's a tigress! What is there to soak wine with?!"

Xiao Ran was momentarily embarrassed, regretting that he hadn't checked the tiger's gender.

"That's not important. What matters is filial piety."

Without giving the girl a moment to think, Xiao Ran unleashed his full verbal prowess.

"What Master values is neither innate talent nor physical beauty, but filial piety. Look at what I've done—on the very first day up the mountain, I changed Master's house for her and prepared warm bathwater by evening; early the next morning, with my skilled shoulder-massaging technique, I pressed Master until her spiritual energy burst forth; seeing that Master's wine had run out, I traveled far and wide to search for materials and began brewing malt wine. Without any accidents, the liquid will be ready tonight. Next up, I will plant trees, farm, and dig a hot spring, transforming the barren Sword-Wielding Mountain into the prettiest place in the Zongzhi Mountain Range... Understand? What Master wants is not some child with extraordinary talent who understands nothing of daily life, but a filial disciple who can help her manage her daily living. Think carefully, do you have my abilities?"

Although Xiao Ran's words pierced the heart, every single sentence was the absolute truth and no empty boast.

The girl subconsciously swept her gaze across the entire peak.

She didn't understand the art of architecture, but this house really was built with a high degree of skill. The positions of the eight foundations faintly contained the Great Dao, making it even more sensible than the best houses in the Imperial Capital.

The wine brewing underground was also fermenting crazily at a bizarre speed.

The technique of hoeing fields was something she had only ever seen in Martial Uncle Chen Gongxing's grain plots...

She suddenly recalled the words of outer sect instructor Lin Yunzi.

This son should only belong in the heavens; how often does one hear of him in the mortal world?!

Was it real?

Clearly he was just a mortal, so how could he possibly possess such a realm?

Or perhaps someone else had done it for him?

She couldn't be one hundred percent certain that Xiao Ran had done all this, but she had a test that could make him instantly expose his bluffing.

"You just said that you massaged the Elder until she was beside herself, to the point of bursting her spiritual energy?"

She had finally taken the bait! This girl was neither as childish as her petite figure appeared, nor as naive as her soft, sweet voice sounded.

Squinting slightly, Xiao Ran raised his head to look at the petite figure dyed by the setting sun, and said with a lingering resonance: "Would you like to try it too?"