Martial Uncle Has Business

"Oh!" Yue Qianchou immediately tossed aside the sword and put on the Mountain-Piercing Claws. Ten dark, gleaming claws extended from the ten finger sheaths. He waved his hands around twice, looking immensely imposing, though they felt a little loose and didn't fit quite right. Following the white fox's instructions, he slowly fed True Qi into the gloves. At once, his hands tightened, as though the gloves had become one with his palms. When he withdrew his True Qi, the gloves loosened from his hands again.

"This is good stuff. Let me give it a try." Yue Qianchou praised it, raised one finger, and jabbed it into a rock. That finger sank soundlessly into the stone all the way to its base without the slightest effort. He tried several more times, with the same result each time. Turning around, he waved his claws and said, "Thank you, Sister, for giving me this treasure!"

The white fox shook her head. "I never said I was giving it to you. This is an inherited treasure of my fox clan. I don't have the authority to give it away. I'm merely lending it to you for now!"

"Uh..." Yue Qianchou froze, then gave an embarrassed laugh. "I understand." He immediately bent to work, his claws flying as stone chips scattered everywhere.

In less than half a day, he had finished a stone coffin that looked fairly presentable. He removed the gloves and tucked them at his waist, then found a place he considered a geomantic treasure ground. He struck out with several hundred palms in desperation before finally blasting out a deep pit.

Then he placed the hollowed-out stone coffin, which he could now lift with his cultivation, into the pit. He carefully laid his master's remains inside, covered it with the stone lid, and piled loose dirt around it. At last, he had made an earthen bun, with his master naturally serving as the filling.

He looked around and circled it several times, always feeling as though something was missing. Finally, he smacked his forehead. A tombstone was missing. So he put on the gloves and quickly made one. Large characters were inscribed upon it: "Tomb of Esteemed Master Hao Sansi." Smaller characters beside them read: "Erected by unfilial disciple Yue Qianchou." After finishing, he examined it carefully and found that aside from the ugly handwriting, there seemed to be no other mistakes.

When he carried the tombstone before the earthen bun, he was instantly dumbfounded. He circled the grave several times, sweating anxiously. Since he had wanted to make his master's grave flawless, he had patted the entire mound too round. Now he had forgotten which direction his master's head and feet had been buried in. He couldn't just pick a direction at random and stick the tombstone in!

"Your granny!" Yue Qianchou cursed, set the tombstone on the ground, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and prepared to dig the grave open again to see how his master had been buried.

The white fox, who had been watching him bustle about from the side, had initially had no idea what he was doing as he carried a tombstone around the grave. Was this some custom from somewhere? Her beautiful eyes widened as she watched curiously. Only when this fellow prepared to dig open the grave did she realize that her foolish little brother had actually forgotten how his master had been buried. He now wanted to dig up the master he had just buried to take another look. What sort of nonsense was that? She did not know whether to laugh or cry.

He could afford to lose face, but the person watching from the side could not bear it. The white fox lowered her head, spotted a rock by her feet, and kicked it away. The stone landed firmly at one spot beside the grave mound.

When Yue Qianchou saw a rock land there, he knew that, aside from himself, only the white fox was present. Needless to say, she had thrown it. Squatting beside the grave, he looked up at the white fox and saw her glaring furiously at him. At last, he understood. She was reminding him where the tombstone should go. He pointed at the stone and called to her, "You mean bury it here?"

The white fox nodded. After Yue Qianchou carried the tombstone to that spot, he looked back and forth, left and right. It somehow did not seem quite right, and he could not help shouting to her again, "Sister Bai, are you sure it's here?"

The white fox, who had always carried herself with elegance, finally could not resist rolling her eyes. She decided to stop bothering with him. He could do whatever he wanted. She turned and walked away on the spot, and he vaguely heard the word "idiot" escape her lips.

Yue Qianchou figured she would not deceive him, so he buried the tombstone at that spot. Yet after he finished, he still felt something was missing. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he ran toward the flowers and grass around them.

The white fox in the distance was once again drawn by her little brother's actions. As she watched, her expression grew somewhat unpleasant. There had not been many wildflowers to begin with, but after he plucked here and picked there, the place became a complete mess. He ravaged the entire area before finally gathering enough to make a flower wreath, which he placed before his master's tombstone.

After that, he caught two birds, roasted them, and stuck them before his master's grave. He respectfully kowtowed several times and swore that he would avenge his master. After all that fussing, he was finally done.

He raised his head and sighed. When he turned around, he saw the white fox standing all alone in the wilderness. Looking around again, there was not even a place to shelter. He could not possibly let a woman live in desolate wilds every day like he did! The thought of building a house immediately arose in his mind.

With a thought, he had already returned to the stone cave. Now that no one was playing music or singing there, it seemed especially tranquil. Looking at the fluorescent stones covering the stone walls, he remembered that his own territory would need lighting at night. Without another word, he began prying them loose, sending each one directly into the golden pearl once it came free. As he pried, he suddenly discovered that as long as his hands could touch a fluorescent stone, he could lock onto it with his thoughts and send it directly into his space. The discovery delighted him. He did not stop until a large patch of one stone wall had gone dark.

Little did he know that the white fox in the golden pearl space was startled when fluorescent stones began raining down from the sky. Yet before long, she guessed that Yue Qianchou was behind it and understood his intentions, so she gathered all the fluorescent stones together.

But not long afterward, something even more terrifying happened. Great trees began falling from the sky, one after another, followed by bamboo. The white fox darted aside and stared upward, dumbstruck.

Outside, Yue Qianchou had wanted to bring several larger trees into his territory. But whenever a tree was too large for one person to wrap their arms around, his thoughts lacked the power to move it. He could only stand there and sigh at the trees. The surrounding ground was littered with pits left by trees uprooted from their roots. Once he felt he had gathered enough, he looked toward the mountaintop and remembered that his master still had some belongings there. He decided to move them all into his territory as well.

The little courtyard was still quiet, yet things had changed and people were no longer the same. Yue Qianchou stood outside the gate with a heavy heart. He gently pushed it open and immediately saw someone standing with his back to him, hands clasped behind him and a sword in his grip. The man turned around, smiled faintly at Yue Qianchou, and said, "My nephew, you made me wait quite a while!" It was Wu Baoru.

Yue Qianchou had spent more than a year on the mountain, so he naturally recognized the man. By seniority, this man was his master's senior brother. From how he had been the first to plead for Liu Zhengguang that day, Yue Qianchou could tell that he was also part of the sect master's faction. Though displeased, Yue Qianchou kept a grim face and bowed. "Martial Uncle Wu!"

Wu Baoru nodded. Seeing Yue Qianchou's poor expression, he assumed it was because of his master's death. He sighed. "Ah! Junior Brother Hao... no one expected such a thing to happen. The dead are gone. Nephew, please restrain your grief. Hm? Where is Junior Brother's body?"

Restrain your mother's grief, you old bastard! Scrawny and shriveled, with a pointed mouth and monkey cheeks—you look like no good thing at first glance. Yue Qianchou cursed inwardly, then said, "I have buried my master behind the mountain. By the way, Martial Uncle, did you come here for something?"

"Yes." Wu Baoru nodded and stared at him. "Yesterday, when I saw you exchange a palm strike with Zhengguang, the entire Qingguang Sect was astonished. No one expected you to have reached Qi Refining Level Five. By the sect master's order, I have come to grant you a Qingguang Sect sword. From today onward, you are an officially registered disciple of the Qingguang Sect. Beginning this month, you may collect five hundred low-grade Spirit Stones each month." With that, he tossed over the sword in his hand.

Yue Qianchou caught the sword, glanced at Wu Baoru, and said nothing. Something this good? Heh! I don't believe in pies falling from the sky.

Wu Baoru paced through the courtyard with his hands behind his back and said gravely, "You saw what happened to your master this time. It is not that the sect does not wish to avenge him; it is simply that our strength cannot compare to the Daluo Sect's. Why can't we compare to the Daluo Sect? Because for thousands of years, disciples with good spiritual roots have all been claimed by those great sects. If this continues, the strong will only grow stronger, while the weak grow weaker. But now, the moment to change the sect's fate has arrived." At this point, he stopped walking, and his triangular eyes abruptly fixed on Yue Qianchou.

Heh! What comes next is probably the real point. Yue Qianchou sneered inwardly. Sure enough...

"Nephew, you originally had no spiritual roots whatsoever. By reason, you should have been incapable of cultivation, yet your cultivation has now reached Qi Refining Level Five. This is truly news that has thrilled the Qingguang Sect from top to bottom. Thus, the sect master specially instructed me to ask you clearly about the reason. If our Qingguang Sect can grasp such a secret, we will never again need to worry about lacking disciples with good spiritual roots. In several hundred years, our Qingguang Sect will surely become the greatest sect under heaven. When that day comes, nephew, you will be the Qingguang Sect's greatest benefactor..." The more Wu Baoru spoke, the more excited he became. Soon he was gesticulating wildly, as though Qingguang Sect's glory would arrive tomorrow.

Yue Qianchou watched him perform and found it hilarious. This old immortal is truly prime material for pyramid schemes. When it comes to sweet-talking people, he has one trick after another. Does he really take me for an idiot? He just wants to know why I can cultivate. I'm not telling him.

After Wu Baoru spoke passionately for a long while, he finally stopped. He looked at Yue Qianchou with excited eyes and said, "Nephew, you understand how important this matter is to the sect! Quickly tell your martial uncle the secret within it. I will report it to the sect master, and afterward, you will surely be heavily rewarded."

Yue Qianchou scratched his head and asked blankly, "What secret?"

"Uh..." So after all that talking, this brat had not understood? Had he said too much and made it too complicated? Wu Baoru took a deep breath and said, "The secret of your cultivation?"

Yue Qianchou asked in confusion, "Does my cultivation have a secret?"

"Is there really no secret?" Wu Baoru was beginning to grit his teeth.

"Is there?" Yue Qianchou wore an expression of innocent foolishness.

"Am I asking you, or are you asking me?" Wu Baoru finally could not help roaring.

"Ah! I remember. There is a secret." Yue Qianchou suddenly realized. Wu Baoru's eyes lit up, and he said joyfully, "What secret? Quickly tell your martial uncle!" Yue Qianchou shook his head. "No, I can't tell you. Master instructed me not to tell outsiders." Wu Baoru immediately felt the urge to grab Yue Qianchou and give him a beating. Junior Brother Hao really did know this secret long ago. He had no family, and even in death he wanted to carry the secret into his coffin. How ruthless.

The thought only piqued his interest further. Taking a deep breath, he smiled calmly and said, "Outsiders refer to people outside the Qingguang Sect. I am your master's senior brother, so I am not an outsider. Tell me, and your master will not blame you."