A frail Daoist priest wore a felt hat, a patched-up azure cotton Daoist robe, and thick cotton shoes. As he walked, he swayed like a skinny bamboo pole.
Beside him walked a burly middle-aged man with a saber at his waist. Its hilt had been rubbed to a glossy patina. The man had begun growing a beard a few months ago, and before long his face was covered in whiskers.
They were traveling home together. Their hometowns were not far apart, only thirty or forty li away, both within Wuling Prefecture.
In truth, the Daoist priest was over twenty years younger than the man. It was merely because he looked old that he appeared at least ten years his senior.
The key was that although this Daoist priest possessed no officially recognized register or talismanic ordination and followed the path of private talismans, he was a genuine Dao Cultivator. His friend beside him was a Pure Martial Artist.
The two had returned together from a long journey. This trip had taken several years, and they had traveled many places and encountered many strange people and strange happenings.
They were Rice Bandit Wang Yuanlu and Qi Gu, a Martial Cultivator of the Saber Bearer lineage.
One was a Jade Uncarved Gem Realm cultivator at consummation, while the other was a peak ninth-realm Martial Cultivator who could break through at any moment.
In the Azure Sky World, just seeing the words "Rice Thief" was enough to tell one that Daoists of the Rice Thief lineage did not have it easy. They were much like Corpse Release Immortals, Porters, and One-Word Masters—not crooked sects that drew universal condemnation in the streets, but they had best stay away from the White Jade Capital earthly realm. Once their tracks were discovered, they would most likely