Huang Rong and Lu Chen's Agreement!

"Immortal Lu..."

"Just call me Lu Chen."

"You're an immortal from the celestial realm—how could I be so bold as to address you by your name? Besides, you look young, but you must be several hundred years old by now, right? How about Rong'er calls you Grandpa Lu?"

"...I'm only eighteen."

Even counting my past life, I'm barely over forty—calling me grandpa is going too far!

"Uh hehe, I was just joking... Well then, Brother Lu, um, what would it take for you to take me to the celestial realm for a look?"

Though Huang Rong's sparkling eyes and eager expression were rather endearing, Lu Chen still shook his head apologetically:

"Miss Huang, you fished me out of the sea, and I truly owe you a debt of gratitude for that. But I came here this time with something very important to do, so I can't go back just yet."

"Something important?" Huang Rong's eyes lit up. "What is it? I'll help you!"

"I need to learn some swordsmanship..."

"Swordsmanship?" Huang Rong was a bit puzzled. "Does the celestial realm need mortal swordsmanship too?"

"It's mainly a personal need." Lu Chen said frankly. "Miss Huang, I won't deny that my origins are a bit unusual, but I've been saying all along that I'm just an ordinary person. That really isn't a lie to fool you."

Huang Rong grinned and nodded:

"I know, I know—you're an ordinary person, an ordinary person from the Celestial Realm Beyond."

Tsk. This girl is already completely set in her preconceptions, believing without a doubt.

Lu Chen had given up trying to explain, so he simply emphasized his needs:

"Anyway, I need to learn swordsmanship. It's very important to me."

Though she didn't quite understand why someone from the celestial realm would need to learn swordsmanship, Huang Rong felt this was a favor she could definitely help with.

If it weren't for Peach Blossom Island's rules, she could even teach him Peach Blossom Island Swordplay herself.

But even without her father's permission to teach outsiders the island's sword techniques, Huang Rong had other ways.

"Brother Lu, do you have any requirements for the sword technique?"

"No requirements. Even a common, run-of-the-mill sword technique from the martial world would be fine. The only thing is, it must be able to cultivate Internal Energy from external practice."

In the "Main World" where Lu Chen currently lived, there were also ancient sword techniques passed down through history, but they were just like the swordsmanship from Earth in his past life—ordinary martial combat arts that could never cultivate Internal Energy.

And as a transmigrator, his cheat ability—the part related to his personal strength—required at least a sword technique capable of cultivating Internal Energy to unlock.

That was why he absolutely had to find a world with such extraordinary martial arts.

Huang Rong crossed her arms over her chest, resting her chin on her thumb and forefinger as she pondered for a moment:

"Any sword technique that can cultivate Internal Energy from external practice will do? No requirements for how profound or exquisite the technique is, or how pure and condensed the Internal Energy is, or how powerful it is?"

Lu Chen nodded. "Yes. As long as it can cultivate Internal Energy, there are no other requirements."

After all, the sword technique was just the "key" to unlock the door—as long as it could open the "treasure vault," the quality of the key itself didn't matter.

"Then that's simple."

Huang Rong snapped her fingers, looking confident as she said:

"In the Wu-Yue region, there's a 'Maiden of Yue Swordplay.' It's a pretty ordinary technique, and the Internal Energy it cultivates is mediocre, with average power. But its advantage is that it's widely spread—you can even learn it by paying silver."

So you never planned to teach me Peach Blossom Island Swordplay?

Wouldn't that be easier?

Lu Chen was a little puzzled, but he quickly thought of the sect rules of the martial world and Huang Yaoshi's teaching methods.

Forget it. Peach Blossom Island martial arts come with a built-in disability buff. Maiden of Yue Swordplay it is.

After all, to unlock the first stage of his cheat, he only needed to master one extraordinary sword technique—one that could cultivate Internal Energy. Even if the Internal Energy was mediocre and the power average, it should still count as an "extraordinary sword technique," right?

So Lu Chen nodded:

"Alright, I'll learn Maiden of Yue Swordplay. But..."

His expression turned embarrassed:

"I don't have a single coin on me..."

Huang Rong patted her chest with a small hand, exuding the boldness of a wealthy heiress:

"Don't worry, I've got it!"

Lu Chen flashed a smile:

"Then many thanks to Miss Huang."

Huang Rong stared at him with burning eyes:

"And after it's done?"

"I'll definitely take Miss Huang to the celestial realm for a visit!"

"Clap on it!"

Huang Rong extended her small hand, her snow-white palm facing Lu Chen.

Watching Huang Rong's solemn expression, Lu Chen suddenly understood:

This was her way of formally placing trust in him. After the oath, she would go all out to fulfill their agreement.

People of this era, especially those in the martial world, mostly valued promises heavily. The Seven Freaks of Jiangnan were a typical example.

And Lu Chen...

On Earth in his past life, those who liked to swear oaths were mostly liars, and ordinary people didn't believe in such vows either.

In this life's "Main World," verbal promises and pinky swears carried no binding power.

Lu Chen himself didn't trust this kind of oath-making either.

However, Huang Rong had first saved him from drowning—essentially rescuing his chance at this physical reincarnation—and then offered to help him learn swordsmanship. With such kindness, how could he go back on his word?

So Lu Chen also straightened his expression, raised his palm, and solemnly tapped her soft, small hand three times.

Slap! Slap! Slap!

After three claps sealed their oath, the two exchanged smiles, both feeling much closer.

"Miss Huang, where do we go next?"

"To Shaoxing Prefecture. I heard my father say there are quite a few Maiden of Yue Sword schools there. We can pick one."

"Alright, I'll follow Miss Huang's arrangements."

With the chance to visit the "Immortal Realm," Huang Rong was suddenly brimming with energy. She checked their bearings, deftly adjusted the sail, changed course, and steered the small boat toward the Qiantang River estuary.

Though she had run away from home alone this time, she had learned astronomy and geography from Huang Yaoshi. She not only knew how to navigate at sea but also had land routes figured out—she could even travel north alone without issue.

Thus, she knew sailing to Shaoxing Prefecture was the most convenient. No need to even disembark; they could enter the Qiantang River directly, go upstream to where it met the Cao'e River, then turn into the Cao'e River and reach Shaoxing Prefecture straight away.

Seeing a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl bustling about alone, adjusting the sail one moment and steering the next, Lu Chen felt a bit guilty and asked:

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Do you know how to sail?"

"No."

"Then I wouldn't dare let you help. Hmm, tell me more about the Immortal Realm."

"What would Miss Huang like to hear?"

"I want to hear about the big steamships. The kind of steel giants that can carry hundreds of millions of jin of cargo."

"Cargo ships aren't interesting. Let me tell you about cruise ships instead. The biggest one we had could carry nearly ten thousand people, passengers and crew included..."

"Nearly ten thousand people? Wouldn't that ship be as huge as a mountain?"

"Yeah. That big cruise ship really was like a floating city on the sea, a steel hill. It had movie theaters, theaters, amusement parks..."

"Wait, what's a movie theater?"

"A movie theater is..."

As Lu Chen described the cruise ship scene by scene, more and more unheard-of novelties spilled from his lips, leaving Huang Rong unsure which to ask about first. She could only listen in a daze, half-imagining, half-murmuring with longing:

"So many fun things... When I get to the Immortal Realm, I want to ride one of those floating-city ships too and see those Immortal Realm wonders with my own eyes."

"Mm..."

Lu Chen thought that if he could learn swordsmanship this time and unlock the first stage of his cheat, he should be able to earn a decent income in the "Main World."

Besides, when he returned, he could bring back one percent of his body weight in goods. That meant he could take some gold back—enough to fund a cruise trip for Huang Rong. He smiled and said:

"No problem. When the time comes, I'll take you sightseeing on a big ship."

"Mm-hmm." Huang Rong nodded repeatedly, her eyes full of anticipation.

When Lu Chen met Huang Rong, it was already near dusk.

After she fished him onto the boat, they chatted for a while. Then the small boat changed course, and the wind wasn't favorable either, so by the time night fell, they still hadn't reached the Qiantang River estuary.

Fortunately, the boat had been sailing close to shore all along. Seeing the sky darken, Huang Rong simply found a shallow bay with gentle waves, dropped anchor, and moored for the night.

After securing the boat, she looked at Lu Chen and said:

"We'll rest here tonight and set out again tomorrow morning."

Lu Chen, unfamiliar with the area, naturally followed her arrangements and nodded agreeably.

She asked again: "Do you eat fish? There are plenty of sea fish here. I can catch some fresh ones."

Lu Chen smiled and said: "Fish, shrimp, crab, shellfish—I'll take anything."

Huang Rong beamed: "Then let me see if I can catch you a big prawn."

With that, she lit a lantern and hung it by the boat's side, then pulled a small bucket from the cabin, grabbed some bait, and scattered it into the sea. After that, she picked up a fishing spear, pursed her pink lips, and stared intently at the water's surface.

Lu Chen wanted to go over and watch, but feared scaring the fish away, so he stayed put, holding his breath and observing.

Soon, he saw Huang Rong's eyes focus. She suddenly hurled the fishing spear, which shot into the water with a swoosh. The hemp rope tied to its tail snapped taut.

Huang Rong grabbed the rope, let out a heave-ho, gave it a jerk and a yank, and the spear leaped out of the sea. Impaled on its tip was a fish over two feet long.

"Beautiful!"

Lu Chen's eyes lit up, and he clapped in applause.

Huang Rong turned back to flash him a smug grin, then yanked the hemp rope, hauling the fishing spear—and the massive fish attached to it—back onto the boat.

Though the fish was pierced clean through by the spear, it wasn't dead yet. Once aboard, it thrashed wildly, its powerful tail slapping against the deck with a heavy thump-thump-thump.

Huang Rong wasn't about to indulge it. A single Emei Piercer slid from her sleeve, and with a pfft, she drove it into the fish's skull. The fish gave one violent shudder, then went still.

A fish this big was more than enough for the two of them.

But Huang Rong was young at heart, and having grown up without any playmates her own age, she couldn't help feeling a swell of pride at seeing Lu Chen—this "immortal from the celestial realm" only two years her senior—so impressed by her fishing skills. Determined to show off a little more, and remembering she'd promised to try catching him a prawn, she pressed on, eyes fixed on the sea as she continued fishing.

One after another, different kinds of fish were speared and tossed onto the bow. In no time, the catch had piled up into a small mountain.

At first, Lu Chen kept clapping and cheering, but as she grew more and more enthusiastic, he quickly called out:

"Enough, enough! With this many fish, the two of us can't possibly eat them all!"

"Mm-hmm, just one more prawn... got it!"

As she spoke, Huang Rong's eyes lit up. She hurled the fishing spear once more, and when she pulled it back by the hemp rope, there, impaled on its prongs, was a lobster over a foot long.

"See? Your prawn!"

Huang Rong grabbed the lobster with both hands, turned to Lu Chen, and gave him a beaming smile.

Watching her cheerful, proud, and charming expression, Lu Chen couldn't help the corners of his mouth lifting as he burst into hearty laughter.

Listening to the readers' advice, I've come back to write the myriad heavens.