The Art of Qimen Dunjia

(This chapter contains some setting information about the Yuqing Sect.)

On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth lunar month, hail suddenly fell across the southern coastal regions, dealing a blow to the Chu Kingdom Imperial Court's newly issued land-reclamation decree. After the hail came pirate raids. Fortunately, the coast had long practiced scorched-earth defenses over the years, so the losses were not too severe.

On the second day after the pirates appeared, Imperial Court troops gathered in coastal cities everywhere and soon clashed with them. Both sides won and lost their share of battles. On New Year's Eve, a band of pirates suddenly appeared outside a small town fifty li from Jinhuai City. Not only did they loot the town clean, they slaughtered all two thousand-plus residents.

When the battle report reached the imperial desk, the emperor flew into a rage and ordered the Imperial Judicial Office to investigate the matter thoroughly. Another great prison purge then swept through Jinhuai City.

On the morning of the tenth day of the first lunar month, Wang Ping wore formal attire and stood outside the main gate of his garden Daoist field, welcoming guests who had come from afar: the support Daoist Zhi Gong and Hu Yin had promised him.

Daoist Zhi Gong had kept her word and invited a side-branch cultivator from the Yuqing Sect. His records showed that he cultivated the art of Qimen Dunjia and also practiced the Physiognomy Technique. He wore a yellow Daoist robe with wide sleeves and a tall crown that only Human Way nobles of the Changhu Mountain Kingdom could wear. His entire body exuded the immortal aura unique to Yuqing cultivators.

This man was called Ying Qing. The name sounded refined, but his features were resolute, and his beautiful beard hung down to his chest.