Moon Coins

"Be careful. Walls have ears!" Li Shuidao said solemnly.

"How could anyone hear us? They've all been busy with their own things lately." After half a month, Li Shuilang knew the place like the back of his hand. He was no longer as jumpy as before.

Of course, the most important thing was that his Spirit Companion was a scorpion, not a toad.

These past few days, he had simply let the scorpion out to forage on its own instead of picking snails out with his fingers as he had before.

In Li Shuilang's view, as long as he didn't loudly advertise his Spirit Companion while his cultivation was still weak, there shouldn't be much danger.

And in truth, there wasn't much danger, especially now that the two of them were in charge of tending the Spirit Fields and had earned the Golden-Faced Gentleman's favor. In terms of status, they were on par with the two maids. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry; only caution could keep a ship afloat for ten thousand years.

That came down to a person's nature. You couldn't force someone to be brave.

Li Shuidao shook his head and warned him again. "Better to be careful. I'm definitely not soaking in that stone vat. I'll find a way to train my second Divine Ability on my own. Brother, don't worry."

"Then be careful. I won't clean up the water in that stone vat. Let it breed mosquitoes and flies; they'll make good food for the bugs." Li Shuilang was excitedly picking up pebbles in the courtyard, planning to practice his Flying Knife there.

Knock, knock, knock...

Someone rapped on the courtyard gate.

"Who is it?" Li Shuidao called.

"It's me, Lu Qi'er."

Li Shuidao hurriedly opened the gate. A young maid with snow-white skin and a loose robe patterned with green stripes stood outside.

Lu Qi'er smiled brightly. "Good news. Madam is handing out this month's Moon Coins. You two should go collect yours."

"Thank you, Miss Lu." The Li brothers replied, beaming with delight.

The two brothers then headed for the largest room in the residence. Qin Yue'e and her two maids lived there.

They soon arrived outside the room.

Before they could knock, they heard a voice from within.

"Thank you for the reward, Madam." Wang Tiankun, a long-term kitchen worker, left happily with ten Jade Coins.

"You two may come in," Madam Qin Yue'e said.

The Li brothers obeyed and entered with a bow.

"We pay our respects to Madam." The Li brothers clasped their hands in greeting.

Qin Yue'e looked them over and nodded with satisfaction. They were handsome and knew their manners, so she said, "Tending the Spirit Fields is no easy task. My husband specifically instructed that each of you receive thirty Moon Coins."

"Thank you, Madam." The Li brothers clasped their hands and thanked her again.

Qin Yue'e waved, and Jiang Xue, the senior maid beside her, took thirty Jade Coins apiece from her Storage Bag and handed them to the two brothers.

"There's a Marketplace not far from here. It opens only once every half month. Xue'er is going to take me there to buy a few things, so I'll have her take you along. That way, you won't be stuck with Jade Coins you can't use to buy Spiritual Objects," Qin Yue'e told the Li brothers.

The brothers were secretly delighted.

Back in the elementary school, they had already learned about the Tianyuan Cultivation Continent.

A Marketplace was a temporary gathering of nearby cultivators, held at a fixed location and time.

The wares at a Marketplace were certainly fewer in quantity and variety than those at a proper market, but local specialties were cheaper there.

"Thank you, Madam."

Qin Yue'e waved a hand. "No need to thank me. Go get ready."

A quarter of an hour later.

The Li brothers followed Jiang Xue out of the cave abode.

"The Marketplace is more than ten li away. If we walk, it'll take over half an hour. Make sure you keep up with me," Jiang Xue said, turning to the brothers.

"Don't worry, Sister Jiang. We'll stay right behind you," Li Shuilang promised, thumping his chest.

The three of them set off down the mountain path.

Jiang Xue walked at an unhurried pace, yet wisps of breeze rose beneath her skirt, carrying her faster and faster until she seemed to become a blur.

The Li brothers gritted their teeth and chased after her with all their might. Fortunately, they were both young, and the path led downhill. Otherwise, they could have rolled, crawled, hopped, and jumped all they wanted and still wouldn't have caught up with Jiang Xue.

Before long, Jiang Xue's figure vanished from their sight.

"Huff... huff..." The two brothers panted heavily, their faces filled with helplessness.

"It's a Divine Ability! It must be the Centipede's second Divine Ability," Li Shuidao said gravely.

"Exactly! The Wind Traveling technique is incredible when mastered. This Divine Ability would be excellent not just in battle but for traveling, too." Li Shuilang looked on enviously.

"What now?"

"What else can we do? Keep following the path. She'll wait for us at the fork up ahead." Li Shuidao sounded certain.

"What if she doesn't?"

"Then we'll go back the way we came and report it to Madam."

Li Shuilang nodded, and the two brothers continued down the mountain path. Soon, they reached a fork, but Jiang Xue was nowhere to be seen.

"Senior Sister Jiang!"

"Sister, where are you?"

The Li brothers looked around but couldn't find Jiang Xue.

"Shuidao, what do we do? Miss Jiang didn't wait for us," Li Shuilang said anxiously.

"Then we'll go back as planned!" Li Shuidao replied decisively.

"No way! I've got thirty Jade Coins. I need to buy Spiritual Objects to feed my Spirit Companion and improve my cultivation. How can we just turn back?" Li Shuilang said, worked up.

"Then what do you suggest? We don't know the way!" Li Shuidao retorted.

"Well... how about we ask someone?"

"No! What if we end up at another immortal master's cave abode and get charged with trespassing? They could kill us, and we'd have no one to appeal to." Li Shuidao shook his head, firmly opposed.

"Do you think Wang Tianjiao's toad was eaten by Senior Sister Jiang?" Li Shuilang abruptly changed the subject, gossiping.

"Don't make things up!" Li Shuidao snapped, his expression stern.

"Hmph!"

Suddenly,

a cold snort came from behind them. Jiang Xue slowly emerged from behind a large tree, her face dark.

"Senior Sister Jiang, what are you doing here?" Li Shuilang said, flustered.

"Why shouldn't I be here?" Jiang Xue replied with a mocking smile.

"You... what did you hear just now?"

"Of course I heard you badmouthing me behind my back."

"Senior Sister, you've misunderstood." Li Shuidao tried to smooth things over.

Jiang Xue glanced at Li Shuidao, then fixed her gaze on Li Shuilang. A pale green energy flowed endlessly around her.

It was Mana!

That meant Jiang Xue had reached at least the middle stage of the Spirit Channeling Realm.

Under the pressure of her Mana, sweat beaded on Li Shuilang's forehead as he backed away step by step.

"Look at you, such a coward! We cultivators of the Five Poisons Sect aren't allowed to kill one another outside of trials. Anyone who breaks that rule has their cultivation crippled. I'm not going to kill you, so what are you afraid of?" Jiang Xue drew closer and closer. Li Shuilang retreated until his back hit a large tree, leaving him nowhere to go.

"S-Senior Sister, spare me!" Li Shuilang begged hastily.

"What is your Spirit Companion?" Jiang Xue asked coldly.

"I have a scorpion, a golden scorpion! Metal overcomes wood, so eating my Spirit Companion won't help your cultivation. It'll only harm you!" Li Shuilang was close to tears.

Jiang Xue then turned to Li Shuidao.

"My younger cousin's Spirit Companion is a gecko. Geckos belong to Earth, so eating his wouldn't improve your cultivation much either," Li Shuilang explained again.

"Hmph! Even if the two of you had Jade Toads for Spirit Companions, I still wouldn't touch them. Do you really think the Five Poisons Sect's rules are just for show? Do you know why Wang Tianjiao lost his Spirit Companion?" Jiang Xue asked with a cold laugh.