Edict of Inquiry

Back in the shop, Liu Shuyue insisted that Chen Xuan recount the events in a way he could understand.

"If I followed along the whole time but only half-understand everything, wouldn't that be a huge loss for me?"

Chen Xuan had no intention of hiding anything and satisfied her request as if they were just chatting idly. Seeing her engrossed expression, he suddenly asked, "Does that Eight Gates of Life and Death Formation really need to be cast for so long? Just as I was getting passive, you were ready. You didn't do that on purpose, did you?"

Liu Shuyue's gaze flickered twice in an instant. "How could I? It requires eight talismans... it does take time. Are you suspecting I didn't give my all? I can't accept such an accusation!"

Chen Xuan could tell she rarely lied.

But it was understandable. If it were him, he'd probably also want to see the strength of the shop's manager, to know if she could actually fight. The only way to remain low-key was to keep his distance from customers and always work alone.

But he wanted to be a shop manager, not an idol. Building good relationships with customers seemed to benefit him more than not.

"Speaking of which, why were you using the Thousand Thoughts Sword so... clumsily?" Liu Shuyue asked, changing the subject guiltily. "With the skills I taught you, you should have been able to take down the opponent easily."

On that note, Chen Xuan seized the opportunity to ask the question that had been lingering in his mind. "What level did you train the Thousand Thoughts Sword to before?"

"Level?" She thought for a moment. "You mean tier, right... Isn't it clearly written on top? Nine tiers."

But what he saw was LV8.

"And what's the maximum tier?"

"Ten tiers is the Great Completion stage."

Just one tier away from Great Completion, yet the level displayed was LV8. There was clearly a conversion relationship between the two. Chen Xuan mused, could the level number actually represent a percentage? Was Great Completion a full 20% stronger than the ninth tier? He was currently LV2, and his Thousand Thoughts Sword was only equivalent to 20% of its full power, which should be about the same as a beginner in Liu Shuyue's eyes.

Of course, the premise for all these speculations was that the highest level was LV10, as he hadn't encountered any abilities above 10 yet.

"Then how do you usually improve the tiers of your techniques?"

Liu Shuyue's eyebrows rose. "You can't just ask about that. Every cultivator has their own methods. No one would easily reveal them to another practitioner. Casually asking might even be seen as a provocation."

"Is that so..."

"But it's not like I can't give you some pointers." She changed her tone. "Simply put, the Thousand Thoughts Sword is a combat sword technique. The most ideal way to improve is through fighting. I was able to become a sect disciple who left the mountain by fighting my way through a crowd of candidates."

Chen Xuan couldn't help but be surprised. "Then you must have killed people when you were just a child?"

"Huh?" Liu Shuyue froze, then after a moment, couldn't help but laugh. "The fighting I'm talking about is normal competition, where did you get that idea! The Lotus Cloud Sect isn't some evil cult. What I mean is, although sword practice is very dangerous, it's also the most controllable cultivation method. Because the opponents you fight are either experienced or of similar skill, you make significant progress with every match. If you just bully the weak with spells and slaughter innocents, you'll hardly improve in a lifetime."

He understood that. It was like playing chess with a terrible player, and you only get worse.

"The pointers you mentioned... do you mean you're willing to spar with me?"

"If you agree to reduce the rent a bit more, I don't mind sparring with you occasionally," Liu Shuyue revealed her true intentions.

Looking at her expectant eyes, Chen Xuan deliberately replied in a helpless tone, "Then... alright."

I'll double your rent later!

A mere tenant wants to fight the landlord? What a pipe dream!

Liu Shuyue returned to her second-floor room, completely satisfied and unaware that her rent had doubled.

She only felt that she had made great progress. From being speechless and fooled by the cunning Chen Xuan when she first came down the mountain, she could now hold her own in their exchanges.

Liu Shuyue suddenly felt an urge to record today's events in detail.

She hadn't written anything in a long time... the last time was when she was copying scriptures in the sect. No matter how she looked at it, these events had nothing to do with a sect disciple's duties and offered no benefit to her cultivation, so they shouldn't be worth her time to record. Yet, she felt happy at the moment, and even recalling them made her lips curl into a smile.

This was naturally not because she had saved the life of an outsider from the abyss.

It was because she had, for the first time, partnered with someone in a sudden "adventure."

She had not only earned a month's rent for herself but also made the other party owe her a small favor.

This was a feeling she had never experienced before.

Everything she had done before was for the sect and her duties; she had gained nothing for herself. She didn't think there was anything wrong with that and expected it to continue that way.

Yet, for something that brought no benefit to the sect or the Great Qing Kingdom, she felt the urge to record it. Liu Shuyue couldn't explain why, but she decided to follow this natural reaction that made her feel happy.

After grinding her ink, Liu Shuyue found herself struggling with naming the shopkeeper.

Chen Xuan was definitely out of the question. Whether it was his real name or not, writing it in her travelogue would feel too distant. It would be better to use a more elegant alias. She thought for a moment and pulled out a stack of shiny paper scraps from her waist pouch – they were instant noodle wrappers. One line of small print read: Place of Origin: A certain food processing plant in Lushan. Chen Xuan might not have noticed, but she had already seen every detail on it. This place wasn't recorded in any of the Six Kingdoms, so it was likely the shop's permanent location.

Since that was the case, she decided to call him the Lushan Hermit.

Knock knock.

Just as Liu Shuyue put her brush down, she heard a knock on the warning talisman pasted on her door.

It meant someone was touching her door.

Not the No. 201 cave dwelling within the shop, but her lodging room in the yamen.

She put down her brush and left the cave dwelling from the back door by the pond, returning to her room in the yamen. By then, the muffled thuds of knocking were clearly audible.

"Immortal Master, are you in there?"

"Apologies for disturbing you so late at night, but I have something important to discuss!"

Liu Shuyue tidied her clothes and put on her outer robe before opening the door. Standing outside was the second-in-command of Zhang Wei City, Prefect Tang.

He cupped his hands and said, "General Gong just arrived at Zhangwei with a large contingent of men. He carries the King's decree and is currently waiting in the Hall of Might, eager to meet with the Immortal Master immediately."

"From the Royal City?" Liu Shuyue's spirits lifted.

"Yes."

"I'll head over now."

The contingent from the Royal City could only be the troops escorting disaster relief supplies. General Gong was no unknown figure; the Gong family, young and old, all held positions in the Imperial Guard and had always been favorites of His Majesty.

Although instant noodles were delicious and filling, the shops clearly wouldn't supply them indefinitely. As long as they could weather the most difficult initial period and wait for the disaster relief grain from the various prefectures to arrive, it would be fine. Liu Shuyue estimated it would take about half a month, but she hadn't expected the Royal City to arrive in just a week.

Speed also meant traveling light, so the supplies on the carts likely wouldn't be substantial.

"How much money and grain did they bring?" Liu Shuyue asked. "If the Prefect doesn't mind, I can oversee the distribution."

The Prefect's gaze flickered slightly. "I'm not clear on that either... You can ask the General yourself when you get there."

Entering the Hall of Might, Liu Shuyue immediately spotted General Gong—or rather, the youngest son of the Gong family, Gong Lingwu. The last time she saw him was five years ago in the Royal City. He was a typical dissolute scion, fond of patrolling the streets and picking fights, with a terrible reputation. She hadn't expected

"That's not true. I've only been distributing porridge on a small scale, keeping the refugees concentrated here so they wouldn't wander off," Shen Fang replied immediately. "Thanks to Immortal Master Liu's magical techniques, the disaster victims were able to receive a convenient food called instant noodles, so they didn't starve."

"Ah? There's an immortal technique that can conjure food?" Gong Lingwu was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed. "Great! This way, the army will have food wherever they go! Do the disaster victims still have the food distributed by the Immortal Master?"

"Yes."

"Please collect it all. I want to take it with me."

"This..." Shen Fang hesitated for a moment.

"What are you afraid of? My soldiers are at your disposal; they won't cause any trouble," General Gong said, glancing sideways at Liu Shuyue. "If they don't give it up, just kill them. They'll starve to death anyway after the Immortal Master leaves. Sending them on their way early now is a form of mercy, isn't it?"