Peace

The road from the palace is long and the northern plains are sloping; the bond of life and death is so deep that I cannot return home.

Where have the clouds and rain gone now? The oriole flies atop the wild crabapple blossoms.

"Zheng Mingzhu ... I remember, she belonged to the Shangqin Bureau and was the lantern bearer in the palace of the former Guangling Heir. About seven or eight months ago, they said they found out she had stolen something from the palace. No matter how they beat her, she wouldn't talk, and she died by running into a wall."

What about her funeral arrangements? I heard she had a son, but relatives of traitors can't be included in the family genealogy. They're confined to the Baisun Yuan (a type of cemetery) for life, unable to leave. She has no relatives or friends outside, so what could she possibly have for her funeral? She'd probably just be rolled up in a mat and buried among the palace servants."

"Thank you for telling me." Li Fan bowed to the old palace maid and gave her five strings of cash as a token of his gratitude.

He still managed to get into the Imperial City.

Because of the uproar last month, the Imperial Guards were all dispatched north to defend the border. The defense of Li Country Imperial City of Li Kingdom was severely strained, while the Ministry of Works focused on rushing to repair the Taiji Palace. As a result, although the Crown Prince's Qing Palace was smashed, looted, and burned, it was not yet fully repaired.

The Guo Family then used the excuse that the Crown Prince of Jian'an was in poor health and that his palace had repeatedly brought misfortune to the emperor, thus requiring reconstruction. They temporarily took Consort Guo and the Crown Prince to the Guo Family mansion in the territory of the nobles in the east of the city as a precaution. As a result, the guards in the Imperial City were also transferred to guard the Guo Family's mansion. For a time, the defenses of the Imperial City were surprisingly weak.

Meanwhile, Ink Bamboo Mountain was also coordinating with various parties to defend against the Divine Cult, following the Abbot's instructions, and was facing a severe shortage of manpower. So when Li Fan took the initiative to find Real Person Wei and offered to help defend the Imperial City, although the other party didn't believe him, Li Fan easily obtained a waist token this time, allowing him to freely enter and exit the Imperial City and the Eastern Palace, since he hadn't brought his cat with him.

He wasn't really there to clock in for work; he was just asking around among the palace servants. Eventually, he found a sloping alley, about two or three miles long, between the palace wall and the Imperial City. The wind howled through the alley, sounding like a song or a cry, and it was shrouded in darkness by the high walls on both sides.

Li Fan sighed, took out the Magic Treasure he had brought from the Daoist temple, lit a lotus lantern, waved a prayer flag, made hand seals and chanted incantations, collected the remains, performed a ritual to deliver the souls of the deceased, and prayed for the salvation of the suffering souls.

With Divine Sense, one could see that the lingering ghostly flames of the palace servants, like moths drawn to the bright light, were falling into the lamp.

Li Fan felt he should say something, but he only had the ritual Magic Treasure for deliverance, which could be activated directly with Dao Breath energy; he hadn't memorized the scriptures for the sacrificial prayers. After a moment of silence, unsure of what to say, he simply picked a scripture to recite.

"Attain utmost emptiness, hold fast to stillness. All things arise and flourish, and I observe their return. For all things, in their myriad forms, return to their root. This return to the origin is called constancy; to know constancy is called enlightenment..."

As he was reciting this silently, the lotus lantern suddenly lit up. When Li Fan opened his eyes, he saw many figures, whose faces he could not make out, gathered in the alley, bowing to him and making a deep curtsy.

Zheng Mingzhu is probably among them.

Li Fan quickly returned the greeting, and as he looked up, the figures transformed into gentle breezes, drifting away into the blue sky.

Is this considered the end of the ritual? It's not quite the same as what I saw during the previous seven sacrifices... Oh well, he was just expressing his feelings, so that he could have an explanation when he sees Zheng Guang again in the future.

After Li Fan finished the sacrificial ceremony, there was basically nothing else for him to care about in Changsi City.

There's no immediate prospect of a fight, and he can only see the surface arrangements. The abbot must have other methods in place behind the scenes. Since he wasn't given any orders, it's clear that Li Fan's strength isn't sufficient. After all, so many True Cultivator receive their duties and salaries; if everything had to be done by someone like Li Fan, who has only been cultivating for less than a year, other sects would laugh at Ink Bamboo Mountain for having no one to rely on.

Besides, Li Fan's flying swords had all been taken back by Yao Xuanzhou for practice, cough cough, repair, so even if he wanted to help, he was powerless now. Based on his experience fighting many people after achieving the Golden Core, even though he hadn't mastered many Cultivation Method, he could easily kill someone with a flying sword. But once he didn't have a powerful flying sword, his true abilities were revealed in a real fight. Many of his spells and skills were simply not up to par for actual combat, and he would often end up covered in wounds and blood. It might feel exhilarating, but it wasn't really that interesting.

Honestly, it's so inconvenient not having a flying sword for transportation. If I were to go back to Ink Bamboo Mountain, I'd probably have to ride a horse all the way back...

At this moment, Kun and sword intent jumped out of the void again.

Li Fan glanced at the grease and grime covering Kun's mouth and tail, and narrowed his eyes. "You guys didn't go steal some food, did you?"

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Sigh, Kun said he went to a big meeting and drank a lot of tea. I owe him a meal, but he insisted on going. It's okay, no one will notice.'"

Do I care if you get caught? I care that you two went to the imperial kitchen to steal food and didn't even bring back a portion for him! I'm so angry I could scream!

However, to be fair, the Kun can bypass various barriers with its superhuman abilities, Profound Heaven Sword Intent can shield against the Divine Sense probing of various cultivators. The combination of these two is truly extraordinary. It's quite something that all it could think of was sneaking into the kitchen to steal food...

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Heh, when we sneaked in hidden in the pastry box, we already took a look around the imperial treasury. It's all just junk; the good stuff is all hidden in the hands of the aristocratic families. There's nothing worth borrowing.'"

Borrowing... well, speaking of which...

"When I was battling the leader of the Divine Cult, he seemed to have mentioned that the Guo Family had a Four Fiends Egg Sheath..."

'The Profound Heaven Sword Intent Dao, the Four Fiends' Egg Sheath? Which country is it from?'

They're probably from Li Country... What else could it be?

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent says that the Four Fiends are born in response to the times. Whenever there is a calamity of national or world destruction, the Four Fiends will appear in response to the tribulation. In the south, it is usually Taotie, but it is of no use to you. You have already observed the Qiongqi Dao Body. Observing another ferocious beast is just courting death. Wait until you have reached the Divine Transformation before considering it."

Of course, you can raise one for fun if you want, but you already have a Kun. Do you really want to raise a Taotie too?

Kun is in danger!

Forget it, one picky 'Divine Beast' is already hard enough to raise, let alone another one with an even bigger appetite, we just don't have the money for food...

Kun was satisfied.

You think I'm praising you?!

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'That's true. I can tell you prefer seafood. Just don't keep dogs. I remember I had a disciple...'"

Okay, that's enough! I already said it's rabies!

Li Fan was also getting a headache from the noise of these two clowns, but he also remembered that there was something important he had almost forgotten before returning to Ink Bamboo Mountain.

He needed to sort through his belongings and sell the junk for some useful resources. He'd already given all his spare change to the palace maid. He was truly out of money...

The items that can be exchanged for money now include a Nascent Soul Stage level whip obtained from a demon, Golden Core level lotus jade hammer, and a Golden hairpin, stone axe, and thunder seal obtained from the Hai Chi, all of which are Golden Core level trash magic weapons. The rogue cultivators who besieged him in the sky fought fiercely, and many of their weapons were shattered by the demon-slaying sword, becoming the worst of the worst trash, which can probably only be melted down and recycled.

As for the belongings of the Yu Family brothers of Moyun Peak, Li Fan considered it carefully and decided not to sell them. After all, they were fellow disciples of the Fourteen Peaks, and if there was still room for reconciliation, he should try to make amends.

This leaves behind many Storage Jade, various miscellaneous materials and talismans, none of which are very valuable. The cultivation Cultivation Method inside are also handwritten copies, many of which were sold to the Outer Sect disciples by Ink Bamboo Mountain. The only ones properly recorded using transmission jade slips are the cultivation Cultivation Method of the demons in the Immortal Palace and the Emei <Pifeng Biyue Palm>. Of course, the palm technique cannot be sold, and it must be learned as a proper ultimate move.

' Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, "Hey, what a pathetic sight you have. It's not some divine skill. What's wrong with not learning it? Do you think you're inferior to Emei in sword fighting?"'

Go away, go away! Is this how you learn sword fighting? You don't know anything.

In short, that's all the junk I have. I need to figure out how to exchange it for something I can use. It's a pity this isn't a game, otherwise Li Fan would have just taken it to the pancake shop next door and sold it...

Odds and ends that are unusable can be sold on consignment by Jiang's Firm, but magical artifacts are too easily identifiable. There's no guarantee that the deceased won't have a bunch of relatives and friends coming to seek revenge, which could cause more trouble. It's really a headache.

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'That's simple. Do you remember that Nascent Soul Stage from Daye Workshop? The one who rode the oxcart, the one Kun and I followed. That person is a professional scrap collector; just go find her.'"

Professional scrap collector...

Okay, after a couple of pointers on sword intent, Li Fan understood.

Even those who haven't played the game would still have a need to quickly dispose of and trade stolen goods, cough cough 'second-hand cultivation items acquired by chance'. With this demand and market, naturally some people would offer this service.

Taiping Temple is a 'second-hand cultivation item trading platform'. Of course, it has to be 'recyclable trash' like magic weapons, Cultivation Method, and rare materials. They don't recycle real trash.

The owner of Taiping Temple, Nascent Soul Stage cultivator who specializes in recycling scrap metal, is also Li Country the royal family of the Li Kingdom. After all, it's impossible for Li Fan to be the only member of the royal family with a destiny for immortality. The owner of Taiping Temple is also a direct descendant of the Li Country's royal family, a legitimate princess. In terms of seniority, she is the aunt of the current king's great-great-grandfather, meaning she is... well, a relative...

Anyway, she has become a nun, turning her royal residence into a Taiping Temple. Because she had many friends in her youth and was quite open-minded, she had many patrons. She was once a socialite representing the royal family of Li Country and controlling the independent cultivators of the country. She was quite influential at one time and was also a restless person who often interfered in politics.

However, later, the Black Lotus Sect rebellion occurred, and the Ink Bamboo Mountain rose to power, greatly weakening the strength of the Li Country's royal family. Taiping Temple dared not be presumptuous in front of a powerful figure like the Abbot. Perhaps influenced by the devastation of the Black Lotus Sect rebellion, they set up their own Taiping Temple, a small-scale operation similar in nature to the local cultivation sects in Changsi City. They usually lived in seclusion, occasionally hosting banquets to invite handsome and talented young men to compose poems and exchange verses. Those who enjoyed the conversation were invited to admire the peonies in the backyard, which was quite popular among the independent cultivators.

From this perspective, it seems that the Taiping Temple Taiping Temple, when they sent the message to the Wang Family, likely had some involvement from the Li Country family in the matter of deposing and installing emperors. It's unknown how many of the many lowly Golden Core cultivators killed that night were lovers of the Taiping Temple.

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Don't underestimate her. If she were to cultivate dual cultivation, her foundation would be quite solid. She should have obtained the authentic method that is not passed down to anyone outside the direct line of the Three Realms, and she is probably not the one who is used as a furnace.'"

If she offers herself to you, don't agree; you might end up being sexually exploited instead.

Holy crap! Who wants her pillow and mat?! She's not even that old, they might even be relatives! Can we please stop with the disgusting tastes?!

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'This is already beyond the fifth generation, and do you really care about age? Although that Emei one has extremely high aptitude, to reach the Golden Core realm, he must be at least twenty years older than you, right? It seems you never consider these things when you're giving scores.'"

Hey! Sword intent! Don't go overboard! You can't think about these things too much! People younger than him are still wearing diapers!

Besides, he's probably over 3700 years old now. Killing just one person would give him 100 or 500 years of lifespan. He's literally living a life of eternal bliss, as long as the heavens! His age is no longer a reliable indicator!

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Bah! Enjoying immortal bliss forever, living as long as the heavens! What a beautiful dream!'"

You brat, remember this: every hundred years, the Golden Core Nascent Soul Stage the Postnatal Immortal Dao face a killing tribulation; every five hundred years, the Nascent Soul cultivator faces a lightning tribulation; and every twelve hundred years after enlightenment, they face a great calamity of heaven and earth. Those who cannot ascend to immortality will surely perish! So you'd better achieve enlightenment within twelve hundred years and help me rebuild my true body, understand? I still need to rebuild the Beichen Sword Sect; I can't die!

However, don't be greedy for the shortcut of dual cultivation. There are probably very few people in this world who can engage in proper dual cultivation with you like the Emei sect. In the end, it will either involve absorbing or replenishing, both of which are wrong paths. You should master the transformation of your Qiongqi Dao Body as soon as possible. It can save you from a calamity and give you an extra life!

So that's how it is... No wonder the lineage of the Mountain Lord passed down seven transformations, twenty-one transformations, and forty-nine transformations. Each transformation grants an extra life, which is indeed very worthwhile. In fact, when fighting Lu Chai, didn't the Qiongqi Dao Body shield Li Fan once?

However, if someone like Profound Heaven Sword Intent, who usually greets others with trash, suddenly says something like "not bad," "not bad at all," or "has a solid foundation," then the master of Taiping Temple really needs to be careful.

Of course, Li Fan wasn't going to raid or wipe out anyone this time. He just wanted to find a merchant to sell a bunch of junk that was taking up inventory space and organize his belongings. Surely this wouldn't trigger some kind of plot where someone else takes a fancy to his body and tries to force him into a dual cultivation session, right?

So Li Fan went to Daye Ward, took out Lou Guan's Daoist talisman and the waist token of the palace guard, rode his tall horse into the ward, went straight to the entrance of Taiping Temple, gave the Daoist priest at the entrance a 'you know what I mean' look, and said he wanted to sell some 'old magic treasures'.

The Daoist priest from Taiping Temple also gave an "I understand" look, bowed to Li Fan, and led him into the temple.

However, this time the plot didn't trigger. The tower didn't give Li Fan the same sense of oppression he had experienced before, probably because the master of Taiping Temple wasn't there.

The Daoist priest who received Li Fan explained, "Friends traveling the world inevitably have times when they are short of money and have some 'old things,' 'found things,' or 'dirty things' that they urgently need to sell. The owner of this temple is just lending us this space to make things convenient for you. If the price is not to your liking, please forgive us. Would you like someone to take a look at it for you?"

That's understandable; there's bound to be a handling fee for selling stolen goods, but it sounds like there are different fees depending on the type.

Li Fan was about to ask.

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Don't ask. The price will change once you ask. Tell him you have found something, you have used something, and you need to know what percentage of the purchase price you want as collateral, and how the pawnshop handles interest.'"

Wow, you're so skilled!

So Li Fan asked as instructed.

The Daoist priest who was guiding them remained expressionless. "The old ones are worth 50% of the dead, the new ones are worth 30% of the picked ones, and the pawnbroker takes 30% of the profits."

"Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'Hmm, not bad. Let's keep this place. Tell him to bring the inventory list over for me to look at.'"

So Li Fan nodded and, led by the Daoist priest, went into a quiet room inside to drink tea. The screens were Unknown Face a material that obscured one's face, so that outsiders wouldn't be able to see the seller when appraising items.

It's actually quite professional, and the tea is good too. It's just that Kun won't drink it... but he has to! Eight tons of water a day!

Kun burst into tears.

The Daoist priest served tea and left, while Li Fan, guided by the Profound Heaven Sword Intent, placed the Nascent Soul Stage magic weapon, five Golden Core magic weapons, and the Immortal Palace cultivation jade slips he wanted to sell on the tray on the table.

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent Dao isn't that difficult. What you kill and steal is considered old, and what you find is naturally what you found. Although magic weapons with owners can be reforged, the owner will still sense the magic weapon when they encounter it, which is risky, so the price will be lower."

If it still clearly bears tracking Fa Yin and spells, then it's obviously something dirty, impossible to clean, and its value will be much lower.

As for "dead pawn," well, it's just a formality; who's really here to pawn? The shopkeeper will have someone inspect the item later. If the deal is closed with a 50/50 dead pawn, you'll only receive 50% in cash, and the rest will be a ticket issued by the shopkeeper.

These tickets are issued because the magical artifacts are too valuable to be settled with cash. They are guaranteed by the reputation of the merchant guild, and you can only redeem 50% of the ticket in cash. In addition, the valuation of stolen goods is usually discounted by half, so the actual price you can get is at most 30% of the market value.

However, even if the tickets are not redeemed, they can still be used as cash in their shops to pay for part of the stolen goods. Moreover, when buying things, the tickets and cash are usually matched 50/50. This is a tactic used by shops to sell stolen goods that are inconvenient to handle, and also to keep people tied to their businesses for transactions. It also serves as a precaution against you making a quick profit and then leaving the consequences to the shop and running away.

As for pawnshops, they're similar to auction houses. If you don't need the money urgently, you can store your items there. If someone buys them and the sale goes through, they take a 30% commission. Storage fees for pledged items are usually calculated separately. Also, when someone comes to buy, they'll likely use some tickets, so you won't get that much cash immediately.

Damn! The platform made all that money!

"The Profound Heaven Sword Intent said, 'That's how tough it is for rogue cultivators. Without channels, you're at the mercy of others. You're still a newcomer; they're already being generous by giving you a 50/50 chance. If you're not satisfied, just keep it to yourself and release it slowly.'"

Sigh, it seems making money in the underworld isn't as easy as I thought...

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