The Road Ahead

"Wouldn't that affect your cultivation?"

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei asked.

"It's fine. I won't be able to cultivate Heavenly Power for a long time anyway."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei replied casually.

"Why?"

Both Qi Feis looked at Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei.

"Because Old Zhou said he's planning to send me to Vastness Palace."

Vastness Palace was one of the Five Great Holy Lands in the Heavenly Jewel Change World.

It had become the richest Holy Land by picking up a dragon's legacy, then used its wealth to become the most powerful Holy Land.

Because it was wealthy and had an abundance of rare materials, it was also home to more Consolidation Masters than anywhere else.

The profession of Consolidation Master was somewhat similar to an Equipment Forger in other worlds.

They could make Consolidation Scrolls, which allowed Body Jewels to manifest into equipment.

They were people no Body Jewel Master or Heavenly Jewel Master could avoid during cultivation.

"Is it because of the talent you showed?"

Shen San Qi Fei asked.

"Yeah. Old Zhou said the Heavenly Bow Empire can't protect me, so he can only send me to a Holy Land. He'd been sneaking around with me before because he was afraid the emperor would have a brain freeze and refuse."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei felt rather touched by it.

Whatever his reasons, Zhou Shuiniu really was thinking about Qi Fei's future.

"Joining Vastness Palace would be fine. At least you'd have the backing of a Holy Land."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei sounded envious.

He wanted to find someone to back him, but had no idea where to start. What if he showed up unannounced and they turned out to be his enemies?

"But Old Zhou can actually recommend you to Vastness Palace? He's got some connections."

Shen San Qi Fei remarked.

Zhou Shuiniu was the first Heavenly Jewel Master in the Heavenly Bow Empire. He'd had to rely on himself for cultivation, building connections, and everything else.

The fact that he'd managed to get in touch with Vastness Palace meant he had some real ability.

"Actually, it's not quite a recommendation to Vastness Palace."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei corrected him.

"Old Zhou said he made a friend while traveling in the past. That friend has an elder who's a Consolidation Master at Vastness Palace."

"Recently, that elder got old and wanted to find a suitable disciple to inherit his teachings."

But Old Zhou's intention wasn't to have Qi Fei become that elder's disciple. At least, that wasn't his first choice.

He only wanted to use this opportunity to safely show Vastness Palace Qi Fei's talent.

If a powerful figure at Vastness Palace took a liking to Qi Fei and accepted him as a disciple, that would be ideal.

If not, he'd still have a fallback plan.

Old Zhou hadn't told Qi Fei all this outright, but Qi Fei had picked up on the meaning behind his words.

"Tang Xian?"

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei guessed.

He remembered that, in the original story, Zhou Shuiniu's only connection to Vastness Palace was that his wife, Ling Zihan, had once been saved by Tang Xian and her husband.

Then Zhou Shuiniu's son, Zhou Weiqing, went on to charm all three of their daughters.

Talk about taking advantage of the same family over and over.

"Probably not. The person's surname isn't Tang."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei shook his head.

"Besides, Tang Xian didn't have much of a connection with Old Ox's wife, and Old Ox wouldn't know about this."

He guessed it was probably just an ordinary passerby who hadn't appeared in the original story.

As for why Old Zhou hadn't found this path for his son in the original story, there were two reasons.

First, Old Zhou's son hadn't even been born yet. His son didn't become a Heavenly Jewel Master until he was thirteen.

Thirteen years was enough time for the elder to raise a disciple of his own. He wouldn't need another one.

Second, by the time Old Zhou learned that Zhou Weiqing had become a Heavenly Jewel Master, Zhou Weiqing had already taken a Consolidation Master as his teacher.

There was no need, and it wouldn't have been appropriate, to send Zhou Weiqing away.

"In any case, I'll have to stay at the One-Jewel level for a while, until Old Zhou's friend replies."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei summed up.

Once the people at Vastness Palace had examined his Life Bead, he'd be able to break through and cultivate as normal.

Of course, he'd still have to conceal his progress whenever possible.

His cultivation speed was simply too shocking.

"Tsk, what a poor kid."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei sighed, shaking his head.

"Yeah, poor kid."

Shen San Qi Fei wore the expression of someone watching the kid next door get forced into signing up for extra tutoring.

"Don't just sit there enjoying my misfortune. What about you two? Have you planned out your futures?"

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei stared at the two onlookers.

"What can I do? Keep my head down and cultivate."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei said helplessly.

"Like you said, there's still a mastermind watching me from behind the scenes. Right now, everything I do is wrong."

If his behavior didn't match the original owner's, the mastermind might investigate him—and then he'd be done for.

"Oh, there's something else."

Shen San Qi Fei seemed to have suddenly remembered something. "Normally, you'll only be able to cultivate openly for a few more days."

"Right."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei chimed in.

"You can pretend you just got interested and are making an occasional effort. But once it's been more than a week, it'll be hard to explain."

"So I have to get the sudden surge of power under control while I can, then go back to living like the original owner."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei picked up where the others had left off.

To be honest, in his previous life, he'd have been happy to live like the original owner for the rest of his life.

But now, Qi Fei wasn't so keen on the idea.

Maybe that was just him being difficult.

"That's not all. You also need to watch those three maids."

Shen San Qi Fei reminded him.

"You have to make sure none of them are spies from another faction."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei looked serious.

"I don't think they are. The original owner bought them based on his own preferences, almost completely at random. But I'll be careful."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei agreed with the others.

When it came to something that could affect his life, it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Of course, even if they aren't spies, getting them on your side would make cultivation a lot easier later."

Shen San Qi Fei added.

The changes to Coiling Dragon Qi Fei's physique were bound to escape the notice of the three maids who attended him personally.

If they couldn't spot Qi Fei's changes when they shared his bed, they might as well try making gauze out of tofu.

If he could get the three maids on his side, he'd be able to hide his strength better and sneak in some cultivation while spending time with them.

It would kill two birds with one stone.

"I know. Don't worry."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei said thoughtfully.

"What about you? Are you planning to throw in your lot with the imperial uncle?"

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei turned to Shen San Qi Fei.

"You know that if I want to find someone to follow, I don't have many choices."

Shen San Qi Fei spread his hands.

In the Mythical Three Kingdoms World, Qi Fei's surname had a rather strange origin.

The Chen Clan, one of Yingchuan's great clans, had an embarrassing bit of history called Tian Clan Replaces Qi, also known as the Tian-Chen Usurpation of Qi.

To explain, early in the Warring States period, the Chen State fell. A prince of the Chen State fled to Qi State and changed his surname to Tian, and the King of Qi at the time took him in.

After several generations of effort, the Tian Clan usurped the throne from the Qi Clan.

The saying "lend out grain with a large measure, collect it back with a small one" referred to the Tian Clan's story of winning people's hearts in Qi State.

That was where Shen San Qi Fei's surname came from.

Back when the Qi Clan's ancestors still bore the surname Chen, they had fallen out with the head of their clan. In a fit of anger, one of them changed his surname and left the family.

The surname he chose was Qi—the Chen Clan's embarrassing stain.

His justification was perfectly reasonable, after all. Once the Chen Clan had replaced the Qi Clan, the Zhou king had indeed enfeoffed them as Marquis of Qi.

From that perspective, changing his surname to Qi made perfect sense.

But anyone with a lick of sense could see that the justification was pure nonsense.

The only reason that ancestor had changed his surname to Qi was to mock the Chen Clan and annoy the family head who had angered him.

After that, the Qi Clan's hopes of entering government service came to an end.

For most people in the Han Dynasty, the first step to becoming an official was a Filial Piety and Integrity Recommendation.

By the later years of the dynasty, the system was mostly a sham, but at least it had to look legitimate on the surface.

With a surname that mocked their ancestors, the Qi Clan could never pass muster.

As a result, the Han Dynasty's officials collectively shunned them.

Fortunately, there were plenty of families in the Han Dynasty who had grudges against the Chen Clan.

They gave the Qi Clan a hand, partly to spite the Chen Clan and partly so their descendants would know what the Chen Clan had done.

That was how the Qi Clan had managed to survive to the present day.

Of course, their help had only gone so far as keeping the Qi Clan alive.

Farming in the countryside was fine. Doing business and making money was fine too. But becoming an official? Not a chance.

That was why, even though Qi Fei had earned a reputation as a child prodigy, the only people willing to accept him were those who would take him as an unofficial disciple.

And if it hadn't been for the two Disasters of Partisan Prohibitions, which left those people with nothing to do but teach, Qi Fei wouldn't even have found someone willing to take him as an unofficial disciple.

That was why the best person for Qi Fei to follow was Liu Bei.

Liu Bei himself came from a poor background and knew nothing about the feuds between the great clans.

By the time he found out, he probably wouldn't have the heart to part with Qi Fei.

And Chen Xi, the chief strategist in Liu Bei's camp, was a transmigrator. He wouldn't care about those matters either.

"There's another reason, too."

Shen San Qi Fei smiled.

"I think Chen Xi's doing a great job, and his ideas are right in line with mine. So I've decided to work with him."

Qi Fei liked Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but it wasn't because he liked any one particular person. He loved this turbulent age, full of rising heroes.

He loved this romantic era, which Old Luo, CCTV, Koei, and countless others had devoted such care to portraying.

That was why Qi Fei sincerely thought Chen Xi had done an amazing job.

He'd entered Mount Tai, emerged in Qing Province, defeated Yuan Shao, pacified the Xiongnu, unified the Central Plains, and marched across the four directions.

Chen Xi had preserved nearly every civil and military talent of the Three Kingdoms era and led them beyond the Central Plains.

He'd split Parthia in two and expanded into Kushan.

It was a sight Qi Fei had never seen in other Three Kingdoms stories.

That was why Qi Fei was willing to give Chen Xi a hand.

"He really has done a great job. No, actually, he's been absurd."

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei corrected himself.

Chen Xi had raised hundreds of thousands of heavily armored soldiers—wearing ultra-heavy plate armor weighing between a hundred and two hundred jin—and sent them on an expedition to Kushan.

They'd fought for years without affecting people's livelihoods at all. Their development hadn't even slowed much.

He'd raised the standard of living for the people of the Han Dynasty to something close to modern levels.

And along the way, he'd even managed to build a battleship weighing over ten thousand tons.

If the original story hadn't made it clear, Qi Fei would have suspected Chen Xi had a system that rewarded him with supplies at each stage.

Otherwise, none of it made sense.

"I feel like there's another reason you haven't mentioned."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei stared quietly at Shen San Qi Fei.

"I imagine it has something to do with a spot among the Four Heavenly Kings of Slacking?"

Coiling Dragon Qi Fei played along.

With his personality, even without all the reasons he'd already mentioned, he'd have followed the original protagonist anyway.

He could slack off and still help achieve the goal of unifying the world.

It was just too comfortable.

"Yes, but that's not the only reason."

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei corrected him.

"What do you mean?"

Panlong Qi Fei turned to look at Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei.

"How old is he now?"

Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei gestured with his eyes for Panlong Qi Fei to look across at the other man.

"Twelve..."

Panlong Qi Fei realized it the moment he said it.

At the time of Tiger Trap Pass, he was twelve and already at the Qi Solidification stage.

In the eyes of outsiders, Qi Fei's talent was probably even more terrifying than Zhao Yun's.

(In God Three, Zhao Yun was established as a peerless genius Tong Yuan had found only after traveling across the country. At the same cultivation level, his Internal Qi could reach a hundred times Second Master's.)

In such a situation, anyone sensible would have Qi Fei focus on cultivation, rather than drag him off to do work.

In other words, now that Qi Fei had joined them, he could draw the salary of a founding core member and wouldn't have to work unless absolutely necessary.

"Damn, what a schemer."

Panlong Qi Fei exclaimed.

"How can you call that scheming? I'm just putting off work for a while."

Shen San Qi Fei said righteously.

It wasn't as if he'd never work. Once he'd grown up a bit in a couple of years, the returns he'd bring in would be huge.

What followed was a bunch of hard-to-understand talk about "strategy and the proper work of an advisor" and "the more you use your brain, the sharper it gets."

For a while, the space was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

After laughing, the three each left behind a trace of spiritual power and returned to their own worlds.

Heavenly Jewel Change World.

Qi Fei, who had used going to the bathroom as an excuse, finally came out.

But he hadn't taken more than a couple of steps when Ling Zihan caught him.

"I finally found you. Hurry up, we're going to be late."

Ling Zihan grabbed Qi Fei by the wrist and dragged him toward the banquet hall.

"What happened, Sister Ling?"

Qi Fei asked, looking confused.

Ling Zihan had requested that he call her that. At first, Qi Fei had wanted to call her Madam or Auntie, but she'd stopped him.

"His Majesty is about to announce your reward, but you, the person it's for, have disappeared."

Ling Zihan turned back and said.

"I just went to the bathroom."

Qi Fei tried to explain.

"Mm, I know."

Ling Zihan replied offhandedly, clearly not believing him.

Qi Fei didn't know what to say.

They reached the banquet hall after only a few steps.

Ling Zihan stopped and turned around to straighten Qi Fei's clothes.

"Ninety-nine percent of the people in this room can't compare to your Uncle Zhou, and your Uncle Zhou won't be able to compare to you in the future, either."

She came up behind Qi Fei and leaned down to speak into his ear.

"So there's no need to be nervous. Just relax and enjoy it."

With that, Ling Zihan patted Qi Fei on the shoulder and ushered him into the banquet hall.

God Three World.

Qi Fei slowly opened his eyes.

"Someone."

He called out.

"My lord."

An old man walked in.

He was the steward in charge of the entire Qi Clan, appointed by Qi Fei's father many years ago.

"Uncle Qi, please keep an eye on the intelligence coming in about General Liu outside the city."

Qi Fei instructed him.

If he remembered correctly, Chen Xi would fall out with the Yingchuan Chen Clan this time and be kicked out of the family tree.

That would make a very good reason for him to seek refuge with Liu Bei.

"Yes, sir."

Uncle Qi agreed.