Qiu Yan, Disaster Looms!

"One moment he's a wise old man, the next he's a scoundrel; the difference is quite intriguing."

As Qiu Yan listened to the remarks of those wealthy businessmen, a strange feeling suddenly arose in his heart.

"Wealthy merchants, despite their immense riches, are easily manipulated by two reclusive Daoist priests. Even when they want to arrest a mere scholar like myself, they have many reservations. The government, high above, still needs the help of Dragon Qi and the Dynastic Fortune to suppress those with Divine Ability powers. As for cultivators, they toil diligently in their practice, yet they are constrained by the dynasty and the Human Path Order. The Grand Confucian who explore the mysteries of Human Path are inherently weak, and even getting close to someone could lead to their demise. Furthermore, they are limited by their lifespan. Each link is tightly bound together. The so-called Transcendence probably means rising above all of these."

As he walked, he pondered, and seeing the pedestrians and shops along the way, he had some thoughts.

"Wealthy merchants amass riches and enjoy Mortal Realm pleasures; officials wield the law and control the fate of others; cultivators cultivate their own power and rise above the world with extraordinary abilities; Confucianism explore the mysteries of Human Path, some warding off evil, others using their knowledge to gain fame and fortune—all benefit in some way. But with benefits come drawbacks; yin cannot grow alone, yang cannot thrive alone. The advantages of this world cannot be monopolized by any one group, and these very factors seem to spur many groups to continuously strive forward..."

As he pondered, he thought of his Divine Spirit Body and then of the path to Divine Path, lost in thought.

"The gods are formed from the thoughts of all living beings. In fact, they are the instinctive resistance of all living beings to changes in the outside world. However, this has also given rise to another extraordinary group. But this group is also constrained by the thoughts of all living beings. I wonder what level of power is needed to break free from so many constraints. Did the legendary Ancient Gods reach this level?"

As Qiu Yan walked and pondered, he passed through the streets and alleys. He looked around and saw that the monk had disappeared without a trace. He had gone to Wandering Immortal Residence and fought a fierce battle, but it hadn't taken him long. Judging from this, the monk must have left shortly after he left.

"Hey, folks, where did that monk who used to be here go?" he called out to a man standing nearby.

Seeing Qiu Yan dressed as a scholar but carrying two Daoist priests, the man looked wary, but still said, "The master was healing someone when he suddenly fainted and was taken away by his disciple. Where he went is not something I can know."

"Oh? He fainted?" Noticing the shifty look in the other person's eyes, Qiu Yan knew that this person probably knew where the monk had gone, but had no intention of telling him, not even revealing the monk's name or Dharma name.

Qiu Yan didn't reveal the answer, but simply said, "Thank you for your trouble, brother. By the way, may I ask which sect that master belongs to? And why is he in Prosperity Virtue City?"

"The master is a high-ranking Buddhist Sect monk. He travels through the Central Passes region. This Buddhist Sect is a recently emerging Daoist school, and every disciple is compassionate." The man spoke of the Buddhist Sect with a look of reverence, without the slightest pretense.

"Daoist sect?" Qiu Yan's brows twitched slightly. He knew that this was a theory that ordinary people had only a superficial understanding of Buddhism when it was being spread, and that they had deduced based on their own ideas and experiences.

"Thank you for informing me." Qiu Yan expressed his gratitude and then left.

The man hesitated about whether to report it to the authorities, but ultimately decided it was better to avoid trouble and gave up the idea.

"There's another Buddhism sect spreading in Central Passes. According to what that person just said, Buddhism teachings are clearly different from those in the Marshlands. I'd like to have a chance to see them for myself. But the fact that a monk who used his own Qi and Blood save someone could faint means he's almost exhausted. Even if I wanted to investigate, it's not convenient to visit him right now. I should let him rest well."

Lost in thought, Qiu Yan arrived at an inn, the very one where Hu Qi and Dai Guo had stayed. The two were waiting in the lobby when they saw Qiu Yan and noticed the two old Daoists he was carrying, both of them showing surprise.

"Young master, who are these two people...?" Dai Guo stepped forward, took the two old Daoists from him, and looked them over. He noticed that the two men were very thin and showed no signs of being tough, which aroused his suspicion.

Qiu Yan said, "No need to ask any more questions. Have you decided to take an extra room?"

"The rooms have been prepared as you instructed, young master," Hu Qi said as he walked over.

"That's good. Take these two elderly people upstairs and put them in a separate room. I'll order some wine, dishes, and medicinal cuisine to help them recover. I'll have some questions for them later, and it would be best if they could perk up."

"Yes." Hu Qi didn't ask any more questions. He and Dai Guo each picked up one of the two old Daoists and carried them upstairs.

Although this inn was not located in the city, many people came and went to stay and eat. When they saw Qiu Yan, a thin scholar, carrying two old Daoist priests in, which already seemed strange, and he didn't seem to be struggling at all, they knew that something was unusual. The waiter wanted to come up and ask, but was stopped by the innkeeper.

"It's better to avoid trouble. Make a note of this person's appearance, and report it to the authorities after they leave."

Following the innkeeper's instructions, the waiter praised, "Old ginger is spicier," and then left. Little did he know that when Hu Qi and his companions checked in, they had given the innkeeper a few extra copper coins, which the innkeeper had pocketed. The money was easy to take at first, but now it felt rather hot to the touch.

Qiu Yan ignored all of that and stepped forward to ask, "Please bring me pen and ink, shopkeeper. I'll write you a list. Go outside and get some medicinal herbs; we'll be brewing a medicinal meal later."

"Good heavens, what does he think this shop is? Who runs errands for us?" the shopkeeper muttered to himself. He was about to refuse, but noticing Qiu Yan's gaze and sensing his authority, he instinctively shut up and did as he was told.

When the paper and pen fell into Qiu Yan's hands, he dipped them in ink and wrote words stroke by stroke. These seemingly ordinary things suddenly burst forth with an extraordinary artistic conception. The shopkeeper was also literate and could recognize the quality of calligraphy. When he saw the words, he was immediately stunned. Only when Qiu Yan finished writing the order in one breath and handed it to him did he come to his senses as if from a dream.

"Beautiful calligraphy! Beautiful calligraphy! Young Master Duan has written a beautiful piece of calligraphy!"

The shopkeeper's voice was loud when he praised the first word "good," but lowered when he said the second. His attitude had completely changed after that one sentence; his complaints were gone, and even his intention to report it to the authorities had faded. He simply said, "This... I wonder if you could leave this receipt with me, sir? I'll make another copy and go to the pharmacy to get the medicine."

He recognized the extraordinary quality of the writing on the paper and knew that Qiu Yan was accomplished in calligraphy. This Central Passes region was the center of the Great Rui Dynasty and had never lacked people who were fond of dabbling in culture, which made the literary style flourish and especially value calligraphy and painting. The shopkeeper knew that he was of low status and that no matter how good Qiu Yan's calligraphy was, he could not get a piece of it. So he might as well keep the order and keep it for his collection.

Qiu Yan said, "I only need the medicinal herbs; you can do whatever you want with the rest."

"Thank you, young master." The shopkeeper was overjoyed upon hearing this. He carefully put the order away, copied it, and then put it away again before finally letting out a long sigh of relief.

"Sending such calligraphy to that pharmacy would be a waste of its talent. I should keep it and treasure it at home." With that thought in mind, he called over a waiter, handed him the transcribed prescription, and instructed him to get the medicine.

Qiu Yan then took out some copper coins and handed them to the waiter. "After you leave, if anyone stops you, ignore them and just take my money to get your medicine."

The waiter was completely bewildered. The shopkeeper wanted to pay for it in advance, but Qiu Yan him off and went upstairs on his own.

"Young master, what do you mean? Why is someone stopping me?" The waiter asked hesitantly.

"Why do you care so much? Hurry up and get the medicine." The shopkeeper was also grumbling to himself, but when he thought of the words on the prescription, he couldn't sit still and urged him on.

The waiter, feeling helpless, turned and left, but unexpectedly returned a few moments later.

"Why are you back again?" the shopkeeper asked, puzzled. "Did that person get into some trouble, and someone is lying in ambush outside?"

"No, no," the waiter quickly waved his hand, "It's the servants of Master Li, Master Liu, Master Wang, and other masters. They were all standing outside. As soon as they saw me, they knew which young master was going to get medicine, so they all surrounded me and offered to pay me to do it for them!"

"Such a thing is true!" The shopkeeper was startled. "Those gentlemen are all extremely wealthy merchants. Usually, officials would chat and laugh with them, but according to you, they are all so polite to that young master. This is unusual. However, since they are willing to do it for you, why did you have to come back?"

The waiter replied, "Didn't that young master say that if anyone stops me, I should ignore them and just take their money to get the medicine?"

"This..." The shopkeeper gasped, finding Qiu Yan unfathomable. "Good heavens, he anticipated what was happening outside. Perhaps this young master comes from an extraordinary background, and those gentlemen wanted to do him a favor, but he doesn't want to get involved in such matters. In that case, you should go out through the back door, secretly fetch the medicine, and don't get entangled with the people outside anymore."

"Okay." The waiter left again.

The shopkeeper thought for a moment, then got up and went upstairs.

"No, we've finally met such a powerful person, we have to curry favor with him properly, otherwise it would be a waste." Once upstairs, he naturally went through another round of flattery.

When the waiter returned with the medicinal herbs, the manager quickly instructed the kitchen to prepare the medicinal soup. Busy with preparations, two bowls of fragrant soup were soon placed in the room Hu Qi had requested.

"Having power can indeed save a lot of trouble and improve the efficiency of others, even if it's just borrowed power." Looking at the two bowls of medicinal soup, Qiu Yan shook his head, flicked his finger, and two streams of True Qi landed on the two old Daoists on the bed.

Crash! Crash!

The two old Daoist priests suddenly sat up. The one on the left said sternly, "Qiu Yan, you are in deep trouble!" (To be continued...)

ps: Thanks to "Kill you idiot" and "erlei0214" for their monthly votes!

Thank you to "Wan Xia Xia La" for the donation!