The Box in the Water

Finding a suitable place to stay in Clear Tea Market was not easy.

There were inns in the city, but Duan Yun could not afford to stay in one.

After all, to reach the point of wiping out the Black Bear Gang in one stroke, he would need at least two months.

Even the cheapest ground-class room would not be affordable for two months. Besides, inns had too many people and too many watchful eyes; not only would that affect his cultivation, Black Bear Gang members might appear there as well.

Thus, Duan Yun decided to rent a house.

He would rent a relatively cheap one. After all, he still had to eat and live through these next two or three months.

By all rights, Duan Yun now possessed extraordinary skills. The Jade Sword Finger could easily poke holes through people, while Moonlit Water Sword Qi could cleave someone in two with a single sword strike. Yet he still had not found any easy way to turn those abilities into money.

He could not exactly go around killing and robbing people, could he?

If he did that, how would he be any different from the Black Bear Gang and those Red Chamber Fairies, who killed and raped?

Duan Yun despised them, and he would not become one of them.

In the end, Duan Yun chose a bamboo cottage on the outskirts of the city.

The cottage's former owner had probably been a scholar. Several pieces of calligraphy and paintings, made for self-amusement, hung inside.

But no one seemed to have lived here for a long time. Thick dust had piled up everywhere, and the place looked utterly dilapidated.

Anyone who did not know better would think it was a haunted house.

Duan Yun quickly decided to rent the place.

Because this truly was the cheapest house he could currently rent.

He only wanted to rent for three months, and hardly any landlords were willing to lease to him for that long. Otherwise, they would demand an exorbitant price.

After all, Clear Tea Market had a tea trade, with merchants and peddlers constantly coming and going. Houses in good locations never lacked tenants.

Besides, he mainly wanted to avoid the Black Bear Gang and cultivate in peace. What he needed was quiet; too many people and too many prying eyes nearby would only make things worse.

Duan Yun took another look around and found that, aside from the modest cemetery not far behind the house, there was truly nothing to complain about.

Five qian of silver a month—what more bicycle could he ask for?

Duan Yun even rather liked the place, because a jade-green lake lay before the little courtyard. Looking through the collapsed section of the courtyard wall, the view was picturesque.

In his previous life, this would have been a bona fide lake-view house.

At that moment, Duan Yun suddenly spotted a broken stone amid the weeds in the courtyard. Carved upon it was a face that looked human, yet not quite human.

"What is this?"

The landlord glanced at it and explained, "Of course, it is Shi Gandang, an immortal invited here to guard the house. I told you before that there is a cemetery behind the place. My nephew used to mind that, so he invited this over."

The landlord had said that the house had originally belonged to his nephew before changing hands to him.

"I see," Duan Yun replied.

"Are you renting it or not? I am worn out running back and forth for this little bit of silver."

It was clear that the landlord had little patience. To him, Duan Yun was only a short-term tenant renting for three months, paying less than two taels of silver altogether—better than nothing.

After all, he still had a sizable tea shop to run. This could only count as private money hidden from his wife, enough at most to drink a little flower wine.

Duan Yun did not hesitate. He signed the contract and paid the rent.

After the landlord left, Duan Yun walked around again and remained quite satisfied with the place.

Aside from being somewhat rundown and excessively dusty, it would certainly keep out wind, rain, and mosquitoes.

For the next two or three months, he would have to treat this place as home.

There was no well at the bamboo cottage, but it was not far from the lakeside.

Duan Yun hoisted the large water vat, which had been left sitting for who knew how long, and headed toward the lake.

It was already afternoon, and the weather was slightly overcast.

The lake water was clear, with plentiful aquatic plants growing along its bottom, forming a dark jade expanse.

The water near the shore was clear enough to see the bottom, but farther out, its color deepened and darkened, making it impossible to tell how deep it was.

Duan Yun washed the dust off the water vat and was glad it was still usable. Otherwise, he would have had to go to the market to buy one.

After filling the large vat with water, he carried it back toward the house.

Ever since cultivating the Jade Sword True Canon, Duan Yun's body had become much stronger than before.

Just last night, he had walked over a hundred li in one breath and still cultivated for most of the night. Before practicing the sword, such a thing would have been beyond imagination.

The benefits of sword practice revealed themselves once more.

Afterward, Duan Yun cleaned the room, then gathered some dry grass to spread over the bed. The bamboo cottage had finally become barely habitable.

Before he knew it, dusk was nearly upon him.

He hurried to the market to purchase supplies, hoping to buy enough rice, meat, and vegetables that he would not need to leave for several days and could focus on cultivation.

The market in Clear Tea Market was livelier than the one in Riverside City. After all, the merchants and peddlers passing through all needed to eat and live.

After buying some rice, meat, vegetables, salt, Sichuan pepper, and other seasonings, Duan Yun headed home.

By then, the sky had darkened. Duan Yun walked along the small path beside the lake, where wild grasses grew along the shore and aquatic plants stretched across the lakebed.

As he neared his residence, Duan Yun suddenly looked in one direction.

There was a box in the lake.

A very large box.

It was about the size of the chests escort guards transported in television dramas from his previous life.

Perhaps even larger.

The box lay submerged not far from the lakeshore, half buried in mud and half exposed above it, with a lock on top.

Duan Yun looked around, feeling only curiosity.

Although the place where he lived was on the outskirts, it was not far from Clear Tea Market, and some tea farmers lived nearby.

When he had come to inspect the house at noon, Duan Yun had seen several tea farmers passing by.

Yet that box lay there, not far from either the path or the shore. He definitely could not have been the first person to see it.

But had no one been curious?

Had no one fished it out to take a look?

Such a large box even bore finely carved patterns and had a lock on it. It did not look empty.

Perhaps it contained some treasure.

Yet it remained sunk at the bottom of the water as though it had been there for a long time, ignored by everyone. Some of it was already tangled in aquatic weeds.

To be honest, the thing had stirred Duan Yun's curiosity.

But he restrained himself.

Yes, such a box might contain treasure, but it might also contain something else.

Others did not touch it, so he would not touch it for now either.

Duan Yun returned to his residence and lit a fire to cook.

This should have been his first night in his new home, a new beginning of sorts, so he placed half a strip of freshly bought smoked meat atop his white rice.

For the first meal, it was necessary to eat a little better.

The rice and meat cooked together. The rice absorbed the smoked meat's fat, while the smoked meat, paired with white rice, did not seem greasy.

Afterward, Duan Yun used his sword to slice the smoked meat and began devouring it with great relish.

Compared to the rice from his previous life, these grains were much coarser, but the aroma of the meat was irresistible.

Holding his bowl as he sat on the steps and ate, gazing at the ancient-looking courtyard overgrown with wild grass, Duan Yun suddenly realized deeply that he truly was no longer in his original time and space.

This world had many absurd and terrifying people, overflowing with killing and rape, yet it also possessed this momentary peace before his eyes.

He, Duan Yun, would surely live a splendid life in this world.

At the very least, it would be more splendid than living like a walking corpse as a corporate drone in his previous life.

Even when he recalled his past life now, Duan Yun could not immediately think of anything that made him proud or that he deeply missed.

That was another kind of sorrow.

This life definitely would not be like that!

Moonlight spilled into the courtyard. Duan Yun raised his sword and practiced beneath the moon.

Right here, become stronger!