Volume One: Days in the Shantytown - Making a Fortune from War (Part One)

The first stretch of Treasure Chamber Cave was spacious, thirty meters high and sixty meters wide. It narrowed farther in, and the forks grew more frequent. In a mine as valuable as Treasure Chamber Cave, even a single branch was worth working, so none would be abandoned.

With Low-Grade Immortal Jade tucked against his chest, one Immortal Worker followed the crowd into the cave. At each fork, some of the workers peeled away. By the time they reached the far end of the vein, only a hundred or so remained.

Every Immortal Worker entering the mine received a bag at the entrance for ore. The hundred-odd workers spread out and began circulating their Immortal Arts. Light blazed through the pit as beams sheared layers of rock from the walls. Stone clattered to the ground, and amid the dull rubble, sparks of light glimmered now and then—the Immortal Jade ore they were after.

To prevent theft, Magical Artifacts were forbidden inside. The workers had to dig with their own Immortal Arts, putting Immortal Jade Ore in their bags and piling useless rock onto special mine carts behind them. Each cart resembled a South-Pointing Chariot, with a large hopper at the back and a bronze figure pointing the way at the front. Once filled with waste rock, it carried its load out of the mine and returned for more.

A day passed in the tedium of mining. Those lucky enough to meet their quotas beamed; the unlucky hung their heads. A clear bamboo flute sounded through the cave, signaling everyone to leave. The workers gathered the last Ore from the ground, shouldered their bags, and filed out.

The antlike streams gradually converged. At every fork, the crowd swelled, like a hundred rivers pouring into the sea. The miner who had hidden the Immortal Jade waited until everyone else had gone. Before leaving, he secretly crushed the piece of Low-Grade Immortal Jade and left it in the pit.

Something lay inside the broken jade. A familiar red glow showed through the cracks. If Luo Qian had been there, he would have recognized it at once: the Dragon-Phoenix Double-Pattern Jade Pendant!

Bang! Two massive Refined Gold doors slammed shut, sealing Treasure Chamber Cave completely. The Immortal Sun sank slowly, spilling red light across Tianxia Lake.

"Old Luo! Old Luo!" Du Lengning rushed into the Toad Mountain cave dwelling, panting. His vision blurred, and the scene changed. He was back on Ningyao Mountain, surrounded by painted walls and green curtains, with young women's voices drifting through the air. This was the Side Courtyard where Distant Hall housed its female disciples! Du Lengning sucked in a breath. "Damn it, Old Luo, you've ruined me..."

"Hahaha..." Luo Qian beckoned, and 108 Small Flags flew into his hand. He laid them neatly in the Jade Casket. "How have I ruined you? Nine Realms Misty Turmoil follows your heart and recreates a place in the Immortal Realm. You must have been there, or the formation couldn't have reproduced it."

Luo Qian grinned at him. "Young Master Du, I always thought you cared only about games and regarded beauties as so much roadside grass. Who knew you had the nerve to do something so sleazy as spy on the girls' dormitory? Heh..." Du Lengning flushed. "It isn't what you think. I—I had a reason." "Oh? What reason?" Luo Qian looked ready to get to the bottom of it.

Du Lengning looked troubled. "Old Luo, could you stop prying into my private affairs?" Luo Qian nodded. "Of course. Oh, Uncle Du, you've heard that your son was spying on your female disciples? Yes, I think it's disgraceful too. It's perfectly natural for your face to burn with shame. Whatever you do, don't feel guilty about Du Lengning..."

Du Zhongping had not come, of course. It was all Luo Qian's performance. Du Lengning ground his teeth. "Luo Qian!" "Hehe!" Du Lengning deflated. "Fine. I'll confess."

"I followed Li Xuexiao in," Du Lengning said, hanging his head. Luo Qian frowned. "Li Xuexiao, Distant Hall's top young expert?" Du Lengning nodded. "That's her. On all of Ningyao Mountain, she's the only one who doesn't take me, Young Master Du, seriously."

Luo Qian shook his head. "Distant Hall really ought to be ashamed. Hundreds of male disciples, yet a woman claimed the title of top young expert. Three hundred men no match for one woman—what a tragedy!" Du Lengning snapped, "You're even worse than me, and you have the nerve to talk?" Struck where it hurt, Luo Qian gave a dry laugh. "I'm a Tribulation Immortal. We make our living with our brains, not our fists. But... Young Master Du, you're something else. Not long ago you were infatuated with Pei Sefei, and after just a few days you've fallen for Li Xuexiao..."

"If you can take me to the Lower Realm, I'll stay devoted to Pei Sefei forever!" Du Lengning said sourly. Luo Qian slapped his own mouth. "Fine, pretend I said nothing... But Li Xuexiao is Distant Hall's top young expert. I doubt you've even caught her eye..."

Once again, Luo Qian's words pushed Du Lengning's anger to the boiling point.

"Oh, right. What did you come to see me about?" Seeing Du Lengning on the verge of exploding, Luo Qian hurriedly changed the subject. Du Lengning promptly forgot his anger and slapped his forehead. "See? Your interruptions made me forget the important part." He grabbed Luo Qian. "Come on. Something terrible has happened at Tianxia Source!" "Wait. I need to seal the entrance to the Underground Palace..."

"Tianxia Source is Zuo Household territory. Yesterday morning, a Demon Beast burst out of Treasure Chamber Cave, wrecked the place, killed sixty-two Zuo Household guards, and fled. It broke through four checkpoints the Zuo Household set up and rampaged across Tianxia Source. Nothing could stop it!" On the way, Du Lengning gave Luo Qian a quick account of what had happened.

The Immortal Realm was vast, and many creatures lay beyond its rule. Demon Beasts that had been cultivating in secret emerged from time to time to wreak havoc. Usually, though, they were no match for Immortals and were subdued without causing much of a stir.

This time was different. The Demon Beast had killed more than sixty Zuo Household experts with ease, then ranged freely across Tianxia Source. The Zuo Household could do nothing about it!

"What does that have to do with us?" Luo Qian asked. "Tianxia Source is far away. We shouldn't go looking for trouble with a Demon Beast that dangerous. Leave something this serious to the great powers of the Immortal Realm." Du Lengning said, "We're going for three reasons: affection, duty, and profit. The Zuo Household's third son has an old friendship with my father. The Zuo Household can't contain this thing, so they've appealed to the entire Immortal Realm for help. A Communication Jade Talisman reached Ningyao Mountain. Distant Hall can't stand aside—that's duty. Father has put Li Xuexiao, the strongest of Distant Hall's younger generation, in command of the rescue force. I can't stand aside while a beauty faces danger—that's affection." Luo Qian's face grew darker and darker. Distant Hall is a major sect, and Young Master Du is a Third-Tier Immortal. Of course he can afford affection and duty. But I'm only a Tribulation Immortal! One swipe of that Demon Beast's claws would finish me. Why drag me along?

"As for the last reason, profit—that's why you're coming. Plenty of people will be wounded fighting the Demon Beast. It's the perfect chance to sell our Medicinal Pills!"

Luo Qian's expression changed in an instant, his dark face turning bright with excitement. "The pupil has surpassed the master! Young Master Du, you've learned to make a fortune from war. Excellent. You have a bright future ahead of you—I'm counting on you..."

Du Lengning's father, Du Zhongping, had once been a spirited young man himself and had played a few "young men's games." It was back then that he met the Zuo Household's third son, now Uncle Zuo. Friendships from those days were pure and steadfast, and Zuo Lingchuan was one of the few friends to whom tightfisted Du Zhongping would bare his heart.

So when Du Zhongping received Zuo Lingchuan's plea for help by jade talisman, he immediately assembled a sixty-person rescue force under Li Xuexiao, the sect's strongest young expert. If he had not considered the possibility that the Demon Beast might escape Tianxia Source and roam farther afield, perhaps even threatening Ningyao Mountain itself, he would certainly have gone into battle personally.

He also wanted to give his prized disciple experience. Though he sent two of his junior martial brothers—Li Xuexiao's martial uncles—he left her in command.

Du Zhongping had a private motive as well. Li Xuexiao was a female disciple, after all. Even a dragon or phoenix among people would eventually marry. Hoping to bring her and his son together, he sent Du Lengning too.

By the time Du Lengning dragged Luo Qian, the Immortal Realm's little capitalist giddy at the prospect of profits exceeding three hundred percent, to Ningyao Mountain, Li Xuexiao had assembled the force and reported to the Sect Leader. They were ready to swear their oath and depart.

"Wait for me..." Du Lengning's shout rang out from three thousand meters away. He arrived dragging Luo Qian behind him, both of them panting. Li Xuexiao gave him a cold glance and a soft snort, then looked away. Du Zhongping saw it and sighed inwardly. Playing matchmaker would not be easy. His son had a long road ahead if he hoped to win the beauty's heart.

"Lengning, saving lives is like fighting a fire. How could you be late for this?" Du Zhongping frowned and began scolding his son. Tightfisted Du treated his disciples equally, even when the disciple was his own son.

"I went to find him." Du Lengning pushed Luo Qian forward. "This trip is dangerous. Having a pill merchant with us gives us another measure of security." Though Luo Qian knew Du Lengning well, this was his first meeting with Du Lengning's father. He hurried forward and bowed. "This junior, Luo Qian, greets Uncle Du. I'm willing to provide Distant Hall with Spirit Pills free of charge. All I ask is that Distant Hall keep me safe."

Du Zhongping chuckled. "So you're Luo Qian. Lengning has told me about you. Good—we have a deal!" Delighted, Luo Qian bowed deeply. "Thank you, Uncle!"

They were going to hunt a Demon Beast, after all. War profits might be tempting, but high returns came with high risks. Luo Qian was not one to value money over his life. Giving up some pills in exchange for Distant Hall's protection was an excellent bargain.

Before leaving, Luo Qian went to the Underground Palace and gathered a great heap of Spirit Pills. They were not high-grade, but he had plenty of them. Rich in spiritual energy, these pills were like the Immortal Realm's Aspirin: they replenished the Immortal Spirit Energy exhausted in battle and sped the healing of wounds. They were indispensable to every Immortal.

(I have something to do this afternoon and may not be back, so I'm posting the six o'clock installment early.)

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