The Old Daoist Shen Buyu

On a street in Falling Blossom City, a streak of blue light flashed past Auntie Rong, giving her a fright. She looked at her wooden display stand. She sold candied hawthorn skewers to support her family, but now the stand was empty.

Auntie Rong was about to shout, "Thief!" when a young man suddenly appeared before her. He was handsome, dressed in fine black robes, with a silver ring on his right index finger and a coil of jute rope at his waist that looked utterly out of place. Had she been a dozen years younger, she would definitely have pursued a young man like him.

The young man was Yang Xiao, and the streak of blue light was Little Blue. Yang Xiao had thought they were entering the city simply to ask for directions, but the moment Little Blue saw the food lining the streets, the bird refused to budge. Little Blue had been eating all over the city, and this was already the eighteenth time Yang Xiao had cleaned up the mess.

"Here!" Yang Xiao handed her two taels of silver. "Your candied hawthorn skewers were eaten by my friend. Take this as compensation."

At the sight of the silver, Auntie Rong instinctively took it. By the time she recovered and tried to give the young man his change, he was gone.

After cleaning up after Little Blue ninety-nine times, Yang Xiao finally found the bird outside an inn. Or rather, Little Blue had been waiting there for him.

Anger flared in Yang Xiao's heart. During the chase, he had prepared ninety-nine pages of reprimands in his head, all ready to erupt at this moment.

Clenching his fists, flames of anger rising in his eyes, he walked toward Little Blue one step at a time and pointed. "Do you know what you were doing just now? That was robbery!"

Little Blue glanced at him, then calmly pointed at the inn.

"You mean we're staying here tonight?" Yang Xiao paused. When Little Blue nodded and strutted into the inn, he momentarily forgot what had happened and followed.

The inn's ground floor was packed. Yang Xiao called out, "Waiter, give me a superior room."

"Coming!" A waiter ran over, slung his rag over his shoulder, and extended his right hand. "This way upstairs, honored guest. Heaven Room Two."

Yang Xiao followed the waiter upstairs and casually asked, "Are you a local?"

The waiter looked back and smiled. "My family has lived in Falling Blossom City since my great-grandfather's generation. It's been over three hundred years now."

"Then do you know the way to the Carefree Sect?"

The waiter blinked. "The Carefree Sect? I've never heard of a place like that near Falling Blossom City."

Yang Xiao looked at Little Blue on his shoulder. Had the bird tricked him for the sake of food? Seeing his suspicious gaze, Little Blue jumped up and squawked.

Little Blue might love playing around, but the bird would never lie to him about something important. If Little Blue said the Carefree Sect was nearby, then it had to be nearby.

"That bird of yours is quite remarkable, honored guest," the waiter praised.

Yang Xiao smiled faintly, while Little Blue raised a proud head and folded both wings behind the back, looking every inch a lofty bird above worldly affairs.

That night, Yang Xiao lay on the bed. Little Blue was already asleep beside him. The bird seemed to have no need to cultivate; at any rate, Yang Xiao had never seen Little Blue doing so.

Only three days remained until the Carefree Sect's disciple recruitment. He would have to find its location tomorrow as quickly as possible.

He sat cross-legged and circulated the Great Martial Canon. An hour later, he emerged from meditation again. He had already used up the Qi-Gathering Pills Butcher had given him, and without them, his spiritual energy absorption had slowed drastically. In an entire hour, the spiritual energy in his qi sea had only increased by a thumb-sized amount. Now he understood Butcher's words about the importance of cultivation resources. It seemed he would have to obtain the Carefree Book and become an Earth Master.

The next day, Yang Xiao asked around all over the city, but no one knew where the Carefree Sect was. He could not even find anyone who had heard its name.

That night, seeing Little Blue fast asleep on the table in their room, Yang Xiao woke the bird. "Did you take us the wrong way?"

Little Blue's sleepy blue eyes instantly opened. The bird flew up from the table and circled him, squawking incessantly in reprimand.

With Little Blue's confirmation, Yang Xiao continued asking around the city the following day.

People streamed through the streets, but not a single one had heard of the Carefree Sect.

"Get the hell out!"

Walking down the street, he was suddenly struck by someone. He steadied himself and looked at the person who had collided with him. It was an old Daoist in a tattered robe, holding a grubby black short stick in his right hand.

A group of women had thrown the old Daoist out of the Perching Phoenix Pavilion. The distinctive name immediately reminded Yang Xiao of the Perching Phoenix Pavilion in Duskwater City. Apparently, it was a chain of pleasure houses spread across the Heaven Domain.

Duskwater City was a long way from here, with seven or eight cities between them. It was hard to imagine a pleasure house expanding so far.

He shook his head and turned to leave. As for the old Daoist who had collided with him, he would chalk it up to bad luck.

"Wait."

A voice came from behind him, seemingly calling to him. He looked back and saw the old Daoist.

The old Daoist ran up to him, tucked the short stick into his robe, and pressed his palms together. "Amitabha. This humble monk sees that you are a cultivation prodigy, one in ten thousand. Unable to bear the sight of misfortune befalling you, I have come to guide you out of the maze."

Yang Xiao's mouth twitched. With that opening that matched an ox's head to a horse's mouth, and a declaration of bad luck right off the bat, this man was definitely a charlatan. He turned and walked away.

"Benefactor, do not doubt this humble monk. If you continue onward, a bloody calamity will befall you."

The old Daoist's words came from behind him. Yang Xiao pretended not to hear and kept walking. Little Blue even cast the old Daoist a disdainful glance from his shoulder.

For some reason, the farther Yang Xiao walked, the more his heart fluttered with unease, as though disaster were bearing down on him. Thinking back, he realized the feeling had begun when the old Daoist called to him, but it had been so faint then that he had paid it no heed.

"Out of the way!"

A horse ahead had been startled and knocked over a roadside stall. At its current speed, it would crash into him at any moment.

At the critical instant, Yang Xiao dodged aside. Its owner came running from behind, tossed out an apology, and went on chasing the horse.

Yang Xiao frowned and took another two steps. Suddenly, an arrow fell from the sky and embedded itself at the tip of his shoe. Had he taken one more step, he would have died.

He turned toward Little Blue, and man and bird swallowed at the same time. He did not believe the old Daoist's words, but a person could hardly face two mortal dangers in quick succession, especially after someone had warned him.

"Little Blue, can you beat him?" Yang Xiao asked quietly, remaining rooted to the spot for fear another brush with death might come the next second.

Little Blue looked back at the old Daoist and nodded slightly, seemingly unsure as well.

Yang Xiao put on a gentle smile, turned, and walked over to the old Daoist. "Daoist priest, how can I avert this bloody calamity?"

The old Daoist pointed at the Perching Phoenix Pavilion. "Just treat this humble monk to a night in there."

Yang Xiao's mouth twitched hard. "About how much would one night cost?"

The old Daoist smiled. "Not much, not much. This humble monk has plenty of stamina. Just two hundred taels of gold."

Yang Xiao's expression changed. He could not possibly produce two hundred taels of gold. He shouted, "Little Blue, get him!"

With a piercing cry, Little Blue returned to true form and swooped at the old Daoist.

"Good heavens!" The old Daoist stepped back. "My eyes failed me! My eyes failed me! It's actually a Blue-Eyed Golden Eagle!"

After recognizing Little Blue, the old Daoist turned and fled, muttering something that Yang Xiao was too far away to hear.

Little Blue wobbled twice in midair and nearly fell, then shook its head fiercely and gave chase again.

The two chased the old Daoist into a dead-end alley. With no way out to either side, he kept backing away.

Yang Xiao flexed his fists, his magical power forming a pair of Gauntlets, and looked at the old Daoist with a thin smile. "Go on, keep running. Let's see where you can go. What, are you going to fly into the sky?"

The moment he finished speaking, the old Daoist leaped up and actually took flight. Little Blue turned into a streak of blue light and pursued him. A little later, Little Blue returned, bringing the old Daoist along.

Man and eagle cornered him against a wall. Yang Xiao let out an icy chuckle. "Run. Why aren't you running? Don't you know how to fly? Go on, fly again. Let me see."

The old Daoist sat on the ground and rolled his eyes. "Just my rotten luck today. My eyes failed me, and I didn't recognize a Blue-Eyed Golden Eagle."

"Beat me or punish me. This old Daoist will take it.

"But don't get too pleased with yourself, brat. Without that bird, you never would have caught me."

With that, he closed his eyes and braced himself for a savage beating.

Yang Xiao raised his fist and was about to bring it down when a thought flashed through his mind. Since the old Daoist was a cultivator, perhaps he knew where the Carefree Sect was.

He looked down. "I can let today's incident slide, but you have to answer one question."

The old Daoist opened his eyes. "Ask."

"Do you know where the Carefree Sect is?" Yang Xiao watched his eyes closely. The old Daoist was far too cunning for him to let his guard down.

"Of course I do," the old Daoist said. "Go through the forest west of the city, and you'll see a mountain. The Carefree Sect is on that mountain."

Yang Xiao fell silent. Something felt strange. The old Daoist was being far too cooperative, telling him outright.

He picked up the old Daoist and turned. "Little Blue, let's go to the Carefree Sect."

The old Daoist did not struggle, letting Yang Xiao carry him onto Little Blue's back.

Little Blue cried out and soared into the sky with both men.

From the air, Yang Xiao spotted the forest the old Daoist had mentioned, confirming that the first part of his directions was true.

Little Blue flew for an hour before they finally saw a great mountain and landed at its foot.

As soon as they landed, they saw a mountain gate. The plaque above it was broken, with only half remaining, bearing the character for "care."

A couplet hung on either side. Yang Xiao murmured it aloud. "On Worry-Free Mountain, seek freedom from worry; within the Carefree Sect, seek a carefree life."

Dust covered the mountain gate, as though no one had cleaned it in a very long time.

"Old Daoist, the Carefree Sect hasn't been wiped out, has it?" Yang Xiao asked, dropping him.

The old Daoist also stared at the mountain gate in surprise, muttering, "Why is it so dilapidated?"

"You don't know?" Yang Xiao asked.

The old Daoist glanced at him. "I only just found out where the Carefree Sect was myself. How would I know what it looked like? I keep feeling I've been tricked.

"I, Shen Buyu, have lived for over forty years, hunting geese all day long, yet never thought I'd fall into the hands of those women."

Yang Xiao shook his head. The old Daoist was full of strange ramblings, and he had no idea what the man was talking about.

Just as he was about to head up the mountain to look around, a phoenix's cry suddenly rang out overhead. A Five-Colored Peacock circled above them for a while, then landed.

Three people stepped down from the Five-Colored Peacock.

One was a sixteen-year-old girl dressed in white, with skin like jade and beauty that could topple cities and kingdoms. Shen Buyu stared at her, dazed, and even Yang Xiao had to admit she was truly beautiful. She was the most beautiful woman he had seen since coming to this world. However, her expression remained cold, as though everyone owed her money.

In the middle stood a little girl, carved from jade and dusted with powder, wearing a yellow dress. She was exceedingly pretty, and when she saw them, she laughed, revealing a pair of little pointed canine teeth.

The last was a young man of ordinary appearance, dressed in fine robes. When he looked at Yang Xiao and the others, his face was filled with disdain.

The young man stepped forward and asked haughtily, "Is this the Carefree Sect?"

Yang Xiao turned to look elsewhere. Had the young man shown a better attitude, he might have answered, but that manner had swept away all his good spirits at finally finding the Carefree Sect.

Little Blue busied themself preening on his shoulder, leaving the young man truly beneath even a bird's notice.

"I'm talking to you!" Spiritual light flashed in the young man's right hand, and a spear appeared. He looked ready to attack.

"Enough, Luo Kedi," the girl said. The young man glanced at her, put away his spear, and stood there glaring at them.

As they spoke, more people emerged from the forest, one after another. There were young masters and ladies arriving on exotic beasts, as well as ordinary people coming on foot.

In a short while, more than thirty people had gathered before the mountain gate.

The little girl with the pointed canine teeth pointed at the gate ahead. "Within the Carefree Sect, seek a carefree life. This is the Carefree Sect, but it's so deserted."