Choosing a Burial Site

It was Wang Quan's first time riding a Cloud of Auspiciousness.

The cloud felt soft beneath his feet, wonderfully comfortable.

Moreover, it could form tables, chairs, benches, couches, swimming pools, and other things at its owner's command.

The Officiant Daoist Nun sat upright on a couch. The Dream Nun was less particular and simply sat on the cloud.

Wang Quan stood, looking down at the contours of the mountains below, comparing them one by one against feng shui and earth-vein spells.

After watching for a while, he tapped his case, and a large bird flew out.

He jumped onto the bird, which carried him down.

He traveled along the ground, examining the mountain paths and waterways.

After traveling for a while, a thought stirred in him, and he tapped the case.

This time, two paper figures flew out, transformed into bald, muscular men, and lifted a sedan chair.

Wang Quan sat in it, finding it quite comfortable.

But after traveling a short distance, he remembered a movie he had seen in his previous life.

He tapped the case again and released four old scallions-no, four palace maidens as lovely as flowers and jade.

The palace maidens were delicate and charming, their every frown and smile indistinguishable from those of real people.

They carried flower baskets over their arms and scattered petals.

"Now that's more like it!"

I'm already cultivating immortality. How could I still walk everywhere myself?

Even without a Cloud of Auspiciousness, I should find someone to carry me.

Well... they were paper figures, but thanks to his exquisite magic and his analysis of corpses, his paper figures were lifelike. They even bled paper scraps when injured.

Seeing this from the cloud, the Officiant Daoist Nun jumped down too. "Make me one."

"I want people to carry me. I want to lord it over others and bully them."

The Dream Nun came down to join the fun as well. "Me too!"

Soon:

Both nuns were sitting in sedan chairs carried by paper figures.

A little later, Wang Quan arranged flower scatterers for them too.

After another little while, two figures carrying banners on their backs and beating gongs appeared at the front.

There were also figures holding signs reading "Silence" and "Make Way."

At the rear, he stationed several fierce-looking men armed with sabers and shields.

"Add a few musicians, too."

"I'm out of magical power!"

"You only have thirty strands of magical power?"

"Mm..."

"Looks like you haven't been refining magical power for long. You're still quite young!"

"Young people should walk more. Turn all those paper figures into musicians. It'll look livelier."

"Officiant Daoist Nun, I need to quietly observe the feng shui and earth veins. Please stop disturbing me."

The paper figures were all grandmaster-level martial artists. Supported by magical power, they employed various lightness techniques. Though they couldn't travel a hundred li a day, three thousand li a day was perfectly possible.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The procession darted through the mountain forests, crossing more than a dozen peaks.

Finally, using feng shui, earth veins, and even some Ritual Magic, Wang Quan selected a mountain, then a precise location. "Right here."

"Hm?"

The Officiant Daoist Nun and the Dream Nun examined it and found that the mountain Wang Quan had chosen was crowded with strange rocks and sparse vegetation, with sinister winds faintly sweeping across it.

The spot Wang Quan had selected lay squarely on the mountain's shaded side.

The sinister wind here was cold and gloomy. It circled within a hollow several hundred meters across, forming a small tornado.

The Officiant Daoist Nun looked bewildered. "I've studied feng shui and earth-vein spells too."

"This spot you've chosen seems like it could nurture evil ghosts, zombies, and things of that sort."

Wang Quan smiled. He pointed out the surrounding peaks, then the mountain's waterways, the lay of its woods, and the contours of its ridges, and began explaining.

Wang Quan: "Blah, blah, blah!"

The two nuns: "Oh!"

Wang Quan: "Yadda, yadda, yadda!"

Understanding dawned on the two nuns:

"So that's how it works!"

"I'm not your equal!"

The Officiant Daoist Nun was impressed. "You really do have a good brain!"

"Once we get back, rent me your brain. I'll study a few spells and return it to you. How about it?"

Wang Quan... "How about no!"

The Officiant Daoist Nun: "Ah!"

After settling on the location, the three headed back in their sedan chairs.

On the way, the Officiant Daoist Nun contacted him through her token. "What if the clients don't approve of the spot you chose?"

Wang Quan smiled. "We're professionals."

"They'll approve."

The Officiant Daoist Nun replied again, "What if they don't?"

Wang Quan sighed. "I chose a backup too. The mountain opposite will also work."

The Officiant Daoist Nun considered the contours of the opposite mountain, then nodded. "Good."

"After all, we can't smash our own signboard."

"If all else fails, we'll toss the blame onto someone else and say a temporary worker did it."

"Mm!"

The outward journey had taken three or four double-hours, but the return took barely the time it took two incense sticks to burn.

"After gathering purple qi tomorrow morning, meet outside the third Blissful Union House in the inner ward. Flower-Scatter Daoist, if they accept your first burial site, I'll give you fifty thousand coins. If they accept the second, you'll get twenty thousand."

Wang Quan paused. "Mm!"

"Um... were the clients sucked dry at the Blissful Union House?"

The Officiant Daoist Nun shook her head. "No. While those clients were enjoying themselves last night, a cultivator killed them with a curse."

"They were burned down to nothing but a pile of white bones. It was awful."

Wang Quan fell silent.

The three parted ways.

The Officiant Daoist Nun and the Dream Nun began looking for temporary workers.

Wang Quan returned to the mountain to study the Daoist Scriptures.

This time, however, his mind was unsettled, and for a long while he couldn't focus on the scriptures.

I worked for over four double-hours, yet I can only earn twenty to fifty thousand Green Beetles.

That pays better than internal assignments in the Lower Court, but it's still far too little.

A single portion of spiritual medicine that can be converted into Heavenly Opportunity costs ten million. Even the cheapest Sun-Moon Essence starts at ten million a portion.

As for magical treasures... heh... those aren't even worth considering.

Earning money at this rate, when will I ever save enough for ten strands of Heavenly Opportunity?

Vaguely, Wang Quan felt that this would hinder his future development.

I wasted too much time for this little money.

If I spent four double-hours cultivating the [Great Sun Across the Sky Art], I could refine nearly one strand of magical power.

But I'm still too weak to sell magical power freely.

Otherwise, selling magical power would be the royal road to making money.

Or perhaps I could focus on gathering sunlight and condense the essence myself?

Other cultivators needed two or three years, or even several years, to condense a single strand of the most ordinary sun- or moon-type essence.

With my Qi Gathering +1 trait, could I condense one in three to five days?

Once tomorrow's funeral business is finished, I'll try condensing essence first.

If it takes too long... then I'll earn money while accumulating magical power.

The [Bright Moon Shines on Me Method] also contains many tools that can help with refining magical power.

Once I've saved enough, getting some supporting tools to speed up refinement will be the royal road forward.

If he had one thousand and one strands of magical power, he could naturally sell magical power for money without restraint.

So what if anyone grew suspicious?

With the knot in his heart untangled, Wang Quan felt invigorated and prepared to study the Daoist Scriptures.

Just then, a delicate fragrance drifted over from beside him.

He turned and saw Ying Jiaren.

The young girl blinked her large eyes. "Senior brother... your mind was troubled just now."

Wang Quan nodded. "Mm. I'm fine now."

Ying Jiaren nodded. "Senior brother, when your mind is troubled, go for a walk. You'll recover faster that way."

"All right!"

The young girl smiled, then read the scriptures with the boy accompanying her.

Wang Quan took a deep breath and began reading too.

One double-hour...

Two double-hours...

Night fell, and the moon climbed above the willow tips.

Wang Quan rose to refine magical power.

As he left, he noticed that the young girl and her companion were still earnestly studying the Daoist Scriptures.

I wonder whether she'll persevere through the Ten Thousand Scrolls Dao Canon.

If she condenses a [First-Rank Dao Seal]... I could discuss it with her and have us use a little trick from the Daoist Scriptures together to increase our wisdom, allowing us to comprehend more scriptures.