He Bingkun reached into his robes and tossed out something that gleamed silver.
Yunqi raised a hand to catch it. It felt icy to the touch, and when he opened his palm, he saw a perfectly round silver coin.
Fine snowflake patterns covered the coin. Looking closely, Yunqi found that every snowflake formed a precise six-sided crystal. Even straining his eyes to their utmost, he could find no trace of carving.
"What's this?"
"A Snowflake Coin. Money for use on the mountain. It's my fault-I've been so busy lately that I forgot to look after you. Xuhuai would certainly blame me if he knew. What kind of life is this, filling your belly with plain flatbread every day? And you've been buying it on credit, haven't you? Go settle your account."
Yunqi smiled. "The mountain is different from the mortal world. The plain flatbread here is sweet and fragrant, and doesn't cause internal heat. It's delicious."
He Bingkun shook his head repeatedly and said:
"Say no more. Take the money and buy yourself some good food. You haven't begun feeding on qi yet, so you mustn't neglect nourishing yourself with medicinal foods. This money isn't a gift, either. You'll have to pay me back someday."
Yunqi could only agree and stop refusing. They would be seeing each other day in, day out from now on, after all. Sooner or later, he would repay the favor.
"You've been so absorbed in your reading lately that I didn't want to disturb you. Tonight's a good chance for us brothers to have another chat."
The two sat down on bamboo chairs in the courtyard. Moonlight spilled across it, clear and luminous as pooled water, with algae and water plants crisscrossing within-though these were only the shadows of pines and bamboo. Yunqi's feet rested on the ground, looking as though they were soaking in water. As he swung them, he scattered the algae and water plants, finding it rather amusing.
"Don't think that coming to an immortal mountain means you'll never smell the stink of copper again. As I said before, without money, you can't move an inch. It's even worse here than in the mundane world, so listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you.
"Registered disciples like us mostly earn money through the General Affairs Office. First, the office continually posts all kinds of jobs, and you can collect payment once you complete them. Second, if you have any gemstones, spirit herbs, magical artifacts, or Daoist arts, you can exchange them there as well. But someone who's only just arrived, like you, has nothing to spare. You can only look for simple jobs to do."
"I see."
Yunqi knew that He Bingkun was teaching him again, saving him the time he would otherwise spend reading and asking around.
"But there's another source of money, unrelated to the General Affairs Office: money from the All-Teachings Institute. It isn't easy to get, but for someone with genuine talent, it's something they can earn along the way as they cultivate.
"Here on Little Ten Thousand Mountain, whether it's Qi Feeding, Heavenly Circuit, Opening the Dwelling, Palace-Opening, Five Qi Returning to the Origin, or even the major realms beyond, you receive a reward as long as you break through quickly enough. If you make the rankings, the prize is even more substantial—solid gold."
"Also, if you come up with a new idea during cultivation, or solve a problem that stumped our predecessors, you'll receive a monetary reward."
Yunqi nodded. That was certainly a direction in which he could put more effort.
"Methods, wealth, companions, and land-wealth comes second. Let your elder brother explain the money we use on the mountain."
"The cheapest and most widely used money on the mountain is copper. This is Shoushan copper, also called red copper, Yu Zhang copper, Celestial Master copper, thunder essence copper, cauldron copper, or furnace copper. They're all the same thing. Those names alone give you a rough idea of what this copper is like.
"This copper is red. It was first discovered when Xuanyuan Yellow Emperor mined copper on Shouyang Mountain to cast cauldrons, so its earliest name was Shoushan copper, which survives to this day. But of all the red copper deposits discovered in the world today, Yu Zhang has the most, so it's also called Yu Zhang copper. This copper withstands intense firing and has an affinity for lightning. Cultivators of the Dao of Alchemy and lightning arts favor it, hence the names thunder essence, cauldron copper, and furnace copper."
"Our neighbors on Dragon-Tiger Mountain are renowned throughout the world for their Dao of Alchemy and lightning arts, so they're especially fond of this copper. The Celestial Master Residence alone directly controls no fewer than six red copper mines.
"Besides refining artifacts with copper, they also have nine coin-casting furnaces handed down through the generations. A copper coin produced by the Celestial Master Residence weighs just seven zhu, yet is worth one tael-that is, twenty-four zhu of copper.
"Dragon-Tiger Mountain also refines a kind of Copper Coin Sword, supposedly modeled on the Celestial Master Sword, that can summon lightning and bring forth fire. Though I suspect they're just borrowing the name. One Copper Coin Sword can be exchanged for ten taels of copper, and even then, you can't find one to buy. Every year, people scramble for them when they're released."
"The silver used on the mountain is called snowflake silver. It's what you're holding in your hand. This silver naturally bears snowflake patterns, making it very easy to identify. It's also called moon soul. Snowflake silver deposits are mostly found north of mountains and south of rivers in the Heluo region. One zhu of snowflake silver is worth one and a half taels of Shoushan copper.
"The silver coins made on Laojun Mountain in Heluo circulate most widely. They're also called Evil-Repelling Coins. I've heard they have a Money Tree on their mountain that naturally produces silver coins. Again, each silver coin weighs seven zhu and is worth one tael. But that story about a naturally growing Money Tree is probably false, just as the Celestial Master Residence claims its coin-casting furnaces were gifts from an Eastern Han emperor. Just take such stories for what they are."
"Laojun Mountain copies the gourd by tracing its outline: they forge snowflake silver into bracelets, claiming they're modeled on their mountain's guardian treasure, the Three Powers Tranquil Ring. They can calm the mind and ward off evil. A bracelet weighing one tael is worth five taels of snowflake silver, and these treasures are also widely circulated on the mountain."
"Lastly, there's gold. On the mountain, we call it Fangzhu gold, while in the northwest, it's also called Buddha-head gold. One tael of gold is worth a hundred taels of silver. The two most common gold coins circulating on the mountain are the Qionglai Coin from Emei Mountain and the Five Directions Coin from Wutai Mountain. Both weigh seven zhu and are worth one tael."
After listening, Yunqi nodded. Life on the mountain and life below it weren't so different after all.
When He Bingkun finished, he glanced at Yunqi. "You rascal, you've been on the mountain for several days now. Haven't you even asked about Bright Governance Mountain?"
That was unfair to Yunqi. His plan had been to read a general history first, then the Immortal Gazetteer of Yu Zhang and the sect history of Three Pure Ones Mountain, before learning about Bright Governance Mountain in detail.
Still, He Bingkun clearly meant to explain something of his own accord, so Yunqi hurriedly said, "Please enlighten me, Daoist brother."
He Bingkun smiled. "Since joining the sect, you've heard people call you 'young Daoist master' quite a few times, haven't you?"
Yunqi nodded with a wry smile.
"Here on Three Pure Ones Mountain, we generally take a new generation of disciples every two sixty-year cycles. Only second-realm cultivators are qualified to take disciples. But second-realm cultivators are the most pressed for time, so it's usually Daoist masters preparing to break through to the third realm who take disciples to pass on the incense flame of their lineage.
"But Bright Governance Mountain has an ancestral rule: each generation may take only two disciples. Only when both have reached the fourth realm, or one has died, may the next generation of disciples be accepted.
"Bright Governance Mountain has produced talented people generation after generation, and its cultivation methods are especially good at nourishing life. They dislike conflict, and most can reach the third realm, but find it difficult to reach the fourth. As a result, new disciples are often accepted only after one of the pair exhausts their lifespan. That's why Bright Governance Mountain usually takes a new generation every three hundred years, giving its disciples a higher seniority than those of other Daoist lineages."
"Then what about Teacher Sukong?"
To Yunqi, Sukong looked young, nothing like someone nearing the end of her lifespan.
He Bingkun lowered his voice. "Teacher has been cultivating for less than two sixty-year cycles. Something must have happened to that martial uncle traveling outside."
Yunqi froze slightly. "Hasn't any news reached the sect?"
He Bingkun shook his head. "Perhaps it has, perhaps it hasn't. I don't know."
He added, "You're the first disciple of this generation, so you'll have a junior brother or junior sister. Either Master Su Kong will take that disciple herself after breaking through to the fourth realm, or you'll accept one on her behalf.
"Also, according to Bright Governance Mountain's custom, if you can't open your Heart Mansion within ten years, you'll remain a registered disciple for life. Master Su Kong will take another disciple after those ten years.
"So now you understand. You're not like the others. You must work harder."
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