Qin Paopao (Recommendations Requested on Monday!)

Qin Paopao (Recommendations Requested on Monday!)

"Uh..."

Qin Tao's lips moved, but he could not speak for a long while.

The other man looked far too sincere. For a moment, he was not even sure whether Lei Jun was mocking him.

Qin Tao studied Lei Jun carefully.

Lei Jun's face was full of emotion, with a trace of fear and confusion in his eyes, as though he truly feared the torment before death more.

"Junior Brother Lei is still young. You mustn't be so disheartened," Qin Tao said with an awkward laugh.

Lei Jun nodded. "Senior Brother Qin is right."

With that, he gathered the bowls and chopsticks and left.

Waiting to die? Then go challenge the Heavenly Chasm Tribulation of the Third Heaven. You're the one waiting for death... Qin Tao's mouth twitched as he watched Lei Jun's back disappear.

Having dismissed Qin Tao, Lei Jun did not stir up any further trouble for the time being. His life remained centered on two matters: his own cultivation and waiting for the Water Marrow Yin Fish to be born.

However, as summer arrived, flood season gradually approached.

Apart from the Xin River to the south, the Cloud Firmament Mountain Range was also filled with rivers, streams, lakes, and marshes of every size.

Both the Purple Firmament Sect and Azure Firmament Temple began their annual flood-control efforts to prevent water disasters from affecting the surrounding areas.

Even people from the Celestial Master Mansion on Dragon Tiger Mountain came over.

"Senior Brother Luo?" Lei Jun was slightly surprised. "You came too?"

After Luo Haoran and several fellow disciples exchanged greetings with Lu Zhaoqing, Qin Tao, and the others from Azure Firmament Temple, they came over to greet Lei Jun as well.

"The waterworks here at Azure Firmament Lake had a talisman formation installed last year, and I helped with it. There is no need for such major work this year—just an inspection and some reinforcement," Luo Haoran replied with a smile.

The group had not seen one another for several months, so they sat together and chatted idly.

As they spoke, someone brought up something.

On their way here, they had encountered the Xin River flooding and rescued several people.

They were members of the Jingxiang Fang Clan.

In this world, most floods were far from ordinary.

When the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was disturbed and mingled with floodwaters, it formed terrifying currents of chaotic spiritual energy.

Even cultivators could be swept into them and leave behind neither corpse nor bones, just like Li Ming, who had died at the bottom of the Cloud Sea Immortal Pool.

Among the great noble clans and renowned families, the Jingxiang Fang Clan was one of those on relatively good terms with the Celestial Master Mansion. It was not strange for Celestial Master Mansion disciples to lend a hand when members of the Fang Family were in danger.

The problem was...

"Fang Mingyuan?" Upon hearing this, Lei Jun turned to Luo Haoran.

Luo Haoran never liked to trumpet his own deeds, so he had remained silent at the side until now. Only when Lei Jun asked did he nod.

"I did not know before going into the water either. But since I encountered him, I could hardly stand by and watch him die.

Back at the mountain gate, he injured Junior Brother Zhang Yuan, but I also severely wounded him. He received the punishment he deserved."

"And then?" Lei Jun asked.

"After the Fang Clan members thanked us, they headed downstream."

After some thought, Lei Jun still said, "Senior Brother Luo, Confucianism has a saying: a gentleman may be deceived by what is proper."

Luo Haoran nodded. "I understand what Junior Brother Lei means. One must not lack a heart wary of others. I will be careful."

The group chatted a little longer before retiring for the night.

Early the next morning, they scattered to inspect waterworks throughout the region, contain the flooding, and prevent water disasters from stirring up chaotic spiritual currents.

But as the saying went, what one feared was precisely what came to pass.

"Azure Firmament Lake's dike has burst! The talisman formation is damaged and urgently needs repair!"

It was the most important reservoir near Azure Firmament Temple. If the floodwaters ran rampant, the surrounding mountains and valleys, villages and towns would all suffer.

Azure Firmament Temple Master Lu Zhaoqing and Supervisor of Fasting Qin Tao had no choice but to set out together, hurrying to Azure Firmament Lake to support Luo Haoran, who had already gone ahead.

"The talisman formation at Azure Firmament Lake was only recently established. Logically, it should not have failed so soon." Lei Jun frowned slightly. "Shoddy work? Or..."

Around the start of summer, Lei Jun had looked into the matter.

So long as no major flooding occurred around Azure Firmament Lake, it would not affect the several Cold Springs deep in the mountains.

But if Azure Firmament Lake burst and flooded, releasing a massive volume of water, the Cold Springs might be submerged, affecting the birth of the Water Marrow Yin Fish.

For the public good, many nearby commoners were at risk.

For his own sake, the Cold Spring Yin Fish was in danger.

Unfortunately, his master Yuan Mobai was not here at the moment...

After considering it, Lei Jun set out with Lu Zhaoqing and Qin Tao for Azure Firmament Lake.

With manpower now scarce, Lu Zhaoqing and Qin Tao could not have been more pleased to have him join them.

When they reached the vicinity of Azure Firmament Lake, they found that the mountains had already turned into a river valley, with floodwaters spreading everywhere.

The floodwaters were mixed with chaotic spiritual currents, forcing even Lei Jun and the others to tread carefully, lest they be caught within.

Luo Haoran, who had arrived ahead of them, was struggling to hold the damaged talisman formation on the lake dike together.

Countless Spirit Talismans lit up, restraining the floodwaters and chaotic spiritual energy, but a tremendous breach remained.

Lei Jun and the other two had no time for words. Each took out several Water Aversion Talismans and activated them in succession, helping Luo Haoran plug the leak.

The four of them alone were not enough to fight the floodwaters.

Their only option was to repair and mobilize what remained of the talisman formation.

In the end, the talisman formation and the floodwaters barely reached a delicate, fragile balance. At last, the waters stopped surging further.

But what appeared before Lei Jun and the others was a Suspended Sky Lake so vast it was terrifying. The power of the talisman formation temporarily confined an immense mass of floodwater high in the air, like an ocean hanging upside down from the heavens.

Vast stretches of the surrounding mountain range were obscured by the Suspended Sky Lake, their peaks submerged.

Lei Jun and the others, together with the Azure Firmament Lake talisman formation, seemed to be in an underwater world, where a temporary hollow had appeared beneath the water.

Around that hollow, massive floodwaters still remained, only drawn by the radiance of the talisman formation, as though dragged and wrapped by an invisible force, temporarily unable to rush outward and spread in every direction.

Floodwaters still ravaged most of the mountains, leaving only two mountain passes barely open to the outside.

Only after working until this point did Lei Jun and the others finally breathe a temporary sigh of relief.

Lu Zhaoqing looked at Luo Haoran and Lei Jun. "You two martial nephews, it is fortunate you came. If even one of you had been absent, Azure Firmament Lake and Azure Firmament Temple would both have faced irredeemable ruin today!"

The balance before them was extremely fragile.

If their strength diminished by even a fraction, the remnants of the talisman formation would no longer hold.

Without the talisman formation, the floodwaters before them were beyond human power to resist—at least beyond the power of the few of them.

No matter what Qin Tao thought of Lei Jun, he repeatedly nodded at this moment. "Exactly!"

"Martial Uncle Lu, Senior Brother Qin, you overpraise me. I truly do not deserve it," Lei Jun said.

"For now, we are only barely maintaining things. We must immediately contact This Sect and the Purple Firmament Sect and bring more people here to support us," Luo Haoran said worriedly.

Lu Zhaoqing said, "No one here can leave, but fortunately the situation is temporarily stable. We will split into two groups: one will hold the position and await reinforcements, while the other goes to deliver the news and seek aid."

The skies above were blocked by the Suspended Sky Lake. If they tried to ride the clouds and force their way through, they might instead be swallowed by the chaotic spiritual currents.

He looked toward the distant mountains.

Fortunately, there were still barely passable routes through the mountains to the north and west.

At that moment, the Light Sphere in Lei Jun's mind suddenly flickered, and words appeared:

Natural disaster and human calamity; killing intent lurks along many paths. Fear not, panic not—though alarmed, you will emerge unscathed.

Then three fortune sticks flew out:

Middle Middle Auspicious Sign: Remain at Azure Firmament Lake and reinforce the talisman formation. Be cautious and meticulous, and misfortune will turn to fortune. You may obtain one Sixth Grade Opportunity and one Seventh Grade Opportunity, but hidden dangers may be buried in the aftermath; act prudently in the future. Ordinary.

Lower Middle Auspicious Sign: Leave Azure Firmament Lake by way of West Mountain and seek aid from the Purple Firmament Sect. But danger will arise on the road. Struggle for survival, with life and death uncertain. Inauspicious.

Lowest Auspicious Sign: Leave Azure Firmament Lake by way of North Mountain and seek aid from the Purple Firmament Sect. Encounter a danger you cannot presently resist. Certain Death. Greatly inauspicious!

It had to be said that none of the signs this time were good.

Fortunately, there was a Middle Middle Auspicious Sign that could help him avoid the other two enormous pits.

Only...

Staying behind to face the floodwaters looked dangerous, yet was relatively safe.

Leaving to fetch reinforcements looked like escaping danger, yet was instead dangerous—either inauspicious or greatly inauspicious?

Lei Jun's gaze flashed as he looked at the Sign Fortune.

"I'll stay." Luo Haoran did not hesitate. "I am the most suitable person here to reinforce the talisman formation."

Lu Zhaoqing looked at Lei Jun beside him and said after a moment's consideration, "Then Martial Nephew Lei..."

"I am unfamiliar with the roads and terrain. Going to deliver the message might instead delay matters. I would be better off staying to help," Lei Jun said.

Lu Zhaoqing was surprised. Qin Tao, meanwhile, was overjoyed inwardly, though he did not dare show it.

Lu Zhaoqing considered it. There was not much time for hesitation, so he made his decision at once.

"Then this old Daoist, Martial Nephew Luo, and Martial Nephew Lei will remain. Martial Nephew Qin, you will make contact. Be careful on the road."

Qin Tao took a deep breath. "Yes, Martial Uncle. Qin Tao will certainly not fail this mission!"

Lei Jun watched Qin Paopao head out of the mountains.