Yingping Peak

By the time Fang Zelin returned to the Yongding River with an armful of timber, the kappa had poked half his head out of the water too.

Had anyone else seen this sight, they would probably have had nightmares after going home.

"Sir, what is this?"

The kappa was taken aback at the sight of Fang Zelin carrying back a pile of timber.

"Yingping Peak is a fine place. I plan to settle here from now on, so I'll be bothering you more often."

Fang Zelin said this to the kappa with a broad smile.

With a few lotus leaves perched on his head and a slightly babyish, plump face, the kappa really did not look sinister at all.

The kappa was delighted to hear this. He was very happy that an expert like Fang Zelin would be settling here.

"Yingping Peak has no owner to begin with. Feel free to live here, sir."

The kappa spoke with easy assurance, then moved his hand slightly. River water swept up the timber beside Fang Zelin and carried it straight toward Yingping Peak.

At this, Fang Zelin immediately felt more warmly toward the kappa. It would have been difficult to move all that timber slowly by himself.

A short while later, Fang Zelin returned to the foot of Yingping Peak. He glanced at the spirit rice nearby and was relieved to see it still safe and sound in the field.

Then Fang Zelin picked up the prepared timber beside him and began fitting it together piece by piece.

The carpenter had already explained every detail to him earlier, so fitting the timber together with mortise-and-tenon joints did not take Fang Zelin too much effort.

After all, to avoid mistakes, Fang Zelin had marked the ends of each pair of pieces that needed to join together.

Matching marks indicated where the pieces needed to join.

By the time the little wooden house was finished, two days had passed.

Looking at the brand-new wooden house before him, Fang Zelin let out a breath of relief.

The house stood right beside the field. From now on, Fang Zelin could cultivate inside, and the seedlings outside would still be able to absorb Spiritual Qi.

When Fang Zelin came out, the kappa was squatting beside the field, poking the spirit rice in front of him with a little stick.

He thought to himself, He truly is worthy of being an immortal's descendant. Though what he planted looks no different from ordinary seedlings, it gives off a trace of the extraordinary.

Fang Zelin emerged just then and thought nothing of seeing the kappa squatting beside the field.

The spirit rice was somewhat extraordinary, so it was only natural for the kappa to take a closer look.

Fang Zelin walked down the steps, now thoroughly relieved.

The house was taken care of. All he needed to do next was cultivate patiently and nurture the spirit rice until it ripened.

He wondered what the spirit rice would be like once it matured.

At this thought, Fang Zelin could not help feeling a trace of anticipation.

"What refined tastes you have, sir, reclaiming land and farming here. If ordinary people saw you, they would take you for nothing more than a local recluse."

The kappa stood up, glanced at the house nearby, and clapped his hands with a smile.

One house, one field, one man-it truly did look like the life of a recluse.

Fang Zelin waved a hand. "Might I trouble you to keep others from approaching Yingping Peak from now on?"

He had to log off for a while every day. Fang Zelin worried that, after he left, someone might accidentally wander in and pick the spirit rice. That would be troublesome.

Although he had obtained a cultivation method, not having any formations or the like really was rather inconvenient.

At this thought, Fang Zelin could not help sighing.

If he had a formation or something similar, it would be perfect.

He could leave the spirit rice here without worrying that someone might come and steal it.

The kappa understood when he heard this. Knowing that Fang Zelin did not want to be disturbed, he immediately nodded.

This was hardly difficult; it would take no more than lifting a hand.

Besides, a chance to grow closer to Fang Zelin was a good thing!

Fang Zelin sat down beside the field and carefully inspected the cultivated plot.

The seedlings were now so vividly green they seemed ready to drip with color, and a little dew still clung to their leaves.

Fang Zelin examined the seedlings carefully. Once he confirmed that nothing was wrong with them, he relaxed.

He turned toward the kappa beside him and was just about to speak when he suddenly heard a splash in the distance.

Fang Zelin looked toward the sound and saw that someone had fallen into the water some distance away.

The next moment, something seemed to be supporting the person who had fallen in, carrying them to the bank.

At the sight, the kappa's expression became something of a half-smile.

Fang Zelin noticed something odd about his smile. Besides, hadn't Zhang Weichu already become an underworld official?

Why did it look as though there was still a water ghost here?

"Are there still water ghosts in the Yongding River?" Fang Zelin took a closer look and asked.

"Of course there are. Your words of guidance allowed Zhang Weichu to enter the Underworld Bureau. When other water ghosts saw this, they began imitating him."

"What you just saw was one of them at work."

The kappa, He Chenyi, knew all about that water ghost in the Yongding River.

Fang Zelin was startled to hear this. After Zhang Weichu had explained his situation in detail back then, Fang Zelin had gained a general understanding of it.

But seeing other water ghosts imitating him now, and believing in it so firmly, he immediately shook his head.

The kappa was momentarily puzzled by Fang Zelin's headshake. "Sir, is something amiss?"

Fang Zelin did not say much in response. This matter was somewhat beyond his current understanding.

He had only shaken his head because he felt that this approach was clearly not quite right.

"I merely feel that this approach is somewhat ill-advised."

Fang Zelin offered this casual reply and said no more.

Although he did not fully understand what had happened before, Fang Zelin had learned a little about the Underworld Bureau from Zhang Weichu.

How could entering the Underworld Bureau be so easy?

Fang Zelin felt that there might have been other factors behind Zhang Weichu's admission. A single remark from him could not have gotten Zhang Weichu in.

Fang Zelin did not know what those other factors were, and neither did anyone else, so they all credited him alone.

With this in mind, Fang Zelin felt that the other water ghost probably could not enter the Underworld Bureau simply by copying what Zhang Weichu had done.

If getting in really were that easy, the Underworld Bureau would already have underworld officials everywhere.

The kappa, however, felt that Fang Zelin's words held a deeper meaning.

Perhaps the matter was not so simple.

At this thought, the kappa could not help turning to look at the water ghost in the river.

Zhang Weichu had taken about a month before.

If they waited another ten days or so here, they would probably be able to get a general idea of the outcome.

With that thought, neither of them paid any further attention to the water ghost in the river.

Fang Zelin fetched a few wooden planks, planning to build a little platform by the river where he could fish and such.

There was only that little bit of spirit rice, and he still did not know when it would ripen.

Even once it ripened, he reckoned it would only make a bowl or two of cooked rice.

It could not possibly keep him full. He still had to think of other ways to make sure he did not go hungry while cultivating every day.