Chapter 101: The Protagonist, Arriving From Afar
The blazing sun hung high, and the chirping of cicadas permeated the mountain forest.
In the blink of an eye, spring departed and summer arrived.
The Chi Long Mansion was located in a hot region, and now extreme flame spiritual energy filled the mountains. It wasn’t just mortals; many local cultivators almost fainted from heatstroke due to this extreme flame spiritual energy.
“Ah~~ it’s so hot~~~”
Inside a double-horse carriage slowly moving along the mountain path in Du Chun City, a pleasant scream was heard.
A female cultivator with snow-white hair was now holding a fan, lifting her skirt and fanning herself. This action was just like those elderly men on the streets, completely mismatched with her beautiful face.
The female cultivator with light purple hair sitting beside her glanced over, took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from her forehead, and said with disgust:
“If you feel hot, you can return to the Xuan Xing Sect immediately. I didn’t ask you to follow. You insisted on following, hmph!”
“Alas~” Feng Yu Die quickly put down her skirt and became obedient. “It’s just that… Junior Sister Pei isn’t here, and it’s boring to stay in the sect. Besides, I can also protect Senior Sister Xiao.”
“Who needs your protection?!”
“But what if we encounter villains…”
Xiao Yunluo rolled her eyes at her: “This isn’t going out to hunt demonic beasts or capture criminals. Immortal Master Li is guarding the area around the Chi Long Mansion. Let alone villains, not even a single demonic beast can be seen. I’m just here to attend a birthday banquet, and you insisted on following.”
“Alright… Since we’re already here, Senior Sister Xiao, just think of me as your little follower~ I can fetch tea and pour water.”
Xiao Yunluo sighed and reached out to lift the curtain of the carriage window, looking at the Chi Long Immortal Mansion towering among the clouds on Chi Long Mountain in the distance.
About half a month ago, Mr. Qi found her and said that the mountain master of Chi Long Mountain, Li Feng, was celebrating his 1200th birthday.
Because Li Feng was a close friend of her mother, and now held Chi Long Mountain, which was a relatively large immortal family power in the Western Regions, she was sent to represent her mother in congratulating him.
Of course, this was only one reason.
The Chi Long Convention was, after all, one of the grand events in the Western Regions, and it coincided with Li Feng’s 1200th birthday.
Nearly all the young masters or elders from every immortal sect in the Western Regions would be present.
Xiao Yunluo was here to congratulate him on behalf of the Xuan Xing Sect, and at the same time, she could familiarize herself with the elders or young masters of various sects, establishing a certain reputation.
Looking at the Chi Long Mansion in the distance, Xiao Yunluo glanced at Feng Yu Die beside her and suddenly let out a long sigh.
How she wished the person beside her was Ye Anping…
If it were her and Ye Anping coming together, they could go shopping in Du Chun City at the foot of the mountain. And at the banquet of the Chi Long Convention, she could rely on her identity as the Young Miss of Xuan Xing Sect to support him, the Young Master of the small Hundred Lotus Sect.
Afterward, Ye Anping would definitely find her reliable and fall in love with her…
Imagining this, Xiao Yunluo’s cheeks suddenly flushed, and she pouted her lips, lightly rubbing her two embroidered shoes together.
“Ah~~ it’s so hot… If only Junior Sister Pei were here…”
Hearing Pei Lianxue’s name, Xiao Yunluo felt as if a basin of cold water had been poured over her head, and she instantly sobered up.
That’s right…
Lian Xue also liked Ye Anping, and she had grown up with Ye Anping since childhood.
But then again, if Ye Anping wanted to become cultivation partners with Lian Xue, they would have already become cultivation partners.
Since the two of them were still maintaining a senior-senior and junior-junior sister relationship, it was very likely because they had grown up together that Ye Anping had completely failed to notice Lian Xue’s feelings.
At least in terms of emotions, Lian Xue was easily deceived and very naive.
If she thought about it this way, she didn’t seem to be only able to watch Ye Anping fall into someone else’s arms.
“Hmm, there’s still a chance…”
“Hmm? What chance?” Feng Yu Die tilted her head and asked.
Xiao Yunluo glanced at her: “Go fan yourself with your fan.”
“Oh…”
…
A moment later, the carriage drove into the city gate of Du Chun City.
The scorching heat in Du Chun City did not diminish. Many mortals on both sides of the street were mostly bare-chested. Even many cultivators seemed unable to withstand the extreme flame spiritual energy here, and they collapsed in shaded areas, pulling at their collars.
Xiao Yunluo, fanning herself with a paper fan, walked slowly down the street. Feng Yu Die kept crowding under her umbrella, making her look disgusted yet helpless.
The helplessness was because Feng Yu Die’s silver hair was too eye-catching, and she couldn’t easily kick her away.
“Aren’t you hot?! If you want an umbrella, go buy one yourself.”
“This umbrella is so expensive, I won’t be a fool.” Feng Yu Die pointed to a stall selling umbrellas on the street.
Following the direction she pointed, Xiao Yunluo saw a sign standing in front of the stall—Sun-Shading Cooling Umbrella, thirty spirit stones each.
Xiao Yunluo’s brow furrowed slightly, and she looked at the sign in front of the nearby herbal tea stall—Heat-Relieving Herbal Tea, ten spirit stones a bowl.
These prices were already sky-high.
Feng Yu Die also complained at this moment: “Seriously… the merchants in this city are simply profiteers. They’re increasing the prices of heat-avoiding items tenfold. Never mind cultivators, the mortals here must be suffering…”
Xiao Yunluo frowned slightly, agreeing inwardly. However, just as she was about to continue walking, Feng Yu Die ran directly to the stall selling umbrellas.
“Hey! Boss, is this umbrella made of spirit stones? So expensive?”
The boss hid under the shade of a tree, glanced at her, and waved his hand:
“Cultivator? Buy it if you want! Get lost if you don’t?”
“Hiss—” Feng Yu Die twisted her eyebrows, put her hands on her hips, and said, “I’m your senior, aren’t you going to speak politely?”
The boss saw her bringing up her cultivation, so he became a little more polite:
“Alright, buy it if you want, and get lost if you don’t. Our boss said that cultivators buy at the price on the sign, paying spirit stones, while mortals buy at the original price, one spirit stone for a piece, and the same for the tea stall next door.”
“Ah?”
Hearing this, Feng Yu Die was slightly stunned. It was the first time she had heard of such a thing and asked:
“You only make money from cultivators and not from mortals?”
“Yes, the tea stalls and umbrella shops in this city are all opened by the Dragon Slaying Society. After the Young Master returned, he told us that making money from mortals is unethical, while making money from cultivators is virtuous and beneficial to one’s Dao heart.”
Feng Yu Die originally wanted to argue with this profiteer on moral grounds, but now the moral high ground had been occupied by him.
The boss seemed to get animated and continued:
“Since our Dragon Slaying Society’s Young Master returned, all other merchant associations in Du Chun City, like the Qing Feng Society, have been completely defeated by our Young Master. Not only does our Young Master have extensive connections, but he also has a senior from the Late Foundation Establishment stage…”
“Excuse me!!”
Feng Yu Die shrunk her head and shamefully returned to Xiao Yunluo’s side.
“What’s wrong?”
“Their Dragon Slaying Society, cultivators buy at fifty times the price, and mortals buy at the original price.”
Xiao Yunluo’s brow furrowed slightly, she murmured:
“That Dragon Slaying Society does have a unique personality… But then again, here at Chi Long Mansion, mortals and cultivators live together. Mortals usually have a hard time, and ordinary cultivators don’t usually look down on mortals.”
Xiao Yunluo shrugged slightly and then continued to lead Feng Yu Die forward. After walking through another street, they saw a youth squatting at the front of an alley, gnawing on a steamed bun.
If he were just a beggar, they wouldn’t have needed to stop. The key was that the youth was a cultivator at the third or fourth layer of Qi Refining. Although his clothes were dirty, it was clear that the fabric used was quite good.
A young cultivator at the third layer of Qi Refining was living such a miserable life…
Xiao Yunluo had no intention of going up to talk, but Feng Yu Die was particularly curious and quickly walked up to ask:
“Hey, what’s wrong? You’re dressed so well, and you’re a cultivator, why are you squatting here like a beggar?”
The youth, spoken to by Feng Yu Die, sniffled and looked up, stunned for a moment by the beauty of Feng Yu Die and Xiao Yunluo. But he quickly came back to his senses:
“Two seniors, I… I’ve been impersonated!”
“Impersonated?”
“Yes! I am the Young Master of the Jiang Mansion. My real name is Jiang Yu. I came back after my father passed away, but I was hijacked by two people midway. My identity token and letter were all snatched away.”
Xiao Yunluo nodded and asked doubtfully, “Then why don’t you go back and discuss it? Doesn’t anyone in your family recognize you?”
“I left home to cultivate seven years ago, and…” He picked up the steamed bun in his hand and said tearfully, “I went to the Jiang Mansion before, and then…”
“Then?”
“As soon as I started to explain, the two servants at the door heard the first sentence and immediately threw the steamed bun at me, chasing me away. They said I was the 737th person trying to impersonate Young Master Jiang.”
Feng Yu Die was stunned for a moment, turned to look at Xiao Yunluo beside her, and seeing her equally bewildered, she asked again:
“Then… can you prove your identity? For example, tell them your father’s birthday, or say something only you know.”
“I did!! I reported my father’s eight characters (birth time), but those two servants said that the people who came to impersonate before also reported my father’s eight characters, and even a few people mentioned that my father has a mole on his butt… I…”
Feng Yu Die was speechless. After a moment of silence, she twisted her eyebrows and asked:
“…There are seven hundred and thirty-seven people who know your father has a mole on his butt?”
“I don’t even know if my father has a mole on his butt… Who would know such a thing except my mother and my father himself?!”
“…Then why do so many people want to impersonate you?”
“Many of them are mortals. Because impersonating me allows them to get steamed buns and herbal tea for free. So many people are now impersonating me in front of the Jiang Mansion. You can go and see in front of the Jiang Mansion, they are still queuing up…”
“Hmm…” Feng Yu Die looked at him, resting her chin on her hand and thinking for a moment, then confirming again, “Are you really the Young Master of the Jiang Mansion?”
“Really! I swear! May lightning strike me, and may I die a terrible death!”
“Then… how about this, my companion and I are both disciples of the Xuan Xing Sect.” Feng Yu Die grinned and said, “We’ll help you prove your identity, but after it’s done…”
She raised her eyebrows and made an inverted “OK” gesture.
Jiang Yu hesitated for a moment, then immediately understood it meant “money,” and quickly agreed:
“Okay!! As long as two seniors help me prove my identity, I can give you as much as you want…”
However, before Jiang Yu could finish speaking, Xiao Yunluo beside him quickly grabbed Feng Yu Die by the scruff of her collar and dragged her away.
“Hey?!”
“Don’t meddle in other people’s business.”
“Ah? Senior Sister Xiao, there’s profit to be made! There’s profit to be made~ We just need to show our identity tokens, and that small Jiang Mansion wouldn’t dare not recognize the identity token of a Xuan Xing Sect disciple, right?”
Xiao Yunluo rolled her eyes at her and said:
“A Xuan Xing Sect disciple’s identity token is not omnipotent. And this is someone else’s family matter. It’s still uncertain whether he is the Young Master of the Jiang Mansion. What if it turns out to be a misunderstanding and how will it end?”
“If he’s fake, we’ll just turn around and leave. If he’s real, that’s spirit stones for free~~”
“Then if you want to help him, you can come back and find him yourself later. Don’t drag me into it.”
Feng Yu Die thought for a moment and quickly shouted at Jiang Yu, who was still sitting there blankly:
“Young Master, wait for me. I’ll come find you when I have time, and we’ll discuss it further then…”
Watching Feng Yu Die being dragged away, Jiang Yu’s eyes rekindled with hope. He had originally planned to go back to find his master, but he hadn’t learned to fly a sword yet. That would take at least five months for a round trip, by which time it would be too late.
But now, there was a very idle cultivator willing to speak up for him, and that cultivator was a disciple of the Xuan Xing Sect.
He refused to believe it! That scoundrel impersonating him might not dare to offend the Xuan Xing Sect!
“Heh!”
Jiang Yu smirked, then shoved the steamed bun in his hand into his mouth and began to eat.
“Hmm? It’s quite tasty…”
…
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PS: There will be another chapter later, later on…
