Chapter 37: Dawn’s Procession and Immortal Musings

The sky was still dim, yet the first light of dawn was beginning to break.

The city gates, having just opened, allowed a procession to slowly emerge.

Horses pulled a covered deity statue, followed by a carriage that, surprisingly, remained empty.

As many of those participating in today’s procession were soldiers on foot, Qíngyǔ did not have Little Girl ride in the carriage.

Instead, she held a paper umbrella, walking behind the retinue.

Leading the vanguard, naturally, were Song Ming, Yang Qi, and Jí Yào.

Early risers in the county town, upon seeing this arrangement, offered many a sneer.

Little Girl playfully spun her umbrella.

The raindrops cascaded from its surface in a shimmering curtain, only to be swept away by a gentle breeze just before they could touch Qíngyǔ.

“Mama! It’s raining!”

“Yes, it is.”

Seeing the falling rain, Qíngyǔ found her mood lifting.

The two paper umbrellas were exquisitely crafted, with lotus patterns surprisingly painted on their undersides.

She silently thanked the owner of the Pale Moon Pavilion, who had gifted them the umbrellas.

The official road was quite well-maintained.

It hadn’t become muddy or rutted from the light rain, allowing the procession to proceed steadily.

Lost in thought, Qíngyǔ glanced back at Gubei City, which was about to disappear behind the slope.

At this hour, no cooking smoke rose, and few residents in the city had awakened.

The malevolent shadow, formed from the crimson evil energy, lay deeply dormant.

It watched their direction with a mixture of dread and resentment.

‘This entity certainly has patience.’

“Mama, what are you looking at?”

“The city.”

Little Girl looked along with Qíngyǔ, her expression puzzled, but she couldn’t discern anything out of the ordinary.

“Is there anything strange?”

“Not at the moment.”

As Qíngyǔ continued to gaze, she distantly saw a white figure, intentionally concealing its presence, flash by.

When it noticed her gaze, it even paused for a fleeting moment.

‘How diligent they are at snatching credit.’

Qíngyǔ shook her head.

Having seen this white figure, she lost the desire to look back again.

She held her umbrella steadily, following the procession as they walked over the earthen slope.

“Hey, was that the old geezer immortal from the other day?”

‘What kind of immortal is an “old geezer” immortal?’

Since Zì Bùxiàn couldn’t hear it now anyway, Qíngyǔ tacitly accepted Little Girl’s peculiar address.

However, the fact that Little Girl could sense him did come as a surprise to Qíngyǔ.

“Yes. Can you see him?”

“Hmm, it’s just, I can feel him!”

As she spoke, Little Girl took out the jade token from her lapel.

It subtly shimmered with light, pointing distantly in the direction of the old Daoist.

“So that’s it.”

“Is he coming to help?”

Little Girl tilted her head, then pointed again in that direction.

“He might help.”

Qíngyǔ was currently unsure about the exact restrictions the “Heavens” (TL Note: “天上” refers to the celestial realm or higher authorities) placed on these sects.

She could only offer an ambiguous reply.

“How bothersome.”

“What’s wrong?”

“He’s so powerful, yet he has to be so secretive about helping.”

“He has his own difficulties.”

“What about Mama?”

Qíngyǔ looked at Little Girl, who was inexplicably indignant and gazing at her with serious eyes.

She found it rather amusing.

“Me? I naturally have no difficulties.”

In truth, Qíngyǔ did have her own difficulties.

However, they were all related to the little one before her, so naturally, she couldn’t tell her.

“See? That old geezer is clearly more powerful than Mama! But he’s unwilling to help.”

‘More powerful than me?’

Qíngyǔ fell silent for a moment.

Unable to refute the statement, she could only counter with a question.

“Isn’t Mama powerful?”

“Hmm, of course you’re powerful, but not that kind of powerful!”

Little Girl gestured with her hand.

Inadvertently, she moved the paper umbrella aside for a moment.

The fine rain fell upon her sleeve, only to dry instantly.

“What kind of powerful is that, then?”

“Mama clearly knows what I’m talking about! You’re mean!”

The girl’s small face flushed crimson, provoked by Qíngyǔ’s teasing.

Her eyes seemed to well up with tears.

“Alright, alright, everyone is different.”

Seeing her reaction, Qíngyǔ found it difficult to continue teasing her.

She reached out and ruffled Little Girl’s head, then helped straighten the paper umbrella.

Yet, Little Girl wasn’t wrong.

If not for the restrictions of the “Heavens”, if it were Zì Bùxiàn instead, relying on his profound cultivation, he could likely sever the head of the mastermind with a single sword stroke right now.

Alas, she was merely a Daoist cultivator, lacking the profound cultivation of true Immortals.

“It’s just so strange.”

Seeing her mother preoccupied with watching the rain, and only giving evasive answers to her questions, Little Girl had no choice but to rouse Immortal Sword.

[Hey, don’t you think I’m right?]

Immortal Sword, deep in slumber, was suddenly awakened.

It had no idea what was happening.

[What are you talking about?]

[That old geezer, can’t he just chop down that demonic entity?]

[You mean the Golden Core stage one? Yes, he certainly could.]

Immortal Sword was still groggy from sleep.

It had no idea why its master was upset.

[So, between him and my mom, who’s more powerful?]

[Why are you fixating on this?]

[Just tell me already.]

[That would be your mom.]

Little Girl paused, struck dumb by Immortal Sword’s words.

She then continued to grumble dejectedly.

[Doesn’t that mean it’ll be really hard for me to catch up to Mama right away?]

[There aren’t many cultivation resources in the mortal realm; you’ll have to rely on arduous training.]

‘So all this time, you weren’t concerned with who was stronger or weaker.’

‘You were worried about whether you could catch up to your own mother.’

[Then where can I get more cultivation resources?]

Hearing this, Immortal Sword finally pondered seriously for a long time.

[The Northern Ridge is difficult to acquire them from. However, within the Great Qian Sacred Dynasty, there are quite a few places you could try.]

[Well, that works then. Just tell me when the time comes.]

‘Struggles in the immortal path are not merely matters of words.’

Immortal Sword silently retreated back into its master’s divine consciousness.

It had no idea what the current state of the cultivation world was like.

If it were still the same as when it last awoke, then truly, challenges would be immense.

‘Since ancient times, cultivators have been as numerous as the sands of a river.’

‘Yet, how many truly attained the Dao?’

‘Ascending to Immortality and becoming an Ancestor is no easy feat.’

***

After Qíngyǔ and her group’s procession had traveled a considerable distance, the demonic entity within the city finally made its move.

A squad of armored Servants from the Qin Manor, taking advantage of the twilight of early dawn, concealed their forms and dispersed out of the city, only to regroup outside.

They took a small path, distantly following the procession ahead.

Leading the very front was Qin Lu, riding a tall, majestic horse, clad in general’s armor, and wielding a long saber.

As for Daoist Feng, he still did not appear in person immediately.

He waited until both processions had traveled far into the distance before gathering his chess pieces and rising.

“Hey, hey, hey! Don’t be in such a hurry! This old Daoist also wishes to play a few moves.”

Just as he was about to manifest an illusory body and depart the city, a voice, tinged with a faint smile, drifted in from outside the door, and a single sentence halted his steps.

A white-robed cultivator, with a white beard and white hair, carrying a wine gourd, stepped inside.

With an ethereal step, he closed the distance, and without any restraint, sat opposite the black-robed Daoist.

“What’s wrong? Seeing this old Daoist arrive makes you a little unhappy?”

Daoist Feng’s expression remained unchanged.

He reached out, gathered the two colors of chess pieces, and placed them into their respective chess jars.

“I was unaware of Senior’s distant arrival, and thus failed to properly welcome you.”

“What nonsense,” Zì Bùxiàn said, taking a sip of wine with a beaming smile, his aura contained.

“I merely saw the joy in this rain, and strolled out of the mountains, never expecting to find such a fine retreat as yours.”

“Senior, the Heavens made an agreement long ago.

Past grievances were wiped clean, and both righteous and demonic paths were to handle their own affairs.

As long as the mortal realm remained undisturbed, neither side was to cause trouble for the other.”

“What, does asking you to play a game of chess trouble you greatly?”

‘Old madman.’

Daoist Feng suppressed the anger rising in his heart.

In any case, Qin Lu had already led the team out of the city.

Playing chess with this old geezer wouldn’t hurt.

“Ah, there, that’s better, isn’t it?”

Seeing him put away the chess pieces, Zì Bùxiàn took another sip of wine, then unhurriedly reached for the black pieces.

“When one gets old, the mind becomes unclear, and one tends to take advantage.”

“Not at all.

I see that Senior is old in age but young at heart, with a remarkably clear mind.”

“Oh, come now, come now.”

The sound of chess pieces clacking echoed.

The two truly seemed like old friends, playing a game of chess in the empty Qin Manor.