Unsheathed

Chapter 399 (3): Present

Following the conclusion of their sparring session, Chen Ping’an and Zhu Lian returned to the table and sat down. Chen Ping'an retrieved a pot of wine that he had purchased from the capital of the Azure Phoenix Nation and poured a cup for Zhu Lian.

Zhu Lian downed the wine in a single gulp, and he didn't need Chen Ping'an to refill his cup for him. Instead, he directly grabbed the pot of wine and poured another cup for himself.

"Old Cook, you shouldn't drink so much," Pei Qian warned Zhu Lian. "Drinking too much is harmful to the body. In any case, this wine costs three taels of silver a pot."

Zhu Lian started to sip the wine slowly, and he asked in a quiet voice, "Young Master, when do you plan to break through the barrier and advance to the sixth tier?"

Chen Ping'an had made a decision about this a long time ago, so he replied, "I'll wait and see. There's a fated opportunity that I can fight for."

Chen Ping'an didn't explain what the fated opportunity was. After all, the notion of "strongest" was even more elusive and intangible than the manifestation of a nation's martial fortune.

He smiled and continued, "If I were told to enter those shattered blessed lands and mystical realms to try my luck and fight for fated opportunities and immortal treasures, hoping to find all kinds of inheritances and relics left behind by the immortals, I wouldn't really dare to do so."

However, relying on his fists to strengthen the foundation of his Martial Dao? Chen Ping'an felt like this was well worth a try.

However, Chen Ping'an knew that as long as Cao Ci was still at the fifth tier, he along with everyone else would have no hope of becoming the so-called strongest.

The old great sword immortal at the Sword Qi Great Wall had personally remarked that Cao Ci's martial arts cultivation was extremely far ahead of all other martial artists in the same generation as him. Because of this, he would become the strongest in the world at each tier that he advanced to.

Ning Yao was slightly disgruntled and unwilling to accept this at the time. She said that even if Cao Ci's master was the strongest martial artist in the four worlds, and even if she could manifest her martial fortune, just how large and unpredictable was the world? Things were ever-changing, so how could it be guaranteed that Cao Ci would definitely be the strongest in the world at each tier that he advanced to? Perhaps Cao Ci's ancestors were all powerful beings who had taken over the world and monopolized martial fortune?

Chen Qingdu's reply had left a very deep impression on Chen Ping'an.

"This is just how strong Cao Ci is. From his aptitude to his talent, personality, and martial fortune, he's strong in every sense of the word. There's no reason or rhyme to this."

Chen Ping'an had just lost three fights in a row to Cao Ci at that time, so he hadn't thought much about Chen Qingdu's statement. However, Ning Yao had already been seething with anger. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Chen Ping'an had felt quite happy upon seeing Ning Yao's reaction, yet his satisfied smile had caused Ning Yao to become even angrier.

At this moment, Zhu Lian instinctively said, "Young Master is someone who enjoys tremendous fortunes, so how is it possible for you to enter a treasure mountain but return empty-handed? This old servant is at the Vajra Body Tier, so I at least have some slight understanding of the mystical realms formed from shattered blessed lands.

"I'm aware that cultivators at the Upper Five Tiers can't enter these mystical realms, and if they dare to do so, the mystical realms will become unstable and prone to collapse. The mystical realms might be enveloped by the chaotic river of time and severely erode one's cultivation base.

"If there are no cultivators at the Upper Five Tiers coveting your treasures, and if this old servant is also present to assist you, then Young Master can indeed enter some mystical realms to try your luck. The next time we come across a mystical realm, Young Master can feel free to bring me along and venture inside. After all, pure martial artists aren't subject to the same restrictions, so doing so won't cause any trouble."

Chen Ping'an pondered for a moment before nodding and saying, "That sounds reasonable. I've fallen into the habit of avoiding these places, but thinking about it now, it's about time that I change my mindset."

Pei Qian had immediately furrowed her brows in anger upon hearing Zhu Lian claim that Chen Ping'an was someone who enjoyed tremendous fortunes, and only after hearing his subsequent remarks did her expression gradually become calm.

There was a look of contemplation on Zhu Lian's face.

In the days afterward, everything was calm and peaceful on the immortal ship.

Many famous landmarks run by immortal forces from the mountains weren't wealthy enough to construct immortal ferry stations that would continually drain immortal money, and as a result, the immortal ship was unable to dock at these landmarks. However, the immortal ship had prepared some immortal boats that could hover in the sky and travel on the wind, allowing passengers to disembark the immortal ship and travel to those smaller ferry stations.

An especially large number of passengers disembarked the immortal ship when they sailed past the renowned Fishing Platform located in the northern region of the Azure Phoenix Nation. Chen Ping'an, Pei Qian, and Zhu Lian also walked to the bow of the ship, where they saw a vast sea of clouds drifting between two majestic mountains like a flowing river.

There were two fishing platforms facing each other, with one located on each peak that was towering into the clouds. From time to time, they could see some colorful birds spreading their wings and slicing through the sea of clouds, after which they arced through the sky and dived back into the clouds.

Pei Qian was engrossed by this, and she was extremely annoyed at the fact that she couldn't soar through the air and swoop over with her hiking pole in hand, smacking those birds and flying fish and dragging them back to the immortal ship. They could most likely fetch a good price, and if made a few more trips, she could potentially buy a new treasure box or even a treasure shelf.

Zhu Lian was an eighth tier martial artist, yet he only ever traveled on foot when accompanying Chen Ping'an on his distant journey. He had never soared through the sky before.

Chen Ping'an was quite curious about this, and he asked, "Zhu Lian, have you never thought about flying before? Don't you feel like you're wasting your cultivation base?"

Zhu Lian shook his head and replied with a smile, "Young Master, this old servant already became tired of other people looking at me in shock and awe back in my hometown. I truly can't bring myself to act in such a rash and hotheaded manner anymore."

Shi Rou stood beside them and quietly took in the beautiful scenery.

She was already accustomed to Zhu Lian's peculiar way of thinking, so she was no longer surprised by his words.

————

While Chen Ping'an and his companions were enjoying the scenery...

Wei Liang was sitting behind a table in his room and writing something. There was an antique-style rosewood box resting beside his hand, inside of which was a large collection of paper-cutting knives that could be regarded as the weapons of a noble person.

Wei Liang retrieved a bamboo paper-cutting knife from the box and used it as a paperweight.

Even though Wei Liang had left the capital with the excuse of traveling around to relax his mind, he had actually been working on something the entire time.

This matter wasn't strongly related to the Azure Phoenix Nation, but it couldn't be regarded as insignificant either.

He was helping someone compile the grades of all official immortals in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, and he needed to create a document that was both concise and to the point.

Wei Liang created a draft where the official immortals were categorized into nine different grades.

The first grade was reserved for those at the Immortal Tier, the second of the Upper Five Tiers.

The second grade was reserved for those at the Unpolished Jade Tier, the first of the Upper Five Tiers. In addition, those who had made significant contributions toward the destruction of enemy nations following the southward march of the Great Li Empire's heavy cavalry could also be elevated to the second grade.

The third grade was reserved for those at the Nascent Tier or those who had made significant contributions toward the expansion of the empire by an area equivalent to one state.

The fourth grade was reserved for those at the Golden Core Tier.

Following this pattern, the grading system went all the way down to the ninth and final grade.

The specific method of grading cultivators was exceedingly complicated, and there wasn't a strict relationship between the cultivation base of cultivators and their final grading. This was because it was necessary to consider their contributions to the Great Li Empire, especially their contributions to the southward expedition of the Great Li Empire's heavy cavalry.

Among these official immortals, the Dragon Spring Sword Sect's Ruan Qiong was the top-ranked cultivator among those in the second grade. At the same time, he was currently ranked first on this document that would be used as a record of merits by the Great Li Empire's Imperial Song Clan in the future.

Apart from the Dragon Spring Sword Sect, there were also the two Militarian ancestral temples, the Wind Snow Temple and True Martial Mountain, as well as the two major sword sects, the Wind Lightning Field and Sun Scorch Mountain.

Ranked below these forces were the Great Li Empire's Palace of Eternal Spring, Dawn Cloud Mountain, the Light Breeze City's Xu Clan, and so on.

All of these forces needed one or two guaranteed spots on the record of merits. Moreover, their grades would definitely be very high.

As for the cultivators who possessed Peace and Safety Tablets issued by the Great Li Empire's Ministry of Justice, they would most definitely be included in the record of merits as well.

Beyond this, cultivators who had expressed their loyalty to the Great Li Empire from very early on could also be included in the record of merits regardless of their background and irrespective of whether they were official immortals or vagrant cultivators.

Wei Liang had spent the past while refining the details of this grading document, and it was necessary for that person to provide him with a large amount of intelligence for him to properly complete this task. In fact, this intelligence even pertained to the longevity of different nations and the life and death of various rulers.

Wei Liang placed his calligraphy brush on the brush stand before standing up and slowly pacing around his room.

Why was he willing to do this task?

Due to the forces of the unstoppable trend, Wei Liang had no option but to pledge his allegiance to the Embroidered Tiger. In reality, with Wei Liang's temperament, he could have abandoned his more than two hundred years' worth of planning and hard work in the Azure Phoenix Nation if Cui Chan had failed to persuade him. He could have traveled to another continent to start over again.

For example, he could have traveled to the relatively lawless Complete Reed Continent or the comparatively stable Parasol Leaf Continent. With his experience in the Azure Phoenix Nation, it would have taken him just one or two hundred years to get back on track.

When Cui Chan personally traveled to the Azure Phoenix Nation, however, the first person whom he had visited was none other than Wei Liang. The two of them had engaged in an honest and frank discussion, and after Wei Liang learned of the general plan that Imperial Preceptor Cui Chan and the imperial court had for the Great Li Empire, he had eventually decided to cooperate with them.

Cooperation, not subordination.

Wei Liang hadn't made any compromises, nor had he attempted to negotiate a better deal. Similarly, Cui Chan hadn't doubted Wei Liang's sincerity at all.

It was clear that Cui Chan was seeking more and aiming higher than Wei Liang, so the chief military governor eagerly awaited his success and for that day to finally arrive.

"We'll etch the laws of the Great Li Empire into stone and erect them atop the mountains of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent!"

There was soaring ambition in Wei Liang's mind and a fervent look in his eyes as he arrived in front of the window.

His ambition was even more impressive than the sea of clouds flowing between the two magnificent mountains.

This was what great people needed to do to avoid wasting their lives and knowledge!

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