Chapter 79: Seeing Through

But how should he put it? When he thought about it, the fact that Chen Zuizui had no friends in the past actually made a lot of sense. After all, when they first met during the Mountain Exam, the guy had introduced himself by saying, “My name is Chen Zui, the ‘Zui’ that means ‘best.'” It… just sounded like someone who didn’t have friends.

But Wen Xuxu was different. Although he was currently blind, he hadn’t been born that way. Bian Chunzhou could easily imagine how upright and proper Wen Xuxu must have looked in a scholar’s robe, well-read, smart, and handsome. Even if everyone else lacked friends, Wen Xuxu was bound to have them.

Bian Chunzhou didn’t understand why Wen Xuxu cared so much about his background, just as Wen Xu didn’t understand how Bian Chunzhou could be so happy every single day. Having transmigrated here, Bian Chunzhou had no concept of social hierarchy; since the cultivation world was a place where strength ruled supreme, and Yonglu Mountain was harmonious and friendly, he naturally remained oblivious to it.

Even if he didn’t realize it, Bian Chunzhou was a very empathetic person. He might not understand the weight in Wen Xu’s heart, but they were friends, and friends could open up to each other.

“Can you walk a bit faster? I had someone make pickled cabbage especially for us. Since we were short on time, I used a talisman to speed up the fermentation. If we’re any later, it’ll turn too sour.”

The rough-and-tumble Chen Zui replied, “So what if it’s a bit sour? As long as it’s edible, it’s fine.”

“No way!”

As a transmigrated soul dipping his toes into the food and beverage industry, Bian Chunzhou ran his hotpot restaurant with great success. Naturally, his little purse was stuffed full. Since he was making money, he wasn’t stingy about giving the shopkeeper and workers year-end bonuses. Having benefited, the shopkeeper naturally worked even harder for his boss.

Speaking of this pickled cabbage, it had actually been pickled by the shopkeeper’s wife through an acquaintance. He heard that the old woman who pickled it had a unique recipe and the flavor was excellent. Unfortunately, by the time they found out about her, the old woman’s stock was already sold out. It was too late to pickle a new batch from scratch, but luckily, a cultivator’s talismans and arrays were wonderful things.

Of course, Bian Chunzhou was probably the first person in the cultivation world to use talismans to pickle cabbage.

“Boss, you’re finally here.”

The pickled cabbage was sealed in a large vat with talismans to ferment. Since the boss hadn’t arrived, the shopkeeper didn’t dare to check it on his own. According to the old woman, once the cabbage fermented past its peak, the flavor wouldn’t be as good. He had no idea how it tasted right now.

“How is business today? Have you hired the noodle master yet?”

“It’s been cold lately, so the mushroom broth hotpot has been selling especially well. We’re almost out of stock,” the shopkeeper said happily, leading the way with a smile. “The master and the ingredients have been ready for a while. We were just waiting for you, Boss.”

Cultivators in the cultivation world didn’t care much about food, since they had achieved inedia. Spiritual food and wine were extremely expensive, and ordinary cultivators couldn’t afford them on a daily basis. On the other hand, ordinary mortals researched a wide variety of delicacies, creating a dizzying array of dough-based foods: dumplings, wontons, soup dumplings, and flaky pastries of all kinds. Since they hadn’t bought out the recipe for the pickled cabbage, those pickled cabbage dumplings wouldn’t be put on the menu, but other hotpot dumplings were fair game.

The difference between hotpot dumplings and ordinary dumplings lay in the wrapper, which had to be much more resistant to boiling. Naturally, this tested the master’s dough-kneading skills. Bian Chunzhou certainly didn’t know how to knead dough, but he knew how to… give verbal instructions.

After all, he was the one paying. What was wrong with the client being a little picky? As for the filling, it had to be shrimp, of course. It would be even better if they could perfectly recreate fish-skin shrimp dumplings.

As it turned out, as long as the pay was good enough, even the most difficult and demanding requests could be met perfectly. As for the flavor of the filling, Boss Bian prepared that himself.

Chen Zui wielded a kitchen knife to mince the filling, looking for all the world like he was practicing his saber techniques. Then again, the guy had his steel saber confiscated for the last two days, and a kitchen knife was still a blade.

After leaving Lingyao Peak, Wen Xu first returned to Guochun Peak. In truth, if the senior brothers on Lingyao Peak hadn’t been preparing for the New Year, he could have stayed longer. After all… he really didn’t want to go to Juyong Hall to watch the sunrise.

But he had no choice. His master had sent him a talisman message specifically reminding him that he had to go, and that he would regret it if he didn’t.

“Ah Xu, you’re back. I thought you’d forgotten~”

He hadn’t, but he had wanted to.

Venerable Chengwei was amused. “Ah Xu, I recommended you to go to Lingyao Peak. Wasn’t the experience great?”

Wen Xu nodded.

“See? I would never steer you wrong. Even if it sounds a bit unreliable, it’s definitely solid in practice.”

…So Master knew it was a terrible idea after all.

Wen Xu had no temper left. When it came to the people he cared about, his boundaries were always very flexible. “I will keep your teachings in mind, Master.”

“Good, off you go. Once the New Year passes, Ah Xu will be a year older.” Let him think. After the New Year, Ah Xu’s nominal age would be twenty-three. The record for the youngest to reach Foundation Establishment in the cultivation world was held by Meixi Jian, who did so at twenty-five. Could he look forward to his own little disciple breaking that record?

“In the Mortal Realm, do elders give the younger generation New Year’s money?” Venerable Chengwei suddenly asked.

Wen Xu paused in his tracks. “Once they come of age or start a family, they are no longer given New Year’s money.” The term for New Year’s money, yasuiqian, was a homophone for suppressing evil spirits. Since evil spirits brought misfortune, the money was a blessing from elders to children who had not yet grown up. Wen Xu had never received such a blessing until he was adopted by the old scholar, who gave him the first New Year’s money of his life.

“I see.” Venerable Chengwei stroked his chin. “But a cultivator’s age can’t be calculated that way. Here, my disciple must receive the biggest New Year’s money.”

A thick storage bag was stuffed into Wen Xu’s hands. When he looked up again, where had his master gone?

Venerable Chengwei’s divine sense hovered in midair, watching his little disciple hesitantly open the storage bag, tie it shut in astonishment, check it back and forth three times, and finally tuck it carefully into his robes. After bowing respectfully three times toward the main hall, Wen Xu finally headed down the mountain.

The snow on Guochun Peak never melted, but Venerable Chengwei was in a rather good mood. He summoned a flask of spiritual wine and thought, Little Ah Xu, a person cannot only do what is right. What is right, anyway? There is no set definition in this world. A cultivator’s path is already an act of defying heaven. If you follow the rules too strictly, you will be left behind by your companions.

*

Today was New Year’s Eve. The lights of ten thousand homes shone brightly in Langyuan City, making it as lively as Evernight City. Many disciples of Yonglu Mountain had taken leave to return home for family reunions, though many others remained on the mountain to cultivate diligently. It was all a matter of personal destiny, with nothing to criticize.

“I just went out and ran into the people from Jinding Pavilion.”

Bian Chunzhou didn’t actually hold a grudge against Jinding Pavilion itself, but its Young Master was a terrible person. In any case, Bian Chunzhou was the type to hold a grudge, and nothing could change his mind.

Chen Zui clearly had a terrible memory for this sort of thing. “Did Jinding Pavilion offend you?”

Bian Chunzhou: …Fine, moving on.

He craned his neck to look outside. “Why isn’t Wen Xuxu here yet? If he doesn’t show up soon, the city’s firework show is going to start.” These fireworks were different from modern ones; they were genuine fire spells. Anyone who had seen them described them as grand, vast, and breathtaking. Last year, he had only caught a distant glimpse from the mountain, and it had been too far to see clearly.

This year, he had finally gotten his chance. “I heard that Langyuan City’s firework show covers the sky over the entire city. Whether you’re a street peddler or a wealthy merchant, you can see it just by looking up. I’m so excited!”

“Isn’t it just… Mmph!”

“Shut up! Don’t make me beat you up on such a festive day!”

Chen Zui broke free and laid out the facts. “You can’t beat me. If you add Wen Xu, it might be a fair fight.”

Meaning, two against one was just barely enough.

Bian Chunzhou: I’ll endure this!

Fortunately, Wen Xu arrived just in time to prevent a two-on-one “vicious battle.” Bian Chunzhou was just about to say that he had prepared a surprise and ask him to guess what it was, when a certain mood-killer pointed straight at the kitchen and said, “You’re finally here. Can we boil the dumplings now?”

Bian Chunzhou: How frustrating!

“Chen Zui, you’re definitely never getting a wife!”

Chen Zui was puzzled. “Why would a cultivator need a wife? I don’t have one anyway.” A Dao companion couldn’t compare to a steel blade. He wasn’t stupid.

Wen Xu: “Pfft!”

Fine, both of them were… Whatever. He was a magnanimous man and would forgive them. Bian Chunzhou grabbed one in each hand and walked inside, smiling. “Even though the surprise is ruined, you can still guess what the dumpling filling is today!”

Seeing Chen Zui about to speak up again, Bian Chunzhou immediately cut him off. “You! Not another word from you!”

One had just crawled out of a secret realm, and the other had been farming on Lingyao Peak for two months. Bian Chunzhou looked at his perfectly intact new friend and clapped his hands in satisfaction. “Just you wait, Chef Bian is going to serve you now!”

A New Year’s Eve dinner naturally consisted of more than just dumplings. The chef they hired had prepared plenty of fresh, auspicious dishes, and with a bubbling hot pot added to the mix, the three of them had a lively and hearty feast.

“Cheers! Here’s to Bian Chunzhou achieving Foundation Establishment soon!”

After Bian Chunzhou finished speaking, he pulled his two friends in. “You guys too! New Year’s wishes have to be for yourself! No wishing for others!”

“Here’s to Chen Zui achieving Foundation Establishment next year!”

“Here’s to… Wen Xu…” Even though Wen Xu didn’t open his eyes, he could feel two intense, almost tangible gazes on him. “…reaching Golden Core soon!”

Bian Chunzhou: …And here I thought you were too shy to speak, but it turns out you have such wicked intentions!

“No way! I want to change mine! Change it to Golden Core!”

Chen Zui immediately followed. “Me, Nascent Soul!”

…

If they kept this up, they would be ascending tomorrow. Boss Bian decided to change to a safer topic. “So, where are we going to watch the sunrise? Will there be a lot of people? Do we need to go early to secure a spot?”

Wen Xu’s breath hitched. “…There aren’t many people.”

Chen Zui spoke bluntly. “Aren’t you blind?” Why was he so obsessed with watching the sunrise too? Could there be some secret hidden in the sunrise of the Yonglu Mountain Range?

This topic did not seem very safe either! Bian Chunzhou scratched his head, and just as he was about to change the subject again, he heard Wen Xuxu speak. “If you don’t mind, we could…”

“What?”

Wen Xu quietly uttered four words, and Bian Chunzhou’s soul instantly left his body.

Help! Had he finally gone crazy from farming? As expected, no one who cleared spiritual fields on Lingyao Peak ever stayed sane!

“Juyong Hall? Isn’t that off-limits…” Even Chen Zui knew that Juyong Hall was the face of Yonglu Mountain. Unless a major sect was paying an official visit, it was never opened. Of course, on the first day of the new calendar, the doors of Juyong Hall would be thrown wide open to welcome the first spiritual breeze of the new year.

Chen Zui suddenly got excited and stood straight up. “Aren’t we watching the sunrise?”

Bian Chunzhou was about to talk him out of it when he heard Wen Xuxu speak up dryly again. “My master suggested it. And I’m not crazy.”

Oh? The elusive master suggested it?

Bian Chunzhou immediately changed his tune. “Let’s go! Wen Xuxu, you’re so slow. If we don’t leave now, we’re going to miss the sunrise~”