Chapter 46

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The early summer approaches. Amidst the crimson twilight, the grass swayed gently, and a small insect crawling to the tip of a blade of grass was suddenly devoured, along with the grass, by a donkey’s mouth.

In a sea of crimson light, the old donkey, wagging its tail, chewed on the roadside grass while leisurely carrying Lu Liangsheng along a country road.

The destination, He Valley Prefecture, was several hundred miles away. If one pushed a fast horse, they could arrive within two or three days, and with the use of the ‘shrinking ground to an inch’ spell, they could likely reach it by nightfall.

However, there was plenty of time—four or five months to spare—so even at this leisurely pace, they would still make it in time.

Having bid farewell to his mentor, Lu Liangsheng had already traveled several miles north. He had never been to the northern regions before, and the surrounding mountains, villages, and towns felt fresh and new to him.

Attached to the side of the donkey’s rump is a bookcase. As they swayed with the donkey’s steps, a small door at the bottom of the shelf opened. Next to a pile of books, a small Toad Daoist stretched out his short legs, leaning against his black-patterned gourd, and yawned.

“The scenery here isn’t bad.”

On the other side of the shelf, there were several scrolls, and from one of them came a soft, tinkling laugh.

“Toad Master, your ignorant look is so amusing!”

Across from the donkey and the bookshelf, the Toad Daoist shifted into a reclining position, propping his head up with a webbed hand, and snorted,

“Insolence… The mountains and rivers I’ve seen, you little ghost girl, are far beyond your comprehension…”

From atop the donkey’s back, Lu Liangsheng heard the toad’s voice. He turned and smiled: “Master, you’re awake?”

With the donkey swaying beneath him, Lu Liangsheng unintentionally tugged on the reins, causing the old donkey to step on a stone, tilting its body sharply.

Through the open small door of the bookshelf, the reclining Toad Daoist leisurely said: ”Can a mere little ghost like you possibly compare.” Just as the words left his mouth, he was suddenly jolted and sent flying. His round, chubby body was struck directly by a swiftly moving hoof with a ‘thud,’ sending him bouncing forward like a ball, rolling on the ground a few times before finally coming to a stop.

The toad scrambled up in a mess, with bits of grass stuck to his head. As the breeze blew gently, the grass swayed a bit more on his head.

“You ungrateful disciple… trying to betray your master… Ribbit…”

Lu Liangsheng hurriedly got off the donkey and picked up the Toad Daoist, giving the donkey a light slap on the head. “I told you to walk properly!” The old donkey blinked its big eyes and snorted through its nostrils.

“Huff, huff!”

After neighing twice, Lu Liangsheng placed his master on his shoulder and decided to lead the donkey on foot. The mountain ridges to the left stretched out under the twilight, while the villages on the other side gradually faded into the distance. As the sky grew dimmer, they disappeared at the end of the road.

Sometimes, Lu Liangsheng would chat with the toad against his head about someone.

“I wonder how Sun Yingxian has been these past couple of years… That guy is probably doing better than me. Who knows, maybe by now he’s broken through Qi Refinement and reached the Foundation Building stage.”

The toad, leaning against Lu Liangsheng’s ear, brushed the grass off its head and threw it aside.

“What’s so great about Foundation Building? Back when I was at my peak, it wasn’t even enough to make me yawn. With my purple-gold black-patterned gourd, just tossing it out would crush a whole group of cultivators…”

Lu Liangsheng scratched his ear, sighing helplessly. His master was starting to ramble again. Over the past three years, whenever he asked when his master’s injuries would heal, he always replied, “Soon, soon.”

“…I’m starting to think Master just wants to freeload a bit longer…”

As he was musing, a figure suddenly appeared in the fading sunlight in front of him. Lu Liangsheng stopped in his tracks, and the Toad Daoist on his shoulder tumbled but quickly grabbed onto his robe with his webbed hands, his short legs dangling outside. After a bit of scrambling, he managed to climb back up.

“Here we go again, good thing I was ready…”

Then, both of them noticed the two figures ahead—one thin, one fat. The toad’s face froze for a moment. “Robbers?”

“Looks like they really a robbery.” Lu Liangsheng muttered, equally surprised.

The two men were wearing simple clothes, their chests bare and covered with thick, dark hair. With crooked noses and twisted grins, they blocked the path, holding their weapons.

“You scholar, today’s your unlucky day. We don’t want your life, just leave your money, and we’ll let you go…”

“You can have it.”

Before the words were even fully spoken, a few silver ingots had already rolled to their feet. The thin bandit stared dumbfoundedly at the silver, then looked up at his partner, exchanging bewildered glances.

“That’s straightforward… Could this be a scam?”

The fat bandit hurriedly picked up the silver ingot, inspecting it as he tilted his head and whispered: “It’s real.”

“We struck gold, this guy’s a fool.” The thin bandit exclaimed, snatching the silver and stuffing it into his coat. He pointed at the jade pendant hanging from Lu Liangsheng’s waist. “Toss that jade pendant over too.”

Lu Liangsheng nodded. “Alright.” Casually, he removed the pendant and tossed it to the bandit. The thin man eagerly caught it, blew on the surface where two fish were carved, and polished it with his sleeve, grinning from ear to ear. Then, he pulled his companion aside.

“Since you seem like a sensible fellow, we won’t take your old donkey. Now get lost!”

“Thank you, two sirs!”

Lu Liangsheng cupped his hands in gratitude and mounted his donkey. As he passed by the two bandits slowly, he suddenly turned his head and a small smile played at the corner of his lips.

“Did you know that all things have a spirit? Even wealth knows its rightful owner. In the future, you two should try earning an honest living. Stop doing this kind of shady business.”

“Get lost already, you’ve read yourself into stupidity.” The thin bandit waved him off impatiently, still grinning as he held up the jade pendant. “What job pays better than this?”

As he spoke, something strange happened. Perhaps it was his imagination, but the green jade pendant suddenly seemed to twitch. The two carved fish on it rolled their eyes and their tails began to move.

The thin bandit yelped in fear, dropping the pendant immediately. Stammering, he shouted, “Th-the fish… the fish…!”

The thin bandit’s companion turned his head, about to speak, but then saw the jade pendant transform into two koi fish. The fish swam gracefully through the air, their tails swaying as they headed toward the departing scholar.

“Quick run!”

It’s unknown who screamed, and both men took off running, but with a loud thud, they fell flat on the ground and couldn’t get back up. The silver ingots they had stuffed in their pockets suddenly tumbled out, and as the two bandits lay pressed against the earth, they could see the silver rolling away in a line as if marching in formation. Strangely, they could even faintly hear the chant “Heave-ho! Heave-ho!” as the ingots rolled back toward the scholar.

Silver that moved on its own? And even chanting?! And the jade pendant had turned into fish swimming through the air…

The two men looked utterly terrified as if they had just seen ghosts. After a moment of paralysis, they finally relaxed, scrambling to their feet in a panic. In the distance, bathed in the glow of the setting sun, the scholar’s silhouette atop the donkey waved his sleeve. The silver ingots rolling along the road and the twin fish swimming in the air all flew back into his sleeve.

“Dear heavens!!”

The two bandits shouted in unison, drenched in cold sweat. It dawned on them that they had just tried to rob a powerful expert. They immediately dropped to their knees, frantically kowtowing and babbling pleas for mercy. Then, with a final shriek of terror, “Ah——”, they scurried off, tumbling and stumbling as they fled into the twilight.

From afar, the toad stood on Lu Liangsheng’s shoulder, one webbed hand propped against his disciple’s head as he watched the retreating figures of the two would-be robbers.

“People like that, who don’t know their place, should be killed.”

Lu Liangsheng gently stroked the donkey’s mane and then calmly reattached the jade pendant to his belt. “The weapons they carried were just sticks and hatchets, and all they asked for was money. They kept their word and let us pass, so they’re not truly evil. Killing them would be excessive. A small scare like this should do the trick. Next time they think about robbing someone, they’ll think twice.”

“You’re too soft.” Grumbled the Toad Daoist, crossing his webbed arms as he sat back down on Lu Liangsheng’s shoulder.

The scholar smiled quietly but said nothing. He was not the type to kill lightly. With his cultivation of the True Way of Heaven and Earth having already passed the Qi Refinement stage, he could not afford to accumulate unnecessary violence in his heart. Doing so might make it harder for him to advance to the Foundation Building stage in the future.

The sky gradually darkened.

Stars and the moon hung in the night sky, overseeing the lights of the village and town below. The mountains, now black and desolate, loomed like lurking beasts in the shadows, eerie and foreboding.

Lu Liangsheng led the old donkey to a fork in the forest path and chose the right side, where a dilapidated building stood.

“Let’s settle here for the night,”

He walked into the dusty temple. With a sweep of his wide sleeve, a cold wind blew away the dry straw and mud from the floor, clearing a space. Soon, a campfire was lit, and he set up the bookshelf on one side and took out some books to read.

Moonlight poured in through a hole in the roof, casting a cold, silver glow. The surrounding forest rustled softly in the breeze. Through the gaps in the trees, the moonlight illuminated the path Lu Liangsheng had not chosen. In the distance, several figures carrying bookcases, with lanterns in hand, moved through the thin mist.

Hehehe…

As the night breeze rustled through the trees, the leaves swayed, and the mist billowed. A faint, tinkling laugh echoed through the air.

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