Chapter 62: A Ladies' Man
After leaving the medicine shop, Xu Qing headed back toward Harbor 79. In the Violent Crimes Division, attendance at morning roll call was mandatory. After that, you would leave to go on patrol. However, unless there was a big mission, there was usually a lot of free time. And thus, Xu Qing would often go back to his berth to work on his cultivation. As usual, he walked along the side of the road, where he could stick to the shadows.
Because of the big storm, there were many traders and sect disciples who hadn’t been able to bring their ships and boats back into the port, and were stuck out on the open sea. But the storm was over, and though it was still raining, there was a lot more traffic on the water.
As Xu Qing walked along, he thought about medicinal pills and cultivation.
The base cost of concocting a white bolus is about three spirit coins. If I keep this up, I should be able to make significant profit. He patted his sack with the spirit stones he had earned from selling his white boluses.
Cultivation is ridiculously expensive. If I want to keep progressing as quickly as I have so far, I need to use at least one spirit stone per day. I also have to worry about the fee for my berth. What’s more, it’s going to be very expensive to upgrade my dharmaboat.
He sighed inwardly, and wished he hadn’t killed that man so decisively the other night. He really lost a big opportunity by not taking his merit points.
Then he started considering tracking down some wanted criminals, or maybe even taking a trip into a forbidden region. Otherwise, he would never save up the funds needed to upgrade his dharmaboat.
Everything in this capital city was expensive, and most expensive of all were the cultivation resources. Most of the common citizens could afford the cost of living, but didn’t qualify to buy cultivation resources. And even if they did, they definitely wouldn’t throw their money away blithely.
As for Seven Blood Eyes disciples, the daily living fee of thirty spirit coins wasn’t much to worry about. What really fueled all the infighting and slaughter were cultivation resources. Anyone who wanted to progress had to either accept missions and leave the sect, or stay within it and resort to murder and theft. There were no other options.
The only ones who had it slightly better off were the Onpeak conclave disciples, though they didn’t get a share of the sect’s profits.
Over the past few days, Xu Qing had learned a lot more about Seven Blood Eyes, and had a much better understanding of the conclave disciples. They were people who had acquired an identity medallion of a certain color associated with a given mountain peak.
For instance, the Seventh Peak had violet identity medallions.
Anyone with an identity medallion like that could live Onpeak. They would also get pale-colored garments of the same color. Xu Qing had seen disciples on the street like that, for instance the young man with the pale violet daoist robe, and the young woman with the pale orange daoist robe. [1]
They were usually children of senior members of the various mountain peaks, and when they went shopping in the city, they usually got a fifty-percent discount compared to Offpeak disciples. Perhaps because of that, the sect forbade them from reselling items for profit, and any who violated that rule would be expelled.
There was no fairness to the differences between conclave disciples and Offpeak disciples. However, that was just how destiny worked. People on the mountain peaks who had dark-colored daoist robes were Foundation Establishment cultivators or higher. They surpassed the conclave disciples, and had the right to share in the sect’s profits.
I need to think of a way to make money....
As he pondered these matters, the noise of a commotion interrupted his thoughts. Looking up, he saw a large group of disciples gathered on the shore nearby, apparently waiting for something. Many Seventh Peak disciples were coming out of their dharmaboats to see what was happening. And as Xu Qing stood there, he heard the sounds of scrambling from behind him as over a hundred Seventh Peak disciples rushed over to join the crowd.
Upon finding a place to stand, they looked out at the main entrance of the port with expressions of excitement and anticipation.
Curious about what was happening, he looked in the same direction, and before long, caught sight of an enormous ship.
At the very least, it was about 500 meters long, maybe even close to 550. It was the color of gold, and looked very fancy as it glittered in the light of the setting sun. The prow of the ship was the huge statue of a spider with a human face. The human face had only one eye, which was made of a scintillating gemstone. From a distance, the ship looked like some gigantic beast slowly piercing through the water. Looming over the deck was a beautiful superstructure crafted from exquisite materials. And amongst the various parts of the superstructure were a host of guards. The ship made a loud thrumming noise as it got closer and closer to the bay.
“It’s Third Highness.”
“Third Highness is back!”
There were quite a few exclamations within the crowd.
Third Highness? Xu Qing watched curiously as the incomparably beautiful ship sailed into the bay.
As it neared, it brought with it the pungent aroma of the open sea. It also exuded an intense pressure that left the mind shaken.
Upon sensing that pressure, Xu Qing’s pupils constricted. It filled him with a sense of profound crisis, similar to what he had sensed from the various terrifying entities he’d encountered in the jungle depths of the forbidden region.
Even more astonishing, as the ship neared, Xu Qing realized that in addition to the extravagant superstructure, and all the guards stationed there, the ship was also covered with countless glittering spikes. Any given spike was about three meters long, and covered with complex magical symbols that exuded a shockingly destructive power.
This was the most terrifying ship Xu Qing had seen to date.
In fact, there was no way he could fight against this ship. Just looking at it gave him a new understanding of the Seventh Peak’s dharmaboats. As he stood there, shaken, he suddenly realized that the crowd was cheering respectfully, which caused him to look up at the main deck of the ship, where a group of people had emerged from one of the cabins.
In the lead was a tall, thin young man clad in a violet daoist robe!
Unlike the pale violet robe Xu Qing had spotted previously, this robe... was dark violet!! That dark color indicated that this young man had a very high status, and it caused Xu Qing’s expression to harden. He knew... that this young man’s cultivation base was at the Foundation Establishment level. And from the respectful words being uttered by the crowd, this young man... was not an ordinary Foundation Establishment disciple. That said, his face was a waxen yellow color, and he had dark circles under his eyes. He was extremely thin, and almost looked hung over. What was more, there was a lascivious gleam in his eyes.
As he walked to the front of the ship, Xu Qing noticed he wore a white cap embroidered with the character 禁, which meant ‘forbidden.’ Strangely, that embroidered character pulsed with an indescribable pressure.
The dark violet daoist robe he wore, a robe that could drive crowds of disciples into envious madness, was so voluminous that it flapped loudly in the wind, and made it seem like the young man might get knocked over at any moment. He seemed to realize how weak he was, so as he walked, he enjoyed the adoration of the crowd while simultaneously relying on the supportive arms of two cloaked young women on either side of him.
One of the young women held a crystal bottle with some sort of nutritious liquid inside that she put to his lips occasionally. The two young women had outstandingly beautiful facial features. Their eyes were green, and exuded an enticing charm that could worm its way into the hearts and minds of any human. Their long hair swayed in the sea breeze, which lifted their cloaks, revealing dramatic hourglass figures. Their curvaceous forms, combined with their pure beauty, would stir primordial urges in any man.
They were dressed outrageously, in sexy, revealing clothing that showed off pale white skin beneath. The garments were so sheer it seemed like the wind might blow them away. Because of their physical appearance, it was easy to overlook the fact that both young women had gills on the sides of their faces, just beneath their ears. As they walked along, they laughed bashfully as they allowed the young man to wrap his arms around them.
“Greetings, Third Highness!” the crowd roared respectfully.
As Xu Qing observed the young man, he got the distinct impression that, without the help of the two young women, he would fall over. It was strange to the point of seeming almost unbelievable.
When he looked closely at the two beautiful young women, his eyes narrowed as he experienced a clear sensation of danger. Quickly looking away from them, he noticed that, in addition to the guards on the deck of the ship, there was also a group of black-robed figures. Just like the young women, they had green eyes and gills on the sides of their faces. What was more, they all had extraordinary cultivation base fluctuations.
There was another young man on the ship who looked to be about the same age as Xu Qing. He was dressed in extravagant clothing, had menacing green eyes, and also had gills.
This was Xu Qing’s second time seeing people that looked mostly human, but were actually different. However, the other disciples around him didn’t seem surprised at all; apparently, nonhuman people weren’t actually very rare.
Xu Qing looked away and was about to leave when Third Highness suddenly said, “Even though we ran into a storm, it was still a profitable trip. And how could we not share some of our profits with all the Junior Brothers and Sisters who came here to receive us?”
As the words left his mouth, several servants on the ship waved their hands, causing a number of palm-sized scales to fly out to the people in the crowd.
Being present, Xu Qing grabbed one of them. It felt slippery and cold, and when he tried to squeeze it, it wouldn’t break. It was obvious the scale wasn’t an ordinary item. Now it made sense why so many people had gathered on the shore here.
If something like this happened every day, you wouldn’t need to work hard to make money.
Putting the scale away, he joined the rest of the crowd in offering thanks to the Third Highness.
As the calls of thanks rang out, the large ship entered its berth, Third Highness waved at the crowd of fellow disciples on the shore. And then, seemingly unconcerned with so many people watching, he slapped both young women on their rear end. The young women cried out coquettishly, and the emaciated Third Highness grinned. The gathered disciples averted their gazes; not a single one dared to stare at the two nonhuman girls while Third Highness was around.
Xu Qing didn’t think they were that attractive, but he did notice that the nonhuman young man behind them seemed to have a look of disdain on his face.
Meanwhile, Third Highness’s amorous eyes seemed completely focused on the girls, as if he didn’t care at all how the young man behind him was reacting.
“Wait for me here, my immortal beauties,” Third Highness said. “Don’t go off the ship unless absolutely necessary, otherwise Master will scold me.... Actually, I’m not even sure if Master is back yet. I’ll go take a look, and if he’s not back, then the three of us can have some fun later tonight.”
The two young women seemed pleased, and smiled at him flirtatiously. After some more back-and-forth with them, Third Highness cleared his throat, took the crystal bottle, and turned to the servants and guards.
“Unload all the cargo. Be careful and don’t open anything!”
In response to his words, the servants and guards started bringing out a host of large chests, all of which were sealed tightly, making it impossible to even guess what was inside.
“Make sure to keep a record of everything, including images. I prepared all this for Eldest Brother, who’s currently in seclusion. He’s very petty, so I’d better not hear about any of the cargo getting damaged.”
Chuckling, Third Highness clasped hands and bowed to the gathered disciples, then walked off the ship and headed toward the Seventh Peak.
The disciples backed up to make room for him, while simultaneously looking around with vigilance. At the same time, tensions seemed to build.
Everyone present had received one of those scales, and everyone had come prepared to keep it. But that didn’t stop malicious, greedy looks from appearing in the eyes of some of the disciples present. Just because you acquired a boon didn’t mean you could keep it.
People began backing away and then left. Some of the disciples were being eyed by others, but not Xu Qing. Because of how he’d killed Master Greencloud, he’d earned a bit of a reputation, and the disciples present were clearly hesitant to cause problems for him.
After looking around coldly, Xu Qing left, keeping his guard up all the way until he was back at his berth. He did his usual inspection to make sure the area was safe, then brought out his dharmaboat.
Meanwhile, he thought back to the Third Highness’ enormous ship.
The difference between the two watercraft was immense. After some thought, Xu Qing decided not to get on his dharmaboat and start working on his cultivation. Instead, he put the dharmaboat away and headed toward the shops run by disciples from the Sixth Peak.
It was time to upgrade his dharmaboat.
Upon finding an appropriate shop, he took out the scale he had just received, plus the fish bone Zhang San had given him. Then he handed over the payment, and waited for the result. He wouldn’t have to wait for long. According to the Sixth Peak disciple who’d taken his order, it would only require the time it takes an incense stick to burn.
While he waited, Xu Qing looked at the other items for sale in the shop. Most of them were materials from living creatures. And all of them were expensive. One thing that caught Xu Qing’s eye was a lizard skin. After asking the clerk, he found that it cost 150 spirit stones.
“So expensive!” he murmured. He’d been expecting it to cost a lot, as he knew that cultivation resources were expensive. But the list price was simply astonishing.
“It’s the skin of a sealizard in the fifth level of Qi Condensation,” the clerk explained. “And it’s completely intact, which is rare. It’s a great way to toughen up your boat.”
Xu Qing looked away from the lizard skin and scanned through some of the other items until he noticed a large heart, the size of a human head. Stored in a crystal bottle, it twitched and wriggled as though it still had some life left in it.
“That’s the heart of a dragonbeard. It’s not quite at the level required for a Foundation Establishment dharmaskiff, but it would make a great power source for a dharmaboat.”
Xu Qing asked how much it cost, and found that it was even more ridiculously expensive than the sealizard skin. In the end, materials taken from living creatures were all incredibly expensive.
After browsing through the shop, Xu Qing determined that his savings were absolutely insufficient. He sighed.
Around that time, the upgrade to his dharmaboat was finished. When the disciple handed him back his bottle, Xu Qing saw that the dharmaboat inside looked different. It was a bit larger, and now had totem designs on it that resembled the scale he’d acquired. Sending some spirit power into the bottle, he found that it wasn’t just the physical appearance that had changed. The dharmaboat was sturdier, having been upgraded by an entire level. Nodding in satisfaction, he offered thanks then headed back to the Port District to test out the boat on the water.
Back at his berth, he checked the area for safety, then took out the dharmaboat. Light glittered as the boat appeared. It was now densely covered with scale totems. It was over 20 meters long, perhaps close to 25, and was about three meters wide.
This version of his dharmaboat was much fiercer, and looked even more like a crocodile. That was especially true considering that the fish bone had been put into the crocodile figurehead, and caused gusts of wind to swirl around it. One could only imagine the speeds the boat would be capable of when that power was unleashed.
Xu Qing’s eyes glittered brightly.
If I had enough spirit stones and materials, I wonder what my dharmaboat would look like. I need to make money!
1. The young man with the pale violet robe appeared in chapter 55. ☜