Chapter 70: Let Me Treat You to an Egg
All of the disciples from Dispatch and Pilot Assistance stopped in place, expressions of reverence on their faces. One person in the crowd recognized who this person was, and immediately offered a respectful salute.
“Greetings, Honor Guard Li.”
Meanwhile, Zhao Zhongheng flew out from inside the Dispatch Division, looking a bit taken aback. Once outside, he bowed respectfully to the figure hovering above.
Xu Qing was shocked by all this. He could sense the spectacular fluctuations coming from this Honor Guard Li. And given that his memories of Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior were still fresh, he was certain Honor Guard Li was much stronger.
Meanwhile, Honor Guard Li looked around coldly and said, “I’m here with orders from Elder Zhao. All disciples from the Dispatch Division and the Pilot Assistance Division who participated in the fighting will be fined three months’ salary. Furthermore, Pilot Assistance will receive the same incentive as before! Zhao Zhongheng, Elder Zhao wants to see you. Come with me!”
Although Honor Guard Li kept his face expressionless when he looked at Zhao Zhongheng, inside, he was feeling very disappointed. He knew exactly what the problem was here: Zhao Zhongheng was the grandson of an elder, but he was also an idiot. He was a conclave disciple with a spectacular background, but his Offpeak assignment had resulted in a huge mess.
How could such a spectacular elder have such an idiot for a grandson?
Honor Guard Li looked away and made a grasping gesture. As a result, Zhao Zhongheng was snatched up, his face pale with shock and terror. Then the two of them disappeared in the direction of the Seventh Peak.
With him gone, the issue between Dispatch and Pilot Assistance was resolved. However, there were still bloodstains and corpses to deal with, and as a result, despite the issue being over, there was still visible animosity in the eyes of the disciples on both sides.
The Captain stepped forward, took a bite of his apple, and then said, “Alright, everyone, show’s over. We’ll be leaving now. By the way, that fellow just now, Honor Guard Li, is one of Elder Zhao’s favorites. Li Diling. Considering that he personally came to take away Zhao Zhongheng, I’d say Zhao Zhongheng is in for some rough treatment.”
With that, he walked away.
Unit Six went with him. As Xu Qing left, he looked over his shoulder and saw the disciples from the Pilot Assistance Division clustered around Huang Yan.
Xu Qing looked away, and the sea breeze lifted his hair back, revealing his eyes. From the way they glinted, it was clear he knew whom to show gratitude to, and whom to feel resentment against.
His shift came to an end as the evening sun cast its light over the lands.
Once off duty, Xu Qing spent some time shadowing the young merman. Unfortunately, the opportunity he sought never presented itself, so eventually he went back to his dharmaboat to work on his cultivation.
Life was a lot more interesting in Seven Blood Eyes compared to the scavenger basecamp, but Xu Qing kept the same routine when it came to cultivation. He knew that cultivation was the foundation of everything. Furthermore, his plan to go out on the open sea required a cultivation base breakthrough, and that point kept getting closer and closer.
It won’t be hard to achieve that cultivation breakthrough. But I still need to upgrade my dharmaboat to class-seven. Unfortunately, I still can’t afford the materials I need.
Pulling out a jug of alcohol, he took a sip. He wasn’t sure when exactly he had acquired a taste for alcohol, but he liked it now. As he drank, he considered going to Plankspring Way to try to earn some cash. After thinking about it, he decided not to. Until he figured out a way to get rid of that innkeeper once and for all, he needed to stay away for fear of beating the grass and startling the snake.
He pulled the jug up to take another sip, which was when he realized it was completely empty. It was currently dark, and he wasn’t inclined to go out to buy more alcohol, so he put the jug down to the side and closed his eyes to meditate.
Time passed, and soon the moon was up, casting its light over the water. The bay looked almost like a mirror in the night, both mysterious and beautiful. In those nighttime circumstances, Xu Qing opened his eyes from meditation and looked outside his boat. Shortly thereafter, footsteps could be heard on the shore. And then, Xu Qing’s eyes glittered as he heard a familiar voice from outside.
“Brother Xu Qing, it’s me, Huang Yan. From the Pilot Assistance Division!”
Hearing this, Xu Qing stepped out onto the main deck. There on the shore, bathed in moonlight, was a pudgy young man whose gray daoist robe was both wrinkled and stretched taut over his belly.
Seeing Xu Qing come out, Huang Yan grinned. After the fight earlier that day, something wonderful ended up happening to him, and he went out drinking. After getting a bit tipsy, he started thinking about the events of the day, then did some asking around to find out Xu Qing’s name and his berth number. Then he’d come here to offer thanks in person.
“Brother Xu Qing, I’d like to say thanks for what you did today.”
Xu Qing gave him a nod, then said, “There’s no need for thanks. You already gave me some condensing spirit leaves at the medicine shop a while back.”
“Huh?” Huang Yan said, looking stunned. Then he thought back and apparently remembered the incident. Shaking his head, he said, “You helped me because I gave you some condensing spirit leaves?”
“Not ‘some,’” Xu Qing said, sounding very serious. “You gave me seven stalks in total.”
Huang Yan blinked a few times, looked more closely at Xu Qing, and then laughed. He had originally planned to simply come here and say thanks. He hadn’t intended to get into a conversation. At the most, he’d figured he would give a small gift as a token of gratitude. But now he was coming to feel that Xu Qing was more amusing than he’d realized. Reaching into his sack, he pulled out two palm-sized eggs. They were pale, and in the light of the moon, they seemed to sparkle.
“Brother, you’re an interesting guy. Let me treat you to an egg.”
With that, he tossed the egg toward Xu Qing. Unexpectedly, it passed right through the dharmaboat’s defensive shield.
Surprised, Xu Qing waved his hand, causing a host of water droplets to appear, surrounding the egg and stopping it in mid-flight. Looking at it closely, he saw that even after passing through the defensive shield, it was still whole, without even a crack on its surface. He looked back at Huang Yan.
“What is it?”
“A little thingy.”
Grinning, Huang Yan put his right index finger in his mouth, licked it, and then used it to poke a hole in the egg. Instantly, a fragrant aroma filled the area, which Xu Qing could smell even inside the defensive barrier of his boat. Huang Yan then swirled his finger around inside the egg, put it to his lips and took a sip, a rapturous expression on his face.
Meanwhile, the wonderful aroma caused Xu Qing’s cultivation base to stir, and he felt an instinctual sensation inside of him telling him that the egg was something absolutely extraordinary. After a moment of hesitation, he tried to poke a hole in the egg with his finger, only to discover that the egg was extremely tough. He tried again with more force, but nothing happened. Confusion shone in his eyes.
Huang Yan burped, then said, “You need to use your spit. These thingies are strange. If you don’t use spit, it’s way too hard to break them open.”
Xu Qing hesitated for a moment, then sucked his finger for a moment before poking a small hole in the egg. Instantly, the same amazing aroma spread out, causing his cultivation base to stir even more dramatically. In fact, his flesh and blood seemed to thirst for a higher level of life.
Panting slightly, Xu Qing put the egg to his lips and took a sip. Then his eyes went wide and he took a much bigger sip.
Huang Yan stood off to the side, staring in anticipation as he waited for Xu Qing to react.
However, even after a very long moment passed, Xu Qing didn’t say anything.
“Well?” Huang Yan said. “What do you think? Was it good?”
“Yeah, pretty good.” Xu Qing felt something warm flowing through him, and he even had beads of sweat on his forehead.
“Well that’s a given,” Huang Yan said, looking pleased. “It took a lot of effort for me to get these eggs. My Elder Sister loves them, but today I’m letting you try them.”
By this point Huang Yan was starting to get a sense of Xu Qing’s personality, so he took a deep breath and didn’t say anything further.
Neither did Xu Qing. He just continued to drink from the egg.
Time passed, and silence prevailed. Huang Yan sat on the shore, Xu Qing sat on his boat. Neither seemed inclined to disturb the other.
It was a fantastic feeling as far as Huang Yan was concerned. He felt more and more relaxed, and as the effects of the alcohol he’d consumed earlier continued to take hold over him, his eyes became a bit unfocused. Then, he looked at Xu Qing sitting in the moonlight, and couldn’t help but say, “Say, Xu Qing, you’re pretty good-looking. But that’s not going to help much if you fall in love. It’ll make girls feel insecure. When you look like me, though, girls can have true peace of mind!”
Xu Qing didn’t respond. He just sat there sipping the egg, making sure not to lose a single drop.
Huang Yan didn’t seem bothered by Xu Qing’s silence. Stretching out on the beach, he put his hands on his chest and looked up at the moon. It seemed like he was thinking about a specific person. He sighed.
“Do you have a special someone, Xu Qing?”
Xu Qing was getting a sense of Huang Yan’s personality; he was obviously a warm and casual person. Xu Qing shook his head.
“See, I told you! With your good looks, it won’t be easy to woo a girl. It’s different for me. In fact, I don’t mind telling you that today was a really great day. Not because of the reward I got from the Pilot Assistance Division after that fight. No, it’s because I found out my Elder Sister really does care about me. That’s why I went drinking tonight. You know what, Xu Qing? I’ve been sending my Elder Sister gifts for years now. Today was the first time she asked me to get something for her. She said to do it soon as possible! This is so amazing. She actually likes me!”
Xu Qing hesitated. He had never fallen in love, and wasn’t even sure what to do if it happened. But he did know that something seemed off about what Huang Yan was saying. Glancing curiously over at Huang Yan, he could see that he was a bit drunk, and also, that it wasn’t the time to question him.
Then he thought back to what the shopkeeper at the medicine shop had said about Huang Yan chasing some girl for seven or eight years.
After a moment, Xu Qing knew what he should say. Taking another sip from the egg, he spoke from his heart and said, “Congratulations.”
Looking even happier, Huang Yan patted his stomach. “I can tell you mean it, Xu Qing. Not like other people. You know what? I’m the kind of person who repays kindness with kindness. You helped me out today, and I’m going to make sure you didn’t help me in vain.”
Huang Yan sat up and took out a small leather sack. He tossed it to Xu Qing.
Scrambling to his feet, he continued, “There are some dharmaboat materials in there. Consider them a gift to commemorate our newfound friendship. Well, I’m taking off now. Let’s hang out again sometime.”
Swaying a bit as he walked away, he took out his identity medallion and started to send a message....
Xu Qing simply watched him sending a message and chuckling as he left. He was glad he hadn’t said anything more than he did. After Huang Yan disappeared in the distance, Xu Qing went back inside the cabin.
Meanwhile, the sea breeze blew past Xu Qing and through his hair, carrying his scent through the night toward the main city.
The wind passed numerous structures, and blew through street after street. It witnessed all the bustling activity. Eventually, it started to lose power toward the south part of the city, where the Sixth Peak rose high. And it finally stopped upon reaching an old man who was quietly climbing the stairs that rose up the peak.
If the wind had a spirit, and it could return to Xu Qing and report what it saw, he would recognize that man. It was none other than... Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior.
The moonlight revealed that his face was more wrinkled than before. In fact, every wrinkle seemed deep and full of melancholy. Altogether, they made the patriarch seem full to the brim with bitterness. After trudging to a spot halfway up the mountain peak, he stopped outside of a mansion grotto.
It had an arched stone doorway surrounded by verdant green grass. Above the doors, the name of the grotto was carved in calligraphy as flamboyant as dancing dragons and swirling phoenixes.
Idle House Grotto.
The name alone made it obvious that whoever occupied this mansion grotto was calm, tranquil, and elegant. They were the kind of person who liked to pick flowers and relax indoors.
Outside of the grotto, Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior took a deep breath, then clasped his hands and bowed.
“Fellow Daoist Idlecloud. Do you have time to visit with an old friend?”