Chapter 49: Ghost, Five-Year Plan
Harvest?
Li Qingqiu’s first thought was of Bai Ning’er. Did the lucky one finally show his worth?
He stood up and followed Li Sifeng, with Yuan Li—who was holding the Thousand Spirit Fruit—standing as well and trailing behind them.
“Tell me about your experience down the mountain first,” Li Qingqiu asked, turning his head slightly toward Li Sifeng.
Now, Li Sifeng’s height had already surpassed his shoulder, nearly reaching his earlobe, which made Li Qingqiu feel somewhat sentimental.
This kid could finally stand on his own.
“All went smoothly. We punished the wicked, upheld justice, made a name for ourselves—nothing much to talk about. Just bandit extermination. We barely met any real experts.” Li Sifeng said nonchalantly. This trip had been far less thrilling than the Martial Arts Tournament before, but unlike that time, he was the one leading the team. His sense of accomplishment was still strong.
Just then, a group of disciples entered the courtyard carrying large chests. Li Qingqiu and the others stopped walking.
Cheng Canghai followed behind them, looking at Li Qingqiu with excitement. “Sect Master, come look—so much wealth!”
They carried in three large chests in total, each requiring two people to lift—clearly heavy.
Li Dongyue and Wu Man’er walked at the rear. Compared to the haul, Li Dongyue cared more about whether Wu Man’er was injured.
Li Qingqiu raised his brows and asked, “Where did all this come from? Don’t tell me it’s a reward from the authorities—I won’t believe that.”
Li Sifeng took a step forward, opened one of the chests, and grinned proudly. “Loot from the bandits. Those mountain thieves were really rich, but since they were wanted men, they didn’t dare spend it.”
Li Qingqiu walked to the chest and looked inside. It was piled high with copper coins, gold and silver jewels, and even some paintings and scrolls—clearly valuable items.
He walked to check the other two chests. Both were filled with treasures as well. The disciples who had gone down the mountain with Li Sifeng all looked expectantly toward Li Qingqiu, hoping for praise.
When Li Qingqiu’s expression didn’t change much, Li Sifeng thought his senior brother was displeased and asked, “Senior Brother, is there something wrong?”
“These valuables were stolen from commoners and clans by those bandits—they’re ill-gotten gains,” Li Qingqiu said calmly.
The disciples’ hearts skipped a beat at his words, and Li Sifeng grew anxious.
“What does the bandits’ evil have to do with us? Senior Brother, you’re not planning to return it, are you? Even though we’re strong and cutting down bandits was easy, we still risked our lives for this!” Li Sifeng said, wide-eyed. He voiced the thoughts of the others as well.
Li Qingqiu shot him a look and said irritably, “Return it? To where? To the officials? It’d probably be embezzled halfway. Have your Second Senior Brother count everything, take out two-thirds, and send it down the mountain in batches to trade for grain and cloth to distribute to the villagers around the Ancient Great Mountain Range. That will earn Clear Sky Sect a good reputation. It’s our rightful gain—and your credit, too.”
“You may each pick one item from these chests as a reward.”
Hearing this, the disciples’ eyes lit up, and they all bowed in gratitude to Li Qingqiu.
The Sect Master’s words were straightforward, but no one felt offended. They could support the sect doing good deeds—but not without reward, especially since these riches were earned at risk of their own lives.
Li Qingqiu picked up an old bronze mirror from one of the chests, then stepped aside and gestured for the disciples to start choosing.
Li Sifeng didn’t join the scramble. He walked over to Li Qingqiu and whispered, “Senior Brother, isn’t two-thirds a bit too much?”
“Two-thirds may seem a lot, but scattered among the villages near the Ancient Great Mountain Range, it won’t go far. To accomplish great things, one can’t be stingy. Moreover, this wealth came unexpectedly—from the people, returned to the people,” Li Qingqiu said casually.
The Clear Sky Sect wasn’t short on money recently; daily expenses and construction plans were all covered.
Besides, distributing this wealth would bring them endless goodwill—and future disciples. In the long run, it was far from a loss.
The more disciples they had, the higher the chance of true geniuses appearing. Over the past half-year, most new recruits had poor cultivation aptitude, so he had to take Zhang Yuchun’s advice—to expand their reputation and attract more people to join.
Li Sifeng pursed his lips but had nothing more to say after hearing that.
Li Qingqiu leaned close and whispered, “Take Bai Ning’er with you when you go down the mountain next time. That kid seems quite perceptive. When you have time, teach him a bit more.”
After speaking, Li Qingqiu patted Li Sifeng’s shoulder, then picked up Yuan Li and walked toward a nearby long table.
Li Sifeng looked at Bai Ning’er with a strange expression. Since the boy was short, he was squeezed between two disciples, only half his body visible—quite comical.
He couldn’t tell what was special about the kid, but since Senior Brother had mentioned him personally, he would naturally pay more attention in the future.
After setting Yuan Li down, Li Qingqiu returned alone to his room.
The true reward from Li Sifeng’s trip wasn’t the treasure—but the bronze mirror Li Qingqiu had taken.
Inside his room, Li Qingqiu shut the door, sat at his desk, and took out the ancient bronze mirror from his robe.
The mirror emitted a faint aura of ghostly souls.
Without practicing the Soul-Confining Spell, it would have been almost impossible to sense. Li Sifeng, with his lower cultivation, surely hadn’t noticed anything.
The Soul-Confining Spell was no simple technique. Li Qingqiu had only practiced it occasionally and hadn’t fully mastered it yet. But it did make his perception of spirits more acute.
The bronze mirror looked ordinary, even a bit old, with a cloudy surface.
He didn’t recklessly inject Vital Energy into it. Instead, he silently circulated the Soul-Confining Spell’s mental method, staring fixedly at the mirror’s surface.
Suddenly, he caught a glimpse—a white-clad woman with disheveled hair, barefoot, lying in darkness.
Shocked, he quickly averted his gaze.
There really was a ghost?
This wasn’t his first encounter with a magical artifact, which confirmed that cultivators had once existed on this land. Why they had since vanished, he didn’t know.
After thinking it over, he decided not to stir the situation. He couldn’t judge how strong the ghost within the mirror was—but at least, for now, she seemed dormant.
He rose and placed the bronze mirror on the windowsill, avoiding direct sunlight.
After setting it down, he left the room.
Outside, the sunlight gradually dimmed, until night fell and the mirror was completely enveloped in darkness.
——
The Spring Festival arrived once again. Compared to past years, Clear Sky Sect had even more new faces, making the celebration livelier than ever.
Chickens and pigs were slaughtered, firecrackers resounded—the festivities far grander than the year before, letting every disciple feel the goodwill of the sect’s leaders.
After three days of merrymaking, Jiang Zhaoxia and Li Sifeng each led a team down the mountain—one seeking vengeance, the other upholding justice.
Once they departed, Clear Sky Sect grew quiet again.
At noon, in a forest, nine disciples stood before Li Qingqiu, faces filled with excitement, eyes fixed on him.
These nine were the fastest-improving disciples of the past year. Li Qingqiu was here to fulfill his promise—to teach them the first layer of the Primordial Unity Scripture.
“The Primordial Unity Scripture is the Clear Sky Sect’s exclusive secret art. Once you master its first layer, you will be true inheriting disciples. I won’t set a time limit—be it in one year or thirty. Even if it takes decades, once you reach the first layer, I’ll teach you the second. But remember this: the Primordial Unity Scripture must never be spread outside. Even if one day you descend the mountain and have families of your own, you must not pass it to your descendants. If the sect discovers that anyone outside the register learns this art, no matter where they flee—Clear Sky Sect will hunt them down to the death.”
Li Qingqiu’s tone was solemn, and his words sobered the nine disciples immediately.
“Of course,” he added more gently, “if your children wish to cultivate the Primordial Unity Scripture in the future, you may recommend them to join the sect and receive it legitimately. Understood?”
Once too many practiced it, the scripture would inevitably spread. The best he could do was set the rule in advance.
He would teach the Primordial Unity Scripture layer by layer, ensuring no one could surpass him without his knowing.
Seeing the disciples somewhat fearful, Li Qingqiu stopped speaking and began teaching the scripture’s mental method and the technique of seated meditation and energy absorption.
At the First Layer of Nourishing Vital Energy Realm, one had the right to roam the martial world.
At the Second Layer, one could, like Yang Jueding, dominate a region.
At the Third Layer, within Guzhou’s martial world, one could compete with anyone.
Li Qingqiu’s current goal was to train one hundred cultivators of the First Layer of Nourishing Vital Energy Realm within five years.
It was an ambitious target. For many, the First Layer was an insurmountable chasm.
He instructed them for two days, then sent the nine disciples away to cultivate on their own.
Each had their own friends, and soon word spread among the sect. Though none revealed the secrets of the Primordial Unity Scripture, they confirmed that the Sect Master hadn’t lied—those who diligently cultivated and completed their tasks could indeed gain access to the sect’s ultimate art.
After Li Sifeng’s team left the mountain, Zhang Yuchun remained in the sect, tightening management and building his own administrative team, saving Li Qingqiu much trouble.
When the winter snow finally melted, more and more people came up the mountain seeking medical aid. The fame of Clear Sky Sect had spread throughout the region around the Ancient Great Mountain Range.
That day, Liu Fanzhou—the wealthy patron funding the sect’s roadwork—visited again.
Li Qingqiu, Zhang Yuchun, and Li Dongyue personally received him, inviting his daughter Liu Yan to join as well.
Seeing that Liu Yan’s health had greatly improved—her complexion rosy and vibrant—Liu Fanzhou was overjoyed. When he learned she had become Li Dongyue’s disciple, he immediately presented a jade pendant as a gift of apprenticeship.
After some pleasant conversation, Liu Fanzhou’s expression grew serious.
“Sect Master Li, I’ve come with news—you must prepare early.”
Li Qingqiu smiled. “What is it?”
Without hesitation, Liu Fanzhou continued, “The rebel armies across the land have been suppressed, and the local governments are still clearing out bandits. This years-long chaos has awakened His Majesty’s caution. The Great Li Dynasty’s territory is vast, and the court can’t manage every corner. The Emperor plans to summon martial experts from every sect to the palace—to assign official posts to sects, entrusting them with the protection of the common people.”