Chapter 58 Dao Zu

Chapter 58 Dao Zu

Chapter 58 Dao Zu

Chen Yuan said:

"Chen is a Qingzhou casual cultivator. I want to go to Huanyue Market, but I don't know the way. I would like to ask Daoist Cao for guidance."

Upon hearing this, Cao You relaxed and said with a smile:

"This is easy. I just happened to be going back to the market, so I can lead the way for Brother Chen."

Chen Yuan smiled and said:

"Thank you very much. How is Fellow Daoist Cao's injury? Do you need to rest for a while?"

Cao You waved his hand and said:
"My injury is not a problem, let's get going now... But don't you want this horned wolf flesh and blood, Brother Chen?"

Chen Yuan was startled:
"What's the use of monster flesh and blood?"

Cao You explained:
"Brother Chen, you may not know that there are some strange spiritual herbs in Huanyue Market that require the blood and flesh of monsters as fertilizer. This horned wolf is quite powerful, and its flesh and blood can be sold for three spiritual stones."

Chen Yuan suddenly realized:

"Fellow Daoist Cao is indeed honest. Even if Chen takes it, I have no way to sell it. This horned wolf flesh and blood will be given to Fellow Daoist Cao."

Cao You showed joy on his face:

"Brother Chen is very generous, so I will take advantage of this."

As he spoke, he took out his flying sword, cut the horned wolf's flesh into several pieces, and put them into the storage bag.

After packing up, the two of them set off for the Huanyue Mountain Market.

But within a quarter of an hour, Cao You's face changed, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and his expression was distorted.

He stopped and said with a wry smile:
"I didn't expect that the power of this horned wolf is so difficult to deal with. It's like a thorn in the flesh. It takes a while of meditation to get rid of it. I'm afraid I have to break my promise. Brother Chen, please wait a moment. I will draw a road map and show you the way..."

Chen Yuan hesitated for a moment and said:
"Chen is traveling with a mortal caravan to Shuozhou this time. Fellow Daoist Cao may as well follow me to the caravan to meditate. By the time we reach Qingyang Town, our injuries should be healed."

Cao You was overjoyed:

"This couldn't be better!"

Afterwards, Chen Yuan and Cao You returned to the river. The caravan camp was silent. Except for a few frightened guards, there was no one else.

The guard noticed two shadows approaching, and his already tense nerves immediately collapsed. He raised his sword and shouted:
"Who is it? Don't come over here!"

"The monster is here!"

Chen Yuan said loudly:
"Don't panic, everyone. It's me, Chen Yuan."

When the guard recognized his voice, he breathed a sigh of relief and put down his sword.

Manager Shen ran out of the tent and ordered people to light torches. After confirming that it was Chen Yuan, he ordered people to push the cart open and let Chen Yuan and Cao You in.

Shopkeeper Shen was still in shock. He looked at Cao You and said:

"Who is this……"

Chen Yuan bowed and said:
"Master Cao accidentally encountered a ferocious beast and was rescued by me. He needs a carriage to recover. Can Shopkeeper Shen help him?"

As he spoke, he took out a silver note of one hundred taels from his pocket and handed it to Shopkeeper Shen.

Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Shen's expression changed:
"Why should Master Chen spend money? When you are away from home, helping others is helping yourself. I will give my carriage to Master Cao."

Chen Yuan did not insist and put away the banknote. Cao You bowed and said:
"Thanks, Cao."

Shopkeeper Shen was all smiles:
"It is my blessing to be able to travel with the two gentlemen. I will have someone pack up the tents for you, Mr. Cao, to rest."

After saying that, he turned around and called for help, cleaned up a tent, and invited Cao You to move in.

The guards were quick and efficient, and finished the work in just a quarter of an hour. Chen Yuan and Cao You returned to their tents, and peace returned to the camp.

Manager Shen walked into his tent and breathed a sigh of relief.

A burly man walked in, bending over, and whispered:
"Boss, the origin of that man surnamed Cao is unknown. He might be a spy for the bandits. How can we let him into the camp?"

Shopkeeper Shen's expression changed and he growled:
"Don't be disrespectful to Master Cao!"

The big man blinked, his face full of doubt, but he immediately changed his words and said:

"Who is Mr. Cao? Why is the shopkeeper so cautious?"

Shopkeeper Shen whispered:

"Master Cao and Master Chen should be two immortal masters!"

The big man widened his eyes:
"Immortal Master?"

Shopkeeper Shen's eyes flashed with a trace of reminiscence, and he said:
"If it weren't for the immortal master, how could I have escaped from the monster's mouth? Twenty-three years ago when I was doing business, I once encountered a leopard monster. Its roar was breathtaking, exactly the same as the roar tonight. The leopard monster ate dozens of people. Fortunately, an immortal master passed by and controlled a flying sword to kill the leopard monster. Otherwise, I would not have survived. The two young masters can fight against monsters, so they must be immortal masters. We must not offend them."

Hearing this, the big man said in panic, "If we let the two immortal masters live in ordinary tents, wouldn't that be disrespectful to them?"

Shopkeeper Shen shook his head and said:

"I heard that some immortal masters like to play around in the mortal world. Since the two immortal masters have no intention of revealing their identities, we should not be too attentive for no reason. We should treat the two immortal masters as distinguished guests and not disturb them casually. If the immortal masters have any instructions, we must satisfy them."

"Yes, I'll give the order right away. We must not let those rough guys offend the Immortal Master!"

……

Chen Yuan was sitting inside the tent. He heard the conversation between Shopkeeper Shen and the big man. He smiled, withdrew his consciousness, closed his eyes and began to practice.

Shuozhou is indeed a place where monks gather. Even a traveling merchant has such a thrilling experience.

However, Manager Shen was so tactful that he saved himself a lot of trouble.

In the following time, Cao Youjing recuperated from his injuries while Chen Yuan meditated and practiced all day long.

The caravan seemed to have forgotten the existence of the two people, and the guards simply delivered the meals on time.

In the past, Chen Yuan would eat some, but now he politely declined, and Cao You directly refused.

When Shopkeeper Shen learned about this, he was convinced that the two were immortal masters who were detached from this world, and his attitude became even more respectful.

Half a month later, the caravan finally arrived at Qingyang Town, and Cao You's injuries had fully recovered.

Before leaving the caravan, Cao You gave Manager Shen a low-level healing pill, which, when used on mortals, could bring the dead back to life, as a reward.

Shopkeeper Shen thanked him profusely and watched Chen Yuan and Cao You go away into the dangerous Qingyang Mountains.

……

"After crossing the Qingyang Mountains, we will reach Huanyue Market. I wonder what business has brought you here, Brother Chen? If I can help, please let me know. I will never refuse."

While on the way, Cao You asked.

Chen Yuan hesitated for a moment and said:
"Chen has been practicing in the mountains. I heard that a large number of independent practitioners have gathered in Huanyue Market, so I came here to buy some elixirs for my practice."

"Then Brother Chen has come to the right place. Huanyue Market is one of the six major markets in Qi State. It gathers thousands of independent cultivators. The caves on the medium-sized spiritual veins are also rented out. There are elixirs, magic tools, and talismans. As long as Brother Chen has spirit stones, he can buy everything."

"Fellow Daoist Cao, you are joking. I am just a casual cultivator in the mountains. I have few spiritual stones on me. At most, I can only buy a few medicinal pills. As for other treasures, I dare not hope for them."

"That's fine. Brother Chen is very powerful. If he is willing to go into the mountains to hunt monsters, he will definitely not have to worry about spirit stones."

Chen Yuan's eyes flashed, and he said:
"Going into the mountains to hunt monsters? Is this a way to earn spirit stones? Daoist Cao Cao, please enlighten me."

Cao You explained:
"There are generally three ways for casual cultivators in Huanyue Market to earn spiritual stones. The first is to rent the spiritual fields of Guiyuan Sect, use spiritual power to ripen spiritual herbs, and hand over 70% to Guiyuan Sect, keeping 30% for themselves to buy elixirs and improve their cultivation. This method is safe and reliable, but you will be exploited by Guiyuan Sect and can only earn some hard-earned money. The remaining spiritual stones can only slightly speed up your cultivation."

"The second way is to go into the Huanyue Mountains to hunt monsters and collect precious spiritual herbs. This route is quite risky, but if you hunt a monster, it will all belong to you. As long as you are strong enough, you can quickly save up a lot of spiritual stones and improve your cultivation by leaps and bounds. To be honest with you, Brother Chen, I took this route and gained a lot, but the wolf monster was too cunning and I almost lost. Thanks to Brother Chen for saving me..."

"The third type is to have a skill. Alchemy, talisman making, weapon refining, array formation, prohibition, beast taming... As long as you know one, you don't need to plant spiritual herbs or go into the mountains to hunt monsters, you can safely accumulate spiritual stones and improve your cultivation. However, the inheritance of the hundred arts of cultivation is mostly in the sects and families, and a large amount of spiritual stones are required. Most casual cultivators embark on the immortal path by accident, and few people know the hundred arts of cultivation, nor do they have the capital, so the fewest people take this path."

Chen Yuan frowned and said:
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Cao, for clearing up my confusion. However, we cultivate to achieve immortality and live a carefree life in the world. Why would there be cultivators who rent spiritual fields and become farmers?"

What Cao You said were things that were not recorded in "Yunyou Youji".

Taoist Yunyou was born into a family of immortal cultivators. He had a rather contemptuous attitude towards independent cultivators and rarely recorded anything about them.

But Taoist Yunyou mentioned Guiyuan Sect once.

Guiyuan Sect is one of the six major sects in Qi State. It is very powerful and the Huanyue Market was founded by it.

Cao You sighed and said:

"Brother Chen's words make sense, but we are independent cultivators with low strength, so how can we bargain? The entire Huanyue Market belongs to Guiyuan Sect. If we want to rent spiritual fields and exchange them for spiritual stones, we must accept Guiyuan Sect's exploitation. There is no other way."

Chen Yuan was silent.

The "Zhang Family Alchemy Essentials" records the method of ripening spiritual herbs, which can greatly shorten the time it takes for the spiritual herbs to mature.

However, this method requires the consumption of spirit stones, which is extremely costly and is simply not worth the effort.

Unexpectedly, Guiyuan Sect developed a method in which cultivators could personally infuse spiritual power to ripen spiritual herbs, allowing the immortal cultivators who had detached themselves from worldly affairs to become farmers again.

Before cultivating immortality, one must farm.

After cultivating immortality, one still has to farm.

Then wouldn’t this immortal’s cultivation be in vain?

He immediately asked:

"Guiyuan Sect is so overbearing, why do casual cultivators like us have to stay in Huanyue Market and let them exploit us?"

(End of this chapter)