Dantai Xiu?

Have a drink?

Jian Chou had neither heard of this name nor knew such a person, much less had any intention of stopping to drink. Moreover, the teasing tone in his words was so strong?

On the building, besides this male cultivator, there were also two or three seductively dressed female cultivators and several other male cultivators, all watching below with interest, seemingly wanting to see Jian Chou’s choice.

Most of them, when their gazes fell and they sensed Jian Chou’s cultivation level, had their eyelids twitch.

Only Dantai Xiu remained unhurried, as if already experienced in such matters.

His face maintained its smile, leaving only the wine cup swaying in mid-air as he watched Jian Chou with amusement.

Jian Chou merely sneered inwardly.

She had concealed her cultivation level, so in their view she should only be at early Nascent Soul stage. Only those whose cultivation was significantly higher than hers could discern her true realm, while those with lower cultivation would see things through a fog. But she could clearly see Dantai Xiu’s cultivation—

Mid-stage Nascent Soul.

Quite impressive indeed.

She smiled faintly, replying rather politely: “I appreciate your kind regard, but I have matters to attend to and cannot partake in a drink. Please forgive me.”

Hearing her speak, Dantai Xiu found her neither servile nor overbearing, which was quite interesting.

He had seen many female cultivators in tomorrow’s Star Sea, but none had this woman’s temperament. She had just walked past below, seemingly unfamiliar with everything around her, yet possessed a kind of composed calmness that remained unperturbed by change.

As if no matter what happened next, she wouldn’t be surprised.

In fact, this was indeed the case.

When she heard his invitation, the emotional fluctuations on her face were almost negligible, or at least he couldn’t detect them.

Tomorrow’s Star Sea had always been a very interesting place.

Seeing that she was about to turn around, Dantai Xiu couldn’t help but say “Ah” and laugh in a refined manner: “No time for drinking, then may I presumptuously inquire: Fairy, do you lack cauldrons or not?”

“Pfft!”

“Cough cough cough…”

The drinking companions upstairs, regardless of their cultivation levels, all broke character instantly. Either spitting out wine or being startled into choking!

Dantai Xiu actually asked if she lacked cauldrons?

Was he planning to offer that pile of female cultivators who threw themselves at him to become cauldrons for this woman below? Don’t be ridiculous—who had ever seen a female cultivator use other female cultivators as cauldrons!

All the companions were speechless inside.

Jian Chou below also showed a moment of bewilderment and silence, pausing briefly before shaking her head: “I don’t lack them, nor do I need them. Thank you for your kind intention.”

Under Dantai Xiu’s dark silver pupils, several traces of disappointment immediately flashed.

But in the next moment, intense curiosity and exploration surged up, making his flowing gaze even more peculiar. Jian Chou cupped her hands slightly and turned to leave directly.

But Dantai Xiu’s gaze never left her.

Until Jian Chou’s figure walked straight ahead and disappeared around some corner of the long street, only then did he hook the wine cup toward himself, drink the wine inside, and turn back.

Someone behind him laughed: “Those female cultivators fighting to become your cauldrons aren’t something you can just give to any random person. Even if someone wanted them, how could they agree in broad daylight?”

“Give them away?”

Dantai Xiu walked over, placed the wine cup on the table, and glanced at his friends.

“Did I say I was asking to give away those women?”

“Huh?”

All those who knew him immediately became confused.

Dantai Xiu’s cultivation in tomorrow’s Star Sea was definitely not top-tier, but his fame might well compare with the Medicine King, Sword Emperor, and Wanderer.

Even in terms of being favored by female cultivators, if he dared claim second place, no one would dare claim first.

All because of his constitution—

Dantai Xiu came from an inconspicuous family among the southwestern clans, but was born with the rare Yin-Yang Harmonious constitution. Regardless of gender, anyone who could dual cultivate with him could achieve Yin-Yang harmony, advancing in cultivation by leaps and bounds—truly a top-grade cauldron.

Since reaching adulthood, he had lived under the covetous eyes of numerous evil cultivators with ulterior motives.

His family was destroyed in conflicts in the blink of an eye, yet he always remained unharmed. Everyone who wanted to possess him, regardless of gender, would protect him very well.

As he encountered more and more cultivators and experienced more and more events, Dantai Xiu’s knowledge grew deeper. He understood clearly the disasters his constitution brought him, as well as the benefits and advantages it could provide…

For instance, cultivation was bidirectional—when those who kept him improved their cultivation, he would also benefit.

So he began to “control” systematically.

When his cultivation could no longer improve from his current dual cultivation partner, other cultivators with higher cultivation would come to compete for him, thus naturally transitioning to the next person.

Through such rotations, the cultivators he encountered had increasingly higher cultivation, and naturally his own cultivation grew higher as well.

Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul…

In less than a century, no one dared keep him anymore. By this time, he already possessed very powerful strength and held a status similar to Medicine King Yi Ming Xiansheng.

Cultivators respected Yi Ming Xiansheng because they feared one day they might need to seek his help; female cultivators also favored Dantai Xiu, even competing to become his “cauldrons,” because dual cultivation with him would accelerate their progress.

The so-called “cauldrons” were merely their voluntary description.

In any case, Dantai Xiu never lacked cauldrons.

On the contrary, his current biggest headache was that group of competing female cultivators.

So just now, when they heard him ask the strange female cultivator if she lacked cauldrons, his companions instinctively thought he wanted to find someone to solve the problem of having too many cauldrons.

But who would have thought…

“Surely not?”

Dantai Xiu glanced at them, already sneering inwardly, saying casually: “Why don’t you consider that I found that female cultivator impressive and want to become her cauldron?”

“Pfft!”

The companions who had already been shocked once all spat out their drinks this time.

“Are you joking?”

But Dantai Xiu didn’t answer, only recalling that female cultivator’s unique temperament, which faintly gave him an illusion of having seen her somewhere before.

He merely smiled and said: “There’s news from the Night Sailing Ship. I need to find Xue Wujiu first. You all continue drinking slowly.”

Before everyone could respond, the figure before them disappeared.

Only an empty wine cup remained on the table.

As for Dantai Xiu’s figure, he was already in mid-air two li away.

Encountering Jian Chou was merely an optional interlude for Dantai Xiu. But the next place he was heading to was definitely not somewhere optional or casually important to him.

Flying east from the song house through a prosperous area, he could immediately see the Lan River flowing through the Star Sea. Near the middle section, a fairly wide tributary flowed in, creating rolling white-capped waves.

The river water was extremely clean, even having a blue-green clarity.

A small stone pavilion stood at the heart of the river, its pointed eaves flying high.

There was no walkway from the shore leading to the river’s heart—the stone pavilion appeared to be surrounded by rolling waves in the center, impossible to approach.

But at this moment, there were two figures in the pavilion, one standing and one sitting.

Today’s Xue Wujiu still wore expensive purple robes, holding his sword while standing, with a lazy temperament.

Only those perceptive eyes gazed ahead.

The stone pavilion wasn’t large, carved from a single massive stone, with a round stone table and four stone stools in the center, all connected to the entire pavilion, inseparable.

But that person wasn’t sitting on any of the stone stools.

Instead, he sat on the pavilion’s front steps, which descended level by level into the river.

The strangely clear river water was carried by surging waves, but when reaching the steps, it became gentle, softly lapping at the step edges and splashing tiny droplets.

Black robes woven with golden patterns wrapped around his imposing figure.

The robe’s hem spread on the steps, slightly stained with dust, but he didn’t mind at all. His features were peaceful and refined, but his brows added some coldness, his eyelids lowered, concealing a gaze that had become fearsome.

Hands that had developed rough calluses from years of sword practice were immersed in the water.

His movements were slow and careful.

Little by little, as if trying to wash away all the dust and grime stained on his hands.

These hands weren’t perfect.

But for “swords,” they were natural holders.

The palms bore crisscrossing lines, as if branded with the patterns of these thousands of li of mountains and rivers. When soaked by the river water below, there was a faint swaying sensation.

As if mountains and rivers lay in his palms.

Watching this, Xue Wujiu felt a strange sigh in his heart.

Sixty years ago, he was praised as the “Purple-Robed Sword Marquis”; sixty years later, he remained that “Purple-Robed Sword Marquis,” but the man before him had already become a generation’s Sword Emperor.

Sword Emperor, Qu Zhengfeng.

Compared to when he first betrayed Yashan with his entire being radiating sharpness, he had become much more restrained now, but that feeling of concealed edges in his chest still existed.

He wore no sword, neither the Sea Light Sword nor the Yashan Sword.

But Xue Wujiu had no doubt that with just a light movement of these hands, he could draw thousands of li of steep sword qi from this flowing Lan River, stirring the clouds above.

Yet now he merely sat there washing his hands.

Like carefully polishing a sharp sword.

“Dantai Xiu has arrived and will be here soon.” A calm voice mixed with the sound of waves, he still faced away, his expression invisible. “Perhaps he brings news of the Night Sailing Ship. You should go ashore to meet him.”

“The person hasn’t arrived yet, but you sensed it first.”

Xue Wujiu instinctively looked back but saw no shadow in mid-air—the person he mentioned was probably still en route.

“Even without deliberately extending spiritual consciousness, you can sense the surrounding situation. You must be not far from breakthrough?”

“Splash, splash…”

River water flowed through his fingers.

Qu Zhengfeng stared at the lines in his palms through the fine ripples created by the flowing water, showing no expression at the question.

“Neither far nor near. The hardest to find is the opportunity…”

An—

Opportunity that could let him break through from Worldly Entry peak to Void Return in one step.

Once cultivators passed Nascent Soul and reached Soul Separation, their cultivation shifted from “cultivating the body” to “cultivating the heart.”

At this time, external cultivation remained essential, but more important were matters between thoughts, placing greater emphasis on comprehending heaven and earth, exploring the individual “dao” each would walk.

A single thought’s difference could mean immortal or demon; could mean supreme heaven or eternal fall to hell.

Sixty years ago, Qu Zhengfeng broke through the Nascent Soul peak bottleneck that had confined him for over three hundred, nearly four hundred years, directly entering Soul Separation; thirty years ago, he again shocked the entire Star Sea, reaching Soul Separation peak and breaking through to Worldly Entry.

Now, he had reached the bottleneck of Worldly Entry peak again.

Just one step away from breakthrough;

Just one step away from joining the ranks of the top Great Powers of the Nineteen Continents!

Few people in the current Star Sea knew this situation.

Xue Wujiu believed that once someone learned and spread this news, it would immediately shake the entire Star Sea into rolling waves. But the truth was indeed as Qu Zhengfeng said: “neither far nor near.”

Worldly Entry, worldly entry.

“Entry” meant entering; “worldly” meant the mortal world.

This realm required cultivators to place themselves in the mortal world, to experience and understand the mundane. The more they touched upon it, the deeper their understanding, the better they could break through to “Void Return,” seeking to better sever worldly bonds and cut away love and hatred.

From then on, one would exist between heaven and earth, breathing with heaven and earth.

This was the realm of Great Powers.

“Counting on fingers, in today’s Nineteen Continents, those openly called ‘Great Powers’ number no more than ten, and in tomorrow’s Star Sea only Wanderer Cangji qualifies…”

Xue Wujiu calculated in his mind, ultimately feeling somewhat worried.

“Opportunities are truly ethereal things.”

There were definitely many Worldly Entry cultivators.

But those who advanced to the next realm were only these few. Most people were stuck at this threshold, unable to pass in their entire lifetime, only quietly waiting for their lifespans to end or forcibly undergoing tribulation to become wandering cultivators.

Qu Zhengfeng naturally understood this principle.

However…

He slowly smiled, looking at the blue river water not far away, his voice deep and hoarse: “Worldly entry, worldly entry. The current state of mind is also a form of worldly entry… No rush. When it’s time to come, it will naturally come.”

After all, he was already at Worldly Entry peak. Xue Wujiu was a full major realm behind him, admittedly unable to comprehend even half of his current mental state and understanding.

He didn’t say another word, only sensing someone landing on shore, said “I’ll go ask,” then leaped up and disappeared from the pavilion.

Qu Zhengfeng never turned around from beginning to end.

Worldly Entry was a process of re-sensing the mortal world. The more he stood on this threshold of breakthrough yet not breakthrough, the heavier the emotional fluctuations in his heart became.

Those things that once lingered in his heart couldn’t be dismissed and deepened layer by layer…

He finally closed his eyes, allowing whatever surged like waves in his pupils to be suppressed deep within his body.

Wait a little longer.

He needed to wait a little longer.

The missing person hadn’t returned to their position yet—he still needed to wait patiently…

The world suddenly became quiet.

Only the sound of tides flowed over the Lan River, beating against this tomorrow’s Star Sea that even after sixty years still felt strange to people…

At the end of the long street, Jian Chou stood before an inn’s entrance, suddenly missing Yashan very much.

Tomorrow’s Star Sea was a place where nothing would surprise anyone.

She hadn’t paid much attention to Dantai Xiu’s matter, unless she encountered this person again in the future as an enemy. But although he was mid-stage Nascent Soul, his combat power was probably far from matching hers.

So Jian Chou remained calm throughout.

After leaving that place, she continued walking along the crisscrossing streets.

Partly to observe the surrounding situation, partly to find herself a place to stay, so she could handle matters she could deal with after returning to the Nineteen Continents, and incidentally see if she could gather information about the Night Sailing Ship.

This place was very much like the mortal world of the isolated island.

When cultivators were in sects, they mostly chose tranquil places. But when traveling outside, they generally had business—either needing materials for cultivation, or seeking certain information, or meeting certain people.

So inns became very necessary.

She had walked the streets for a while before suddenly noticing this inn before her.

Built in a relatively quiet spot by the street, beside the main entrance was a very large weeping willow.

Even in the current high autumn season, there were still large patches of emerald green shade, with thick moss on the trunk, clearly showing it was a very old tree.

The inn’s door faced south, with a hanging plaque inscribed with four characters: “Travelers Between Heaven and Earth.”

For heaven and earth are the inn of all things; time is the traveler of a hundred generations.

And life is like a dream—how much joy is there?

Also said: Between heaven and earth, human life is suddenly like a distant traveler.

This small inn front displayed the spirit of swallowing clouds and breathing mist.

Most importantly, this artistic mood…

Rarely matched her state of mind.

Jian Chou stood at the entrance observing for a while. No guests entered or exited, and the interior was quiet without sound, seeming to be quite a peaceful place.

So she stepped inside.

“Click.”

The moment her foot fell, she wasn’t stepping on the inn’s main hall floor, but on the long wooden planks of a walkway.

What appeared before her—where was the inn hall and counter she had expected? Clearly a world of beautiful lake scenery!

It was like stepping into a teleportation array.

What she saw was actually a vast lake, its surface shrouded in misty waves, holding distant mountains of unknown reality. The lake was scattered with island dots like chess pieces, like green snails in a silver plate, appearing and disappearing in the vast mist, indistinct.

Several lonely boats were tied with ropes to wooden posts at the walkway’s ferry, swaying gently with the waves.

Jian Chou was immediately stunned.

Even though she had instinctive wariness when entering the inn, she couldn’t have expected to see such a scene, hardly believing her own eyes.

Instinctively, she looked back—

The door she came through was still there, but had faded to a vague shadow.

She also couldn’t see what was outside the door, only vaguely feeling she could walk out from here.

“Senior, are you staying at the inn?”

A voice that sounded still somewhat youthful rang out behind Jian Chou.

Only then did Jian Chou notice that on the walkway ahead stood a short child wearing ochre-colored dao robes, with a string of jade slips hanging at his waist, his large transparent eyes looking at her.

Staying at the inn?

She looked around and laughed: “So this is still an inn.”

“Still an inn, just with some arrangement. The owner once obtained this from the Chan Sect—made from a mustard seed, so it’s a separate world.”

The child had probably seen many expressions of surprise from lodging guests, so he quickly explained.

“If you want to stay at the inn, after paying the spirit stones, you can board the boat directly. The boat will take you to your room, on the small islands in the lake, quite quiet enough.”

So those small islands in the lake were “rooms.”

Obtained from the Chan Sect’s “mustard seed”—Buddhism had always spoken of “a mustard seed containing Mount Sumeru,” which was a use of rules, similar to qiankun bags.

But this type of technique had always only been able to contain dead objects.

To contain living things, even living people…

Wouldn’t this require a “Bounded Realm” Great Power to accomplish?

Jian Chou thought briefly, couldn’t help but feel her heart tremble momentarily, instantly understanding the identity of this inn’s owner.

Looking across the Star Sea, there were three at the top.

The current Qu Zhengfeng was still at Worldly Entry, not yet reaching Void Return, much less Bounded Realm. This inn was probably owned by the legendary Seven-Tribulation Wandering Immortal, Wanderer Cangji!

She should have asked clearly, but then thought that with her Nascent Soul cultivation, in the eyes of someone who could create this inn, she probably wasn’t worth mentioning.

No need for schemes, thus no danger.

So after brief consideration, Jian Chou walked directly up, looked at the small boat tied to the walkway, only asking: “I have business in the Star Sea and will probably stay several days. I wonder how many spirit stones are needed?”

“Ten stones per day, but monthly is cheaper—only two hundred stones.” the child answered.

Currently Jian Chou had mostly Extreme Domain black jade, but as a Yashan disciple, she didn’t lack spirit stones either. She should have returned directly to Yashan now, but encountering Zuoliu’s matter, she couldn’t just ignore it, inevitably needing to linger here for a while.

So for safety’s sake, Jian Chou first paid for a month’s worth of spirit stones.

“Because quite a few people have been staying recently, several nice islands by the lake shore are occupied. But there’s still a decent one in the lake’s southwest center. Hold the jade slip to board—you’ll reach the island momentarily and can enter and exit with the jade slip. The boat has a copy of ‘Zhilin Sou Daily News’ to help you understand outside situations during seclusion.”

The child collected the spirit stones, untied a jade slip and handed it to Jian Chou, then ran to untie the boat by the walkway.

That small boat truly looked like just a willow leaf floating on the water.

The boat was empty, with only a small square table set with a pot of clear tea and two or three tea cups, beside which lay a closed gilt folder inscribed with several delicate seal script characters:

Zhilin Sou Daily News.

Zhilin Sou.

This was a familiar name.

This person was the “know-it-all” of the Nineteen Continents, legendarily someone who knew five thousand or even fifty thousand years of history, making a living by compiling various important news of the Nineteen Continents.

The ranking booklet for the Left Three Thousand Minor Assembly was compiled by him, wasn’t it?

Jian Chou still remembered several old friends angrily calling him “Zhizhang Sou” (Wise Fool).

“Daily News…”

She pondered briefly, then directly took the jade slip from the child and boarded the small boat.

The jade slip projected faint light, mysteriously seeming like guidance. The small boat thus carved a fish-tail-like ripple, heading toward the vast misty waves ahead.

Jian Chou glanced around, then bent to pick up this volume of “Zhilin Sou Daily News” to read.

Simply put, this should be a summary of major daily events in the Nineteen Continents. Anyone possessing this folder could know the latest situations in the Nineteen Continents regardless of location.

The folder’s contents would automatically update to new material each morning.

Perhaps because this place was in tomorrow’s Star Sea, much of the major news was local to tomorrow’s Star Sea, with outside news occupying only a small portion.

Jian Chou instinctively wanted to open the section for the Central Domain’s Left Three Thousand.

But just as her finger approached, several characters at the folder’s end suddenly caught her eye—

“Nine Heavenly Tablets, Latest!”

Nine Heavenly Tablets…

Thinking back, it seemed like just yesterday.

When she first went to explore Qingfeng Nunnery’s hidden realm, taking the route through Western Sea Plaza, she still clearly remembered who held first place on the tablets then.

After so many years, who knew what they had become?

From Zhou Jun’s account, she only knew the general situation but hadn’t specifically asked about the tablets.

Curious thoughts arising in her heart, Jian Chou’s finger moved away from the “Left Three Thousand” characters and opened the tablet section.

Fine points of light immediately floated from the folder, assembling into new text.

Exactly the current rankings of the Nine Heavenly Tablets, complete with these people’s origins and cultivation realms.

First Heavenly Tablet, Qi Refining: Xin Han.

Southern Domain Southwest Third Clan, Xin Family, realm late-stage Qi Refining perfection.

Second Heavenly Tablet, Foundation Establishment: Xu Heng.

Central Domain Yashan, realm late-stage Foundation Establishment.

Third Heavenly Tablet, Golden Core: Jiang He.

Central Domain Yashan, realm late-stage Golden Core perfection.

Fourth Heavenly Tablet, Nascent Soul: Wang Que.

Central Domain Kunwu, realm late-stage Nascent Soul.

Fifth Heavenly Tablet, Soul Separation: Fudao Shanren.

Central Domain Yashan, realm mid-stage Soul Separation.

Sixth Heavenly Tablet, Worldly Entry: Qu Zhengfeng.

Tomorrow’s Star Sea, realm late-stage Worldly Entry peak.

Seventh Heavenly Tablet, Void Return: Yichen.

Northern Domain Chan Sect, realm Void Return perfection.

Eighth Heavenly Tablet, Bounded Realm: Hengxu Zhenren.

Central Domain Kunwu, realm unknown.

Ninth Heavenly Tablet, Heaven Connection: None.

Jian Chou’s gaze couldn’t help but linger in some places: Yashan’s Xu Heng, Yashan’s Jiang He, Yashan’s Fudao Shanren, and also…

Tomorrow’s Star Sea, Qu Zhengfeng.

From Yashan to tomorrow’s Star Sea—who could explain what lay between these changes?

Originally Jian Chou hadn’t felt particularly emotional, but seeing this suddenly changed place of origin, only a complex feeling beyond words arose.

Besides this, there was also Hengxu Zhenren.

Though Zhilin Sou knew nine out of ten matters under heaven, there was still one he didn’t know: the specific cultivation realms of Great Power cultivators. Without the existence of the Nine Heavenly Tablets, most cultivators in the Nineteen Continents wouldn’t even know when a Great Power suddenly broke through.

Because this group of people’s breathing had merged with heaven and earth, their breakthroughs actually wouldn’t create great commotions.

Hengxu Zhenren was only known to have reached “Bounded Realm” but his specific realm was unknown—possibly he was the only one in the current Nineteen Continents to reach this realm.

As for Wanderer Cangji, he was actually a Seven-Tribulation Wandering Immortal. Though his cultivation was high, he wasn’t within the tablets’ sensing range, making his strength temporarily impossible to judge.

As for the Ninth Heavenly Tablet…

Since around a thousand years ago, when Ba Ji Daozun, Luye Laozu, and Buyu Shangren successively ascended, it had been over ten cycles of sixty years with no one reaching this realm.

Jian Chou’s mind inevitably swept through the various events in Qingfeng Nunnery’s hidden realm, and that mysterious Buyu Shangren…

While thinking, she lightly tapped the “annotations” beside several tablets.

The newly unfolded text shadows showed the change trajectories of the tablets over nearly a hundred years, recording everyone who had once been listed.

Liao Kong of Western Sea Chan Sect, who had once been first in Foundation Establishment, advanced to Golden Core fifty-five years ago and once held first place in Golden Core, but broke through again ten years ago and was now early-stage Nascent Soul.

Kunwu’s Zhao Zhuo, who “picked up” first place in Nascent Soul after Qu Zhengfeng’s breakthrough, broke through twenty-three years ago to Soul Separation and was now early-stage Soul Separation.

Dragon Gate’s Zhou Chengjiang, who once held first in Foundation Establishment, briefly appeared on the tablets after breaking through to Golden Core but ultimately couldn’t match Liao Kong and was squeezed down again, then also broke through to Nascent Soul early stage.

…

Reading down slowly, Jian Chou naturally discovered the most dramatically written entry in these “annotations”: Yashan’s Jian Chou.

Once held first place on the Second Heavenly Tablet for Foundation Establishment, one year later held first place on the Third Heavenly Tablet for Golden Core, instantly after held first place on the Fourth Heavenly Tablet.

Suspected of breaking through Golden Core to advance to Nascent Soul in extremely short time, with exceptional combat power far surpassing peers.

Later the Fourth Heavenly Tablet inscription disappeared, returning first place to Zhao Zhuo, speculated realm dropped or strength damaged.

“Worthy of being Zhilin Sou…”

His speculations were quite close to reality.

Jian Chou raised her eyebrows slightly and laughed, feeling that though she hadn’t been around these sixty years, many people must have been discussing her, since such puzzling “unsolved cases” on the Nine Heavenly Tablets were truly rare.

Slightly moist wind brushed across her face.

The small boat beneath her feet had already sailed far from shore while she read the folder, quickly approaching some islands in the lake, then quickly moving away.

Near the lake’s center, a strange fragrance drifted over.

Hearing this while thinking, Jian Chou couldn’t help but look up.

In the distant lake bloomed a patch of pink-white lotus flowers, most having reached late bloom, revealing green lotus pods inside. The swaying lotus leaves in the mist also tinted the mist with vague pale green.

At this moment, another identical small boat was slowly emerging from this patch of lotus flowers.

Several broad lotus leaves and lotus pod stems lay scattered in the boat, and a man in grey robes sat cross-legged on the boat, holding a lotus pod and breaking it apart, removing the lotus seeds inside.

But he didn’t eat them, only picking out the tender green lotus hearts and putting them on his tongue.

Ordinary features, not particularly outstanding.

But his entire being carried a very comfortable temperament. Even sitting in the boat breaking apart lotus pods, one could sense his attitude of contentment with circumstances.

At first glance, placed among those lotus flowers, he seemed tainted with worldly dust; but looking again, he was in a cage yet his heart wandered beyond the world.

Like a mountain hermit, drinking dew and eating bracken fern.

Lotus hearts were always the most bitter. Even when making lotus seed soup, most people would take the trouble to remove them. This was the first time seeing someone eat only lotus hearts…

This person should also be a guest of the inn.

However…

Watching that boat emerge and gradually approach her direction, Jian Chou felt a very strange sensation arise in her heart. This temperament—she should have seen it somewhere before…

When she noticed him, he also noticed her.

His movements of breaking lotus seeds didn’t stop, but his gaze naturally turned over, falling on her without making her feel rude or presumptuous.

In that instant, Jian Chou saw swords in his eyes.

Sword intent.

Then, Wuduan’s words when he betrayed his junior brother echoed in her ears:

“Junior Brother Xie learned various things. Under Master’s instruction, we all tried sword intent with him, so he knows three types of sword intent. Among them, Zhuoran sword intent learned from Senior Brother Zhao Zhuo, Jiangliu sword intent learned from Second Senior Brother Yue He, and Yinzhe sword intent learned from Fourth Junior Brother Wang Que…”

No wonder it looked familiar.

Wasn’t this exactly the kind of sword intent Xie Buchen once used?

Jian Chou met his gaze without looking away, but her heart instantly became subtle.

Tomorrow’s Star Sea was so vast, yet she happened to encounter at this inn—Kunwu’s Hengxu Zhenren’s fourth disciple, current holder of first place on the Fourth Heavenly Tablet—

Hermit Sword, Wang Que!