Qingzhou had always been a place of outstanding people and beautiful land, a blessed region that had given rise to heroes and legends across countless generations, leaving behind ten thousand tales.

To this day, across more than a thousand years, the one sage universally recognized by the common people — Zhou the Sage — was a Qingzhou native.

Among the countless legends, those about the Dao Sect were the most numerous. And among the Dao Sect legends, many were connected to the spirit isles and spirit mountains of Qingzhou.

Beyond that, Qingzhou was also home to a mountain of extraordinary standing — Mount Tai.

Within the Eastern Sea, small islands were scattered like stars across the sky. To look down from a great height would reveal clearly what it meant to be scattered like stars.

Among them, seven islands were arranged in a pattern resembling the Northern Dipper. Many of the stories about immortals began to be told from that very place.

So it was that water not only nourished the birth and continuity of humankind, but gave rise to endless imagination as well.

The carriages rolled smoothly along the official road. The procession moved openly and without any pretense of keeping a low profile.

Still some distance from Qingzhou — another ten days or so of travel to enter Qingzhou territory, and then another six or seven days to reach the provincial capital… Wulai City.

Wulai City was now Gan Daode’s headquarters. Perhaps because Qingzhou held so many stories of immortals, Gan Daode had not been content with merely styling himself the King of Slayers. He had also given himself the title “Wulai Zhenjun” — announcing that he had received the true transmission of a Daoist immortal’s lineage.

As a disciple of an immortal, he naturally could not fail — for he had declared that a celestial master watched over him, and that he could command wind and rain at will.

And so his disastrous expedition to Jizhou — all that effort, all that distance, for absolutely nothing, and a humiliating retreat to show for it — could not be described as such.

Once back in Qingzhou, he issued orders for gongs to be beaten and drums to be struck, proclaiming that he had cut through Jizhou like a blade and returned in magnificent triumph.

As for why, having slaughtered Jizhou to its foundations, they had come back anyway — it was because they had no desire for Jizhou’s land.

Li Chi’s procession traveled steadily southward, and all along the route, they saw the debts left behind by Gan Daode’s army of slayers.

To build a place up properly takes ten years, perhaps never truly flourishing until a century has passed. But to destroy a place takes no more than a single day and night.

“Chief.”

Inside the carriage, Yu Jiuling looked over at Li Chi: “Do you already have a plan? How we’re going to give that fellow a good going-over?”

Li Chi shook his head: “Cannot be said, cannot be said.”

Yu Jiuling said: “You’ve been spending so much time with Old Zhenren lately, you’re starting to go all mystical yourself. You were around Elder Changmei for years, and I never saw you go mystical on us…”

Li Chi said: “First — I never went mystical when I was with my master because my master being mystical was enough for the both of us. Second — when I say *cannot be said*, it isn’t mysticism. There’s another reason.”

Yu Jiuling asked curiously: “What reason?”

Li Chi looked Yu Jiuling in the eye and said quite earnestly: “Because I want to sell it.”

Yu Jiuling: “Oh, come on!”

Li Chi said: “You want to know whether I have a plan, and what the plan is. Am I supposed to just hand it over when you ask? I thought about it for that long.”

Yu Jiuling said: “How much!”

Li Chi said: “Ten silver taels per question. Fixed price. Fair to old and young alike.”

Yu Jiuling said: “Ten taels of silver — chief, are you completely broke… I’d have to be out of my mind to spend ten silver taels on a question for you.”

He turned away and sat facing another direction, looking thoroughly put out.

A moment later, ten silver taels had appeared in Li Chi’s hand.

Yu Jiuling, looking deeply aggrieved, said: “Can you tell me now?”

Li Chi said: “I can.”

Yu Jiuling said: “Then tell me.”

Li Chi said: “I did.”

Yu Jiuling’s eyes went wide: “You told me what?”

Li Chi sighed: “First — I did indeed say it. Ten taels per question — we agreed on that, fixed price, fair to old and young alike. The question you asked me has been answered. Second — you just asked me another question, namely: ‘You told me what?’ Out of consideration for how well we know each other, I’ll answer that one for free. After this, any further questions are ten taels each.”

Yu Jiuling’s eyes grew even wider: “That counts as a question? All I asked was whether you could tell me now, and you charged me ten taels for it?”

Li Chi said: “That one sentence of yours contained three distinct questions. So should I answer, or not?”

Yu Jiuling: “Don’t answer!”

Li Chi nodded: “All right.”

Yu Jiuling sat there fuming. He had spent ten silver taels and received exactly two words in reply… *I can.*

*I can!*

One word per five taels. Was the chief swindling him? Could this even be called swindling? This wasn’t swindling money — it was swindling his life.

After a long while, Yu Jiuling still couldn’t hold out. He truly wanted to know what Li Chi’s plan was.

Gan Daode had come to make a mess of Jizhou and then run off. The chief had said they were going to settle the debt. But the plan had never been shared with anyone, and Yu Jiuling’s curiosity was unbearable.

This time, Yu Jiuling told himself to keep his words to a minimum. He had to ask precisely what he wanted to know. He absolutely could not stumble into the chief’s traps again — otherwise his meager savings wouldn’t even be worth the chief’s time to swindle.

Yu Jiuling drew a deep breath, issued himself two more internal warnings, confirmed he was prepared, and then produced another ten silver taels and placed them in Li Chi’s hand.

He looked Li Chi in the eye and asked: “Chief, we’re going to Qingzhou to give Gan Daode a going-over this time — what’s your plan?”

Li Chi looked at him and said quite seriously: “Think back — the question you originally wanted to ask was not this question. Which means this is not what you most want to know. I’ll give you one chance. Think it over.”

Yu Jiuling: “Not this question?”

Li Chi held out his hand: “Right. Not this question. Ten more taels.”

Yu Jiuling: “I wasn’t asking you to answer! That absolutely doesn’t count! How can you just say it doesn’t count? I say it does!”

Li Chi said: “It definitely doesn’t count. You asked me first — do you see? I’m still being generous on account of our friendship. The question you just asked was: ‘Not this question?’ Did you notice that? Your very first question was — chief, do you have a plan? And again, I’m giving you that answer for free. What you just asked was…”

Yu Jiuling sighed: “I just wanted to know…”

His words weren’t finished before Li Chi said: “Just wanted to know whether I have a plan?”

Yu Jiuling instinctively nodded: “Yes, that’s right.”

Li Chi pocketed the ten silver taels and answered: “No plan.”

Yu Jiuling went completely unhinged.

He sat there howling at the sky, drawing the attention of everyone nearby. In the other carriage, Young Zhang Zhenren took one look at Yu Jiuling’s state and knew he had been tormented again. He began to envy the one doing the tormenting.

Li Chi laughed: “All right, all right. Stop. I won’t tease you anymore. What you want to ask is what my plan is, right? I swear I’ll stop making trouble. You just need to give me ten more silver taels, and I promise I’ll answer that exact question — not a single unnecessary word, and I promise I won’t set any traps.”

Yu Jiuling ground his teeth: “I don’t believe you!”

Li Chi said: “Try it. You’ve already spent twenty taels without getting any answer. Isn’t that frustrating? All you need is ten more taels. I’ll answer immediately — exactly what the plan is.”

Yu Jiuling: “You’re not tricking me?”

Li Chi said: “See, there you go again — do you just not care about ten silver taels?”

Yu Jiuling: “I didn’t! Pretend I didn’t ask!”

Li Chi said: “Fine. I said I’m not setting traps on you.”

Yu Jiuling deliberated at length, then produced another ten silver taels, extended them toward Li Chi — then halfway there, pulled his hand back again. His entire face was written with distrust.

Li Chi nodded at him. His eyes were sincere.

Yu Jiuling placed the coins in Li Chi’s hand: “What exactly is the plan?”

Li Chi tucked the ten silver taels away, let out a sigh, and said: “Aren’t you a bit foolish — I already told you. No plan.”

Yu Jiuling turned to stone. He sat perfectly still, as though his young and innocent heart had been struck by lightning — three bolts, specifically.

Well… three of those bolts were the paid kind. There had been several more that were free of charge. Though naturally, the free ones didn’t hurt.

Li Chi looked over at Gao Xining and chuckled: “Am I impressive? I just made thirty silver taels just like that.”

Gao Xining sighed: “It’s only because Ninth Sister is so sincere that you can bully her this way. How can you bear it? Ninth Sister, don’t feel bad — I’m your dear elder brother after all… Give me ten taels as a handling fee, and I’ll get all thirty back for you. That way you’re only out twenty, not thirty.”

Yu Jiuling: “Don’t try to swindle me!”

And he moved to another carriage.

Gao Xining looked over at Li Chi: “Was my weakness that obvious?”

Li Chi said: “Every single word was a weakness.”

Gao Xining burst out laughing, then called after Yu Jiuling who had retreated to the other carriage: “Five taels, will that do?”

Yu Jiuling turned her head away and humphed.

Dantai Yajing, sitting beside her, said: “You really are something — knowing perfectly well that the chief and your elder brother are both not exactly good people, and you still walked right into it… All right, give me three taels, and I’ll go get your thirty back. Ten percent handling fee. Fair, isn’t it?”

Yu Jiuling: “AAAAAH!”

She scrambled off to an even further carriage.

Young Zhang Zhenren watched this aggrieved child, raised a hand and rubbed her head, and said with great earnestness: “Young one — taking a loss isn’t always a bad thing. It helps you see certain things clearly. And certain people.”

Yu Jiuling made a sound of acknowledgment: “It’s my own fault. I kept treating them like decent people.”

Young Zhang Zhenren said: “There are far too many bad people in this world who look like upright gentlemen on the outside, when all they want is to take your money. We disciples of the Dao Sect are not like that — we have never deceived anyone.”

Yu Jiuling: “Rubbish…”

Young Zhang Zhenren: “…”

Old Zhang Zhenren: “What’s going on — has our Dao temple’s reputation been ruined to this extent by you?”

Young Zhang Zhenren glanced into the distance at Li Chi: “Don’t blame me for this…”

Old Zhang Zhenren said: “Yu Jiuling — you were cheated. You cannot take that out on my disciple. You must learn to control your emotions rather than letting your emotions control you.”

He looked at Yu Jiuling earnestly: “I have two books here. One is titled *How to Control Your Emotions*. The other is titled *How to Spot Someone Who’s About to Cheat You at a Glance*. Ten taels each. Do you want them?”

Yu Jiuling looked at Old Zhang Zhenren’s completely empty hands, then made a sound of contempt: “Both those books would need to be written by Old Zhenren on the spot, wouldn’t they?”

Old Zhenren said: “Not at all. You could have me recite it aloud — reading strains the eyes. Hearing it is different: you simply sit and listen quietly, and I deliver it with full feeling and expression. Far more alive than reading dry text.”

Yu Jiuling said: “The only thing dry here is my purse. The rest of me is perfectly fine. Quite moist, actually.”

Old Zhang Zhenren: “…”

He pulled Young Zhang Zhenren back a step: “Keep your distance from him. Don’t let him splash you.”

Young Zhang Zhenren said: “Master, you said that a bit late… Think about it — trace the line back from Yu Jiuling to us, all the way back to where the Ning King cheated him out of his money, and it’s all water. Deeply, thoroughly water.”

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