Chapter 60: Return to the Village, Sui Niang’s Hatred
Chapter 60: Chapter 60: Return to the Village, Sui Niang’s Hatred
"Haha, you sure have a sweet mouth."
The Raincoat Fisherman shook his head and laughed heartily. "Since there’s nothing else here, let’s head straight back to Yuan Yang City to report for duty!"
"Yuan Yang City." A look of longing appeared in Zhu Ge’s eyes. "This will be my first time going."
"Yuan Yang City is a bustling place, with a hundred thousand mu of terraced fields and a population of a million," the Raincoat Fisherman said with a smile.
"Of course, common farmers—mud-legs—can’t just enter the city as they please. But you are my Quanya. Your status is above that of an ordinary First Realm Cultivator, putting you on equal footing with a Second Realm Cultivator."
"It’s a good thing I have you, Fisherman." Zhu Ge scratched his head and smiled, a look of vicarious pride on his face.
The Raincoat Fisherman looked pleased. Then he suddenly added, "The city also has several Martial Arts Halls, places for cultivating the Martial Dao. There are academies, too, teeming with teachers. In fact, you’ll find people from all the other Daos there, to varying degrees."
The Raincoat Fisherman narrowed his eyes, his words carrying a hidden meaning. "I obtained that *Furious Vajra Palm* of yours from one of those Martial Arts Halls. If you want a method to advance, you’ll have to start there."
"Martial Arts Halls? Wouldn’t those commoners just hand everything over on a platter the moment they see you, Fisherman?" Zhu Ge played the part of a sycophant borrowing his master’s might to perfection, boasting, "When the time comes, I’ll announce who I serve and have them all come out to greet me!"
"Idiot!" The Raincoat Fisherman shook his head. "The masters of those Martial Arts Halls are Second and Third Realm existences. Their status is equal to mine, second only to the City Lord. Don’t you dare act rashly!"
"I see." Zhu Ge nodded, but a few ideas began to form in his mind.
’How strong is the Third Realm?’
From what Zhu Ge had seen, as long as the Raincoat Fisherman had a reason or an excuse, killing a Second Realm expert was as easy as crushing an ant.
And that was without the Raincoat Fisherman even using that strange fishing song of his.
This was precisely why Zhu Ge continued to play the part of a bootlicker.
’Against an expert like this, I have to find a fatal weakness and kill him in a single strike, leaving no chance for him to turn the tables!’
"However, you’ve studied before. You could go to some of the academies and learn the Confucian Dao," the Raincoat Fisherman said with a laugh.
"The Confucian Dao, the Immortal Dao, and the Martial Dao are the great Daos of this age. If you succeed in one, you can become an even greater asset to me."
"The Confucian Dao? The Immortal Dao?" Zhu Ge showed a curious expression. "What do they cultivate? Back in the village, I felt like Yu the Scholar wasn’t very clear about it."
"The Confucian Dao is for becoming an official. A body full of righteous qi wards off all evil, and a sharp tongue can be as deadly as a sword." The Raincoat Fisherman’s tone was somewhat disdainful.
"The Immortal Dao cultivates the soul. Its practitioners can have their souls leave their bodies to roam the world, perform Sword Flight, and form a Golden Core and Nascent Soul."
"These two Daos are most likely to produce shameless, scheming scoundrels—all of them hypocrites. But their combat power is exceptional, so they are considered great Daos!"
’All of them hypocrites?’
’Shameless, scheming scoundrels?’
Zhu Ge felt like the Raincoat Fisherman was describing himself.
"You, however, don’t need to cultivate these two Daos." The Raincoat Fisherman saw the look in Zhu Ge’s eyes and smiled. "The more you diversify, the harder it is to reach the peak. Just focus purely on your Martial Dao."
’Better to be simple-minded and easy for you to control, right?’
Zhu Ge sneered inwardly.
Just then, a hillside came into view in the distance. It was the first stop they had made after leaving their previous location... Mengla Slope!
At that moment, on the layered terraces of Mengla Slope, the hardworking farmers were all dressed in sackcloth and mourning attire, their funeral rites not yet complete.
It was obvious this was related to the death of that Second Realm Ju Zi.
The Raincoat Fisherman, of course, had spotted the scene before Zhu Ge.
But his expression was indifferent. He said nothing, simply continuing to row his small boat leisurely past the area.
"These people are so pitiful, like frogs in a well," Zhu Ge said. "If they don’t follow a strong leader, they’ll forever remain mud-legs. What a shame."
"That’s the truth of it." The Raincoat Fisherman looked utterly satisfied.
"Unlike me. I was smart enough to follow you early on, Fisherman," Zhu Ge said, his voice laced with pride.
But a moment later, the two of them fell silent.
A faint trace of conflict and reminiscence flickered across Zhu Ge’s face.
"We’re almost at your Jianshan Village." Though his back was to Zhu Ge, the Raincoat Fisherman suddenly spoke. "Want to go back and see your ’old friends’?"
The Raincoat Fisherman stressed the words "old friends."
"Now that I’ve pledged my undying loyalty to you, Fisherman, I wouldn’t dare have any second thoughts." Zhu Ge immediately dropped to one knee.
The Raincoat Fisherman watched Zhu Ge quietly.
Zhu Ge kept his head bowed at first. When he received no response, he couldn’t help but raise his head slightly, his gaze meeting the Raincoat Fisherman’s wry, unreadable smile.
"I’ve told you before, as long as you serve me faithfully, I won’t make things difficult for you," the Raincoat Fisherman said in a magnanimous tone.
"How about this: I’ll give you one month. In a month, I’ll come back here to pick you up and take you to Yuan Yang City."
"Really?!" Zhu Ge stood up in pleasant surprise, then quickly bowed his head in thanks. "Thank you, Fisherman! Thank you! I’ll go back and pay respects to my late parents. When you return in a month, I will follow you to the death!"
"Very good." The Raincoat Fisherman smiled. "As for the other people in Jianshan Village, if they’re willing, you can recruit them as my subordinates in the future. I can afford to support a few people!"
"There’s no need for that..." Zhu Ge’s eyes darted away as he pursed his lips. "I worked so hard to be able to follow you, Fisherman. They must all hate my guts right now. I don’t want them to reap any of the benefits..."
"That’s up to you." The Raincoat Fisherman shook his head.
"You and they are people from two different worlds now. In the future, that Yu the Scholar won’t even be qualified to serve you tea. If you want, you could even bring him along to praise you in new and creative ways every day. It might lift your spirits. In any case, it’s your call."
"Mm." Zhu Ge fell silent, his eyes filled with anticipation and glee, as if he were already savoring the satisfaction of confronting the villagers.
The Raincoat Fisherman, for his part, rowed on quietly without a word.
In less than an hour, they were approaching Jianshan Village.
From a distance, Zhu Ge could already see the flat mountaintop and the curling wisps of cooking smoke.
Jianshan Village stretched downwards, its terraced fields shimmering layer by layer, though most of them were now abandoned and overgrown with weeds.
Zhu Ge stood up, a twisted smile on his face that was both apprehensive and ferocious.
"You can jump down yourself in a moment," the Raincoat Fisherman said. "I have to hurry back to Yuan Yang City. You can deal with those mud-legs on your own."
"Alright!" Zhu Ge agreed.
Once they reached the mountaintop, the Raincoat Fisherman lowered the boat slightly.
Zhu Ge immediately leaped down, his Blood Qi flaring around his body to cushion the shock of the landing.
At that very moment, however, Yu the Scholar’s aura flared up.
"Get out! Zhu Ge, since you’ve already cut all ties with me, don’t you dare set foot on Jianshan Mountain again!" Yu the Scholar’s voice was filled with cold indifference.
"This is my home too! If anyone’s getting out, it’s you!" Zhu Ge shot back without hesitation.
BOOM!!
The next moment, Zhu Ge landed, and Yu the Scholar had already rushed to stand before him.
Hearing the commotion, Duan Lei and Ji Fuhui also appeared behind Yu the Scholar.
And so did a disheveled Sui Niang.
Duan Lei held a kitchen knife and Big Belly Dog gripped a sword with both hands, both staring warily at Zhu Ge.
And Sui Niang?
Sui Niang held only a single hairpin, but her expression was completely different from the young mistress she once was.
Even her face was different!
Her once-delicate face was now marred by more than a dozen bloody gashes, apparently self-inflicted with the hairpin in her hand. The wounds had already scabbed over.
And in her eyes swirled a thick hatred, as calm as a deep pool, yet as dark as the depths of the ocean.