Zhi You’s oath made those who had been suspicious of him drop all their guard.
A man’s oath was not to be taken seriously, except when he swear before the Heavenly Dao.
What kind of determination and sincerity would it take to dare to swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao? Some kind-hearted yaos were moved by this scene, and they even looked at Kong Cangnan with eyes of condemnation.
The Peacock Clan had the bloodline of the Phoenix in their ancestry, and all birds obeyed their orders. Therefore, they held a noble status among the yaos, and other clans had to show them respect.
But Shanghuang Village was the leader of the yao clan, so Kong Cangnan was being a bit too aggressive.
In addition, Zhi You was handsome. When he hung his little head and looked gloomy, he more or less aroused some sympathy from the yaos.
Being stared at by the yaos with accusing eyes, Kong Cangnan really wanted to ask these yaos if they had brains. This Zhi You was clearly pretending to be pitiful. Couldn’t they see it?
And that woman, Jiu Hui, she was usually quite clever, so why couldn’t she see that Zhi You was just putting on an act?
“Young Master Jiu, Young Master Zhi.” Village Chief Kong walked through the crowd and approached Jiu Hui and Zhi You. “Please forgive this little punk. He drank some wine before he left the house and is talking nonsense. Don’t take his words seriously.”
Village Chief Kong repeatedly bowed to Jiu Hui and Zhi You. “The first time I saw Young Master Zhi, I felt that you were a man of great talent and integrity. You seem to be fated with Young Master Jiu, with Shanghuang Village, and with all of us.”
“Father…”
“Shut up!” Village Chief Kong wished he could kick this unreliable son of his away. He smiled ingratiatingly at Zhi You. “On behalf of the entire Kong Village, I believe you.”
After finishing speaking, he took out a stick from his wide sleeve and chased after Kong Cangnan to beat him.
“Awoo!“carpreads.pages.dev
Kong Cangnan had expected his father to beat him, but he still cried out in pain. He always cared about his reputation, but his father had beaten him in front of so many people. Did his father not care about his reputation?
Village Chief Kong couldn’t care less about so many things. Today, in front of the Elders of Shanghuang Village, he had to make his stance clear.
Let alone the dazzling merit of Young Master Zhi, just the fact that he was publicly acknowledged as a villager by the village chief of Shanghuang Village was enough to prove his status in Shanghuang Village.
How dare the Kong Family Village question Zhi You in public? Now that he had sworn an oath to the Heavenly Dao in front of everyone, how would the other yaos view the Kong Family Village?
After Kong Cangnan was beaten up and his head was covered in bumps, the village chief of Shanghuang Village finally revealed a kind smile. “Village Chief Kong, it’s just a joke between children. Don’t take it too seriously. Today is Village Chief Bai’s birthday. Don’t let this little thing ruin today’s celebration.”
“Village Chief Bai, please forgive me.” Village Chief Kong struck him with two more blows before stopping and asking Village Chief Bai for forgiveness.
“It’s normal for children to be noisy.” Village Chief Bai was a gentle-looking woman. She raised her cup and stood up, saying, “Everyone, please eat and drink.”
The birthday banquet regained its joyous atmosphere. Jiu Hui and Zhi You chatted with the younger generation of yaos, while Kong Cangnan sat alone in the corner with a bruised face, ignored by everyone.
After the birthday banquet ended, Shanghuang village chief, who had been wearing a warm smile, suddenly spoke, “The cultivators of the human clan are suspicious. The younger generation of these children have rarely interacted with humans.”
Upon hearing this, everyone waited with serious expressions for the village chief to continue speaking.
“We, the villagers living behind Nushen Mountain, do not like to be contaminated by the secular world, so starting tomorrow, each village must send villagers to guard various parts of Nushen Mountain. Children who are young and have low cultivation levels cannot leave Nushen Mountain.” Shanghuang village chief stood up and put his hands behind his back: “No matter who enters or leaves Nushen Mountain, they must have a token from the clan.”
“Yes!” Everyone bowed in unison.
“Everyone, don’t worry too much. We old folks are still here.” Village Chief Huang laughed heartily. “Village chiefs, when you return, urge the younger generation to cultivate diligently to avoid falling into the traps of the cultivation world and losing their lives in vain.”
“Cangnan, Bai Yan, Yu Li, stay.” The village chief smiled. “The rest of you can go back and rest early.”
“Yes.”
Kong Cangnan, Bai Yan, and Yu Li were the most outstanding young masters of the younger generation. Village chief Huang left them behind so that they could leave the village with Jiu Hui.
“I don’t trust the other young ones to go out, but you five won’t suffer any losses even if you fight with human cultivators outside.” The village chief took out three jade pendants and handed them to them: “I refined these three jade pendants myself. They can conceal your yao energy, and you can travel unimpeded no matter which city you go to.”
Yu Li was timid. She took the jade pendant and secretly glanced at Jiu Hui, then mustered her courage and asked, “Will Young Master Jiu come with us?”
“Yes.” Village chief Huang glanced at Jiu Hui. “Jiu Hui often visits human cities. With her leading you, you’ll be able to integrate into human society more quickly.”
Yu Li lowered her head and revealed a joyful smile.
“Village chief Huang, you sent us out of the village to observe the cultivation world?” Kong Cangnan’s face was still bruised, and he looked very embarrassed.
“What are you observing them for?” Village chief Huang laughed out loud: “You are grown now, and you will be the leaders of the younger generation in the future. If you don’t understand the human race, how will you act outside in the future?”
Bai Yan, who had been silent all this time, glanced at Jiu Hui thoughtfully. No wonder Jiu Hui went to the human world last year. It turned out that village chief Huang had such a plan.
Only by knowing yourself and your enemy could you be victorious in every battle.
They have lived in the land of the yao clan all year round, and now they could go to the human world for official business, and their faces showed their eagerness to try.
“When you go out, you must obey Jiu Hui’s orders and don’t put yourself in danger.” The village chief said, “You should also bring these life-saving magic weapons with you. Just come back before New Year’s Eve.”
“Village Chief Kong, Village Chief Bai, and Village Chief Yu, you take the three children back to pack their luggage and set off in two hours.”
Jiu Hui stared at the village chief grandpa with her mouth open. Was he going to drive them away at night?
“Jiu Hui, do you have any questions?” The village chief looked at her with a smile.
Jiu Hui quickly shook her head.
When the village chief grandpa called her by her full name, even if she had a problem, there must be no problem.
“That’s good.” The village chief grandpa stroked his beard with satisfaction.
Children loved to quarrel at home, mostly when they were free. Throw them all out for a month, stay and eat together, and they could build up some affection for each other no matter how big the conflict was.
Two hours later, the five people were thrown out of Nushen Mountain by their elders under the moonlight.
“As long as no one is chasing you, don’t come back to me until New Year’s Eve.” Village Chief Kong threw a bunch of magic weapons to Kong Cangnan, grabbed his ears and said: “Outside, respect Young Master Jiu and Young Master Zhi. You hear me?”
Kong Cangnan frowned and said nothing.
“If you don’t listen to me, I’ll have another young master with your mother, so that you won’t piss me off to death!”
Kong Cangnan snorted coldly, “Let’s not even talk about whether or not you can give birth to one. Even if you can, the next one might be even more infuriating than me. At that time, you and my mother will have double the worry.”
“Get lost!” Village Chief Kong kicked him into the flying boat and left without looking back.
He was born noble, accumulated virtue and did good deeds, so why did he have such a child?
“Don’t be afraid to go out alone. If you encounter something you can’t handle, go ask Young Master Jiu for help.” Village Chief Yu stuffed countless pieces of jewelry and magic weapons into Yu Li’s hands. “Don’t keep things bottled up inside. Don’t let yourself be wronged. Follow Young Master Jiu and learn from her.”
Yu Li nodded with a blush. Under the worried gaze of Village Chief Yu, she boarded the flying boat. She stole a glance at Jiu Hui and quietly moved in her direction.
After bidding farewell to his elders, Bai Yan boarded the flying boat. Jiu Hui sat to his left, Yu Li to his right, and Kong Cangnan sat alone in a corner.
He chuckled, walked over to sit opposite Jiu Hui, and took out a tea stove and tea set from his storage ring. He made a pot of tea for everyone. “This is my first time traveling far away. I don’t know which city in the mortal world is suitable for us to stay in. Do you have any suggestions, Young Master?”
“When the flying boat lands at daybreak, we’ll stay in the nearby city for a few days.” Jiu Hui took the hot tea that Bai Yan handed her and passed it to Zhi You, who was beside her. “The elders suddenly threw us out of the village, so I didn’t have time to prepare things.”
Kong Cangnan walked over awkwardly and sat down at the round table. He looked at Jiu Hui for a year and asked, “What did you do during the year you were in the mortal world?”
“Collect debts, study, and read.” Jiu Hui took the next cup of tea that Bai Yan poured and handed it to Yu Li. Yu Li took the teacup in surprise, her face as red as a lit lantern.
Seeing that Jiu Hui’s answer was so vague, Kong Cangnan knew that she was not sincere in answering his question, and he snorted, but he did not say anything rude after all.
They were going out, and he couldn’t beat Jiu Hui, so no matter how arrogant he was, he had to restrain himself.
“Have you collected the debt?” Bai Yan handed the third cup of tea to Jiu Hui. This time, she didn’t offer tea to anyone else. Bai Yan glanced at Kong Cangnan, who was still unaware of everything, and poured him a cup as well.
“They didn’t pay back, the debtors are all dead.” Jiu Hui took a sip of tea and praised, “Good tea.”
Zhi You placed the teacup on the table and took out some fruits, snacks, dried fish, and dried meat from his storage ring. He said softly, “These were specially prepared by Grandpa Long. Everyone, please try them.”
Bai Yan smiled, while Kong Cangnan sneered. Neither of them reached out.
A hand reached out and grabbed a dried fish, crunching it loudly.
Bai Yan and Kong Cangnan looked at Yu Li together: “You’re a fish, and you eat fish?”
Yu Li asked, her face red as she gnawed on a half-eaten dried fish, “I’m a koi. What’s wrong with eating other fish that haven’t awakened their spiritual intelligence?”
“No problem, eat whatever you like.” Jiu Hui took out two more dried fish and handed them to Yu Li. “Eat well to grow well.”
“Thank you, Young Master.” Yu Li’s face flushed even redder as her gaze met Jiu Hui’s smiling eyes.
“Wait!”
“Wait up!”
In the sea of clouds, a giant whale was chasing the flying boat. Jiu Hui looked closely and said, “Isn’t that the young master of the killer whale, Jin Ge?”
“What is the young master of the killer whale clan doing here?” Kong Cangnan frowned in confusion.
The killer whale clan’s territory was in the deepest part of the Endless Sea. On normal days, they rarely interacted with the yaos behind Nushen Mountain, and they didn’t obey the orders of Shanghuang Village either. Why did they show up at this time?
“Young Master Jiu!” Seeing that Jiu Hui had stopped the flying boat, Jin Ge quickly chased after it and transformed into a human before landing on the flying boat. “This subordinate greets the Young Master and Young Master Zhi.”
Kong Cangnan had heard that the killer whale clan was overbearing and domineering in the seabed, calling themselves the overlord of the seabed. How could they be so obedient in front of Jiu Hui?
“Young Master Jin.” Jiu Hui invited Jin Ge to sit down. “May I ask what brings you here?”
“Are you going out, Young Master?” Jin Ge lifted his robe and sat down. “I saw you passing by, Young Master, and I came here to remind you that recently, there have been cultivators appearing in the nearby cities. You must be very careful.”
The Endless Sea was boundless. The sea tribe yao cultivators who mingled in these coastal cities naturally received a lot of news.
“A few days ago, the crab clan’s Elder went to Fenghai City to sell fish, but his true form was discovered by a human cultivator. If it weren’t for a human acquaintance who helped him, he would have been captured.” Jin Ge sighed, “Recently, several of our sea clan’s yaos have been captured.”
“A few months ago, a zither shrimp saw with its own eyes that the Jiutian Sect had captured a rat yao,” Jin Ge explained. “However, this rat yao was not a good thing either. It cheated humans out of money by selling fake medicine.”
“Thank you for informing me, Young Master Jin,” Jiu Hui said gratefully. “Please be careful yourself.”
The sea tribe and the yaos of Nushen Mountain rarely interacted, so Jin Ge’s move was a proactive gesture of goodwill towards them.
At the very least, when the sea tribe was in trouble, they would have a relationship that would allow them to put down their pride and ask for help.
“Good.” Seeing Jiu Hui’s attitude, Jin Ge felt much more at ease. Although they had a falling out last time, Jiu Hui didn’t seem to mind. Later, when their sea yao clan go to join the yao clan, they shouldn’t encounter too many obstacles.
“Then I won’t bother Young Master Bai and the other yao friends. Farewell.” Jin Ge turned and left the flying boat, quickly disappearing into the sea of clouds.
“The young master of the killer whale clan is more approachable than the rumors say.” Bai Yan watched the direction Jin Ge disappeared in. “He even came to warn us.”
“He was also beaten up by you?” Kong Cangnan didn’t believe that Jin Ge would be so kind and enthusiastic.
Jiu Hui shook her head. “I didn’t beat him up.”
Bai Yan and Kong Cangnan looked at Zhi You together. Jiu Hui didn’t make a move, but it was Zhi You, the lackey, who did.
Zhi You seemed oblivious to the two people watching him. He lowered his head to peel the melon seeds, placing the kernels in a white porcelain dish.
Yu Li whispered, “Serves them right. I heard that the killer whales like to harass good-looking humans, but they’ve been much more well-behaved lately.”
“Oh, my,” Kong Cangnan clicked his tongue. “Young Master Yu is a righteous person who would not hesitate to expose her own kin, even the whales.”
“What do their ocean fish have to do with our river and lake fish?” Yu Li was a little afraid of Kong Cangnan, or rather, she was a little afraid of any fish-eating species. “Anyway… anyway, the young master and Young Master Zhi did a good job beating them up.”
“Why are you afraid of him?” Jiu Hui patted Yu Li’s back. “Cheer up.”
“Yes!” Yu Li straightened her back and mustered her courage to glare at Kong Cangnan.
Kong Cangnan took a deep breath in anger. Jiu Hui was protected by everyone, but she didn’t give him any face at all, did she?
“It’s not even dawn yet. I’m going back to my room to catch some sleep.” Jiu Hui yawned. “You can choose any of the other rooms, except for the ones that belong to me and Zhi You.”
“Young Master Kong.” Zhi You stopped Kong Cangnan’s outstretched hand, saying in a calm tone, “It’s so late. Let’s talk tomorrow.”
Kong Cangnan endured the humiliation and flicked his sleeves, hiding his hands behind his back.
Zhi You nodded slightly at him and turned to leave.
Yu Li quickly followed Jiu Hui into the cabin of the flying boat.
“What are you laughing at?!” Kong Cangnan turned his head and glared at Bai Yan, who had a smile on his face. “That woman, Jiu Hui, has her heart and eyes set on Zhi You. How many times has she even looked at you at night?”
“If Young Master Kong didn’t care, how would you know that the young master looked at me several times?” Bai Yan cupped his hands towards Kong Cangnan and said slowly, “Young Master Kong, you and I are both heirs to our clans, but don’t forget that Jiu Hui is the young master of our entire yao clan. The elders of Shanghuang Village don’t care about rules and customs, but you shouldn’t offend them so often.”
Kong Cangnan kept a sullen face and said nothing.
“Or do you really think that Young Master Jiu wouldn’t dare to hurt you?” The smile on Bai Yan’s face gradually turned cold. “You’ve only forgotten the rules and decorum because you’re relying on the young master’s kindness.”
“I don’t need you to remind me what to do.” Kong Cangnan sneered, “Do you think I can’t see through your little tricks?”
“My Tea Clan has been loyal to Shanghuang Village. I was born to assist the young master of the yao clan, so I will never betray the young master.” Bai Yan looked at Kong Cangnan coldly. “If you disrespect me again in the future, don’t blame me for being impolite.”
Bai Yan rarely showed his sharp side. When he said such words in front of Kong Cangnan, it meant that he was extremely dissatisfied with Kong Cangnan, to the point where he was too lazy to hide it.
The two of them parted ways unhappily. The next morning, when Jiu Hui came out of her room, Zhi You and the other three were already sitting around the round table.
When they saw her come out, all four of them stood up. Jiu Hui quickly walked over to sit down next to Zhi You. “Why did you stand up? Where are we now?”
“We’re almost at Songcheng.” Zhi You poured a cup of spirit dew from his storage ring and handed it to Jiu Hui. “Songcheng is protected by a sect. Should we go there?”
“Go.” Jiu Hui tapped the formation on the flying boat, and the flying boat immediately descended from the clouds, landing a mile outside the city gate of Songcheng.
“Why don’t we just go straight into the city?” Kong Cangnan asked.
“If we enter the city on a flying boat, all the townspeople will see us as cultivators.” Jiu Hui put the flying boat away in her storage ring. “If you want to truly experience life in the mortal realm, you can’t let ordinary people think that you’re different from them.”
“From today onward, I am the young lady of a wealthy family, Zhi You is the young master, Yu Li is the young lady of the family, and Little Bai is the young master of the family.” Jiu Hui glanced at Kong Cangnan. “You are our servant.”
“You’re all young masters and young ladies, so why am I the servant?” Kong Cangnan was dissatisfied. “Look at my face. Have you ever seen a servant as handsome as me?”
“You don’t want to be a servant, fine.” Jiu Hui raised an eyebrow. “As long as you obediently follow my arrangements, I’ll let you be the young master. What do you think?”
Kong Cangnan: “…”
“Then you can continue to be a servant……”
“Fine, I’ll listen!” Kong Cangnan gritted his teeth and said, “You’re the young master. I’ll do whatever you say for the next month.”
Jiu Hui took out several puppets from her sleeve, pinched a spell to turn them into maids, servants, and guards, and took out several magic weapons, which turned into several carriages. “Get in the carriage, young ladies and young masters.”
“Young Master, these carriages are so large. One would be enough for us. Why do we need several?” Yu Li asked curiously as she looked over the two luxurious carriages.
“Which young lady or young master from a wealthy family would go out without bringing a pile of luggage?” Jiu Hui lifted her skirt and got into the carriage, calling the four of them to get in as well. “When you’re out and about, if you don’t want to reveal your identity, you can’t overlook the details.”
“Never underestimate the intelligence of mortals,” Jiu Hui said as she transformed herself into a beautiful woman wearing luxurious clothes. “Their lives may be short, but they are very good at observing and learning.”
Yu Li nodded repeatedly, while Bai Yan and Kong Cangnan also showed thoughtful expressions.
Songcheng was a city of moderate size. The guards at the city gate were clad in armor. Seeing Jiu Hui and her group’s luxurious carriage and horses, and even their guards were armed with precious swords, they dared not question them further and respectfully let them enter the city.
After entering the city, it became much more lively. Jiu Hui faintly heard a commotion, and lifting the carriage curtain to look outside, she saw a cultivator who had just reached the Foundation Establishment realm pulling on a half-grown child, not letting him go.
“How excessive. Just because they have some cultivation, they bully the young.” Yu Li frowned. “Young Master, should we go help?”
“Don’t be so hasty,” Jiu Hui said. “Sometimes, those who seem weak aren’t necessarily in the right.”
As soon as Jiu Hui finished speaking, a brocade pouch embroidered with talismanic patterns fell out from the half-grown boy’s body. It was obvious that only cultivators could possess such an item.
“Stinky brat, you don’t even have eyes when you steal.” The Foundation Establishment cultivator had a face full of flesh, and he glared at the trembling boy, letting go of his arm. “If you dare to steal again, I’ll beat you to death.”
“Please, sir, spare me! Please, sir, spare me!” The boy begged for mercy repeatedly. A young child of only a few years old rushed out from the crowd, hugging the leg of the half-grown man, crying and begging the cultivator to spare his older brother.
“Why are you crying? I hate the sound of children crying the most.” The cultivator waved his hand impatiently in front of the child. “Get lost, get lost, get lost. Your crying is annoying me. What a nuisance!”
Jiu Hui and the others saw it clearly. When the cultivator, who looked very difficult to provoke, waved his hand, he stuffed a handful of silver into the child’s pocket.
“Why would he secretly give money?” Yu Li was puzzled. Was it shameful to give money to a cub?
“These two children’s clothes are dirty and old, and the patches are all wrinkled. I’m afraid there aren’t many people around who can protect them.” Jiu Hui put down the curtain. “If others find out that a cultivator gave them a handful of silver, they might not be able to protect the money.”
“Someone would fight a cub over this little bit of silver?” Yu Li was even more surprised. Her koi clan wouldn’t even use silver of such poor quality to pave their ponds.
“This silver is more than enough for these two children to grow up safely.” Jiu Hui smiled. “There are many differences between the human world and the yao world. You will gradually come to understand them.”
The carriage stopped in front of the inn. Zhi You jumped off the carriage and extended his hand to Jiu Hui.
“Miss from the mortal realm, do you need help getting off the carriage?” Zhi You smiled shyly at Jiu Hui. “What I said… should be correct, right?”
“Yes.” Jiu Hui placed her hand in Zhi You’s palm. “Thank you.”
Jiu Hui disembarked the carriage with Zhi You’s help, and heard a surprised voice behind her. “Fellow Daoist Jiu Hui, Fellow Daoist Zhi You, why aren’t you at the sect? What brings you here?”
Fellow Daoist?!
Sect?!
Kong Cangnan, Bai Yan, and Yu Li all looked at Jiu Hui in horror.
Oh, dear Heavenly Dao grandpa, the young master actually infiltrated the cultivation world as a spy for the future of their yao realm?!
Author’s Note
Three young masters: Young Master Jiu, you are the god of our entire yao clan!
Little Garlic Chive：……