Bu Wei

The person under the city wall looked young, with clothes covered in mud and blood, making it hard to see the original color. Their hair was messy and covering their face, tears and snot smearing all over their face. They held a broken sword, crying and muttering something unintelligible, resembling someone who had lost their mind due to being obsessed with cultivation.

 

As Ning Buwei held Ning Xiu and passed by Feng Zizhang, he warned his son, “You must cultivate well in the future, otherwise you’ll end up like this fool.”

 

Feng Zizhang sniffled and suddenly became furious, getting up and shouting at Ning Buwei, “Who are you calling a fool!?”

 

Ning Xiu, who was sticking out his tongue at his father, became frightened and shivered. His small hands grabbed onto some of Ning Buwei’s clothes and snuggled into his arms, whimpering.

 

Ning Buwei’s face darkened, and he looked at Feng Zizhang with an unfriendly gaze.

 

Feng Zizhang felt a chill down his back and instinctively took two steps back. However, he felt that this was not imposing enough, so he stiffened his neck and glared at Ning Buwei. But when he saw Ning Buwei holding a child, he thought of his deceased senior brothers, he suddenly felt sad and couldn’t help but burst into tears.

 

Ning Buwei, who was preparing to kill someone: “………..”

 

He had lived for so many years and killed so many people, but this was the first time he had encountered such a coward. Even the thought of attacking him made him feel cheap, and he immediately lost interest.

 

Ning Xiu, who had originally been drilling into his arms, heard the commotion and was no longer afraid. He probably felt like he had found a kindred spirit and turned his head curiously to stare at Feng Zizhang. “Ah~”

 

Seeing the child looking at him, Feng Zizhang felt embarrassed and wiped away his tears with his sleeve. He cried to the child, “I didn’t mean to scare you just now…When I saw your father, I thought of my senior brothers who had just died… It’s all my fault…”

 

Ning Xiu blinked his eyes, he didn’t understand much, but when he heard the word “father”, he shouted excitedly, “Ah~ Ahh~”

 

Father, me da~

 

Feng Zizhang cried his heart out, “Wuwu, you’re so good. Your father is still alive…”

 

Ning Xiu exclaimed, “Ah!”

 

Me da!

 

A big and small one, both making irrelevant answers, crying and making noise, caused Ning Buwei a headache. At this moment, a group of about twenty people came out of the city gate. They were all wearing yellow robes, carrying long swords, and had three thin hemp ropes wrapped around their left wrists, with jade pendants shaped like mulberry leaves hanging on them. They walked out of the city gate with a magnificent momentum. The leader was a huge man with a face full of flesh, leaving only two narrow slits for his eyes, but his eyeballs were spinning rapidly.

 

Feng Zizhang’s face changed, and he grabbed Ning Buwei’s sleeve and hid to the side. He whispered, “They’re from the Four Seasons Hall.”

 

Ning Buwei didn’t immediately understand where these people came from, so he stood still and watched.

 

“Why are there still people at the city gate?” The leader pointed at Ning Buwei and Feng Zizhang impatiently and shouted to the people behind him, “Is this how you seal the city? Where are the people guarding the northwest gate?”

 

At this moment, someone rushed out from behind the city gate, panting and apologizing, “Hall, Hall Master pardon the offense! I didn’t notice for a moment——”

 

The person still had a red mark on half of their face, apparently having fallen asleep while on duty.

 

“Neglect of duty!” The leader shouted angrily, drew his long sword, and stabbed the person in the stomach, causing blood to splatter everywhere.

 

Ning Buwei quickly covered Ning Xiu’s eyes, and Ning Xiu probably thought he was playing with him and giggled a few times.

 

Soon, two people came up and dragged the body away.

 

“My Four Seasons Hall will never allow such unscrupulous and slippery people to exist!” The leader warned the people behind him, “Dismiss the disciples who recommended him! Let the deputy hall master find someone to replace him!”

 

“Yes!” Someone took the order and ran into the city.

 

“The rest of you split into five teams and search along the periphery. We must find that wandering cultivator!” He had just finished speaking when he heard a child’s laughter and frowned. “Jiang Yizheng, come and verify the identities of these two.”

 

“Yes, Hall Master.” A handsome woman came out of the team, and the others scattered and disappeared soon after.

 

The woman bowed to Ning Buwei and Feng Zizhang and said, “Four Seasons Hall, Summer Hall, Jiang Yizheng. May I ask if the two cultivators are from Linjiang City?”

 

“No.” Feng Zizhang took out a palm-sized sign from his pocket and said, “I came to participate in the Linjiang Conference. This is the admission sign for the conference.”

 

It was an ordinary wooden sign with the words “Linjiang Conference” written on it, and Feng Zizhang’s name was written on the back. After verifying its authenticity with a trace of spiritual power, Jiang Yizheng returned it to him and turned to Ning Buwei. “This fellow cultivator?”

 

Ning Buwei was already a bit impatient. He picked up the wooden sign and threw it to her. Jiang Yizheng looked at the name on the back and read it out loud, “Li Chengfeng?”

 

Ning Xiu was giggling foolishly at his father, drooling from the corner of his mouth. Ning Buwei was wiping his mouth when he heard Jiang Yizheng’s question and looked up at her, “Hm?”

 

The wooden sign was filled with vigorous and pure crimson spiritual power, exuding a righteous aura.

 

“No problem.” Jiang Yizheng handed the wooden sign back to him.

 

“Dare to ask, Miss, what is going on? Why is the city suddenly on lockdown?” Feng Zizhang, while still grieving, did not forget to inquire information.

 

Although he looked disheveled now, Jiang Yizheng patiently answered his question, “A few days ago, the longevity spell cast on the peach blossom trees by the Endless River in Linjiang City was broken in an instant. The elder of the Four Seasons Hall responsible for this matter died violently at home that night, and his body was eaten by a demon vine. For the past three days, cultivators have been killed every night. If you have nothing urgent to do, it’s better not to enter the city.”

 

Ning Buwei frowned at her words, but Feng Zizhang became excited, “That vine grows from the bottom, with saw-toothed leaves, small and dense, and can kill with a single strike to the heart?”

 

Jiang Yizheng’s expression changed slightly, “How does this fellow cultivator know?”

 

“My senior brother was killed by that thing!” Feng Zizhang’s eyes turned red as he spoke, “It happened at the Pingzhi Cliff seven miles away from here. There’s an evil formation on the Pingzhi Cliff that killed my two senior brothers. When my eldest senior brother and I went to investigate, the vine killed him. He sacrificed himself to protect me and sent me back to Linjiang City…”

 

Jiang Yizheng’s expression became serious, “Let me report this to the hall master and the elders of the hall first. Please come with me, fellow cultivator.”

 

“Naturally!” Feng Zizhang wiped away his tears with his hand.

 

“I wonder where this fellow cultivator is from?” Jiang Yizheng asked.

 

This time, Feng Zizhang took out a jade plaque from his pocket. It was much more exquisite and precious than the wooden sign for the Linjiang Conference. The front was carved with the auspicious pattern of a crane and flowing clouds, and the back was inscribed with his birthplace, sect, and name. “Feng Zizhang of Yunzhong Sect, Liuzhou, Gen Prefecture. My master is Wen Heshen.”

 

“It turned out that this fellow cultivator is from Yunzhong Sect. My apologies for being impolite.”

 

Jiang Yizheng returned the jade plaque to him.

 

Feng Zizhang seemed to have finally awakened from his grief and said to her, “Nineteen miles northwest of the Pingzhi Cliff, there’s another evil teleportation array in the north of the Endless River. I destroyed it in a fit of anger. At that time, my eldest senior brother and I were going to investigate that formation before we separated from your two senior brothers… Although the evil formation on the Pingzhi cliff and the teleportation array have different strengths, they were probably created by the same person. If we investigate carefully, we might find some clues.”

 

Jiang Yizheng nodded, “It’s likely that the evil formation and the demon vine were controlled by the same person. I’ll have to ask Fellow Cultivator Feng to come with me to meet the elders in the city.”

 

“Okay.” Feng Zizhang forced himself to cheer up, used a small cleaning spell, and suddenly turned back into the handsome young man he was before, except his eyes were still red. He was about to say goodbye to the father and son, but he found that they had already disappeared. “Huh, where did the father and son go?”

 

“Have already entered the city,” Jiang Yizheng said.

 

Feng Zizhang said incredibly, “When did they leave?”

 

He was completely unaware.

 

“After I verified the wooden sign, they went into the city,” Jiang Yizheng didn’t pay much attention to the father and son. Now with the people in the city in a state of panic and the outside world not necessarily safe, she held her sword and said, “Fellow Cultivator Feng, please come with me.”

 

Feng Zizhang ignored others as well and followed Jiang Yizheng into the city.

 

Ning Buwei, who had already wandered around the clothing store, was holding a piece of cloth and was asking the shopkeeper, “Is this cloth good for diapers?”

 

The shopkeeper was a plump woman who had been selling cloth for over a hundred years and had seen all kinds of people. She smiled and said, “This cloth is too rough for a child. Let me pick a better one for you.”

 

The shopkeeper took out a soft cotton cloth from the back and pulled a piece to hand to Ning Buwei. “Feel it. It’s pure cotton, soft, comfortable, and breathable. It’s perfect for the little young master.”

 

Ning Buwei nodded, “Wrap it up.”

 

“Okay.” The shopkeeper glanced at Ning Xiu in his arms and praised, “The little young master has such beautiful and delicate features. When he grows up, he’ll definitely be a celestial being like figure.”

 

Ning Buwei tugged at the corners of his mouth and then heard the shopkeeper laugh and say, “With your extraordinary demeanor, your Dao companion must also be extremely beautiful. Why not buy some fabrics for your wife to make clothes? Our fabrics are all from the Jinyi Pavilion, and it’s excellent for both ordinary wear and cultivation robes. Of course, we also have ready-made clothes, but they’re a bit more expensive.”

 

“No need. The child’s mother died in childbirth,” Ning Buwei blurted out, bluffing the shopkeeper into a daze.

 

“Oh dear! I have offended you. Please accept my condolences.” The shopkeeper sighed and took out another piece of cloth. Her tone was sincere and genuine, “This cloth is perfect for making a swaddling blanket for the little young master. It’s warm in winter and cool in summer, and the clear mind spell and warding talisman on it were embroidered by the Jinyi Pavilion’s Golden Core stage embroiderers with infused spiritual power. It guarantees that the little young master will sleep peacefully without any evil spirits bothering him…”

 

Fifteen minutes later, Ning Buwei changed into new clothes, with Ning Xiu wrapped in a supposedly carefully embroidered swaddling blanket from the Jinyi Pavilion by Golden Core stage embroiderers, which was said to be infused with spiritual power to protect him from evil spirits. Ning Xiu bent his eyes and smiled with a milky voice.

 

Ning Buwei pretended to stare at him seriously. “Spent half of the spirit stones, and now we have no money for food.”

 

Ning Xiu blinked when they heard the word “food” and squirmed in his arms.

 

Ning Buwei hooked his lips and gave a snort of laughter, “Father will take you to a restaurant for a good meal.”

 

Linjiang City has always been bustling. The Chengyun Tower was built by the river, and was the largest restaurant in the city. When Ning Buwei sat down at a table by the window, a waiter came up to him with a menu. “This young master, what would you like to eat? Our Chengyun Peach Blossom Wine is especially famous. It’s made from mountain spring water taken from Ruogu Peak in Yizhou, Zhen Prefecture, which originates from the Endless River. It has a rich and fragrant taste and is a special spiritual wine supplied by the Chongzheng Alliance…”

 

“And there’s also ‘Buddha Jumps Over the Wall’. Our Golden Core stage chef made it, and it can boost your spiritual power after eating it…”

 

(t/n: Buddha Jumps Over the Wall-a stew of chicken, duck, pig’s feet, and numerous dried seafoods in wine soup stock, prepared in a huge wine jar (Fujian))

 

The waiter kept talking, but Ning Buwei was getting annoyed. He slammed the menu shut and asked, “Is there anything that a newborn baby can eat?”

 

The waiter clapped his hands, “You’ve come to the right person. My wife just gave birth to a big fat son, newborn babies can’t eat just anything. They can only drink milk.”

 

Ning Buwei said calmly, “The child’s mother died in childbirth.”

 

“Oh, I’m sorry for your loss.” The waiter paused and asked, “Don’t you have any other female relatives at home?”

 

“No, it’s just the two of us.” Ning Buwei frowned. Did he have to go and find a female cultivator who had just given birth to feed his son?

 

That woman who only cared about giving birth and not raising her child was truly despicable.

 

The waiter’s tone suddenly lowered, looking at the older and younger with some sympathy. “Actually, there is a way. You can grind the rice porridge as finely as possible, add more water, and feed it to the child when it’s warm. It’s just not as good as milk.”

 

“Thank you. Please bring me some rice porridge,” Ning Buwei said, placing a medium-grade spirit stone on the table.

 

The waiter was overjoyed and repeatedly thanked him while taking the spirit stone. He smiled and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll find the finest rice porridge for the little young master!”

 

Ning Buwei ordered a few more dishes, and the waiter happily went away.

 

Ning Xiu probably smelled all kinds of aromas in the restaurant and had never seen so many people before. His little nose twitched, and his curious eyes wandered around. He tugged on Ning Buwei’s clothes and pulled it back and forth.

 

“Ah~ Ahh~” His chubby little face trembled.

 

Ning Buwei couldn’t resist poking his chubby little face, making a little dent that bounced back up. It felt very soft and fluffy.

 

Ning Xiu wanted to grab his finger, but Ning Buwei deliberately handed it to him without letting him catch it, teasing him until he got a little angry. “Ah!”

 

Ning Buwei pinched his little face and lazily said, “Won’t let you catch it. Hit me if you want.”

 

Ning Xiu was pinched by him on one side of his face and giggled.

 

The man sitting at the table opposite them, who was looking out the window at the peach blossoms, heard the laughter and looked over. His gaze fell on Ning Xiu, and his eyes narrowed slightly. He spoke with a hint of envy, “Fellow cultivator, this little young master is exceptionally talented, actually born with a golden core.”

 

Ning Buwei’s smile disappeared, and he looked at the man with a cold gaze.