ninety thousand miles

Chapter 718 Auspicious Day
"What time is it now?" Li Chuan asked.

“It’s the eighth year of the Tiankang era, and spring is almost over,” Wen Gu said.

"I've been here for half a year now," Li Chuan calculated the time and asked, "How are Mu Ling and the others?"

"It's alright. I'm back in the sect and resting for at least a month." Wen Guying turned around, looked at Tianzhu, and said, "That kid really has some intuition. He found a small path, and we all crawled in through it like we were crawling through a dog hole... I've been cultivating for so many years, and this is the first time I've ever been so embarrassed."

"As long as they're alive, who cares about anything else?" Li Chuan complained, then asked, "How many people did you rescue?"

“More than three hundred,” Wen Gu replied.

“Only one-third,” Li Chuan said.

"Sect Leader Chu has not returned," Wen Guying said.

"Is it because of the Demon Clan ruins, or is there a problem with the inheritance of True Man Yanxing?" Li Chuan asked.

"Still investigating." Wen Guying glanced back at the thatched hut and asked, "You live there?"

"You're not satisfied with having a house to shelter you from the wind and rain?" Li Chuan said. "Come in and have a seat."

The two humans and two demons entered the thatched hut.

"It really is just a thatched hut." Wen Guying looked around, picked up a futon and sat down, asking, "Were you climbing Tianzhu just now?"

“Yes, I went through all the trouble of choosing an auspicious day, and then you showed up.” Li Chuan sat down as well.

"You don't even know how to live your life properly, yet you're talking about auspicious days?" Wen Guying retorted to Li Chuan.

"You came to see me empty-handed?" Li Chuan asked.

"I brought some wine, is that enough?" Wen Guying took out the wine.

Li Chuan took a sip of wine and said, "Not bad, is there any more? Give me another pot."

“Sure.” Wen Guying took out five or six different jugs of wine, placed them on the table, and asked, “Is this enough?”

“That’s enough,” Li Chuan said, then he began to recount his extraordinary encounter at Woquan Spring, “I caught a big fish there before.”

"What kind?" Wen Gu asked.

Li Chuan described it to Wen Gu. Upon hearing this, Wen Gu immediately stood up and said, "Where did you catch it? Take me to see it."

So Li Chuan took him to the place where he had caught the big fish.

Wen Gu looked into the Woquan spring, then jumped in. After a splash, he disappeared without a trace.

After a while, when Wen Gu still hadn't come out, Pang San said, "Brother, should I go look for him in the water?"

“No need,” Li Chuan said, sitting on the bank and lowering his fishing rod. “A mere spring is no match for Daoist Wen.” After saying that, he glanced at Gong Er and said, “Come on, transform into human form and let me show you.”

A wisp of mist drifted by, and a handsome young man of about sixteen or seventeen years old appeared before Li Chuan.

"Pretty good," Li Chuan commented. "With a little more practice, it will become even more majestic and imposing."

Gong Er seemed a little shy. After humming twice, he said, "Big brother, let's go up with you."

"Sure," Li Chuan said.

“It’s not the Heavenly Pillar,” Gong Er said.

"Zhongshan?" Li Chuan asked.

“Yes, I’ll scout ahead, and Third Brother will carry you,” Gong Er said.

“We can’t get through.” Li Chuan looked at Wo Quan and said, “If we could all get through, I’d love to bring a whole bunch of people with me.”

With a splash, a sound of water rang out, and Wen Guying walked out empty-handed.

He sat down next to Li Chuan and said, "The opportunity hasn't come yet. I'll try again tomorrow."

"Give up," Li Chuan said.

“I’m not giving up, I’m determined to eat it,” Wen Guying said. “Whatever,” Li Chuan said.

Half a day after Wen Guying arrived, Jiang Mei and Yao Shuang arrived.

Yao Shuang walked up to Li Chuan and stared at the ground for a long time.

Even though Li Chuan knew that Yao Shuang was like this, he still felt a little embarrassed. Just as he was about to break the silence, Yao Shuang reached out and handed him a jade slip, saying, "Take this."

"Oh, okay." Li Chuan took it.

Then, Yao Shuang handed her a small shovel, saying again, "Take this."

"Alright." With that, Yao Shuang turned and left, disappearing before Li Chuan could react. Li Chuan was left standing there, bewildered, holding the jade slip in one hand and a shovel in the other.

“There are many things in Xuan Yue Sect that Fellow Daoist Yao needs to handle,” Jiang Mei explained on Yao Shuang’s behalf. “I came from Yanqing Mountain with her.”

"Oh, oh." Li Chuan nodded, focusing his mind on the jade slip. It contained detailed instructions on how to use the shovel and various life-saving techniques.

"How many times have you climbed this?" Jiang Mei asked.

"Twice, I failed to reach the top," Li Chuan replied. Suddenly remembering something, he took out the Stream Flute and handed it to Jiang Mei, saying, "I haven't had a chance to bring it to Sect Leader Wang yet. Please take it back with you."

"Aren't you going to use it?" Jiang Mei asked.

“Hmm, no need,” Li Chuan shook his head slightly and said, “I’ve practiced for months, but I can still only make a sound, not a tune.” He smiled and said, “It’s like a good flute being left with me, a pearl being covered in dust.”

Jiang Mei took the flute from Xiquan, remained silent for a while, then brought it to his lips and began to play.

The flute sounds melodious.

Not long after Yao Shuang left, Luo Xueli and Lao Xiao started laughing.

"This is the Heavenly Pillar? It must be ten thousand feet tall! How did you climb up there?" Lao laughed and shouted at the Heavenly Pillar.

Li Chuan hadn't seen him for several years, only knowing that he owned a large clinic in the capital. He was indeed wealthy, dressed lavishly, his face still round and plump, like a boiled egg.

"Why don't you try climbing it a couple of times?" Li Chuan said.

"Let me give it a try," Lao said with a smile, then strode towards the Heavenly Pillar. After entering the light curtain, he swung his arms a few times and began to climb. He climbed up very nimbly, reaching over a hundred feet before coming down.

When he returned, he was panting and waving his hands, saying, "I can't do it anymore. I'm getting old, I'm more timid, and my legs are trembling."

Li Chuan thought he was faking it.

During this time, Luo Xueli had already conjured up a banquet table by the spring.

The food was still hot.

"Senior Brother Luo, you even brought all this over. You've gone to so much trouble." Li Chuan said politely as he sat down at the table.

Luo Xueli smiled and said, "My master told me to bring the chef directly. He has difficulty walking, and I was afraid he wouldn't make it in time, so I brought the dishes instead."

"It's good to have some food," Li Chuan said. He paused, then asked, "Is the supervisor alright?"

“We’ve taken another step forward,” Luo Xueli said.

"That's good." Li Chuan breathed a sigh of relief.

"Junior Brother Jin asked me to pass on a message to you: he'll take care of your son and grandson's education. But he won't take care of your great-grandson," Luo Xueli said.

"Forget it, neither of them are cut out for it," Li Chuan said.

“Junior Brother Bo said that if you can’t figure it out, you can go to him to handle cases; he’ll have plenty,” Luo Xueli said.

"Alright," Li Chuan said.

When they were halfway through the meal, Wen Guying mentioned the fish that Li Chuan had talked about. Jiang Mei and Luo Xueli were very interested, so they ran to the spring to take a look.

(End of this chapter)