Journey to the West: Cultivation Begins at Jindou Mountain

Chapter 311 Yan Chixia

Upon seeing this man, the man in black knew that his business was doomed.

But more than buying and selling, he was more concerned about why this man had suddenly come here today.

"Yan Chixia, we've always kept to ourselves! Are you here today to meddle in my business?!"

Upon hearing the black-robed man's hoarse voice, which sounded fierce but was actually cowardly, Yan Chixia chuckled, stepped forward, and grabbed Niu Yi by the neck.

"Mind your own business? You bullied my little brother, and you're telling me not to meddle? Brother, do you think that makes any sense?"

Niu Yi turned to look at Yan Chixia, who had given him a wink, and nodded with a smile:

“Brother Yan is right.”

"Hey~ Did you hear what my brother called me?"

"Bullshit!!" The man in black robes was clearly angered by the two, and his body under the black robes rose and fell slowly.

“I heard you call him a scholar! You two are clearly complete strangers and have never met before!”

"Or perhaps, you two are deliberately trying to bully me!"

As the black-robed man's angry voice fell, swarms of poisonous insects crawled out from all directions of the alley and rushed towards the two of them.

"Hey, hey, hey, I was just joking. You old codger, you wouldn't take this seriously, would you?"

As Yan Chixia spoke, his hands moved swiftly. He grabbed Niu Yi's shoulder and leaped up. Niu Yi felt a lightness in his body and landed on the roof of the alley.

Yan Chixia looked at the black-robed man in the alley below and pointed to the south of the city with his wine gourd.

“I’m telling you, old man, don’t bother waiting in the city. I saw the other day that the medicinal ingredient you’re looking for has already left the south gate of Jinhua City and gone into the mountains. You won’t find it here.”

"Hmph! Do you think I'd believe you?"

"Believe it or not!"

As Yan Chixia spoke, he grabbed Niu Yi's shoulder with one hand and held the gourd in the other, leading Niu Yi away quickly before the many poisonous insects reached their feet.

"Yan Chixia, hmph!!"

The man in black robes snorted coldly, and his withered hands emerged from his robes, quickly forming several hand seals. The various types of Gu worms then crawled rapidly toward him.

In no time, the Gu worms crawled all over his body, making a constant rustling sound. The black-robed man's body shrank under the Gu worms' influence and eventually disappeared from the spot.

Along with the disappearance, the Gu worms and the strange things on the black cloth in front of the black-robed man also vanished.

On the other side, Niu Yi was led by Yan Chixia from that secluded alley to the bustling city center, where he was finally dropped off in front of a tavern.

The waiter who was dispensing the drinks was startled by the sound of something falling behind him and quickly turned around.

When he saw Yan Chixia, who had a big beard and carried a sword box on his back, the shopkeeper showed a warm smile.

"Master Yan, you've come to buy wine again."

"Ah."

Yan Chixia nodded and hummed in agreement, then turned to look at Niu Yi beside him, patted him on the shoulder and said:
"Young man, I just saved your life, it's not too much for you to buy me a pot of wine, is it?"

"Of course, thank you very much, Master Yan."

Yan Chixia nodded in satisfaction and took the lead into the tavern. Niu Yi followed closely behind, asked the waiter about the price, paid for the drinks, and then followed Yan Chixia into the tavern to take a seat.

Before long, the waiter returned with a jug of wine and presented it to Yan Chixia.

Then he circled around again, and while Yan Chixia was drinking, he came to Niu Yi's side, stuffed the money for the drinks back into his hand, and whispered:

“Young master, Master Yan has done a favor for our tavern owner. The manager once said that when Master Yan comes, we can just serve him wine and he doesn’t need any money.”

Niu Yi smiled and shook his head, then stuffed the money back into his hand.

"It's not Master Yan who's here to buy wine, it's me. Please accept the money without worry, young man."

Yan Chixia, who was drinking, nodded imperceptibly, seemingly quite satisfied.

Upon hearing this, the waiter hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement, pocketing the money for the drinks, and quickly left.

Yan Chixia put down his wine pot, laughed, and nodded.

"Excellent! Good wine!"

“I say, young man, you don’t seem to be from Jinhua. May I ask your name and who your teacher is?”

Niu Yi said:
“Great Hero Yan, my name is Guo Yang, courtesy name Guangyi. I am from Liuxi County and have no master. I am just a scholar who came to Jinhua to take the imperial examination.”

"Oh? A scholar?"

Yan Chixia sized Niu Yi up and down, then shook his head meaningfully and said:

"Hmm, you don't seem like a scholar to me."

"Then, what does Master Yan think I resemble?" Yan Chixia scrutinized the handsome young man before him, whose face still held a touch of youthful innocence, and asked almost definitively:

“You don’t seem like a scholar; you’re more like a Taoist priest.”

Niu Yi nodded with a smile, his expression unchanged, and said:

"What Master Yan said is true. Although my father always said that the theories of gods and ghosts are all strange tales and should not be believed at all, and made me bury myself in the classics, I still yearn for Taoism and for the legendary methods of the immortals who subdue demons."

"Therefore, I often read Taoist classics, but I have never found anyone with the ability to subdue demons and monsters to learn from."

"I saw a book called 'The Book of Witchcraft' at that street stall earlier. I was excited, thinking it was some kind of magic, so I went to take a look. But now it seems that the person who sold it was probably not a righteous person."

As Yan Chixia pondered, he casually waved his hand and said:
"The witchcraft and sorcery of the Southern Frontier is neither orthodox nor evil, otherwise I would not have let that old geezer leave so easily."

"Don't be fooled by the dangerous little things he put in those things. They weren't meant for you. He was trying to lure a 'painted skin' (a derogatory term for a person who is actually a swindler) to prolong his life."

"That old codger is quite skilled, but he has a terrible temper and won't live much longer. People like him are the most troublesome."

Painted Skin Extends Life?

He naturally knew about the Painted Skin. It was a kind of skinless being that needed to constantly peel off the skin of others to make a skin to wear. This would make the 'Painted Skin' look exactly like the person whose skin was peeled off, or even replace that person's existence.

Niu Yi had never seen the Painted Skin Ghost in the Three Realms, but it seems he might have the chance to see it in this world.

He was also curious about the connection between the painted skin and prolonging life.
Yan Chixia pondered for a moment, glanced at Niu Yi's youthful face and the Bagua bronze mirror that was faintly visible at his waist, narrowed his eyes, and said slowly:
"Young man, were you looking for someone named Yan all along?"

Upon hearing this, Niu Yi nodded without hesitation and said:

"That's right. I've also heard of Master Yan's reputation. After coming to Jinhua, I happened to hear that someone seemed to have seen Master Yan here. That's why I wandered around the city to see if I could find Master Yan."

"I never imagined that I would have such a connection with Master Yan. I am also very grateful to Master Yan for saving my life."

"To be honest, sir, Guangyi has been following you all this way because he wants to become your disciple. Please accept me as your apprentice."

Before Niu Yi could finish speaking, Yan Chixia waved his hands repeatedly, stopping him:

"Hey~ I'm used to being free and easy, and I've never taken on any apprentices."

Yan Chixia looked at the young man in front of him and felt a strange sense of goodwill towards him. Most importantly, his intuition kept telling him that this young man might be very important to him.
And that bronze mirror pendant that the young man had been holding earlier—it looked rather familiar to him.
"However, if you are willing, you can practice swordsmanship with me for a while. If you can learn, you can certainly learn the skills."

After Yan Chixia finished speaking, he raised the wine pot again, took a sip with a flourish, and then said:

"But in return, every seven days I teach you, you must give me a pot of fine wine like this. It must be bought with money. As for the money, you'll have to find a way to get it yourself, but you can't steal or rob. Are you willing?"

Niu Yi readily agreed without hesitation.

"Alright, please rest assured, Master Yan."

"However, I would like to ask you for a favor."

At night, Guo Hai woke up satisfied in his room, sat up and stretched, and suddenly smelled the aroma of food coming from beside him.

Starving, he quickly turned around and saw his young master sitting in front of him with several plates of fragrant food, looking at him with a beaming smile.

"Son."

"Hungry? Come and eat. You're coming out of town with me tomorrow, so you need to replenish your energy."

Guo Hai quickly got off the bed, rushed to the table, and couldn't help but swallow when he saw the delicious food on the table.

"Young master, these dishes must have cost a lot of money. What about the rest of our money?"

Niu Yi smiled and said:

"Don't worry, the money will come, it will come very soon."

"Besides, Xiao Hai, I will no longer be a scholar, but a Taoist priest. Guo Guangyi, Guangyi Taoist, that will be my name."

"what???"

Guo Hai stared wide-eyed at his young master. He felt that since last night, his young master had changed a lot, becoming suddenly more caring and reliable.

The young master who once vowed to pass the imperial examinations and bring honor to his family is now going to become a Taoist priest?
But the young master was still the same young master; the way he looked at him never changed in the slightest.

"What? The food will get cold if we don't eat soon. Hurry up and start eating."

The next morning, Niu Yi and Guo Hai left Jinhua City and headed into the mountains, where they found Yan Chixia waiting for them at the city gate.

"You're punctual, come with me."

Guo Hai looked warily at Yan Chixia, who had a large beard and carried a sword case, and whispered to Niu Yi:
"Young master, this man doesn't seem like a good person. Look at his appearance, he looks so fierce!"

Niu Yi chuckled and shook his head, saying:
"Xiao Hai, it's good to be cautious when you're out and about, but don't judge a book by its cover. Master Yan may look a bit fierce, but he's an upright and righteous man. He was very famous and respected back in the day."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Hai glanced at Yan Chixia's retreating figure with some suspicion, but kept his mouth shut and stayed close to the young master.

(End of this chapter)