Tumor Sword Immortal

Chapter 305 Going South
The ship stopped briefly at a small port called Qingjiang Town.

The helmsman led a few brothers down to buy drinking water and food. Riverboats are not as strict about these preparations as seafaring vessels, but because they are carrying a distinguished guest like Pei Xia, the ingredients are more refined and fresh.

Pei Xia leaned against the window of the second-floor guest room, carrying a black wine gourd, gazing at the golden-red evening river surface, still thinking about what would happen after arriving at Yunhu Mountain.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and the tall, burly boat captain stood outside, bowing and scraping with a forced smile.

"Is something the matter?" Pei Xia asked.

The boatman whispered, "Someone down below said they missed the south boat and are asking if they can catch a ride."

The boat was arranged by the Long Whale Sect to take Pei Xia to Yunhu Mountain alone. Normally, one should just refuse such a thing directly and there is no need to ask Pei Xia.

Fearing that Pei Xia would be angry, the boatman quickly explained, "The brother and sister said they were granted permission by the immortal master of Yunhu Mountain to go there to become disciples and cultivate. They are all disciples of immortals, so we dare not refuse them on our own."

Even ordinary people have heard of the great name of Yunhu Mountain, and they probably know that the status of Maizhou Dao Sect is far above that of Changjing Gate.

Such matters concerning practitioners should be left to them to decide.

Pei Xia raised an eyebrow slightly. Judging from this, could it be that some Taoist priest from Yunhu Mountain had made good connections while traveling?
"Since they're going the same way, let them come aboard. There are plenty of empty rooms on the ship anyway," Pei Xia instructed.

The boat captain quickly agreed.

Pei Xia didn't leave the room; she just stood at the window and looked out.

Two people came up from the deck, a man and a woman. The younger brother was about ten years old, and the older sister was not much older, at most twelve. They could only be considered children.

The two men were dressed in coarse gray linen clothes, their faces were sallow, their cheeks were slightly sunken, and their hair was dry, clearly indicating some malnutrition.

In Xiao Chen Guo, it's quite rare to see a child this thin for this age.

Thanks to the irreconcilable conflict between the Northern Barbarians and the Great Ling, the twelve kingdoms of Dongzhou have lived quite comfortably in recent years. Even if the emperor is not particularly benevolent, a few grains of rice falling from the fingers of the nobles are enough to feed the common people.

The boat captain was very polite and invited the siblings to rest in the cabin, and even provided them with a meal.

The older sister was flattered and quickly thanked him, while the younger brother, on the other hand, held his chin high and looked indifferent.

Judging from how confident this kid is, his claim of going to Yunhu Mountain to become a disciple must be true.

Yunhu Mountain is known as the crown jewel of the Taoist sects in Maizhou. Those qualified to accept disciples on their own must at least be renowned Taoist masters. Don't be fooled by this kid's current peasant appearance. Once he enters the sect, even Huang Bing, the head of the Changjing Sect, will have to treat him with utmost respect.

Pei Xia didn't pay much attention and looked away.

Traveling south along the Yangtze River, the speed was naturally very fast, and they left the Eastern Frontier region on the sixth day.

Xiao Chen Kingdom is located west of Maizhou. Its northern part is relatively more prosperous because it is closer to Youzhou Port. The further south you go, the less prosperous the towns become, and large areas of farmland begin to appear around villages.

Because of the flat terrain, the view from the ship's windows is quite unique.

Pei Xia has been staying in the guest room these past few days. Apart from cultivating and adjusting her breathing, she hasn't had much to do. She mainly uses the basin in the guest room to refine pills.

Due to limited resources, the pills available were all common items for treating external injuries and regulating qi. However, considering the opening of the Liancheng Illusionary Realm and the presence of many other cultivators who might engage in combat, these pills might come in handy.

When the ship docked again for supplies, it had already arrived at Fencheng, one of the few key cities in the southern region of Xiaochen Kingdom. Including Yunhu Mountain, it could actually be reached by land in two or three days.

As they approached their destination, Pei Xia also came out of her room to get some fresh air.

As it turned out, the brother and sister were also on the deck. The younger brother was leaning on the railing, pointing in a certain direction, and loudly said to his sister, "Sister, look, that's Yunhu Mountain. Once I go up the mountain and become a powerful cultivator, we'll never have to worry about food and drink again!" The boy had changed his clothes. Although they weren't expensive silk, they were much better than his previous gray linen clothes. Pei Xia glanced at them and felt they looked familiar. Then she noticed they were a size too big for him and realized that they must be the casual clothes of some short sailor.

These clothes couldn't possibly have been delivered by the boat captain on his own initiative; it's likely that they requested them.

Pei Xia smiled, walked behind him, and said, "You've pointed to the wrong place. Yunhu Mountain is on the other side."

The sudden sound startled both of them.

The older sister looked up at Pei Xia, and seeing his clothes and demeanor, she immediately realized that this must be the great cultivator of the Long Whale Sect that the boat captain had mentioned to them before. She quickly lowered her head.

He wanted to greet her, but didn't know what to say. His lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a word for a long time.

The little boy recovered quickly. He wasn't intimidated by Pei Xia at all. Instead, he hugged his arm and tilted his chin up, saying, "Oh, so you're just a cultivator from a small sect, huh? You talk as if you've ever been to Yunhu Mountain."

Pei Xia looked at the two of them; their cheeks were a bit rounder, probably because they had been eating well these past few days. Children's bodies change quickly, and with proper nutrition, their complexions were starting to regain their color.

Pei Xia smiled and said, "I have been there."

The child immediately curled his lip: "Bullshit! I've never even heard of your so-called Long Whale Sect. I don't even know where that is, some nobody sect. How could you possibly climb our famous Cloud Tiger Mountain?"

The older sister was startled and quickly covered her younger brother's mouth, shrinking her neck and apologizing to Pei Xia repeatedly: "Master, please don't be angry, Master, please don't be angry. Xiao Yu is inexperienced and didn't mean to offend you."

Following the child's words, Pei Xia asked, "So, you know a lot about Yunhu Mountain?"

The boy pried open his sister's hand, his face full of pride: "Of course, my master told me in detail when he traveled here."

“Tell me about it.”

"Then listen carefully!"

The child, arms crossed, paced around Pei Xia with an air of importance: "Yunhu Mountain has three most powerful Heavenly Consciousness Realm masters: Luo Chen, Ding Jia, and Pei Lan. These three all possess extraordinary abilities. Master Luo Chen can mend the sky, Master Ding Jia can move mountains, and Master Pei Lan can drink the entire Eastern Continent dry with a single breath!"

Pei Xia blinked, and after a moment opened her mouth: "Wow!"

Seeing that Pei Xia was stunned, the child was very satisfied with his performance and continued, "Next up is a master like my master. He is highly respected in Yunhu Mountain!"

After saying that, he looked Pei Xia up and down and said, "Someone like you would probably not dare to say a word if you saw my master."

Pei Xia originally thought that children don't know the immensity of the world, but they should really know something about Yunhu Mountain, or they might be able to find out some information about this trip to the Liancheng Fire Vein.

I'm overthinking it.

Pei Xia turned to look at his sister: "What's your master's name?"

My older sister is probably timid, but she is obviously much more obedient.

Upon hearing the immortal master's question, she first hugged her younger brother tightly before whispering, "His surname is Liang. He is an uncle from our village. He went up the mountain when he was young. A while ago, he said he was traveling and came to visit our hometown. He saw that Xiaoyu was clever and mentioned that if there was no work to do, we could go up the mountain to find him."

After speaking, the little girl paused again, her eyelashes trembling: "Uncle Liang only said he would take Xiaoyu as his disciple, I don't count... After our parents passed away, we really couldn't get enough to eat, so we planned to send my younger brother up the mountain to cultivate. I also asked for some connections, so I can work as a deliveryman at the foot of the mountain, delivering vegetables and such..."

Before she could finish speaking, the little boy turned around and hugged his sister tightly: "What nonsense are you talking about? When I become a great cultivator, you'll be enjoying the good life with me!"

(End of this chapter)