Tumor Sword Immortal

Chapter 364 Little Old Man
As soon as he finished speaking, two figures climbed down from above.

Jiang Shu and Feng Yao stood on either side of the old man, looking down at him from their elevated position.

Although the night was not very bright, the cold expression in his eyes was still clear.

The old man looked to the left, then to the right, before turning back to Pei Xia and slowly saying, "On another note, all beings are equal. Aren't I just an animal too?"

With a "pop," the old man bent over and pulled himself out of the bridge hole.

Pei Xia looked down and only then could she see clearly that the old man was really too short, no more than three feet tall, and his short arms and legs were sliding down the bridge pier, looking just like a little bear.

The hard object that had bumped into Pei Xia's buttocks was now clearly visible in the dim light.

It turned out to be a sheathed longsword that he carried on his back.

No wonder I didn't bump into him earlier; he's a cultivator too.

Cultivators can enter the ship's quarters without any credentials and can come and go as they please. Those who need to sneak through the tunnel like Pei Xia probably have offended someone in Jiangcheng Mountain.

The old man used both hands and feet to cling to the pillar, looked up and found Pei Xia staring at him. He clicked his tongue and waved his hand: "Hurry up and go up, what are you waiting for?"

Reason told Pei Xia that she should go up as soon as possible.

But for some reason, his gaze was fixed on the long sword behind the old man and he couldn't look away.

He forced his eyes closed before he could barely come to his senses.

The boatman's boat was across the bridge, and the part above the bridge was mostly covered with walls. The small hole on Pei Xia's side was probably used to dump kitchen waste, and it smelled terrible.

Fortunately, Pei Xia and the other two all possessed unique skills.

Feng Yao was a corpse, so naturally he wasn't afraid of the stench. Jiang Shu had even seen Feng Yao eat rotten, smelly corpses, so he wasn't someone who was afraid of the stench.

Needless to say, Pei Xia had experienced Dugu Nong's Glazed Immortal Elixir, so the stench of the mortal world could hardly affect him anymore.

Peeking in cautiously, Pei Xia noticed the warmth, aside from the stench.

In the Qin Prefecture countryside in March, the nights were still chilly, but once inside the boathouse, a long-lost warmth immediately enveloped Pei Xia.

Then came the light.

Pei Xia entered what appeared to be a back alley, a dimly lit area. However, due to the dome above the ship's dock and the lights that shone all night, even the alley seemed to glow with an orange-red light.

Pei Xia exhaled and was looking down at the dirt on her clothes when she noticed Jiang Shu standing to the side with a furrowed brow and a strange expression.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Jiang Shu replied, "I hear a strange sound."

Strange sounds?

Pei Xia listened intently, but saw nothing amiss: "Tell me."

"It's like they're talking, but it's dense, fragmented, like human voices being kneaded into a ball."

Pei Xia's heart skipped a beat halfway through the conversation, as she thought of something frightening.

No, it's not a calamity pig. Don't scare yourself. If it really were a calamity pig, Jiang Shu's brain would have exploded long ago.

He noticed his apprentice's furrowed brows and constant fiddling with his ear, and Pei Xia suddenly realized what was happening.

"Is it possible that that was the sound of a person speaking?" Pei Xia asked.

Jiang Shu was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and said, "How could that be?"

Pei Xia didn't speak. He stepped forward, took Jiang Shu's hand, and led his apprentice out of the dark alley.

The light was dazzling, and the ship was brightly lit even though it was late at night. The sounds of restaurants, brothels, casinos, pedestrians, and vendors filled the air, converging into a river of voices that flooded Jiang Shu's mind.

In his more than ten years of life, Jiang Shu had never seen such a sight.

He stared, stunned: "The sound... the sound is so loud." It was the sound that a tired, hungry, dying person could not make.

Pei Xia patted his shoulder, not feeling sorry for him, nor did he think it was anything to be happy about. What he was thinking about now was whether to let Jiang Shu experience a proper "city life".

Before he could decide whether to go to the casino or the brothel, footsteps came from the alley behind him.

The three-foot-tall old man also climbed in.

Because of the swimming, everyone was soaking wet, and after passing through the hole where kitchen waste was spilled, they were inevitably dirty.

But the old man suffered more because his hair and beard were thick, fluffy, and curly, so his head and face were covered in filth.

Reaching the alley entrance, he saw Pei Xia and her apprentice blocking the way and said irritably, "What's wrong? Wouldn't it be better to find somewhere to wash up?"

These words were a wake-up call. Indeed, after enduring so much hardship and sleeping in the open since arriving in Qinzhou, what we need most right now is not casinos or brothels, but an inn where we can take a nice hot bath and eat something decent.

Pei Xia looked down at the old man: "Old man, you seem quite familiar with this place?"

The old man was disgustedly tugging at some filthy stuff on his beard, mumbling, "Come once a year."

He's an expert.

Pei Xia's eyes lit up: "Would the old man also show us the way?"

"Hmph!" the old man snorted. "Now you're calling me an old man again? Wasn't it time to call me a beast?"

You've always been the one to call yourself a beast, haven't you?
Without further ado, Pei Xia reached into his robes and pulled out a thick, jade-green ginseng.

The old man glanced at it, then looked at Pei Xia with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot: "Radish?"

Tsk, they don't know what they're missing.

Pei Xia put the radish in her pocket, thought for a moment, and then took out a Spirit Nourishing Pill.

The earliest known cultivators to obtain Spirit Nourishing Pills were from Tianbao Mountain, indicating that this item was circulated in Qinzhou and was considered a relatively valuable item.

Sure enough, the old man's expression softened this time.

He reached out and took the pill, then slowly clapped his hands: "Alright, this old man will show you around."

In fact, you can roughly imagine what the shipyard looks like from the outside.

This giant bridge spans the river for several miles, so the bridge itself is also very long and narrow. Buildings line both sides of the bridge, with a wide main road in the middle.

Looking up, there was a ceiling about three zhang high, made of wood and supported by fine iron.

"The shipyard has three levels. This is the first level, which is open to the general public with permission, passing cultivators, and ordinary disciples of Jiangcheng Mountain."

The old man held the pills in his hand, tossing them up and letting them fall: "The second floor is for the elders of Jiangcheng Mountain and the military officers of Donghou. The top floor is a sentry post for defense against the enemy."

Jiangcheng Mountain occupies the area between the two rivers and is a vital point for Eastern Qin. Even if it is controlled by a sect, Li Xu cannot completely leave no troops stationed there.

From this perspective, the ship captain's position could be considered a kind of fortress.

“When we swam across the water like we just did, the military experts at the top outpost could see everything clearly, but they just didn’t bother,” the old man shrugged.

Speaking of this, Pei Xia interjected and asked, "I see that you are also a cultivator, so why didn't you come in through the main gate?"

The old man clicked his tongue: "Well, I come here often, and after a while, it's inevitable that I'll get a little... well, you know what kind of people those Jiang Chengshan are."

Pei Xia suddenly realized and nodded: "Indeed, Jiang Chengshan's style is really unacceptable. We also had a conflict with one of their elders on the way here."

The old man stopped in his tracks, turned around, and stared at Pei Xia with wide eyes: "Holy crap? You've offended Jiang Chengshan's people?"

Pei Xia was also stunned: "Aren't you also..."

"What do you mean 'what do you mean'? I got it for free and didn't pay, so I'm on Jiang Chengshan's blacklist. We're not the same people!"

(End of this chapter)