Mortal: Traveling Between Two Realms with Mei Ning to Pick Up Trash

The next day, Zhou Yu got up early.

It was still dark. Although I didn't need to sleep after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, I couldn't resist taking a rest in my familiar room.

Pushing open the window, the sea breeze carrying a fishy smell blew in, making Zhou Yu much more awake.

Now that everything has settled down, although there are only a few years left before the opening of the Void Heaven Palace, not to mention that I haven't even formed my core yet, going there with my Foundation Establishment cultivation level would probably be a death sentence, not to mention that I don't have the Void Heaven Remnant Map in my possession.

The most important thing right now is to practice some mortal martial arts, whether for the sake of the Rift World or the Netherworld, both of which are places where spiritual energy is cut off.

Zhou Yu pushed open the door and went into the kitchen. There was a bowl of porridge warming on the stove, and a plate of pickled vegetables next to it. He found a chair, sat down, and ate slowly.

Mei Ning said last night that she was going into seclusion to focus on breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage, so we probably won't see her for a while.

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Yu decided to go to the nearby islands to see if he could find any martial arts techniques.

Near Suihan Island, there is a small market for cultivators called Qingyu Market. I heard Meifeng mention it before, saying that although it is not big, it has a wide variety of things, and you can sometimes find some unexpected items there.

Zhou Yu took out his flying sword and flew towards Qingyu Fang. After flying for less than half an hour, he saw a gray-black reef on the sea in the distance. The island was not large, but it was much better than the one on Meifeng. There were some wooden houses and stone dwellings scattered on it.

Zhou Yu put away his flying sword, landed on the edge of the island, and strolled into the market. This market was much smaller than the one at Qingzhu Xiaoxuan, but it was still quite popular. Most of the cultivators coming and going were at the Qi Refining stage, and occasionally one or two could be seen at the early Foundation Establishment stage.

As Zhou Yu walked slowly along the road, his gaze swept over the stalls selling pills, magical artifacts, and talismans, but he didn't see any selling martial arts techniques.

Zhou Yu frowned, sat down at a tea stall, and scanned the street with his eyes. Two Qi Refining cultivators next to him were chatting casually.

"I've heard that quite a few forces have been making big moves lately."

"Oh, what is it?"

Zhou Yu glanced at the two men, who seemed to make a living at sea. He thought to himself that such people were well-informed and might know where to find martial arts techniques for ordinary people.

Zhou Yu put down his teacup and stepped forward. "Gentlemen, do you know where I can buy martial arts techniques for mortals?"

One of the tall, thin men paused for a moment, sensed Zhou Yu's aura, and quickly stood up, cupping his hands in greeting, "Senior, I heard that Old Wei in the south has some mortal martial arts techniques. Senior, just follow this road south, turn right at the fork in the road, and there's a stall with a black chess piece hanging there."

Zhou Yu nodded, thanked him, and left.

The markets in the south were much quieter than those in the north.

Zhou Yu walked to the fork in the road, turned right, and walked another hundred steps or so. Sure enough, he saw a stall with a black flag hanging on it.

An old man with gray hair and early Foundation Establishment cultivation sat behind the stall, his eyes closed as if he were dozing off.

Zhou Yu squatted down in front of the stall, his eyes scanning the items on display: several pieces of ore whose material was indistinguishable, several bottles of pills, a chipped longsword, and several tattered books. He picked up the books and flipped through them; they were all low-level cultivation techniques and spells, nothing special.

"Old man," Zhou Yu put down his book and looked at the dozing old man, "I heard you have martial arts techniques for mortals here?"

The old man opened his eyes a crack and glanced at Zhou Yu.

Then, with a wave of his hand, several books flew over.

Zhou Yu looked down and saw that the top cover of the book was titled "Treading Snow Without a Trace," followed by "Broken Cloud Style," "Lonely City Closed," and "Xiaoxiang Rain."

The names of these mortal martial arts techniques are quite nice.

Zhou Yu flipped to the top page, "Treading Snow Without Leaving a Trace," a technique for extreme lightness and agility. The practitioner could run on the snow without leaving footprints, walk on the water without getting their shoes wet, their body as light as willow catkins, their steps as light as dragonflies.

Looking at the others, I saw that "Broken Cloud Style" and "Lonely City Closed" were both knife techniques, while "Rain in Xiaoxiang" was a sword technique.

Zhou Yu flipped through all four books from beginning to end, closed them, and looked at the dozing old man. "Sir, how much are these books?"

The old man stretched out one hand, with three fingers spread open.

"Three spirit stones?"

The old man shook his head, but didn't retract his finger. "Thirty."

Zhou Yu's finger paused for a moment. Thirty spirit stones, enough to buy a few mortal martial arts manuals?

The old man opened his eyes, glanced at him, and asked, "You think it's too expensive?"

"Expensive," Zhou Yu said bluntly.

The old man snorted and closed his eyes again. "I've collected these books over decades, gathering them from various places. If you want to find them again, unless you go to a big city like Tianxing City, it will be difficult."

Zhou Yu frowned. This was indeed a problem. He didn't want to waste time looking for these things. Even with his own stamina, it would take him two days to find the nearest city-state.

After thinking it over, I paid anyway, since I don't need those spirit stones anymore.

The old man opened his eyes, glanced at the spirit stones, swept them into his sleeve, then pushed the four books over, and took out a small porcelain bottle from the wooden box behind him, placing them all on the stall.

"These are some healing pills, consider them a gift for you," the old man said, then closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

Zhou Yu put the book and pills into his storage bag, stood up, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to the old man, and turned to walk back.

When we returned to Suihan Island, the sun was already setting, and the sunlight shining on the sea was so dazzling that it made our eyes water.

Zhou Yu put away his flying sword, landed on the beach, and went into the hut.

I picked up a book at random, "Broken Cloud Style".

This sword technique involves sheathing the sword horizontally, concentrating one's mind and energy, and drawing the sword diagonally the instant the opponent reveals an opening. This technique consists of only one strike, but this one strike embodies the essence, energy, and spirit of the entire body. It is as fast as lightning, and the opponent often only sees the flash of the sword before the blade has already struck their throat.

Zhou Yu pushed open the door, about to step out to practice, when suddenly he stopped, as an unfamiliar spiritual pressure swept over from the sea.

He frowned, glanced at Mei Ning, and quietly concealed his aura, sending several array flags flying silently in all directions.

A jet-black streak of light pierced the sky and arrived above Suihan Island in the blink of an eye. The light then vanished, revealing a man in black robes with a cold expression, who looked down at the entire island.

After sensing the aura, Zhou Yu's heart sank slightly.

Late stage of foundation building.

A streak of light rose from the island; it was Mei Feng. He stopped opposite the man in black robes and cupped his hands in greeting: "May I ask, fellow Daoist, what brings you to my Suihan Island?"

The man in black robes glanced at Mei Feng, who was only at the early stage of Foundation Establishment and not worth mentioning. He smirked slightly, then took out a painting. "Do you recognize this person?"

Mei Feng frowned as he looked at the painting, staring intently at the woman in it, seemingly trying to make out who she was. "Fellow Daoist, who is this person?"

The man in black robes stared into Mei Feng's eyes for a few moments, seemingly to confirm whether he was lying. Then he put away the scroll, the smile on his lips turning cold. "Whether you recognize him or not, I'll find out once I search the island."

Mei Feng's face darkened, and his hand silently pressed against the storage bag at his waist. His voice hardened as well: "Fellow Daoist, do you really intend to do this? Although Suihan Island is small, it is not a place where anyone can search at will."

The man in black robes did not answer. Suddenly, he moved without warning. His palm, wrapped in dense spiritual energy, struck straight at Mei Feng's chest. If the full force of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator landed, Mei Feng would be severely injured, if not killed.

In that instant, a silver-white blade of light exploded from below, blocking Mei Feng's path and colliding violently with the palm.

Zhou Yu stood in front of Mei Feng, holding a horizontal sword, his robes fluttering in the wind.

The black-robed man's expression turned slightly cold. He sized up Zhou Yu, his gaze shifting from the horizontal sword in Zhou Yu's hand to the spiritual pressure flowing around him, and his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

The man in black robes' face turned slightly cold. "I didn't expect there to be another person. I was mistaken."

He paused, then laughed again, "Looks like you guys really are hiding something."

Zhou Yu looked at the other person. Was this guy crazy? He was acting strangely just because he wasn't allowed to search him. Could he be a demonic cultivator, so unreasonable?

The man in black robes moved. He vanished from his spot in a flash and appeared in front of Zhou Yu in the next instant. One of his hands was wrapped in black spiritual light and he slammed it down directly at the top of Zhou Yu's head.

Zhou Yu did not take the blow head-on. Instead, he retreated rapidly, drawing an arc with his sword in front of him. The sword light split into four beams, slashing at the black-robed man from different angles.

The man in black robes snorted coldly, and with a flick of his wrist, black spiritual light surged forth like a tide, engulfing all four blade lights. The blade lights struggled for a moment in the black spiritual light, then vanished without a trace, like mud oxen sinking into the sea.

"Even a grain of rice can shine." The black-robed man's voice was icy. He took a step forward and caught up with Zhou Yu's figure. He struck down with another palm, this time even faster than before. So fast that Zhou Yu didn't even have time to raise his sword. He could only sidestep and narrowly avoid the attack.

Just then, Mei Feng thrust his sword forward, and the man in black robes struck out with his palm. Mei Feng parried with his sword, but was almost instantly knocked away.

Zhou Yu did not waste the opportunity created by Mei Feng. A golden light instantly enveloped the black-robed man. The black-robed man's pupils shrank, and a long spear appeared in his hand. He actually forced the Immortal Binding Rope to stop. The golden net trembled violently, but it could not fall.

But Zhou Yu didn't panic. He wasn't waiting for the Binding Immortal Net to fall, but for the man in black robes to stop.

Just as the spear and the Binding Immortal Net were locked in a stalemate, the black-robed man's figure finally froze. It was less than a breath, but enough. Zhou Yu made hand seals, and the array he had set up in advance was activated with a bang. Four array flags burst out of the soil, and spiritual light shot into the sky, transforming into a pale golden light shield that enveloped the group. It was not a killing array, but a trapping array.

The black-robed man's expression finally changed. His gaze swept over the four beams of spiritual light that shot into the sky, and his brows furrowed tightly.

"A formation?"

His voice carried a hint of surprise, but more so, disdain.

"You think your mere entanglement can stop me?"

He twirled his spear, and black spiritual light surged forth like a tide, hurtling towards the four array flags.

Mei Feng got up from the ground, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were full of ruthlessness. Without saying a word, the long sword in his hand transformed into a streak of light, stabbing straight at the black-robed man's back. It wasn't a killing move, but a restraint.

The man in black robes snorted coldly and struck out with his palm, sending Mei Feng flying again. But this time he was prepared and used the force to flip over in the air and land steadily.

Zhou Yu did not waste the time that Mei Feng had risked his life for. He poured his spiritual power into the horizontal sword, and the silver-white light on the blade became brighter and brighter. Eight sword lights unfolded in the air, like a peacock spreading its tail, covering half of the sky.

The man in black robes felt the spiritual pressure behind him. He turned around abruptly, and when he saw the eight sword lights, his pupils contracted sharply. "You—"

He tried to dodge, but the formation beneath his feet held him back. He tried to block, but the Binding Net was still above his head. Although the golden net was forced to stop by the spear, the binding force remained.

He tried to retreat, but Mei Feng charged forward again, his long sword aimed at his face. His moves were wide and unrestrained, showing no mercy or regard for life or death, like a madman.

Zhou Yu's eight sword lights merged into a single silver-white sword light, slashing straight at the man in black robes.

The black-robed man's pupils contracted, and he swept his spear horizontally. The black spiritual light collided with the silver-white blade light, creating a loud bang that shook the entire Suihan Island. A giant wave exploded on the sea surface, pushing the seawater in all directions.

The black-robed man's body flew out like a kite with a broken string, crashed into the array's light barrier, bounced back, fell to the ground, rolled a few times, and then lay still.

Suddenly, the island of Suihan fell silent.

Mei Feng scrambled to his feet and staggered to the man in black robes. He kicked him to confirm the man was truly dead before letting out a long sigh and collapsing to the ground. "Zhou Yu, you son of a bitch, when did you become so powerful?"