Start with acting, and you'll achieve immortality!

In the early morning, the snowstorm subsided somewhat, but the sky remained overcast.

Li Ping, wrapped in a thick cotton robe, sat in the county government office's duty room.

Holding a large, rough porcelain bowl, he was slurping down a steaming bowl of cornmeal porridge.

This porridge was cooked by Uncle Zhou early this morning. It contained some crushed sweet potato, making it sweet and very warming.

Qian Duo rushed in, his shoe soles tripping on the threshold, nearly knocking the doorframe askew.

"Sir, something has happened. There's a one-eyed fellow outside who claims to be sent by Hu Lie and specifically requests to see you."

Qian Duo leaned against the door frame, panting heavily, his face red from the cold.

Li Ping swallowed the porridge in his mouth, put the bowl on the table, and grabbed a rag to wipe his mouth.

"Blind in one eye? One-eyed? He's got some nerve, daring to sneak into the county government office and bring him in."

Qian Duo hesitated

"Sir, should we have Shi Gan wait in the back hall? What if this scoundrel suddenly attacks and hurts someone..."

"Why call him? This is the county government office. If One-Eyed dares to make a move here, Chen Rang will be the first to not tolerate him."

"Go, bring him in. And while you're at it, go to the kitchen and get another bowl of porridge, with extra sweet potato." Li Ping waved his hand.

Qian Duo responded and ran out.

A moment later, a man carrying the pungent smell of the mountains and the scent of snowmelt walked in.

The man's blind left eye was covered with a black cloth, while his right eye darted around, scanning Li Ping's duty room before finally settling on Li Ping.

"Li Wenshu, how have you been? The young master asked me to give you his regards."

The one-eyed man cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, gave a forced smile, swaggered to the table, and casually found a chair to sit down.

Li Ping sneered.

"Hu Lie is still alive? The wind and snow are so strong in the mountains, I thought he would have frozen solid long ago."

One-Eyed chuckled and crossed his legs.

"Young master is lucky; good fortune is yet to come."

"Now that the young master has a celestial master guiding him, his cultivation has reached the Qi Refining stage, and he can shatter a millstone with a single slap."

"Li Wenshu, how do you think your little neck compares to a millstone?"

Li Ping glanced at him sideways.

"Why is he pounding the millstone? Could it be that the young master has switched to grinding tofu in the mountains?"

"If that's the case, I'll definitely go and support him another day, and buy a couple of pieces of tofu to try."

One-Eyed's face stiffened, a flash of anger crossed his right eye, and he coldly snorted.

"Li Ping, stop pretending to be crazy."

"Young Master sent me here to show you a way out."

"A way to survive? I'm doing just fine as a clerk in the county government, with porridge to drink and a warm stove to warm myself every day. How come I have no way to survive?"

Li Ping picked up his teacup and slowly took a sip.

One-eyed sneer

"Young Master is a reasonable person."

"Although you were involved in the death of County Magistrate Hu back then, the young master said that as long as you hand over the immortal cultivation manual left behind by County Magistrate Hu, all past grievances will be wiped clean."

"Cultivation techniques? Where would Hu Guan get immortal cultivation techniques? That 'Small Heavenly Circuit Qi Guiding Technique' was confiscated by the Inspector long ago, how could I have it?"

The one-eyed man leaned forward, staring intently at Li Ping.

"Li Wenshu, let's not beat around the bush."

"If you didn't have the cultivation manual, how did you manage to enter the Qi-guiding stage in just a few months?"

"It's all over town now, saying you embezzled County Magistrate Hu's family heirloom, which is how you became a celestial master."

"If this news reaches the ears of the county magistrate and the Bai family, do you think they will let you off the hook?"

Li Ping sneered inwardly.

So that's how rumors start.

Hu Lie was trying to pressure him with rumors, and also create chaos in the city, so that Magistrate Chen Rang and the Bai family would also target him.

However, the "immortal technique" mentioned by the one-eyed man...

This clearly refers to the "Small Heavenly Circuit Qi Guiding Technique".

Hu Lie's own cultivation technique might not be complete, or perhaps the evil cultivators around him wanted this technique.

Li Ping sighed, a look of struggle on his face, and lowered his voice...

"The cultivation technique... is indeed in my possession, but it's my life-saving talisman. If I hand it over, Hu Lie will turn around and kill me to silence me. Who can I complain to then?"

Seeing that Li Ping had relented, the one-eyed man was overjoyed and quickly said...

"Don't worry, Li Wenshu, the young master keeps his word."

"Once you obtain the cultivation technique, Young Master will immediately lead your men back to the mountain, and you will not be harmed in the slightest."

Li Ping shook his head.

"I don't believe him."

"Here's what we'll do: go back and tell Hu Lie that I hid the cultivation manual in a dilapidated temple on Wild Fox Ridge outside the city."

"Tomorrow at noon, have him come to Wild Fox Ridge in person to take it. If he dares to come, I will offer it up with both hands."

"If he doesn't dare, then I'll just give this manual to the magistrate, and we'll all go our separate ways!"

The one-eyed man stared at Li Ping, seemingly trying to discern the truth in his words.

"Wild Fox Ridge? Why don't you just hand it over to me?"

Li Ping snorted coldly.

"Give it to you? You turned around and ran away, how am I supposed to find it?"

"Wild Fox Ridge is Hu Lie's territory. He brought over a hundred men, yet he doesn't even dare to go to Wild Fox Ridge? If that's the case, then there's no point in discussing it."

The one-eyed man laughed heartily and stood up.

"Good! Li Wenshu is indeed straightforward! Tomorrow at noon, the young master will personally go to the dilapidated temple at Wild Fox Ridge to retrieve it."

"I hope Li Wenshu won't try anything funny, otherwise, Wild Fox Ridge will be your death ground!"

After finishing his sentence, One-Eyed turned and strode away.

After the one-eyed man left, the panic on Li Ping's face vanished instantly, replaced by an icy coldness.

Qian Duo carried in a bowl of hot porridge, because he had been walking in a hurry.

The hot porridge spilled out, splashing onto the back of his hand, scalding him so much that he winced and nearly dropped the bowl.

"Sir, is what this blind man said true? Are we really going to Wild Fox Ridge tomorrow?"

Qian Duo blew on the back of his hand while asking with a bitter face.

Li Ping took the porridge and stirred it with a spoon.

"However, there is indeed a mid-stage Qi Refining evil cultivator by his side, so we cannot be careless about this."

"Then what do we do? Should we really give him the cultivation technique?"

Money was so much it made her stomp her feet in frustration.

"The whole town is buzzing with rumors that you embezzled the family heirloom of Magistrate Hu, and that you've become a celestial master in just a few days."

Even Aunt Zhang, who sells sesame cakes on the street corner, is talking about how you seem to emit golden light when you sleep at night.

Li Ping rolled his eyes.

"Radiating golden light? Does she think I'm some kind of clay idol in a temple? This rumor is getting more and more outrageous; who knows, tomorrow they might be saying I can ascend to heaven in broad daylight."

"What should we do then?"

Qian Duo looked worried

"Give him? I'll slap him across the face."

Li Ping sneered.

"Go and summon Shi Gan."

A moment later, Shi Gan strode into the duty room.

He still carried the chill of Wild Fox Ridge with him, and a gust of cold wind blew up as soon as he entered the room.

Li Ping looked at Shi Gan

"The plan has changed. Hu Lie is spreading rumors in the city that I have embezzled the cultivation technique, trying to use the county magistrate and the Bai family to force me."

"In that case, let's give him a hand."

"You have plenty of money. Go to the city now and spread the word."

"Just say that I, Li Ping, have been driven to a dead end by Hu Lie, tomorrow at noon."

"We must take the immortal cultivation techniques and treasure map left behind by Hu Guan to the dilapidated temple at Wild Fox Ridge to sue for peace with Hu Lie."

Qian Duoyi was stunned

"Huh? This...won't this draw everyone over there?"

Li Ping sneered.

Both the Bai family and Chen Rang wanted to sit back and watch the two tigers fight.

"I'm determined to muddy the waters."

"They think they're the orioles that catch the worm, so I'll turn Wild Fox Ridge into a giant quagmire and drag them all in."

Li Ping looked at Shi Gan

"Shi Gan, how deep is the snow over at Wild Fox Ridge?"

Shi Gan grinned.

"Your Excellency, last night's heavy snowfall in the mountains was knee-deep."

"On some steep slopes, the snow is so thick that even the slightest movement can cause a large section to collapse."

"Excellent"

Li Ping drew a simple topographical map on the table with his finger.

"Set up more tripwires and lime bags on the narrow path you must take to get up the mountain."

"The snow is deep and the roads are slippery; they're moving slowly. This is the perfect opportunity for us to launch a surprise attack."

"My lord, how do we deal with that evil cultivator in the mid-stage of Qi Refining?"

Shi Gan frowned, somewhat worried.

"The methods of immortal masters are beyond the reach of us mortals."

Li Ping snorted coldly.

"Evil cultivators also have flesh and blood bodies; if an arrow pierces their throat, they will still die."

"Tomorrow, you will lead your men to ambush the man in black in the snow pits on both sides of the ruined temple, and aim your steel crossbow bolts at him."

"The moment he shows his face, without thinking twice, unleash a volley of fire on him."

"Understood!" A ruthless glint flashed in Shi Gan's eyes.

"Remember, tomorrow at noon, whoever enters the mountain, unless they are one of our companions, will be shot with crossbow bolts."

Li Ping instructed

Shi Gan clasped his hands

"Don't worry, sir. Wild Fox Ridge is a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. As long as they dare to enter the mountains, I will let them taste the power of steel crossbows."

"Go for tomorrow's battle. If we win, no one in Xiyun County will be able to touch us."

"If we lose, we'll all go to the mountains and become bandits."

Shi Gan grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.

"Being a bandit is not bad, eating meat and drinking wine to our hearts' content. But I think we're bound to win."

"Go and get ready," Li Ping waved his hand.

Shi Gan clasped his hands in a fist salute, turned around, and strode away.

Li Ping watched the snowflakes falling outside the window, a slight smile playing on his lips.