Immortal and Martial Dual Cultivation

The beggar was indeed drunk.

He reeked of alcohol. The aftereffects of Heart Burn had already fully emerged in his blood.

Xiao Chen checked on the beggar. After verifying that everything was fine, he felt some regret in his heart.

That was a good bottle of Heart Burn, yet the beggar just gulped it down, not even circulating his Cultivation Technique. What a waste!

“Big Brother. Big Brother.”

Ling Yu shook the beggar. Seeing that the other party remained in a stupor, he looked at Xiao Chen helplessly and said, “Martial Uncle, Big Brother is drunk again.”

“That is normal. The number of people in the world that can remain sober after drinking Heart Burn can be counted on two hands.”

Xiao Chen was rather baffled. This beggar truly was queer.

Even now, Xiao Chen wondered how the beggar tripped up Yuan Zhen, a 1-Vein Sovereign Emperor who was the top true inheritor of the Hidden Spirit Temple. Even he found Yuan Zhen unfathomable. Although he felt confident he could fight Yuan Zhen, it would be hard to say who would win.

After all, Xiao Chen did not know Yuan Zhen’s bottom line or how many trump cards Yuan Zhen had.

Nevertheless, the beggar had easily tripped up such a top true inheritor. That was too much of a coincidence.

Initially, Xiao Chen thought of questioning the beggar after they left the Smiling Daughter Pavilion. Unexpectedly, the beggar was genuinely drunk.

Something is not right. Is someone monitoring me?

Xiao Chen frowned slightly; he felt a pair of eyes staring at his back. His Divine Seal activated automatically and filled his entire body with Soul Energy.

Many people were walking on the street, quite a number of them looking at him behind his back.

However, few could make Xiao Chen feel threatened, resulting in his Divine Seal activating automatically and entering a self-protective state.

Xiao Chen remained calm. He stood up and said, “Pavilion Master Su, please help me bring Ling Yu and this uncle back to the Misty Rain Pavilion first. I thank you again; you have greatly helped me this time.”

Su Ye did not comment on that. She smiled and replied softly, “You’re welcome.”

Xiao Chen thought of something. Then, he bent over and whispered something in Su Ye’s ear.

Su Ye immediately shifted her gaze to Ling Yu and gave him a once-over as she showed a shocked expression.

“Don’t worry. Leave this matter to me.”

“I’ll leave it to you, then.”

Xiao Chen sent off the Hundred Fairies of the Pear Garden, Ling Yu, and the beggar with his eyes. Then, he thought to himself, How should I attempt to convince Ling Yu? I am not good with this. I can only depend on Su Ye; perhaps she might have a way.

When the group disappeared from Xiao Chen’s sight, his expression changed, and he turned around to look.

Xiao Chen’s vision extended continuously—one hundred meters, one kilometer, ten kilometers, one hundred kilometers—before he met the gaze of the person looking at him.

A scholarly person stood on top of a tall pavilion, appearing elegant and refined as he fanned himself with a folding fan.

This person showed a faint smile as he peered through the crowd, looking at Xiao Chen from a distance.

The Heavenly Book Scholar?

I forgot that he is in the Yanwu Dynasty as well.

Why is that fellow looking for me? If he does not want to reveal himself, he has many ways to do so.

Since he let me sense his gaze, he clearly wants to meet me.

Fifteen minutes later, Xiao Chen had traveled through several streets and arrived at an inn facing a river. Then, he went straight to the seventh floor.

“Whoosh!”

Leaning against the railings, the Heavenly Book Scholar folded up his fan in one swift motion. Then, he turned and looked at Xiao Chen. With an inviting gesture, he said, “Sit.”

When Xiao Chen sat down, the Heavenly Book Scholar served him tea. Then, the Heavenly Book Scholar smiled and asked, “Would you like a word reading?”

Xiao Chen pursed his lips and replied indifferently, “Never mind that. I don’t want to see you vomit three liters of blood again.”

Xiao Chen recalled that the first time the Heavenly Book Scholar tried to use his divination skills to do a reading on him, the Heavenly Book Scholar failed to read his fate and even ended up severely injured.

“It’s fine. It’s just a casual reading this time. I will not peer into the Heavenly Dao or fate, just read the word.”

The Heavenly Book Scholar took out ink, brush, and paper, not letting Xiao Chen refuse.

Xiao Chen picked up the brush and hesitated for a moment, not knowing what character to write.

Previously, he had written the character for moon. What about this time?

“Just take it casually. Write whatever you want.”

Xiao Chen thought of Ling Yu’s matter and no longer hesitated. Then, he wrote the character for passion.

“Passion!”

The Heavenly Book Scholar took a look and smiled. “This is a great word. The word passion is written by combining the character for heart and azure. It means that the devoted heart never dies and the azure skies never age. At first, you hesitated. However, when you started writing, you did not hesitate at all. This shows that you wrote this character for a friend. Hence, there is no burden, and you feel calm. However, when you approached the end of the character, you took a long time. This shows that you are also troubled by passion. In the end, you are also seeking this for yourself.”

Xiao Chen asked softly, “What about the results?”

“I did not peer into the Heavenly Dao or read fate. Naturally, I do not know the results.” The Heavenly Book Scholar shrugged, putting on a helpless appearance.

Xiao Chen’s interest immediately waned. He no longer lingered on this nonsense and demanded directly, “Why are you looking for me?”

“I was initially preparing to come and find you today. Unexpectedly, you caused such a huge commotion in the Smiling Daughter Pavilion, so this could be considered a coincidental meeting. You should still have an Ethereal Immortal Palace key, right? I would like to ask if you are willing to sell it? We can negotiate the price.”

A bright light flashed in Xiao Chen’s eyes. Feeling enlightened, he said, “You are a diviner. You probably know where the Ethereal Immortal Palace will appear, right?”

The Heavenly Book Scholar smiled and said, “If the diviners of the various dynasties can predict that the Ethereal Immortal Palace will appear in the Yanwu Dynasty, then I naturally am no exception.”

“What about the exact location?”

The Heavenly Book Scholar smiled and just said, “If you can know about it, someone will take the initiative to tell you. If you cannot, then no one will tell you.”

The Heavenly Book Scholar spoke in riddles, similar to how Yuan Zhen answered.

Xiao Chen thought to himself, That is pointless. It just means that I am not qualified to know. However, one of the conditions is definitely holding an Ethereal Immortal Palace key. What the other conditions are, I do not know.

The Heavenly Book Scholar prompted after some thought, “What do you think? Will you sell the key? You do not have a big connection to the Ethereal Immortal Palace key anyway.”

The Blood-Soaked Dragon Emperor used the Wings of Time that was currently sealed in the Ethereal Immortal Palace. How could it not have a big connection with Xiao Chen?

However, rumors of the Ethereal Immortal Palace appearing popped up from time to time.

However, these rumors were never right. Xiao Chen indeed did not value the key highly. However, he wanted to probe the Heavenly Book Scholar. “That’s right. This Ethereal Immortal Palace key is not of great value to me. However, it should be the same for you. I can sell it to you, but you have to tell me who you are buying it for.”

The Heavenly Book Scholar frowned slightly, then muttered, “This can’t be told.”

Right after the Heavenly Book Scholar said that, he felt something off. He realized that he had been tricked.

Xiao Chen did not know that the Heavenly Book Scholar was buying it for someone else in the first place. Now that the Heavenly Book Scholar said that, it was as good as telling Xiao Chen that he was buying the Ethereal Immortal Palace key for someone else.

Xiao Chen smiled and said, “Then, let me guess who directed you to do this—”

“It looks like there is no need to continue speaking about this. Brother Xiao has no intention to sell. Consider it as me disturbing you. Please return. I’ll come to visit another day.”

The Heavenly Book Scholar interrupted Xiao Chen. Then, he stood up to send off the guest with a faint smile.

“You are too polite. The Misty Rain Pavilion welcomes you at any time.”

Xiao Chen smiled and turned to leave. Then, he headed down the stairs. When he reached a blindspot, his expression suddenly changed. He instantly donned the Death God Mask and executed the Life Bestowal Spell.

As Xiao Chen’s hand seals changed, the dust in the air materialized a figure.

This figure looked exactly like Xiao Chen. This was a fake body.

--

As the Heavenly Book Scholar watched from the top of the pavilion while Xiao Chen left the premises, he frowned heavily, appearing somewhat disappointed.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Chen showed no intention of selling, not even stating a price.

“Thud! Thud! Thud!”

Footsteps rang out, and a person came from behind the Heavenly Book Scholar. This person wore armor and looked valiant with a resolute and steadfast expression, radiating intense killing Qi. This killing Qi even overwhelmed the dynasty’s might that he also had.

“Can this person be trusted?” the newcomer asked seriously after arriving by the Heavenly Book Scholar’s side, looking at Xiao Chen leave, as well. His voice sounded hoarse and steady.

The Heavenly Book Scholar turned to the side and used his folding fan to fan himself. “He’s alright. I met him once ten years ago. He could be considered a passionate person. However, he is very cautious and hides his pride. He also possesses a heart of innocence. His current achievements are within my expectations.”

“I sense the aura of the Demonic Dao coming from him, though,” the newcomer said, clearly enunciating every word.

The slightly startled Heavenly Book Scholar asked, “Ninth Prince, why do you say that?”

It turned out that this person was the Ninth Prince. He frequently led troops to guard the borders. No wonder he gave off such intense killing Qi.

“I frequently fight with people from the Abyssal Underworld and the Xuewu Dynasty’s Demonic Dao experts. Sometimes, I don’t need any evidence at all; I can identify it just on instinct,” the Ninth Prince explained.

“Is that so? It should not be wrong, then. However, many Righteous Dao cultivators also practice Demonic Dao Cultivation Techniques. He is still a viable choice,” the Heavenly Book Scholar said slowly, tapping his left palm with his fan.

“For the sake of gaining the Pleasure Quarter Alliance’s support, First Brother actually used the Ethereal Immortal Palace key as a bride price. I simply did not expect that. This is tantamount to inviting wolves into the sheep’s pen.” The Ninth Prince sighed, worry flashing in his eyes.

The Heavenly Book Scholar nodded and said, “That’s why I feel that time is tight. The seven Ethereal Immortal Palace keys all already have an owner. In the end, Xiao Chen is still a possible choice.”

The Ninth Prince frowned and said, “I do not trust people who cultivate Demonic Dao Cultivation Techniques. Unless there is no other choice, we cannot choose him. Sorry to trouble you with this. Please continue searching.”

The Heavenly Book Scholar sighed softly, “I’ll do my best.”

The two took great care as they spoke, always using their Soul Energy to monitor their surroundings.

However, the two did not expect that Xiao Chen had not left yet. He overheard everything.