Chapter 66: Chapter 64: Below Five Wishes Mountain, Yuanqing Takes a Disciple

After leaving the Three States Governor’s Mansion, Du Youqian traveled south along Yu Kun Mountain.

Along the way, he took in the local culture, admired the scenery, and appreciated the beautiful women. He would even draw his sword—or rather, his flying sword—to help those in need. It was a carefree and joyful life in the human world.

Once he crossed the Han River, he entered the region of Five Wishes Mountain.

This area was crisscrossed by a well-developed network of waterways.

Although the network wasn’t nearly as extensive as the one in the Wu Kingdom, traveling by boat was still quite convenient.

So, Du Youqian rented a small boat and had the boatman ferry him about, drifting aimlessly each day along the waterways near Five Wishes Mountain.

One moment they would be rowing from the Zhushui River into Rongsheng Lake, and the next, they would be turning from Rongsheng Lake back into the Han River.

From time to time, he would go ashore, find a tavern or an inn, drink a jar of wine, eat some small dishes, and listen to the local gossip.

It wasn’t that he was bored, but Five Wishes Mountain was so vast that he didn’t know which direction to take to find the monkey.

There were likely other powerful beasts in the mountains that had achieved some level of cultivation. It wouldn’t be wise to barge in rashly and stir up trouble.

Some beasts might be simple and honest, but others could be cunning or ferocious.

And you couldn’t reason with them like you could with human Cultivators.

Therefore, it was better to listen to local rumors, which might yield some clues.

After all, when a beast gained sentience, it didn’t know how to set up Arrays or use Concealment techniques like human Cultivators. It was bound to leave some traces for people to find.

Perhaps hunters, medicine gatherers, or woodcutters who went into the mountains would see something, and tales of their encounters would spread to the towns.

Those who made their living on the water often led hard lives.

If they had wives and daughters, they often had them engage in the flesh trade.

Du Youqian recalled that several lifetimes ago, back when he was on Earth, he often came across this kind of plot in web novels.

The protagonist would meet a boat girl selling her body, earn her admiration, play the hero saving the damsel in distress, and then gracefully depart, making a bland attempt at looking cool.

To avoid any trouble, Du Youqian had deliberately avoided that kind of situation when renting his boat.

This boatman only had a young son, not yet ten, who was clever, precocious, and knew how to handle things. His swimming ability was especially outstanding.

It was as if he had been born with a Water-Repelling Pearl in his mouth; he moved through the water as if he were walking on flat ground.

The most surprising thing was that the boy actually had a Spirit Root, a one-in-ten-thousand talent.

However, Du Youqian had no intention of saving the world. Although he found the boy interesting, he had no plans to guide him into an Immortal Sect.

’The Dao cannot be taught lightly,’ he thought. ’Besides, all my Cultivation Techniques have specific origins. I can’t just teach them to anyone.’

’Otherwise, it might bring disaster upon the boy one day.’

He simply taught the boy a few of the Martial Techniques he himself had practiced in the Mortal World when he had free time.

The child was truly intelligent. He learned everything in a single lesson and perfected it with a little practice.

’His Spirit Root’s quality must not be too low.’

Du Youqian continued renting the boat, and in the blink of an eye, more than a month had passed.

On this day, he had the boatman pull ashore near Xunjin Beach on the Jiasui River, south of Five Wishes Mountain. He settled the rental fee and said with a smile, "I’ve troubled you for over a month, my friend. We part ways today. I hope you’ll be healthy and safe in the future."

The boatman was so stunned he couldn’t speak.

He was just a poor, humble boatman, a profession from the lowest rungs of society.

There was a common saying: "Cart drivers, boatmen, innkeepers, porters, and brokers—even if they’re innocent, they deserve to be killed."

If there was a pecking order of professions, then boatmen were at the very bottom.

For him, being looked down upon was a part of life.

He didn’t even feel wronged by it.

He was used to it.

No one had ever spoken to him so kindly before.

Even his own wife, who had passed away early from illness, had only ever ordered him around without a single gentle word.

But this young master who had rented his boat for a month was clearly one of the wealthiest and most dashing figures in the human world. He was generous with his money and so handsome he looked like an Exiled Immortal. The boatman usually didn’t even dare to look at people like him.

He never imagined that such a god-like person would make him feel respected for the first time in his life. He didn’t know the word "respect," but this sudden feeling of being accepted, of being treated like a human being, made him feel tears welling up in his eyes.

The boatman’s son, though young, was much shrewder. He immediately rushed forward, dropped to his knees, and kowtowed. "Sir, you must be a person of great ability. You’ve taught me so much these past few days, things that will benefit me for my entire life. I am truly grateful. Please, grant me your name so that I have someone to remember, and perhaps I’ll have a chance to repay you in the future."

It had to be said, the boy was truly clever. Although he had never been to school and was practically illiterate, he had picked up a way of speaking that was a mix of common and literary language just by listening to the conversations of travelers.

Du Youqian smiled, slowly reached out, and bent down to place his hand on the boy’s head.

The boy didn’t resist.

When Du Youqian’s hand touched his forehead, the boy shuddered. The boatman watched his son anxiously, only breathing a sigh of relief when he saw the boy was unharmed.

After a moment, the boy came to his senses and kowtowed heavily to Du Youqian several more times. "Thank you, sir! Thank you, Immortal Master!"

Just now, Du Youqian had imprinted some basic information into his mind.

This included the location of the Zhongxuan Sect’s mountain gate and a general knowledge of the geography of the Han Kingdom.

Once the boy was a little older, he could find his way to Yu Kun Mountain and seek his destiny.

For this reason alone, Du Youqian felt he could calmly accept the boy’s kowtows.

As for Cultivation Techniques, he couldn’t teach any that had specific origins, and there was no need to teach something like the Three Transition Celestial Dance Scripture. If the boy tried to join a sect already possessing skills, it would only narrow his path.

After a moment of thought, Du Youqian said, "I remember your surname is Shen. You’ve made your living on the water since you were young. From now on, your name will be Shen Miao!"

"Thank you, Master, for granting me a name!" The boy seized the opportunity.

Du Youqian couldn’t help but laugh. He wasn’t angry at being put on the spot.

"Fine, fine. You can be my Registered Disciple. Remember, your master is a True Inheritor of the Zhongxuan Sect. My surname is Qiu, and my given name is Yuanqing. When you are accepted into the Zhongxuan Sect, you can mention my name."

The boy trembled with excitement.

He knew that from this day forward, the course of his destiny had been changed forever. "This disciple will remember!"

Du Youqian said nothing more.

When the boy named Shen Miao finally worked up the courage to lift his head, he found no one in front of him.

His master had vanished without a trace, like an immortal.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Based on a month of listening to rumors, Du Youqian’s analysis led him to believe that a valley past Xunjin Beach was the most likely place to find the monkey.

Many people claimed to have seen an incredibly smug-looking monkey near the valley, sometimes riding a wild boar, and at other times, even parading around on the back of a colorful tiger.

Whether it was the right one or not, Du Youqian had to go and confirm it for himself.

However, arriving in an unfamiliar place, especially one teeming with sentient beasts, Du Youqian did not let go of his basic caution.

His Defensive Spiritual Artifact was ready to activate at a moment’s notice, and his Flying Sword circled above his head, prepared to strike like lightning.

He also clutched a handful of Talismans, ready to throw them out at the first sign of danger. Even a Foundation Establishment Beast would get a face full of them.

And so, with extreme caution, Du Youqian approached the valley.

From a distance, he could hear the rising and falling cries of excited beasts from within the valley. It sounded like... ’Are the beasts holding a sports meet?’

In any case, it was quite rowdy.

Normally, beasts wouldn’t be this boisterous at this time of day.

Unhurried, Du Youqian formed a hand seal for a Technique and muttered an incantation.

Soon, a cloud of water vapor rose into the sky, flew over the valley, and condensed into a huge, smooth Water Mirror.

At the same time, another Water Mirror appeared in front of him. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Du Youqian looked into the mirror and nearly burst out laughing.