Chapter 036: A Return Visit

Walking on the way back to the tent, Yusha snorted inside the phantom beast space. “Xiao Duo, you’re giving things away again.”

Shen Duo chuckled quietly. “Yusha, what use do you have for those water spirit blossoms?”

“Hmph, I could at least trade them for a few gold coins!” Yusha’s words were tinged with childishness. In truth, he had overheard Shen Duo’s entire conversation with Lei Hang just now, and seeing Shen Duo’s sincerity toward Lei Hang made him inexplicably irritated, as if something precious of his had been taken away. The discomfort made him insist on arguing for the sake of it.

Shen Duo simply smiled and shook his head, not bothering to argue with him. Yusha soon realized he was being petty. He emerged from the phantom beast space, crawled into Shen Duo’s arms, buried his furry head in the crook of Shen Duo’s neck, and let out a comfortable sigh, settling in brazenly and refusing to leave.

With a helpless sigh, Shen Duo carried Yusha back into the tent. Man and beast slept soundly until dawn.

The next morning, the Blazing Flame Mercenary Corps was already packed and ready to set off toward Carbas, the capital of the Castian Empire. After bidding farewell to the group’s leader Lei Lie, as well as Lei Hang, Aodefan, Zheng Wu, and the others, Shen Duo set out to another realm, intent on delivering the item entrusted to him by the old man.

Finding a secluded patch of shrubbery, Shen Duo sat down, calmed his breath, and entered an introspective state. The purple mist surrounding the scroll glowing with white light in his dantian had grown denser than before. Focusing his mind, he opened the scroll. In a flash of brilliant silver light, Shen Duo vanished from the void. When he opened his eyes again, he was still sitting in meditation, but he had arrived in another realm.

Arriving in the city of Locke in this realm, Shen Duo found the old man’s residence. The shabby door was tightly closed. She stepped forward and knocked gently. Soon, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from within.

The old man, still half-asleep, pulled open the door and snapped irritably, “Who is it, disturbing an old man’s sleep so early?”

Standing awkwardly at the door, Shen Duo’s mouth twitched as she glanced at the sun already high in the sky. It didn’t seem early at all. “Elder,” she greeted respectfully with a bow.

Rubbing his eyes to see clearly, the old man’s face lit up in a grin as radiant as a chrysanthemum. “Child, it’s you! Come in, come in!”

Shen Duo followed him inside and found the house neat and orderly, quite unlike the usual disarray after someone just woke up. The old man brought over a cup of nectar, and seeing the confusion in Shen Duo’s eyes, chuckled, “Lately, a few mischievous children have been bothering this old man. I had no choice but to be cautious, haha!”

Clearly, this was just an excuse, but Shen Duo didn’t press him. She took a small parcel containing the silver reef from her storage ring and presented it. “Elder, here is what you asked for.”

Upon hearing this, the old man immediately opened the parcel. When he saw the silvery, shell-like silver reef glowing faintly, he nearly jumped for joy, muttering in delight, “It really is! It really is!”

Caressing the smooth surface of the silver reef, he was completely lost in the unexpected joy, unable to pull himself away for a long while. When he finally recovered, his eyes shone as he gazed at Shen Duo. “I knew I couldn’t have misjudged you, child!” After sizing her up and nodding in satisfaction, he took out a scroll from his storage ring and handed it to Shen Duo. “Take this for now. I don’t have much else of value here at the moment, but use this as a start. Once you’ve mastered it, come find me again. The three promises I made will certainly be honored.”

While Shen Duo wasn’t one to pry into others’ affairs, she could tell the old man was no ordinary person. She accepted the scroll and had barely stowed it away when footsteps sounded at the door, followed by a knock.

The old man, cheerful a moment before, instantly wore a stern face. After hastily hiding the silver reef Shen Duo had given him, he went to open the door, face dark with displeasure. Uncomprehending, Shen Duo followed behind him. The door opened to reveal two middle-aged men dressed in swordsman’s robes.

The old man snorted coldly. “What are you doing here again? This shabby house can’t possibly accommodate the likes of you. Save your effort.”

The two men looked awkward, pausing when they saw Shen Duo behind the old man, then bowed deeply. “Master, please come back. The academy is in chaos. Ban Sai and Gu Qi have come to blows over that matter, and no one but you can keep order.”

The old man turned away, anger in his voice. “These troubles are your own doing. You should take responsibility. What can a nameless old fellow like me do for an academy’s affairs?”

“Master, have mercy on us. It’s all our fault. We shouldn’t have fought among ourselves over that item. But the academy is your creation—how can you turn your back on it now? Even if you don’t forgive us, think of the intermediate and lower-ranking swordsmen studying there!”

A flicker of hesitation crossed the old man’s face. With a sigh of disappointment, he finally relented and let the two inside to talk.

Shen Duo, standing aside, was stunned. She had always sensed the old man was remarkable, but had never imagined he was the head of an academy!

The old man sipped his nectar, acting as if the two men didn’t exist, and even topped off Shen Duo’s cup, his tone so gentle it took the other two by surprise.

“Child, drink more. The nectar I brew is a hundred times better than anything in the taverns!”

Shen Duo smiled at the old man, raised her cup without hesitation, and took several sips. The nectar was indeed pure and mellow—far beyond what the Butuo Tavern could offer.

Seeing Shen Duo’s appreciative smile, the old man’s mood brightened considerably.

The two middle-aged men standing to the side swallowed hard, inwardly bemoaning their fate: Master, we’re thirsty too, we’d love to taste your nectar—please, have mercy and spare us a cup.

But neither dared voice their wish. If the old man lost his temper, he could easily send them flying with a single swing of his sword!

Shen Duo studied the two men curiously. One was tall and burly, with a square face covered in a thick beard and a booming voice. The other was of medium height, thin and gaunt, his voice sharp and reedy. Both wore gray swordsman’s uniforms, and one bore a badge on his arm—a silver emblem formed of three exquisitely crafted small swords, beneath which was an olive branch symbolizing the Goddess of Holy Radiance. At this, Shen Duo involuntarily drew a sharp breath. This burly man was actually a Sword Spirit!

For swordsmen, the first rank was simply Swordsman. After advancing, one became a Great Swordsman, and only by crossing the threshold of a Great Swordsman could one become a Sword Spirit. It took at least thirty years for a common person to cultivate to the level of Sword Spirit, and that was only if their innate talent was of the blue grade or higher.