The Terrifying Path of Immortal Cultivation

"Excuse me, I am Zhou Qingming, a scholar from Sanchuan City."

"Nice to meet you. I am grateful for saving my life. I will never forget your kindness."

Li Qing turned to look at the refined scholar Zhou Qingming and gestured casually.

"Alright, sit down. It's just your lucky day to meet me. Otherwise, you would have lost your life out there."

Zhou Qingming seemed to realize something and a hint of fear appeared on his face.

Li Qing picked up a roasted fish and handed it to Zhou Qingming.

"You look like you haven't eaten. Have a taste."

Zhou Qingming quickly took the fish, and with a grateful look on his face, he said, "Thank you, sir."

"Sss..." The fish was hot, causing him to involuntarily shake his burnt tongue.

The two ate the roasted fish in silence. Half an hour passed, and after finishing the fish, they both seemed satisfied.

Li Qing leaned against a tree and casually asked, "How did you end up here?"

"Sanchuan City, what kind of place is that?"

Zhou Qingming hurriedly explained, "It's like this."

"Two days ago, I received a letter informing me of my friend's death in Jade City, so I set out to pay my respects."

"But on the way, I encountered a wedding procession."

At this point, fear appeared on his face.

"But it was a ghostly wedding procession, with all the sedan bearers being paper figures."

"I didn't run away and was captured by them. After that, I knew nothing until I woke up just now."

Li Qing looked at him with a hint of pity, "You really have had a stroke of bad luck."

At this point, Zhou Qingming stood up, straightened his clothes, and bowed deeply to Li Qing.

"Thank you for saving my life. May I ask for your name? I will surely repay your kindness."

Li Qing glanced at him and waved his hand lightly, "Forget it. I helped you just by chance. I don't expect you to repay me."

"No, no, no. The sages say, 'One must repay kindness and revenge.' I am a scholar and cannot accept kindness without repaying it."

Zhou Qingming's expression was solemn, and his eyes showed his determination.

Li Qing smiled faintly. He didn't dislike this kind of person. There were too few people like this in the world, which made it murky and unbearable.

If everyone had their basic principles and morals, all the irrationality would naturally disappear.

Unfortunately, this was just wishful thinking. There will always be human nature, and it can never be changed.

Therefore, to educate and guide people, to do what is known to be impossible, is true perseverance, wisdom, and magnanimity.

Having spent ten years at the Flower Moon Study House, Li Qing had read numerous classics after they were revised. Although not a Confucian, he had a clear understanding of the classics and had his own interpretation.

"Alright, no need to be so formal. I understand your intentions."

"You can call me Bai Qingshan, 'Bai' as in white, and 'Qingshan' as in green mountains and rivers."

Li Qing casually fabricated a name.

Zhou Qingming bowed slightly again, "Thank you, Brother Bai Qingshan!"

"Alright, sit down," Li Qing waved his hand again and rolled his eyes.

Zhou Qingming sat down with a slightly solemn expression.

"Are you still going to Jade City?" Li Qing asked Zhou Qingming.

"No, I dare not go. I'm afraid of encountering danger on the way again."

"I can only go back and write a letter to be delivered to Jade City, explaining the situation."

A hint of fear appeared on Zhou Qingming's face. Although he was a scholar, he was not foolish.

Li Qing nodded slightly, "How do you plan to go back?"

"I remember there's a small town by the river, where there are merchant ships. It's the junction of this river and the main stream of the Pujiang River. We can take a boat directly to Sanchuan City."

"By following the river, we should be able to see the town soon."

Zhou Qingming looked left and right, and then glanced at the sky, seemingly calculating his position through some complex method.

Li Qing looked at him in surprise, "You can read the terrain?"

Zhou Qingming smiled, "It's the Purple Star Art from the books, which can be used to determine one's position."

Li Qing looked surprised and gave him a thumbs-up, "Impressive!"

Zhou Qingming looked puzzled, "Impressive? What does that mean? Can you explain it to me, Brother?"

Li Qing's lips twitched slightly at the words, "Um, you can think of it as a compliment."

"You're very capable," Zhou Qingming suddenly understood and raised his thumb to Li Qing, "Brother, impressive!"

Seeing Zhou Qingming imitating him, Li Qing was speechless.

"Is Sanchuan City far from Longdao City?" Li Qing asked casually.

Zhou Qingming quickly replied, "Sanchuan City is not far from Longdao City, only about a hundred miles. If we walk fast, we can get there in a day and a night."

Li Qing's eyes lit up at this, "I can take a boat to Sanchuan City, and then it will be much faster to go to Longdao City."

After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Let's go together tomorrow. I need to go to Longdao City, and it's on the way for you."

"This guy is a native of Sanchuan City. He might be useful."

"It's better to have two people than one, so we won't attract too much attention."

Li Qing was still wary of whether the mysterious Blood Spirit Prince would secretly search for his whereabouts.

Now that he had left the Demon Slaying Temple, there was a certain possibility that the other party had received the news.

"I don't know if I'm being too cautious or not, but it's better to be careful."

In general, Li Qing was a rather lazy person who liked to avoid any potential danger.

The night passed without a word, and it was already the next day.

The sun had just risen in the sky when Li Qing stood up and woke up the still-sleeping Zhou Qingming.

At this point, Li Qing had already prepared two roasted fish and handed one to him directly.

"Let's go. We can eat while walking and try to find the town you mentioned as soon as possible. Then we can take a boat to Sanchuan City."

Zhou Qingming quickly got up and nodded, "Okay, thank you, Qingshan Brother, for preparing food for me."

He then bowed slightly, but Li Qing stopped him.

"Alright, it's just a fish. There's no need to be so formal."

"Men should be straightforward."

With that, the two of them walked forward.

As time passed, the sun in the sky gradually became scorching, and the world became brighter.

After walking for about half a morning, they saw a cluster of buildings ahead, right on both sides of the riverbank.

It seemed that a small river joined a big river, and the sound of rushing water could be heard ahead.

The two of them showed a hint of joy in their eyes and hurried over.

The small town was bustling in the morning, with city walls all around, and two soldiers guarding the entrance.

Li Qing handed a silver coin to the soldiers and passed through the inspection directly.

Zhou Qingming's face showed a hint of joy, "Qingshan Brother, let's take a break here and I'll treat you to express my gratitude for saving me last night."

Li Qing smiled, "Sure, I want to eat well. If it's not good, I won't accept it."

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