A Pawn's Passage

When the boat docked, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu disembarked and continued their journey on land. They walked for about two days, finally leaving Yongzhou and entering Shuzhou’s borders.

Not long after arriving in Shuzhou, Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu met several Daoist priests from the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion who were making their way to the Jade Capital using the route the duo had just taken.

After they learned of Zhang Yuelu’s identity, they became more attentive and polite. It was not because of her rank and position, but because of the sect she was affiliated with.

Each Daoist mansion had allegiance to certain Daoist sects based on the Daoist Mansion Master and the majority of the disciples there. Whether the Daoist Mansion Master could hold their position depended on whether they had the support of their subordinates. Daoist Mansion Masters without the support of their subordinates would be ignored. Therefore, the Daoist Mansion Masters were usually appointed from the same Daoist sect as the majority in that local area.

For example, in the Qizhou Daoist Palace, 99% of the disciples were Taiping Sect disciples, so all the previous Daoist Mansion Masters were also Sages from the Taiping Sect.

There were also exceptions, like the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion. Half of the disciples there were from the ZhengyiSect, but the Daoist Mansion Master was not from the Zhengyi Sect.

Some places, like the Zhongzhou Daoist Mansion, Liaodong Daoist Mansion, and Kunlun Daoist Mansion, had an equal distribution of disciples from all sects. Thus, the three sects would take turns appointing the Daoist Mansion Masters. These Daoist mansions were also known as swing mansions.

Shuzhou Daoist Mansion was considered a Quanzhen Sect Daoist Mansion. Since the Holy Xuan Era, the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion Masters have always hailed from the Quanzhen Sect. As such, the Quanzhen Sect disciples in this Daoist mansion accounted for more than 90% of the personnel there. Moreover, the Earthly Preceptor’s Chongyang Palace of Immortality was located in Qinzhou, Shuzhou's neighboring state.

Although Zhang Yuelu was born in the Zhengyi Sect, she was personally promoted by the Earthly Preceptor, so the Quanzhen Sect disciples also viewed her as their own. The only sect that disliked Zhang Yuelu was probably the Taiping Sect.

One of the reasons was Li Tianzhen, and the other reason was the long-standing feud between the Zhang and Li families. Therefore, Zhang Yuelu was self-aware and did not use the Jiangbei route, where the Taiping Sect dominated.

Zhang Yuelu was not good at socializing. On the other hand, Qi Xuansu—the experienced traveler—was good at making small talk and soon made friends with several priests from the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion.

These Daoist priests from the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion inadvertently told him an interesting story.

Shuzhou Daoist Mansion was landlocked, with the Liangzhou Daoist Mansion to the north, the Jingchu Daoist Mansion to the south, the Kunlun Daoist Mansion to the west, and the Qinzhou Daoist Mansion to the east.

It was not situated close to any of the borders, so there were no conflicts like in the Western Region Daoist Mansion. It was in peace for a long time. Even the secret societies had not surfaced there for a while. That was probably because it was too close to the Earthly Preceptor’s palace.

The interesting story they heard was about a syndicate from out of state that had arrived in Jinguan Prefecture, the capital of Shuzhou, and committed several crimes in succession. However, they were smart enough not to provoke the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion.

The main task of the Daoist mansion was to capture cult demons, suppress secret societies, and arrest people who relied on their cultivation level to commit crimes. Petty theft, armed robbery, and other civilian crimes were under the jurisdiction of the local Green Phoenix Guard Lieutenant Colonel’s Office. Thus, the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion did not intervene.

The Lieutenant Colonel’s Office was experienced in dealing with such crimes, so it should not be difficult to solve the case. However, they did not manage to arrest these scammers and allowed the criminals to run rampant in the city, causing more havoc. That was why the Daoist priests from the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion were gossiping about the Green Phoenix Guard’s incompetency like it was trivial gossip.

The Provincial Surveillance Commission jointly handled the case with the Lieutenant Colonel’s Office, but there was still little progress.

Qi Xuansu did not pay much attention to the case, but Zhang Yuelu was all ears because she was curious about the scammers who could evade the Lieutenant Colonel’s Office and the Provincial Surveillance Commission. Zhang Yuelu wanted to watch the fun and see what methods these scammers used, hoping to gain more "real-world" experience.

However, Qi Xuansu knew that Zhang Yuelu merely wanted to delay their journey home. She was afraid that her family would see through the flaws in her fake relationship with Qi Xuansu, so she wanted to spend as little time at home as possible.

Qi Xuansu was not her real Daoist companion, so he was in no hurry to be in her hometown and did not object to her idea.

After they parted ways with the Daoist priests from the Shuzhou Daoist Mansion, who were heading to the Ancestral Court, Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu changed their route and went to Jinguan Prefecture.

Zhang Yuelu took out a map of Shuzhou. At a glance, the entire state was divided into two. The western half had complex terrain, surrounded by mountains and rivers, while the eastern half was a vast plain with flat terrain. Jinguan Prefecture was located in the middle of the state, with more plains. Thus, they had to take a long mountain road or the waterway to get there.

After Zhang Yuelu consulted Qi Xuansu’s opinion, she decided to go by boat.

Although Qi Xuansu had the Jiama talismans, the mountain road was too winding. From the map, it was only a few dozen kilometers, but the actual distance was hundreds of kilometers. On the other hand, the waterway would cut the distance short and waste minimal effort.

The only disadvantage of the waterway was the boat’s slow speed. However, this was exactly what Zhang Yuelu wanted. She would have taken the flying ship back to her hometown if she wanted a quick journey.

After some discussion, they found a ferry nearby and prepared to travel on it. Although the ferry was not as big and fancy as the Daoist flying ships or the Imperial Court’s warships that crossed the ocean, this ship could still accommodate more than a hundred people.

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu looked like an ordinary couple and did not catch anyone’s attention.

Previously, during the fierce fight in Yishan City, Qi Xuansu’s cloak was slightly damaged. Distressed that his new cloak was torn, he temporarily stored it in Zhang Yuelu’s magical receptacle. Since he was in the Yuxustage and had a physique comparable to that of a Martial Arts Practitioner in the same realm, his body was constantly warm and was not affected by the cold. Moreover, the climate in Shuzhou was warmer than in the Western Region.

On the other hand, Zhang Yuelu's cloak was still intact after a series of fierce battles.

There was an aisle in the middle with a few rows of seats on both sides. Each row could accommodate two people sitting side by side.

Zhang Yuelu had not been feeling well in the past few days, so she was not in the mood to talk and kept to herself, tightening her cloak and covering half of her face with a hood. She leaned against the bulkhead and gazed at the scenery outside the window, looking like a delicate little lady who was tired and afraid of the cold.

Qi Xuansu took the aisle seat next to Zhang Yuelu, keeping her protected inside. Since he did not have his cloak, his satchel was exposed, hanging close to the aisle.

From time to time, he whispered to Zhang Yuelu, but she just nodded or shook her head in response. Occasionally, she would respond with a word or two. To outsiders, they resembled a young couple going on a trip, like a husband whispering comforting words to his wife, who was not feeling well.

Just as the ship was about to depart, they heard a flurry of footsteps.

A young man hurried into the cabin. He wore shabby clothes stitched together with multiple rags, which did not fit well or look good. He also had a plain skullcap without a center ornament and a worn-out satchel on him. The man kept his head lowered, with his chin to his chest.

Qi Xuansu merely glanced at the young man from the corner of his eye before looking away and talking to Zhang Yuelu. He was not whispering words of comfort or love, since they were not a real couple. Instead, Qi Xuansu was asking Zhang Yuelu about the mystical abilities of Rogue Cultivators in the Yuxu stage. After all, Rogue Cultivators were the imitation version of Banished Immortals, so there were many similarities between the two lineages.

The young man scanned the cabin, seemingly looking for his seat. Then he quickly walked down the aisle in the middle.

Just as the young man passed by his side, Qi Xuansu took out a small flask from his satchel, handed it to Zhang Yuelu, and asked with concern, “Are you still feeling uncomfortable? Do you want a drink?”

The young man was startled and quickly walked past Qi Xuansu to the back of the cabin.

Qi Xuansu put the small flask back into the satchel, moving the satchel next to Zhang Yuelu instead of exposing it to the aisle.

Zhang Yuelu was a little surprised, but she quickly understood what was happening. That young man earlier was probably a thief. But Qi Xuansu did not expose the boy directly and only made a show of retrieving something from the satchel to avoid a confrontation.

However, Zhang Yuelu did not care about the young man. She was more interested in the flask that Qi Xuansu took out. She asked, “What’s in the flask?”

Qi Xuansu hesitated before answering, “Wine.”

Zhang Yuelu, who was initially dispirited, lit up at the sound of that. “I thought you didn’t like to drink. Did you buy it for me?”

Qi Xuansu did not deny it. “I bought it in Yishan City. I thought you looked exhausted, so I bought this to cheer you up. It cost me two Taiping coins.”

Zhang Yuelu’s eyes curved like little crescent moons as she smiled and stretched out her hand. “You’re a great friend! Now, give it to me.”

"No.” Qi Xuansu refused. “You look well enough now.”

"You asked me just now if I felt uncomfortable. I am indeed feeling some discomfort, so give me that wine to cheer me up!” Zhang Yuelu was already making a move to get the flask from his satchel, so Qi Xuansu had no choice but to give her the flask.

Zhang Yuelu unscrewed the cap and took a small sip of the wine.

At this moment, the young man from just now walked back down the aisle, shouting, “Sorry, sir! I got on the wrong boat.”

When the young man passed by Qi Xuansu again, he staggered and fell toward Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu supported the young man to prevent the latter from falling on top of him, questioning, “You’re trying to rob me in broad daylight now, huh?”

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