Immortal Travel of Longevity

The two didn’t talk for long before saying their goodbyes.

Walking down the road, Chen Changsheng recalled that girl called Aqing. She seemed so naive, actually going to catch bugs. And listening to An Long, it sounded like Aqing had gathered quite a few.

“The Gu Insect Art…”

Chen Changsheng chuckled lightly and shook his head, not paying it much mind.

The street bustled with people coming and going. Chen Changsheng’s gaze wandered over the stalls and shops lining the roadside.

The goods sold were wildly varied, and he paused occasionally to look.

His footsteps suddenly halted as his eyes landed on a stall piled with junk.

The items on this stall could only be called a jumbled mess. Small things like hair ties and earrings lay mixed with larger things like swords and knives. It reminded him a bit of a general store from his previous life.

The stall owner was dressed like a Jianghu man, a woven bamboo hat hanging on his back partly obscuring his face. He looked rather difficult to approach.

Chen Changsheng crouched down, looking at the stall owner. “These things don’t look like they were meant for the living.” The stall owner visibly stiffened. His eyes instantly grew tense, and his hand moved towards the small of his back.

Chen Changsheng smiled. “No need for alarm. I was merely passing by and taking a look. But since you know these goods are ill-gotten, why set up stall so openly in Qingshan City?”

After a moment’s silence, the owner said, “No connections.”

“No connections?”

Chen Changsheng paused. “These things aren’t from one place. If you specialize in tomb robbing [lit: ‘upside-down fighting’], how can you have no connections?”

The owner pondered for a long time before speaking. “I had them before. But that person died. The connection broke.”

Chen Changsheng understood. “So that’s the way.”

He stood up, his gaze flicking swiftly to a street corner nearby before looking back at the stall as if nothing happened.

The owner asked, “Do you want to buy?”

Chen Changsheng shook his head. “Only one item caught my eye.”

His gaze fell upon a jade thumb ring amidst the stall clutter.

The owner glanced at it. “What’s your offer?”

“One coin,” Chen Changsheng said.

The owner frowned. “Are you toying with me?”

Chen Changsheng said, “Sell it to me for one coin, and I’ll save your life in a moment.”

The owner blinked, starting to turn his head to look down the street.

“Don’t look.”

Chen Changsheng spoke calmly. “I don’t know how you offended these people, but with your skills, you can’t handle this many.”

The owner thought briefly, then reached out, picked up the jade thumb ring from the stall, and handed it to Chen Changsheng.

“Please take it, Senior.”

Chen Changsheng slipped the thumb ring into his sleeve, then fished out one copper coin and passed it to the owner.

“For one coin, it’s not necessary…” the owner mumbled.

Chen Changsheng smiled. “Three parts fate, seven parts effort. Yet, beware the unexpected. Remember, clutch this coin in your fist and don’t let go. Your life depends on it.”

With those words, he turned and prepared to leave.

The owner hesitated. “But didn’t you say… Hey!”

Chen Changsheng didn’t look back, walking away without pause.

The owner used his peripheral vision to scan the street corners. Sure enough, he spotted several pairs of eyes fixed on him.

A sense of danger prickled him. He guessed what they were after.

Pretending ignorance, he began gathering his displayed goods, all while surreptitiously tracking the watching eyes.

As the feeling of being watched lessened slightly, he abruptly dashed into a nearby alley.

At the street corner, one of the watchers lifted a hand, only to find the stall empty.

“Bad! After him!”

“That alley! Don’t let him escape!”

In the blink of an eye, over ten men swarmed into the alley.

Meanwhile, the stall owner raced through the twisting alleys. He glanced back repeatedly, his heart pounding in his throat.

…

Chen Changsheng lightly tossed the jade thumb ring, catching it. It fit perfectly in his palm. Made of smooth, white jade, it had faint stains – yellow earth seeped into it, likely from being crushed underground.

Honestly, the ring wasn’t special. Chen Changsheng just saw it and took the chance to snag a bargain.

He carried the ring out of Qingshan City.

Finding a quiet spot, Chen Changsheng called softly, “Come… come… come…”

Snakes and insects stirred, drawn by the sound. A few at first, then dozens, finally nearly a hundred swarmed around Chen Changsheng, encircling him.

He channeled a wisp of Magical Power into the thumb ring.

Then, his eyes swept over the mass of snakes and insects before finally settling on a lone cicada.

“The rest of you, off you go.”

At his words, the snakes and insects scuttled and crawled away, leaving only the cicada before him. It fluttered onto his palm.

Chen Changsheng placed the hand wearing the thumb ring on the cicada’s forehead.

“Can you understand me?” he asked.

The cicada clearly faltered. It seemed to grasp that the person before it was speaking words.

“It seems you do.” Chen Changsheng observed. “Try to communicate with me. Just think what you wish to say.”

The cicada vibrated its wings, thoughts forming in its small mind.

‘Are we the same?’

The cicada appeared to regard Chen Changsheng as its kin.

Chen Changsheng smiled faintly. “No. We are different.”

The jade ring had worked. It connected the Magical Power with the insect’s Soul Spirit, enabling shared consciousness and speech.

“Go now.”

At his command, the cicada flew off, vanishing into the distance moments later.

He put the thumb ring away. One copper coin well spent, no loss at all.

“Speaking of which,” he mused, “I wonder how that stall owner fared?”

…

Deathly intent thickened in the woods outside Qingshan City.

Blood dripped to the forest floor, leaving a wet trail.

Ouyang Feng staggered forward, clutching a sword, his right arm hanging useless. He pressed his left hand against the deep wound in his chest, blood welling constantly. He dared not look back.

Behind him, sprawled in the forest shadows, lay several bodies. Every single one had a neat incision across the throat.

Ouyang Feng gritted his teeth, risking a glance over his shoulder.

Eleven men had pursued him. Nine now lay dead by his sword.

Still dogging his steps were two more killers.

‘He promised to save my life! Where is he?!’

Ouyang Feng cursed inwardly, but now wasn’t the time for fury.

Abruptly, a figure stepped from the trees ahead. Ouyang Feng jerked to a halt.

“Halt!” the figure commanded.

Frowning, Ouyang Feng whirled around.

Only to see his other pursuers had caught up.

A grim realization struck Ouyang Feng; his frown deepened.

The man ahead, gripping a broadsword, laughed. “Nowhere left to run now. Hand over the Nine Yin Manual! Do that, and I’ll end you quick and clean.”

Ouyang Feng tightened his grip on his sword. “We’ll see who dies here!”

He knew his endurance was spent.

As the words faded, blinding sword light erupted everywhere around them. The shriek of clashing metal filled the air, overwhelming. Fierce killing aura surged through the woods.