My Journey to Immortality Begins with Hunting

"Ow, yeowch! I'm the reclusive master of Tang Sect. Out there. they call me Great Matron Tang, you know. Can't you show me some respect?" Tang Nian grumbled, rubbing her head.

"Great Matron Tang?" Li Yuan glanced at the crimson-robed enchantress and couldn't help laughing. "They've never seen your face?"

"Of course not. Outside the sect, only a few clan elders even know what I look like."

Li Yuan pondered. "Anything you actually need to do these days?"

Tang Nian ticked items off on her fingers. "Inside, cultivation, research, and personnel. Outside, trade, arbitration, and social ties.

"Families want me to witness weddings; factions beg me to referee their gambling duels; merchants fear being cheated and beg for my seal of approval.

"Then there are promotions, disciples' questions... Pops, I'm actually quitebusy,you know?

"Still, anything I can dodge, I shove onto my direct disciples.

"Don't be fooled by how fresh-faced my direct disciples look," Tang Nian said with a grin. "Every last one of them comes from a major clan. Out in the world, they're movers and shakers."

"Hmm..." Li Yuan rubbed his chin, then turned to Sheng'er. "Why not let your big sister's disciples take you along on their errands? Weddings, duel arbitrations, guarding a big deal...just keep your veil on and see the world."

Then he asked Tang Nian, "Is that ebony kinghound still around?"

"Fat and happy," she replied. "A sixth rank demonic beast can strut anywhere in Cloudpeak Province these days."

Li Yuan nodded at Sheng'er. "Let the ebony kinghound escort you."

Sheng'er answered, half nervous, half eager: "All right, Papa."

Tang Nian's smile turned sly. "Pops, why don't you stay in my underground palace? If any of my direct disciples catch your eye, I can make her a step mother on the spot."

"Enough." Li Yuan rolled his eyes. "I'll just lodge in one of your rooms. Food and wine are all I need."

"And what about women? A fifth rank martial artist's blood runs hot. How will you survive the night without—"

"Not your concern."

"Alright..." Tang Nian pouted. She led Sheng'er down to the underground palace, then slipped back up to the surface a few moments later. She pressed a supple map and two jade tokens into Li Yuan's hand.

She whispered in his ear, "Pops, I didn't tell you this before, but all the brothels and pleasure houses in Cloudpeak Province...half of them are under the Tang Sect. Show the token, and everything's on the house."

Li Yuan didn't refuse. After all, these sorts of establishments were the perfect place to gather intel when he was outside. It also wasn't practical to return to the Tang Sect headquarters every time he needed information on something.

Tang Nian giggled. "The Springcharm Palace just hired a new courtesan, Yan Ru'er. She's a real beauty and a talent. A ton of young masters are burning fortunes just to see her smile. It's only a few ridges from here; with your speed, you can fly there and back in probably around two hours."

Li Yuan had to admit he needed a dose of ordinary life. Constant scheming in the black market ghost domain was turning his mood dark.

"Fine." He nodded.

Tang Nian stared, wide-eyed. "Really? Then I'll give the orders. Anyone who so much astouchesYan Ru'er, I'll kill without mercy!"

"I'm not out to fight over a flower queen," Li Yuan said. "Tone down the carnage, you're still a girl, remember."

"I'm Great Matron Tang," Tang Nian huffed.

"The Springcharm palace must have plenty of business," Li Yuan mused. "And high standards for food, I imagine?"

"Of course."

"Then I'll sign on as their chef for a while."

Tang Nian's jaw dropped. "A...chef?"

Li Yuan's eyes shone. "Let my blade taste the smoke and fire of the mortal world."

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A few days later.

The Springcharm Palace, Noblereach.

Strings of scarlet lanterns arched over the street, bathing laughing faces in warm light.

"Yan Ru'er has a new tune tonight. Grab a front seat!"

"Got enough silver?"

"Plenty, haha!"

"Who knows which house she'll choose in the end? For one kiss, I'd trade a few years of life."

Night had barely fallen, yet the Springcharm Palace was packed; those who couldn't squeeze in milled at the doors and windows. Only people with clan or faction backing could even dream of entering.

Silken music and laughter filled the hall. At last, the courtesan appeared with a red veil and pipa in arms. She tuned, plucked, and the crowd held its breath.

Dishes were ordered left and right.

When the first melody ended, thunderous cheers rocked the rafters, then a different sort of murmur rose from the tables.

"Have you seen this pork? It's sliced thinner than a cicada's wing!"

"Look—perfectly translucent, yet the sheet never tears."

"And these shreds. I thought it was noodles, but it's pork. Every strand is the exact same length and width, not one broken in the stew."

Patrons held their bowls up in astonishment, praising the invisible master who wielded such an impossibly keen, impossibly precise blade.

The diners' excitement kept rising.

"That little rabbit carved onto the plate, so lifelike! Incredible knife-work."

More and more guests began to notice the almost impossible cuts in every dish.

Several demanded to meet the chef, but were politely refused.

One swaggering young master shouted, "Do you know who I am?"

However, the house-steward simply replied, "Take it up with the Tang Sect."

Then, the fellow shrank at once.

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Behind the screens, in the kitchen, a young man shaved a potato with a dark-back, white-edged blade.

Each sheet was thinner than a cicada's wing, yet unbroken, unspooling into a single spiral. A quick dip in hot oil and the potato blossomed into a high-end version of tornado chips.

Li Yuan used his fifth rank blade skill with every stroke—this was precision practice. With the potatoes done, he filleted a fish. Then he marinated, flash-fried, and arranged into a peony fish he remembered from his old world.

Orders piled up, and his knife moved faster and faster.

Presently the madam of the Springcharm Palace bustled in. She had no idea who the youth was, but she could tell he was not to be offended.

"Sir, if it's too much, might I keep you on the cutting board while my regular cooks handle the pans?"

Li Yuan nodded pleasantly. "Fine by me."

Two women and a third, slightly prettier assistant hurried in. Li Yuan sliced; they cooked. Dishes streamed from the kitchen till well past midnight.

When the last customer left, Li Yuan sheathed White Serpent, scooped a bowl of rice and odds-and-ends, found a quiet corner, and ate while muttering to himself, "Condense, concentrate..."

A maid approached. "Sir, Miss Yan Ru'er wishes to see you."

"I'm just the cook. What point is there in meeting me?" Li Yuan said gently. He finished the bowl, slipped away before trouble could catch him.

Up on the rooftop, the maid reported back.

The veiled courtesan watched the departing figure and sighed, "Definitely someone weighty. Fine, best not to irritate him and invite storms."

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After leaving the Springcharm palace, Li Yuan wandered the night streets of Noblereach. He happened to notice a free-porridge stall run by the Flying Nimbus Group with a queue of ragged poor, exactly the sort of charity Xue Ning would sponsor.

When no one was about, he tugged on the thousand-mind thread and leapt back toward the Tang Sect mountain lodge.

A change of scenery had indeed sparked new insight.

With a thought, Li Yuan pressed his ancestral seal into his heart. White lightning flickered from White Serpent hidden in his sleeves, pushing him into early fourth rank. He shaped an invisible blade in empty air, gave it a shake, and a solid length ofblade qihung motionless before him.

He set the real blade down and nudged the phantom edge forward. It howled away, carving a track more than a hundred metres long, with everything along that line collapsing into fragments.

Li Yuan stared, half stunned. He'd opened a brand-new path and created a true blade domain! He chuckled. "Fine work deserves a drink!"

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

Back at the lodge, it happened to be Tang Pang's turn on night watch.

Li Yuan took a wine jar and clinked cups with her. Before long both were flushed and giggling.

"Why is it always you on duty, Chubby?"

"I'm notChubby!I told you, thePangin my name meansdownpour!And who exactly are you? Why does my master treat you like royalty?"

"Did your master tell you to ask?"

"Uhhh, she...she might be eavesdropping..." Tang Pang threw her hands together and bowed to the rafters. "Master, I never asked!"

Li Yuan roared with laughter, slouched against the old wall.

Outside, moonlight poured over a sea of mountain flowers, silvering every bloom.