“Whose idea was it to not bring a map?” asked Wu Shan as he scraped mud off his shoe, dodging trees as they walked through an unbeaten path in the forest.

“Technically, it was not planned that we should not bring a map. We just neglected to bring one,” Lin-Lin muttered as she floated on her back, gliding alongside the rest.

“Bah. Maps are for those who cannot appreciate the beauty of adventuring! I raised you better than to display such pampered behaviour, son,” Lao Chen scolded as he, too scraped mud from his shoe.

“It’s not PAMPERED BEHAVIOUR to be PRACTICAL!” Wu Shan shot back. “And why are you scraping mud off your shoe? Why are you even walking? You can fly!”

“Flight is boring. Besides, I can’t feel any muscular strain from just walking so I’m not weary in the slightest. You must work harder, son.”

“Really? Because we have been walking for a whole month without stopping and my soles are barely attached to my SHOES!”

The forest began to clear as the path led to a large cliff face overlooking more forest, but in the far distance, past a tree line, a thick stream seemed to run between a couple of mountains.

Lao Chen sat down to watch the view, pulling out a wooden board, a paint brush and an inkwell before writing.

Wu Shan took a deep breath and calmed down. Lin-Lin soared serenely over the edge, just watching the cliff.

“This is truly the first time I’ve seen this much forest in one view,” Lao Chen admitted, smiling as he swiped one last time on the board, completing the poem, interring the wooden block into his bag of holding, along with his paraphernalia.

For a time, they savoured the moment, and when it was time to get going, a large explosion in the middle of the forest wreaked havoc, lighting up a wildfire in the blink of an eye.

“What in…?” Lao Chen gasped as two figures on top of each their own tree, casting Qi spells at each other, exacerbating the wildfire further.

Just as their spells were about to hit each other, Lao Chen appeared between them from all those li away, intercepting both spells with a long, baleful staff in hand.

Both experts, some middle-aged men clearly in Core Formation stage, glared at the newcomer.

“Who are you to dare oppose two elders of the Tiger Cage Sect, fellow Daoist?” Asked one.

“Can you not see that we are having a battle?” Asked the other.

Lao Chen looked at them both hopelessly. “At what cost? This forest was very beautiful before any of you came. If all you do is bring ugliness to the world, you should all rethink your existences.”

Both elders became red in the face as Lao Chen roared at them.

“How dare you lecture us?”

Lao Chen ignored the both of them, and with a mighty downward strike of his staff, he blew the wildfire out. With a horizontal strike, he revived the plant life with his Qi, draining him in the process.

“Is this what the Tiger Cage Sect teaches? To destroy nature and beauty for the sake of pleasing your whims?” Lao Chen asked. “Shame on the both of you.”

Both the Elders bowed and spoke in unison. “Forgive us, Nascent Soul Expert. We were not aware that this was your territory.”

Lao Chen scoffed. “This isn’t my territory, but even if it was, would you both have found another place of natural beauty to ravage? I mean, do you not realize how disgusting you are? And suppose I wasn’t a Nascent Soul Expert, would you treat me different solely due to my strength?”

Both the Elders stood there, red-faced, yet taking the criticism.

“I mean, are you stupid? Why would my strength make me any more correct? If I told you that two and two were five, would you believe me because I have a higher cultivation? Is that how things operate in the Tiger Cage Sect?” Lao Chen spat. “I’d expect this behaviour from children, but you can’t afford to act this way unless you’re both ten years old.”

One elder finally snapped. “You go too far, Nascent Soul Expert. To include our sect in your jeering-”

“Jeering?” Lao Chen asked in disbelief. “Are you telling me that what I’m telling you doesn’t even register as sense, but rather jeering? Ai, what a travesty. I’m lecturing people that aren’t even a century old like they’re my children. If this is how two elders behave, I’d hate to see how the younglings do.”

“Tell us who you are, Nascent Soul Expert, so you may face the wrath of our sect!” One of the Elders finally yelled, spittle flying out of his mouth. Lao Chen sighed before smirking, adopting a character.

“You’ve really kicked the steel-board, fellows!” Lao Chen stood straight. “The name is Lao Chen, Patriarch of the Yin-Yang Sect!”

Both Elders raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“Never heard of it.”

Lao Chen gnashed his teeth. “I wouldn’t expect uncultured twits like you to know about it. I’ve herded sheep more intelligent.”

One elder’s teeth cracked under the pressure of his jaw as he raged silently.

“You will pay for insulting us, Lao Chen!”

Lao Chen sighed before disappearing, appearing right behind one and striking him on the neck, before repeating the action on another.

With one hand, he gestured, opening a rift through space, tossing both of them through it.

Warping back on the cliff, Lao Chen flashed a smile to Lin-Lin and Wu Shan who both looked at him with a mix of sheer adulation and surprise.

“Did you just…?” Wu Shan began.

“Restore the damages? With a swing of your staff?”

“Better,” Lao Chen smiled. “I also found a map and some money.” He said, dropping two bags of holding and holding a map on his hand.

“You found it on them?” Wu Shan asked, raising an eyebrow. “Did you really just steal from two irresponsible cultivators?”

“Well, you could say that I owe somebody for the items, but since I would rather not remunerate the Tiger Cage Sect directly, I’ll just remember to give an equal amount to a group or a person that deserves it.”

Lao Chen unfurled the map and held it out in front of him. It was surprisingly detailed, showing the entirety of the Jade Empire as well as the major cities within each province.

Lao Chen knew that they were still in the Hong Province, and that the Village was located somewhere between two major mountain ranges and a deep, dense forest known as the Willow Forest.

By estimating where he had left along with the bearing he used, Lao Chen came to a conclusion regarding his current position.

And surprisingly enough, at about 972 li North-North-West, there was a city circled in red ink: Gold Stone City.

Deciding that it was as good a place as any to rest, Lao Chen made up his mind on where to go.

“-I mean, yeah, they were being stupid, but did you really have to steal from them? We have plenty of money to use already, you know-“

“It’s settled,” Lao Chen interrupted Wu Shan’s rambling, much to Lin-Lin’s joy. “We’re headed to Gold Stone City. There seems to be an event going on, which might be fun for both of you.”

With a quick set of gestures, Lao Chen created a gaping maw of a rift which consumed all of them, spitting them out near the vicinity of Gold Stone City.

The city walls stood at a staggering hundred meters in height, where only half a dozen spires from the inside of the city towered over even them, reaching the clouds.

Wu Shan stared wide-eyed at his father. “That wasn’t Phoenix Warp! Your cultivation base is still too low for that!”

“It wasn’t.”

“A-and it wasn’t a portal spell either!”

“It wasn’t.”

“What was it?!” Wu Shan practically begged to be answered.

“An original technique I formulated. Son, if you go by the book too much, you’ll never transcend the limits of humanity.” Lao Chen pulled some money from his bag of holding. “Once inside, we may split up and do whatever activities that catches our attention inside.”

The trio made the rest of the way to the gates of the city on foot. The toll asked for travel permits, and when they failed to produce them, they were fined with ten thousand wen, the equivalent of two gold slips which they managed to pay with ease.

Once inside, they split up. While he wasn’t aware of what the two were doing, Lao Chen definitely knew where to go.

“Excuse me, sir,” Lao Chen approached a nearby vendor. “Could you direct me to the nearest bookstore?”