Volume One, Chapter 10: Insurmountable

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When Si Nanxi and Old Wu Gang left Gaoshan Pool, preparing to head toward Liuhua Street, they happened to encounter Mo Daoke along with his senior brothers from the Overbearing Body Sect on the road. The group rode swiftly, and pedestrians on both sides hurriedly stepped aside, unwilling to meet their gaze.

Si Nanxi looked up at Mo Daoke’s retreating figure; the setting sun cast a warm glow that reflected in his brown eyes, which instantly sharpened with a fierce intensity.

“Tomorrow will be the fifth day. The grudge at the Wall-Facing Cliff must be avenged!” A ruthless gleam curled at the corner of Si Nanxi’s mouth.

“Is he the one who beat you up so badly earlier?”

Si Nanxi did not answer but merely nodded softly.

Old Wu sensed a faint murderous aura emanating from Si Nanxi and cautiously advised out of goodwill, “Don’t underestimate him. If it comes down to a fight to the death, you might not be able to win against him now.”

Si Nanxi’s brows arched, the earlier cold aura vanishing, replaced by a playful smile as he whispered into Old Wu’s ear, “So, can you guess why I invited them to the Celestial Spirit Pavilion?”

“To poison them? That’s unlike your usual style.”

“Why be so stubborn? If you can beat them, you rely on strength; if not, then unconventional methods must be prepared.”

“Hahaha…”

Their laughter echoed in the air, tinged with mockery and wickedness.

About half an hour later, Si Nanxi and Old Wu returned to Liuhua Street. Seeing the slightly ajar mansion door, an uneasy premonition suddenly stirred within them.

Old Wu pushed the door open, his eyes sweeping quickly inside before settling on the figure sitting by the stone bench — it was Xiao Liuli, with her back turned to them.

Si Nanxi’s heart jolted. He walked over and gently patted Xiao Liuli’s shoulder. She lifted her head, her clear eyes swollen and moist, revealing the ordeal she had endured.

“Young Master…”

Xiao Liuli sobbed, looking pitifully at Si Nanxi.

“What happened?”

Xiao Liuli recounted in detail how those ruffians from the Overbearing Body Sect had knocked her down and tormented her.

Si Nanxi and Old Wu exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves that fortunately, it wasn’t worse; otherwise, they would regret it for life.

“Was the man very tall and stout, with a whip several feet long at his waist?”

Xiao Liuli nodded vigorously. “Yes, yes! That man was very fat, even fatter than Old Wu! He had a long whip at his waist.”

“Was the tall man in blue-gray clothing among those who bullied you?”

Xiao Liuli shook her head. “No, they were all dressed in gray, like martial arts uniforms.”

“Looks like Mo Daoke’s luck is quite good.”

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In the Otherwild world, Si Nanxi had struggled and fought for six years, sustaining countless injuries and blows. Gradually, his temperament grew resilient.

After all, unlike the protagonists in transmigration novels who stumble upon treasures wherever they go, if he sought to avenge every grudge immediately, he probably wouldn’t survive long in this world.

Endurance aside, he was still young and passionate.

For major matters, he could weigh pros and cons and seize opportunities.

For minor ones, he couldn’t care so much.

If those around him suffered unjust treatment, enduring it would only chill the heart.

This—that was his bottom line.

Si Nanxi tidied Xiao Liuli’s disheveled hair and smiled at her, “Come on, let’s go eat grilled fish. Afterward, get some good rest. Tomorrow, the Young Master will take you to see the world.”

“See the world?”

“Of course—to see… the fate of those who bullied my Xiao Liuli.”

A twelve- or thirteen-year-old girl couldn’t hide her happiness or sorrow. Upon hearing there would be grilled fish and a good show, the previously pouting and tearful Xiao Liuli instantly smiled from ear to ear.

“There’s grilled fish…”

Old Wu and Si Nanxi fetched some firewood in the kitchen, grilling the fish while teasing, “Xiao Liuli, you’ve been following your Young Master outside for half a year now, day in and day out. Do you miss the delicious food back in Si Nanzhou? Do you want to go back?”

Xiao Liuli’s eyes widened in confusion. “Old Wu, are you trying to send me away?!”

Si Nanxi hurriedly explained for Old Wu, “Not at all. She’s just worried that as you grow older, you might have your own thoughts and no longer want to follow us.”

Xiao Liuli declared resolutely, “I told the Young Master when we met: wherever you go in this life, I’ll go too. I won’t go anywhere else.”

Si Nanxi joked, “So no plans to get married?”

Old Wu, busy grilling fish, opportunely added, “Exactly. Your Young Master isn’t interested in you, so do you really want to follow him forever?”

Xiao Liuli snapped, “Shut up, you stinky Old Wu.”

This phrase was Si Nanxi’s catchphrase, and Xiao Liuli had picked it up, quickly blurting it out to scold Old Wu.

“Back in the mansion, no one dared bully you. Now it’s different. Old Wu and I are rarely home, leaving you here alone is dangerous if something like today happens again. Should I register you at the Spirit Appraisal Academy?”

Si Nanxi handed her a large green fish, grilled crispy on the outside and tender inside.

The early courses at the Spirit Appraisal Academy were easy, but they became increasingly grueling. Si Nanxi worried that Xiao Liuli might not endure such hardship, so he wanted to seek her opinion.

Xiao Liuli, whose moods shifted like rain and sunshine, after a few bites of the delicious grilled fish, pushed aside her earlier worries.

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“As long as I can follow the Young Master, I’ll go.”

“Not afraid of hardship?”

“With the Young Master around, I’m not afraid at all.”

Seeing her agree so readily, Si Nanxi pulled out a small object from behind him and tossed it to Xiao Liuli, squinting, “Tomorrow, I’ll make those who bullied you pay back tenfold. Also, take this. If you ever face danger, pull it open and throw it at the bad guys. Just remember, don’t use it recklessly.”

Xiao Liuli took the jade bamboo-like object Si Nanxi handed her, examined it carefully, then smiled brightly as she tucked it into an inner pocket of her jacket.

After soothing Xiao Liuli, Si Nanxi told Old Wu to stay home a while longer that evening, then set off straight for the Celestial Spirit Pavilion at the Spirit Cultivation Academy. Old grudges and new hatreds—it was time to settle them all at once.

Unlike the Spirit Appraisal Academy, the Spirit Cultivation Academy wasn’t a single compound but scattered among the mountains.

Legend had it that tens of thousands of years ago, the Otherwild was a realm ruled by gods, where gods, humans, and spirit beasts lived together between heaven and earth.

Gods dwelled in the heavens.

Humans inhabited the earth.

Spirit beasts roamed the mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas between heaven and earth.

For unknown reasons, a cataclysmic war broke out among the gods, which eventually drew the spirit beasts into the turmoil. The chaotic battles between gods and spirit beasts caused a surge of spiritual energy across the inland Otherwild. The relatively weaker humans seized the opportunity to practice physical cultivation and spirit cultivation, gradually becoming a formidable force among the three races.

As for how the gods eventually vanished, no one could explain clearly.

Most of the Otherwild’s sacred cultivation sites were built deep within high mountains and dense forests. Nowadays, the four major sects of the Central Plains Otherwild—Martial, Arcane, Daoist, and Buddhist—claimed four of the five famous mountains.

Naturally, these mountain ranges pierced both heaven and earth, bringing them closer to the gods’ abode. The abundant spiritual energy there was ideal for cultivation and enlightenment.

The Spirit Cultivation Academy in Lin’an City followed this principle, situating itself among the Xuyu Mountain Range.

In the valley between several towering peaks stood a five-story tavern, entirely constructed from rare spirit wood. A green spiritual aura enveloped it, giving the entire building a vibrant, flourishing appearance.

At the tavern’s entrance was an exquisite jade plaque engraved with the ancient characters “Celestial Spirit Pavilion.”

The various cultivation academies across the Otherwild only bore the name of that great grandmaster and were not directly managed by the Western Brocade Clan. But the Celestial Spirit Pavilion was a different matter.

The Otherwild spanned thousands of miles. In a remote small city like Lin’an, if one wanted certain medicinal herbs from the Western Desert to aid cultivation, the academy’s dozens of procurement staff—even if they ran day and night—could only bring back enough herbs to last ten to fifteen days.

The Western Brocade Clan spent twenty years building over a hundred Celestial Spirit Pavilions in cultivation academies throughout the Otherwild. From then on, no matter how rare the medicinal herbs or elixirs were, they could be procured at any Celestial Spirit Pavilion, even in the most remote corners of the Otherwild.

Of course, in a frontier city like Lin’an, far from the Otherwild’s center, the prices at the Celestial Spirit Pavilion were exorbitant.