Legend of the Great Sage

The beggars all gulped and faltered, afraid to take a step forward. This was an example of the wealthy naturally giving off an oppressive aura.

The “deva” were disturbed by the activity in the courtyard. They all discussed in wonder, “Ah, why are there so many beggars outside?” “Don’t tell me they’ve come to make trouble? There’s a very big mess outside the city right now!”

The middle-aged procuress happened to be welcoming and seeing off guests at the entrance, so she hurried outside and flew into a rage. She called out at the top of her lungs.

“Guards! Guards! What are you all doing? Get rid of these beggars!”

Several large, tough guards rushed out. Their leader reeked of alcohol and had a scar that stretched across his face. With his drunkenness and anger together, he turned bright-red, which made him seem particularly vicious.

“Fucking hell, you bunch of beggars, are you tired of living? How dare you come and make trouble here!”

Before anyone could get another word in, he swung his hand towards a small beggar, kicking up a gust of wind. He clearly knew martial arts. If that slap landed, it would leave the beggar half-dead at the very least.

It flew halfway across the air, but it landed on a fair, slender hand instead. The small beggar that had just survived the attack scrambled away. The other beggars all retreated frantically, revealing Li Qingshan’s figure. His chest heaved a few times, and he muttered, “By virtue, by virtue!” a few times before raising his head and smiling. “These are all my guests!”

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He stood between the flickering lantern light and the mottled shadows of the trees. His gaze was as gentle as a pool of water. There was no woman who could shift their gaze from his face. They cried out, “What a charming man!”

It was truly a testament to the old adage, “procuresses loved money, and the young ladies loved the handsome”. For a moment, they instead began to worry for him.

“Your guests!?” The leader of the guards widened his eyes and tugged his hand a few times, but it refused to budge as if it had ended up in a vice. He pulled his hand violently, and Li Qingshan let go, which made him fall back on his bottom with a thunk. He swore loudly, “Brat, you’ve come to crash the place, haven’t you? Brothers, get him!”

The guards rubbed their fist and hands, about to lunge over.

“Hold on! You back down for now! Let me talk to him!”

The procuress saw how Li Qingshan was handsome and striking in appearance. On top of that, he gave off a certain composure like everything was in his control. She had only ever witnessed this bearing on a very small number of people, all great figures that possessed tremendous authority. On top of that, he even had a clean-faced servant behind him who pressed down on his blade, so she did not dare to handle this situation carelessly. “Sir, where are you from? Why are you inviting these beggars to a meal?”

If there was a person like him in the city, how could she have not heard about him before? If he was an outsider, why would he come and crash the place?

Li Qingshan clasped his hands. “Sister, I come from a very distant place. I just happened to be famished, so I wanted to have a feast. However, when I saw how these children were starving, I found them truly pitiful, so I decided to invite them to dine with me. Could you do me this favour?”

Despite how politely he acted, the procuress did not buy his act. As soon as she heard how he came from a very distant land, she became filled with confidence as a local. What do you think this place is? Why would I let a group of beggars in just so they can loiter around?

If it had been someone else, perhaps she would have chased him out of the door already, but seeing how politely he spoke and how his appearance was truly adorable, she studied him and said, “These beggars are all reincarnated from hungry ghosts. Forgive my question, but have you brought enough money? The dishes from our Flower Fragrance parlour are very expensive!”

“Money!” Li Qingshan was empty-handed. All he had was the sumeru ring on his finger, but there obviously was not a single penny inside. He glanced at Zhu Yingcai beside him. “Have you brought money?”

“Of course!”

Zhu Yingcai had been constantly trying to get Li Qingshan to escort him to the Myriad sect. Now that a rare opportunity for him to demonstrate himself had appeared, he immediately placed down the bamboo basket on his back and took out all of his money, which amounted to a few large pieces of silver and a small piece of gold. Oh right, he had scavenged most of it from the bandit’s lair.

It led to a roar of laughter. The procuress smiled in pity. “That amount of gold and silver is probably only enough for a small jug of alcohol and a few side dishes. However, seeing how you’re a guest from abroad, if you’re hungry, I’ll cover your bill out of my own pocket and invite you into the parlour for a proper fill!” She extended her hand and pinched Li Qingshan’s hand gently before looking back. Her face immediately changed. “What’re you staring for? Get rid of these stinky beggars!”

“Hold on!”

“What else do you want to say, sir?”

“Do you accept anything else apart from money here?”

The procuress smiled. “What else do you have, sir?” “Mum, send him up quickly so that we can give him a proper look!” It led to another roar of laughter. By now, the entire parlour had come out to see what was going on. Heads poked out of every window.

Li Qingshan smiled. “Since you’re called the Flower Fragrance parlour, you must like flowers, but all of the flowers have wilted in the courtyard, so aren’t you a little unworthy of your name? I’ll give you a tree full of peach blossoms in exchange for a filling meal for them!”

“You sure know how to joke around, sir. Let alone peach blossoms right now, even all the peaches have been eaten already.”

“It’s just like how sincerity can even crack metal and stone, as long as you have the heart, flowers can bloom again and fruit can form again. Will you accept my proposal?”

The entire parlour raised a fuss. “A tree of peach blossoms for a filling meal. How kind and refined of you, sir!” “I just happened to be wanting to eat some peaches, so I’m willing to give you a bead of gold in exchange!”

The procuress did not believe him, but she did not want to ruin the interest of so many guests, so she smiled. “Then I’d like to see where your blossoms and fruits are. If you’re really capable of that, even if it’s just a single blossom or a single peach, I’ll give these beggars their fill!”

“Alright then!”

Li Qingshan made his way over to a peach tree. The peach tree was lush with leaves, like a carousel. Who knew how many years it had taken to grow to its current extent. He touched the coarse trunk softly and silently circulated the Qilin’s Conventions of Longevity.

At that instant, flowers bloomed across the entire tree, white, pink, and dark-red. Countless colours swayed in the night wind as the heavy fragrance drifted through the entire parlour. Between the branches, peaches took shape and grew rapidly.

“Ah!” Everyone widened their eyes, gazing at this in disbelief. The procuress’ chin fell so far that she basically could swallow an entire peach.

Even Zhu Yingcai who knew about Li Qingshan’s powers began singing praises.His ability to change the seasons was basically unbelievable. His hopes for the future became more and more sincere. He had to become a true cultivator!

Everyone returned to their senses as the cries rose and fell. The women all looked at Li Qingshan with even greater interest.

The procuress bowed down and smiled flatteringly. “So you’re a magician, sir. You don’t go to Deer Cry garden to drink the imperial alcohol and have instead come to play tricks on me.”

Li Qingshan said, “The blossoms and the fruits are both present, so bring the food! Don’t even think about deceiving me with leftovers!”

“How could I? How could I? I’ll go and inform the kitchen right now!” the procuress said in a hurry. The beggars all cheered.

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Li Qingshan was just about to have a feast when a voice rang out from the parlour, “Fellow, why don’t you come to Deer Cry garden with me to see the lord of the country? With your powers, even asking for ten thousand taels of gold is nothing difficult. Why must you mingle with the common people?”