Three Scholars

Shoutian Commandery, Guhuai Town, an abandoned temple. In southern Jizhou, torrential rain poured from the heavens. The green grass had long been drenched into a mire of mud, and emerald leaves hung vertically in the deluge, battered lifeless by the sweeping sheets of water. The sky was a sullen, suffocating expanse of gray, as if total darkness might come crashing down at any moment. A scholar dashed through the downpour, looking flustered in his coir raincoat and bamboo hat, clutching cloth-wrapped books tightly to his chest. Catching sight of an abandoned temple not far off, his eyes lit up. Hugging the books tighter, he quickened his pace and rushed over. *Pant, pant...* Panting for breath, the exhausted scholar firmly shut the doors and windows. Though dilapidated, the temple didn't leak wind or rain—a blessing in disguise amidst his misfortune. He unwrapped the bundle to check if his books were wet. Perhaps thanks to how well he had shielded them, they were still dry. Lighting an oil lamp, the scholar began to read aloud in a low voice by its dim glow. Suddenly, a shapely silhouette appeared behind him. With an alluring smile playing at the corners of her lips, she tapped the scholar on the back. Seeing the graceful figure appear, the scholar seemed enchanted, breaking into an involuntary, dazed smile. After the heavy rain passed, the weary scholar left the abandoned temple. …… Three figures dressed as scholars trudged through the muddy ground, their footsteps stumbling deep and shallow in quite a sorry state. "Why is this road so miserable to walk on?" one of the scholars complained. Another rolled his eyes. "Just deal with it and stop complaining. Isn't this far better than back when we were in the dense forest?" "Fair point." The third figure explained, "I heard Guhuai Town was hit yesterday by a once-in-a-decade deluge that drenched everything through and through. The river even overflowed its banks, and word is it's going to rain again tonight." "Tsk, that doesn't sound like a good omen." Lu Yang pointed toward the temple with a smile. "Then that works out just fine. There's a temple up ahead. It's a bit run-down, but the Buddha statue should still be there. You can pay your respects while we spend the night. "Let's go over the plan once more. According to our current intelligence, the target is extremely vigilant and won't show herself easily. Moreover, she is a ghost with adept escape arts, so catching her won't be simple. "The female ghost's strength should be at the Foundation Establishment stage, though her exact cultivation level is unknown. "If she appears, we must wait until we're certain she can't get away before making our move! "Our current cover is scholars heading to the Imperial City to seek fame and rank. We'll lodge here for the night and use the opportunity to lure the female ghost out! "So far, there haven't been any reports of her killing anyone, so don't strike to kill when we capture her. "Back then, I lacked experience when traveling outside. Ever since I saw Master locked up in jail, I realized how important it is to use aliases out in the world. That way, even if we humiliate ourselves, we won't bring shame to the Dao Seeking Sect. Let's verify our names one more time: I am Lu Yiyang." "I am Long Jingzhou." "I am Li Hao." After conferring and agreeing that the plan was solid, the three concealed their auras to the absolute limit, disguised themselves as ordinary mortals, and walked into the temple. "This temple is really clean," Meng Jingzhou said in surprise. He had expected the floor to be covered in dust and spiders spinning webs in every corner. The condition inside far exceeded his expectations; the place was clean enough that it looked as though someone had swept it. The only pity was that the Buddha statue in the center was missing its upper half, making it impossible to worship. Behind the Buddha statue, Li Haoran found dry firewood, likely left behind by the last people who had stayed the night. Stacking the wood together and gathering some dry grass, he pulled a flint from his bag, using the grass as kindling to ignite the woodpile. Li Haoran warmed his hands over the fire, looking thoroughly comfortable. "Phew... I'm alive again." Lu Yang took a few steamed buns from his bag, skewered them on wooden sticks, and toasted them over the flames. Once the crust turned lightly golden, Lu Yang broke one open, and fragrant warmth wafted out into his face. After having a look around the dilapidated temple, Meng Jingzhou returned to the main hall. "Aside from the main hall, there are two rooms. When it's time to sleep, that's just enough for one room each." "Sounds good." The three sat around the fire, eating steamed buns with pickled vegetables while sighing over how arduous the journey ahead was. Lu Yang wore a deeply worried look, so much that even the bun in his hand lost its appeal. "I wonder if our journey to the Imperial City will go smoothly. I hear cultivators walk the streets everywhere there. For ordinary mortals like us, making a name for ourselves will be harder than scaling the heavens." Meng Jingzhou waved his hand. "The number of cultivators in the Imperial City isn't as exaggerated as you think. Having one cultivator out of twenty people would already be impressive. Becoming a cultivator is extraordinarily difficult—just having a spiritual root weeds out ninety-nine percent of people." One cultivator out of twenty was already an astounding ratio; no other major city across the Central Continent could match such numbers. "Even though we lack spiritual roots, we have learning on our side. We can write essays at will, and our insights into current affairs are far beyond the ordinary. Tomorrow, when we leave Shoutian Commandery and head to the capital for the imperial examinations to seek fame and rank, earning His Majesty's favor and securing an official post isn't out of reach." In the Great Xia Dynasty, ranked officials were not all cultivators; a portion were mortals. Meng Jingzhou pointed his steamed bun toward Li Haoran and said, "Take Brother Li here, for instance. Reciting the *Thousand Character Classic* at five, composing poetry at seven, writing lyrics at eight, and penning essays at ten. Brimming with talent, with prose so exquisite it seemed crafted by heaven itself! The teacher was full of praise, calling you the finest student he'd ever taught." Li Haoran gave a modest smile. "Brother Long overpraises me. The teacher only said that to encourage me. On the contrary, Brother Long, choosing not to inherit the family estate and venturing to the Imperial City to forge your own future instead—that confidence, and the bedrock behind it, is something Brother Lu and I could never match." The three continued to shower one another with compliments before flipping open books of the sages. They read with great relish, marveling at how magnificently the ancients had written, truly worthy of masterpieces passed down through the ages—if they could compose a single work like that, they could die without regrets. Meng Jingzhou yawned, mercilessly shattering Lu Yang's reverie. "All right, stop daydreaming. Let's get some sleep; we have an early start tomorrow." Just as they had agreed over steamed buns, the three went to their respective rooms. Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou retired to the side rooms, while Li Haoran remained in the main hall to sleep in front of the half-statue of Buddha. In the darkness, three shapely silhouettes watched the trio, an eerie green glow glinting in their eyes. "Three more have arrived, and their yang energy is so vigorous. I really want to know what they taste like..." the green-clad figure chuckled softly. "Indeed, indeed. It's been so long since I saw scholars with such vigorous yang energy. Though scholars who read the classics for years can cultivate noble upright qi, seeing any like these three is truly rare." The red-clad figure licked her lips, her voice dripping with allure. The white-clad figure, who looked somewhat younger, spoke up hastily: "Older Sisters, you must be careful not to drain all their yang energy! We have to look at things from a sustainable perspective. "Once they enjoy it the first time, they'll come back a second time. Coming and going, the yang energy we absorb will be far more than if we sucked them dry in one go." "We know, we know. Xiao Qi, you're the youngest, yet you nag the most. The two of us know our limits and won't go too far. If we cross the line and draw an investigation from the righteous sects, we'll be the ones suffering for it—we understand that much. "Let's split up. The two of us will take the two side rooms, and Xiao Qi, you stay here to attend to this one surnamed Li."