Cutting Down the Lumberjack Gan Tang

The small hut fell silent, leaving only Lu Qiancha sitting cross-legged by the wooden table.

She closed her eyes in concentration, her mind rapidly sketching out the blueprint details for the alchemy room and Xun Xue’s residence.

Previously, Lu Qiancha had always used a small, portable cauldron for her medicine and pill refining.

But to smelt a peerless item like the Origin Returning Fruit, or to begin refining the divine Soul-Returning Pill, it was woefully inadequate.

A large, high-quality alchemy furnace with ample internal capacity had become an urgent necessity.

‘Well, I’ll build the alchemy room first. The matter of the furnace can wait.’

After all, a good furnace was a rare find, something that depended on luck.

In fact, the best-case scenario would be to find some discarded old furnace remnants.

Besides alchemy, Lu Qiancha also knew a thing or two about artifact refinement.

As her thoughts churned, she reached into her storage pouch and took out a thick stack of yellowed, old sheepskin blueprints.

Upon them were sketched the outlines of various buildings, the ink deep and shallow, covered in marks of revision and erasure.

On the bottom few sheets, the ink had long since faded to a blur.

Clang! Clang! Clang—!

The crisp, rhythmic sounds of chopping broke the tranquility of Tianquan Peak’s back mountain.

A giant tree fell with a thud, sending a dull echo through the forest.

Not far away, Gan Tang, dressed in training clothes embroidered with elegant orchids and with a light yellow cloth tied around her forehead to block the sun, was controlling a shimmering mountain-cleaving axe with exquisite spiritual power.

Under her command, the massive, heavy object actually danced with a certain nimble, rhythmic grace.

“It’s so hot…”

Gan Tang listlessly wiped the fine sweat from her forehead, grumbling under her breath, “Mean Senior Brother, all you know is how to sit and meditate! How can you bear to let your beautiful junior sister suffer alone under the scorching sun…”

As she spoke, another tree fell, startling a flock of birds into flight.

Suddenly, a voice called out from behind her, “Are you… Little Gan Tang?”

Gan Tang grew alert and turned around.

She looked up at the person before her, a feeling of familiarity nagging at her…

A small cloud boat, barely a few meters long, with a fairy seated at its prow, dressed in a moon-white cloud robe…

‘Darn it, the sash on that robe is about to burst!’

‘Ah, it’s Martial Aunt Xuan Mo.’

Gan Tang immediately clasped her hands in a salute.

Recalling the greeting templates her Senior Brother had taught her, she chose the most appropriate one and said softly, “Disciple Gan Tang pays her respects to Martial Aunt Xuan. My cultivation is shallow, and I failed to greet you in time. Please forgive this disciple’s impoliteness.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. There’s no need for such formalities.”

Xuan Mo had a good impression of this well-mannered and sweet-tongued little martial niece.

She casually put away the cloud boat and landed gracefully.

Her gaze swept over the fallen trees, and she asked curiously, “Where is your Senior? I have important business with her.”

“Senior Brother is likely cultivating in seclusion at the peak…” Gan Tang kept her eyes lowered, continuing to play the part of an obedient junior.

“Martial Aunt, please proceed to the small cottage at the peak to rest for a moment. This disciple will go and ask Master to come out of seclusion to greet you. Our humble abode is simple; if there is any neglect in our hospitality, I pray Martial Aunt will be magnanimous.”

“Hey! Don’t disturb your master!” Xuan Mo quickly waved her hand.

“Your master is on the verge of ascending to immortality. Let her cultivate in peace. I came specifically to find your Senior Brother. Just lead me to her.”

With that, she lifted her foot and started walking towards the three grass huts on the peak.

But before she could take more than two steps, a ripple of purple light appeared not far away.

With a swoosh, Lu Qiancha’s figure appeared in an instant.

She saluted Xuan Mo, “Disciple pays her respects to Martial Aunt. Forgive me for not welcoming a distinguished guest at the door.”

She then turned to the side to lead the way, “Martial Aunt, please come to my humble dwelling to talk.”

Xuan Mo nodded.

At the side, Gan Tang was about to follow when a voice transmission from Lu Qiancha reached her, “Are you done chopping your trees?”

“Pfft~ Mean Senior Brother!”

Gan Tang secretly stuck out her pink tongue at her Senior Brother’s back, made a face, and with a huff, directed the giant axe to continue her “grand logging enterprise.”

A moment later, the two had arrived at Lu Qiancha’s small hut.

They sat cross-legged on opposite sides of a low table.

“Here, Little Qiancha. This storage pouch contains the rewards from the expedition. The other one is a thank-you gift from that Li Qinghong.”

As she spoke, Xuan Mo flicked her jade-like hand, and two bulging, exquisite storage pouches landed on the table, pushed towards Lu Qiancha.

“Thank you, Martial Aunt, for making this trip.”

Lu Qiancha wasn’t one for pleasantries and accepted them directly.

Her spiritual sense swept over them.

Seeing the several protective magical artifacts brimming with spiritual energy and the small mountain of precious materials and spirit stones inside the pouches, Lu Qiancha’s heart was filled with relief.

‘At least I have the money for a new furnace now.’

“By the way, I heard that Martial Uncle Li has gathered the immortals and gone to the Aolai Nation to wipe out the forces behind Qingfeng.”

Lu Qiancha glanced at Xuan Mo, then asked, “Why didn’t Martial Aunt go with them?”

“Sigh, don’t mention it.”

At the mention of this, Xuan Mo let out a long sigh and slumped over the table ungracefully, her eyes unfocused on the wood grain.

“I wanted to go and have some fun too, but as soon as I got back to the mountain, I was questioned by the Law Enforcement Hall and only just got out.”

She suddenly shot upright, waving four slender fingers vigorously in front of Lu Qiancha’s face, “The worst part is! They fined me—a full forty years’ worth—of sect allowance! Forty years!”

“Ugh…” Xuan Mo covered her face, her muffled voice seeping through her fingers, filled with the despair of one whose life was over.

“Rather than live like this, they might as well tie me to Thunder-Drawing Cliff and strike me for forty years! That would be more satisfying!”

“Pfft…” Lu Qiancha couldn’t hold it in and let out a soft laugh.

“Waaah! Little Qiancha, you’re laughing at me!”

As if her tail had been stepped on, Xuan Mo flew into a rage of embarrassment.

She instantly closed the distance, wrapping an arm around the little wolf cub to lock her firmly in her embrace, pinching and kneading her cheeks.

A stream of pure immortal energy silently sealed off Lu Qiancha’s spiritual power circulation.

“Ngh~ Martial Aunt, I didn’t mean it! Stop pulling my face!”

With her spiritual power sealed, her disguise was difficult to maintain.

Lu Qiancha’s little blue ears popped out in an instant.

She could only struggle futilely in Xuan Mo’s arms, completely reduced to a little doll forced to perform.

After venting her “frustration” for a moment, Xuan Mo finally released the ravaged little face.

But her entire body remained draped over Lu Qiancha’s slender back like a large pendant.

Her chin rested quite naturally between the pair of slightly trembling blue ears, and an aura of grievance emanated from her, “Forty years, how am I going to survive these forty years…”

“How can I enter seclusion without money? How can I buy pills without money? I can’t even sleep, I don’t even have the heart to form hand seals or chant spells… My life is a field of gray…”

The more Xuan Mo spoke, the angrier she became.

Gritting her teeth, her voice suddenly rose, “It’s all that damn Qingfeng’s fault! It’s one thing for him to seek his own death! But he had to drag this Martial Aunt down with him to suffer this financial ruin! What rotten luck to have such a martial nephew!!”

Listening to Xuan Mo’s tirade, Lu Qiancha pondered for a moment.

She cleared her throat, rested a small paw on the low table, and asked tentatively, “Is Martial Aunt Xuan very short on spirit stones?”

“Of course I am. I need them for cultivation, for eating, for everything.”

Xuan Mo replied without thinking, rubbing her head against the tip of Lu Qiancha’s ear as she muttered.

“I wonder if Martial Aunt Xuan knows any cultivators who are fond of wine?”

Lu Qiancha’s claws tapped lightly on the tabletop, like a little fox planning its winter food supply.

“Of course I do. Isn’t the neighboring Raging Waves Sect full of big drunkards who love wine as much as their lives?”

“They’re always shouting nonsense like ‘with wine, life is carefree,’ ‘in drunkenness, the universe is vast,’ and ‘in the flask, days and nights are long.'”

Xuan Mo answered after a moment’s thought.

Lu Qiancha’s claws tapped the table, her eyes darting around as she said, “Martial Aunt Xuan, why don’t we do a little business?”

“Hmm?”

Only now did Xuan Mo truly lift her head, her head leaving the pair of fluffy little ears.

Her lazy eyes refocused.

“A little business? Let’s hear it.”

“This disciple happens to have several types of long-lost fine wines, exclusive spiritual liquids brewed with ancient methods. They possess both the clarity of immortal dew and the mellow fragrance of spiritual wine. Drinking them not only does no harm to one’s Dao foundation, but can even slightly aid in clearing the divine soul.”

Lu Qiancha tapped her paw lightly, her tone quite helpless as she said, “However, as you can see, Martial Aunt, this disciple is not good at socializing and has few friends. This fine wine and spirit… I have the recipe, but alas, no way to sell it…”

“So you’re planning to have me sell the wine for you, and we’ll split the spirit stones we earn?”

A gleam of light instantly flashed through Xuan Mo’s lazy, beautiful eyes.