Chapter 85: The Five Pecks of Rice Sect (Second Update)
As the two of them spoke, Yan Mengdie slowly awoke. When she rose, she seemed like some colossal beetle. Then she asked, “Xu Cheng, what bad things were you saying about me again?”
“Nothing, how could I? When have I ever spoken ill of you?”
Xu Cheng hastily denied it.
Yan Mengdie only smiled faintly, though her smile was a little frightening.
Master Yulan teased them, “You two are truly devoted, aren’t you?”
“Not at all!”
Yan Mengdie gave a soft snort, and those words made Xu Cheng feel even more embarrassed.
“Oh, right, Palace Master. I wonder how the war in Gong Province City is going?”
Though the great calamity at Jade Toad Palace had passed safely, the battle in Gong Province City still hung over Xu Cheng’s heart like a sharp blade.
“That, I do not know. For the past several days I have been in retreat, consolidating my cultivation while also dispelling the remaining power of heavenly thunder lingering within me.” Master Yulan shook her head slightly. “If you want to know how the fighting is there, you will need to seek out the Five Measures of Rice Sect.”
“What is the Five Measures of Rice Sect?”
He had heard Master Yulan mention it before, but Xu Cheng still knew little about it.
Master Yulan turned and slowly explained, “Originally, the Five Measures of Rice Sect was a derogatory name for the Celestial Master Sect. Later, the founder of the Five Measures of Rice Sect believed that food is the first necessity of the people, and among food, the five grains are the staple. The five grains are rice, millet, barley, wheat, and beans. On this basis, he founded the Five Measures of Rice Sect, dividing it into the Rice Branch, Millet Branch, Barley Branch, Wheat Branch, and Bean Branch. These five branches are spread throughout the entire Great Xia Empire, and they hold vast amounts of intelligence in their hands. Even within the imperial palace of Xia, they have their people. By now, their reputation is far greater than that of the Celestial Master Sect.”
The Millet Branch. So the Millet Branch was one of the Five Measures of Rice Sect branches, Xu Cheng thought to himself. He recalled that he still had that enormous green millet seed, though he had never made use of it.
He had indeed underestimated them. Xu Cheng said, “I never expected the Five Measures of Rice Sect to be so formidable. It seems I was ignorant indeed!”
“This is a token of the Rice Branch. Carry it with you, and you can find the people of the Rice Branch. Then it will also be easier for you to gather information.”
Master Yulan took out a pale-yellow rice grain the size of a palm and was about to hand it to Xu Cheng.
“No need, Palace Master. I already have a token of the Millet Branch!”
Xu Cheng then drew a green millet seed from his sleeve.
“Hahaha, it seems you truly do not understand the Five Measures of Rice Sect.”
After seeing the green millet seed in Xu Cheng’s hand, Master Yulan laughed aloud.
“What do you mean by that?”
Xu Cheng was utterly puzzled by Master Yulan’s sudden laughter.
“If you understood the Five Measures of Rice Sect, then you would certainly accept this Rice Branch token from me. Because as long as anyone gathers the tokens of all five branches, the treasure hidden by the ancestor of the Five Measures of Rice Sect in the void will appear. Rumor has it that within it lies a sacred imperial treasure capable of altering heaven and earth! It is only that the Five Measures of Rice Sect has always been mysterious, and even the branch leaders themselves do not know one another’s identities. Moreover, the sect’s arts are extraordinarily adept at concealing one’s identity. A farmer in the fields, a hunter in the mountains, even the unremarkable owner of a steamed-bun shop, could all be members of the Five Measures of Rice Sect! So to this day, no one has ever been said to gather all five tokens and obtain the sacred imperial treasure.”
After Master Yulan’s explanation, Xu Cheng was left blinking in confusion. So the token in his hand carried such a hidden legend.
He was still hesitating over whether to accept the Rice Branch token from Master Yulan when he saw her toss the palm-sized rice grain to him. He was just about to return it when she said, “Take it. In the past, perhaps I might even have fought for that so-called sacred imperial treasure, but now, aside from ascending to the immortal realm, I want nothing else!”
To prevent Xu Cheng from continuing to decline, Master Yulan transformed into a stream of emerald light and vanished before his eyes.
“So the Five Measures of Rice Sect is really this formidable?”
Holding the green millet seed in his left hand and the yellow rice grain in his right, Xu Cheng looked back and forth, yet saw no signs of flowing light patterns or the like. One could only say that the founder of the Five Measures of Rice Sect had cultivation beyond comprehension, placing the marvels of the five tokens deep within them.
“Of course. There are rumors about the Five Measures of Rice Sect all over the common streets and lanes. I thought you already knew!” Yan Mengdie stood before Xu Cheng with her hands on her hips.
“You also know the rumors about the Five Measures of Rice Sect?”
Xu Cheng looked at the enormous figure beside him and asked.
“Of course!” Yan Mengdie pouted.
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
Xu Cheng pretended to be angry.
“You never asked me! You should ask me! If you don’t ask, how am I supposed to tell you? If you have a question, you should ask! If you don’t ask, how should I know what to say? Even flowers and grass know how to ask—why don’t you? ...”
At that moment, Yan Mengdie was like the chattering monk from a film Xu Cheng had seen in his past life.
If Xu Cheng could have sweated at that moment, the sheer amount would have been enough to flood Jade Toad Palace. So he covered his ears and walked out of the cave dwelling.
Behind him, Yan Mengdie’s voice continued: “You actually think I’m annoying! You heartless wretch, you ungrateful man...”
Outside the cave dwelling, withered yellow leaves spun down in the wind, piling into a thick carpet on the ground, just like Xu Cheng’s mood at that moment.
“A woman’s heart really is ever-changing.”
Xu Cheng complained under his breath.
“What did you say?”
Just after he muttered it, a voice rang out behind him, and then one of Xu Cheng’s ears was pinched off.
Because he felt no pain, Xu Cheng had not even realized his ear was missing.
“N-nothing... I didn’t say anything!”
He stood up and hurried to explain, only to see Yan Mengdie staring blankly at an ear in her hand.
Once severed from the Minor Five Elements Creation Art, the ear instantly turned into a cluster of flowing light and vanished into nothingness.
“This time I’ll let you off for now!”
Yan Mengdie put on a fierce expression, frightening Xu Cheng into a dazed silence.
A moment later, perhaps because of Yan Mengdie’s nagging, Chrysanthemum awoke from her meditation.
It was late autumn, and winter was nearly at hand. As the autumn wind rose, it brought wave after wave of chill. The three of them were no ordinary people, so the cold did not affect them much.
“Deputy Chief, my cultivation is finally about to break through to the Spirit-Controlling realm! Should we leave or stay next?”
Chrysanthemum’s arrival finally brought Xu Cheng and Yan Mengdie’s stalemate back to the main issue.
After restoring his ear with the Minor Five Elements Creation Art, Xu Cheng replied, “I have already agreed to become an honorary elder of Jade Toad Palace, so I have a place to stay, though I remain quite free. But with the situation in Gong Province City still unclear, we will need to go down the mountain once more.”
“Very well.”
Chrysanthemum nodded.
It was also largely because of Yan Mengdie. Her appearance had become increasingly bizarre; an ordinary person seeing her would likely be frightened sick. But under the cover of Jade Toad Palace, it was not too strange.
On the day when autumn gave way to winter, the sun seemed weak and listless, while the three of their figures stretched longer and longer under its light.
The small town where Tang Gumo and the others were staying was not far away either. The three of them moved quickly, and in less than fifteen minutes, Goldwater Town appeared before them once again.