Unintended Immortality

Inside a tailor's shop in the city, Song You had just gathered his thoughts and was now standing in front of an old granny. He was showing her some measurements, explaining that he wanted something similar to a dalian to be sewn onto a saddle bag.

“About this size...” he gestured.

The old granny squinted and carefully examined the measurements before pulling out a ruler. “It’s bigger than a wallet,” she remarked.

“Yes, it shouldn’t be too flat.”

“Are you planning to carry something large, sir?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“How big?” she inquired.

“About...”

“Meow!” A cat pawed at his robe.

Song You looked down and understood immediately. He picked up the cat and held it up to show it to the old granny.

“To carry this,” he explained.

“You want it to be sewn onto a horse’s saddle bag?” she confirmed.

“I'm taking her on a long journey,” he replied.

“Understood,” the granny said confidently, waving her hand.

“Thank you, granny,” Song You said. He trusted the expertise of the seasoned craftswoman. After leaving a deposit and agreeing on a time to bring the saddle bag for sewing, he left with the calico cat.

***

A few days later, Song You had nearly mastered the swallows' flight techniques. Besides gaining a new skill, he had also experienced a fresh perspective and gained new insights. He had truly learned a lot.

It was time to leave. With Qingyangzi's permission, Song You went to the backyard of the Daoist temple. The yard and its surroundings were filled with bamboo groves. Outside the yard, the bamboo was of the ordinary, practical kind. Inside, the bamboo was decorative, growing neither too thick nor too tall. The nodes were closely spaced and smooth to the touch, and the bamboo itself was hard. The bamboo seemed like a type of Phyllostachys bamboo[1], and were ideal for making staffs.

Song You had been eyeing them for a while. Today, he circled the bamboo grove, carefully examining and selecting the bamboo. He touched each stalk and compared them to one another, and finally chose one.

“My apologies,” he said as he cupped his hand and bowed[2] in salute before approaching the chosen bamboo.

He gripped the base of the bamboo with the web of his hand, then he seemed to effortlessly extract it. Then, holding the bamboo, he slowly slid his hand upward, causing the small branches on top to fall off one by one. After measuring the appropriate length, he pinched with his thumb and index finger, and the upper part snapped off cleanly and neatly.

What remained was a bamboo staff, perfectly sized for a handgrip. The nodes were smooth, as if polished, and the entire body of the bamboo was straight and jade-green in the sunlight. It was just the right length too. Song You inspected it closely and was very pleased and was about to leave.

However, he took a few steps and suddenly stopped. A young girl was also standing in the bamboo forest, crouched down, holding a thin bamboo staff the size of a finger. She was twisting it left and right, shaking the bamboo in circles with all her might to try to snap it off. Song You couldn't help but walk over to watch her struggle closely.

“Lady Calico,” he called out.

“Hmm?” she responded.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m trying to snap off the bamboo,” she said.

“And why are you trying to snap off bamboo?”

Turning to look at him, she paused and retorted, “Why did you snap off the bamboo then?”

“I’m making a walking stick.”

“I didn't know,” she said simply. “Since you asked the temple owner, I also asked the temple owner, and he said I could take one too.”

“How polite of you,” Song You commented with a smile. He walked over to help her.

This bamboo, only as thick as a thumb, had been bent by her. The bent part was looking quite battered, but the bamboo was resilient and would not break.

He squatted down beside the little girl, grasped the area just above the bent section, and then released his hand. Before she realized it, the bamboo already had a neat, clean cut, as if cut by a sharp blade.

The girl was instantly stunned and turned around to stare straight at him.

Song You smiled again. He then smoothed the bamboo as he had done before, cleaned it up, and handed it to her. He said, “This is a simple application of the metal element spell. Would you like to learn it? If you do, it will make chopping firewood much easier.”

The girl accepted the bamboo but continued squatting in place, looking up at him silently.

In the past, she would have eagerly wanted to learn. But even after learning the fire element spell for such a long time, practicing diligently morning and evening as well as at set times in the morning and afternoon, she could only just manage to produce a visible flame. Even so, she was already burdened with the important task of tending the fire.

The Daoist had told her that tending the fire would aid in her cultivation.

The girl’s eyes darted back and forth, then she pursed her lips and finally said nothing. She picked up the bamboo staff and turned to leave.

Song You chuckled and followed her out.

In the front yard, a jujube-red horse stood quietly, already equipped with a saddle bag on its bag. The Daoists of the temple stood nearby, and the temple itself remained serene.

Song You walked over with his bamboo staff and sincerely bowed to everyone. “I have been here for over half a month. Thanks to the hospitality of all of you, my Daoist friends, this has been the most comfortable period of my journey. I am deeply grateful.”

“Not at all,” the Daoists quickly returned the gesture.

“However, I am now heading down the mountain to continue my journey, and I must bid you all farewell. Though I’m reluctant to part with you, I have no choice. Whether fate brings people together or causes them to part, there is always something wonderful about it. Then, I won’t say more on the matter,” Song You said, pausing to glance at the youngest child in the group before looking at everyone again. “When my journey is over, if any of you visit Lingquan County in Yizhou, you are welcome to come to Yin Yang Mountain to see me. I will be sure to host you well.”

“Certainly!”

“Farewell, then,” he said.

“Take care, Daoist friend!”

“We can feel your heartfelt sentiments for us. There’s no need to send us further.”

Song You, along with the jujube-red horse and the little girl, walked out of the temple. The Daoist priests indeed stopped at the gate and did not follow. He gave them one last bow before turning to leave without further words.

The little girl also waved her bamboo staff in farewell to them and then turned around to look at Song You. She said as they walked, “Qingyangzi!”

“Yes.”

“Guanghuazi!”

“He’s the temple owner of Fuqing Temple.”

“Why do they all have 'zi' in their names?”

“In recent years, it has become popular for Taoists to adopt names ending in 'zi' [3], while literati use names ending in 'daoren'[4].”

“What’s your zi name?”

The little girl waved her bamboo staff randomly as she walked alongside him, then she turned around and looked up at him.

“I don’t have a zi name.”

The little girl tilted her head, thinking for a moment.

“Maojuzi.”

“What is Maojuzi?” he asked.

“You’ve never seen Maojuzi?”

“What is it?”

“You’re not very smart,” she retorted.

“So, what is it?”

“It sticks to fur and won’t come off,” she answered.

“Oh...” Song You realized she was talking about a type of plant fruit.

“And Cang’erzi[5],” the little girl added.

“Do you like them?”

“No!” The little girl shook her head vigorously, her voice firm.

From her expression, Song You saw a strong sense of dislike and vigilance.

Maojuzi was also known as hitch hikers, black-jack, beggarticks[6]. Its fruit was a cluster of black-brown short spines that could stick to clothes or hair. Cang’erzi, on the other hand, was a small green ball with backward-facing barbs. It was even more difficult to remove from clothes or hair than Maojuzi, especially from hair.

It seemed she had suffered a lot from these two things in the past.

But now it was spring. These things should be less common, right?

After walking for a while, Song You slowed his pace and took out Yudi Jisheng from the horse's back. He flipped open the first page, which showed a map of Great Yan.

It was a very rough map, only depicting the general shapes of the provinces and marking their locations without much detail.

Details on the climate of each state, notable attractions and scenic spots, their general locations within the state, and how to get there were explained in the text behind the map, occasionally supplemented with small maps. Although he might still need to ask for directions, this information was already of great help to him.

However, this map was different from modern maps. For one, it wasn’t drawn with the north at the top and the south at the bottom, which added a lot of confusion. He had to rely on his geographical knowledge to interpret it.

Xuzhou should be in the southwest of Great Yan, slightly to the lower left if the map were oriented north-top and south-bottom. If he headed directly north, it wasn’t that far to travel to Changjing. However, considering that it would require some backtracking and that Changjing is just one of Song You’s stops rather than his destination, it is not worth going directly there.

Thus, he planned to continue south until he left Xuzhou, then head east. First, he would go to Pingzhou to visit Yunding Mountain. Then, he would go north, and finally westward, making a circuit through several provinces before reaching Changjing. It wouldn’t be a journey of ten thousand li, but close to eight or nine thousand.

Song You put the book back into the saddle bag.

Looking back, he saw the green mountains becoming blurry, the temple under the mountains growing smaller, and the bamboo grove behind the houses merging into a blur. He could no longer see the Daoists.

Song You stood still for a moment, taking one last look.

Perhaps he would never return here again; this moment was his final one with this landscape. This last look was his last one.

Maybe they would meet again, but that would be in ten or twenty years. Even if the landscape didn’t change, he would no longer be young. The Song You of that time was still unknown to him now, and who could say what he would feel then?

It was just a scenic part of the journey, yet it still made him sigh.

“Daoist.”

“Mm.”

Song You turned his gaze back to the road ahead.

It was early morning. A damp sun had just risen to the mountaintop, blending into where the mountain mist met the clouds. Leaning on a staff, he walked slowly. The green mountains stretched for ten li away, and the tide was low, leaving the path sandy

What kind of landscapes and people lay ahead?

On this very day, news arrived from Lingbo County to Anqing County. The news that the water demon, which had caused chaos for years, was finally subdued. The corpse floated up in the river, at least ten zhang long and several zhang wide. If not for the wide and deep part of the Liujiang River, it wouldn’t have fit.

The waterway was now clear, with no more water demons causing trouble.

The demon was subdued by a wandering immortal, young in appearance, accompanied by a jujube-red horse without reins and a calico cat full of spirituality. He didn't even enter the water but managed to eliminate such a water demon. It was hard to believe he wasn’t a deity that ascended to earth. Now, the hundred thousand people of Lingbo County were preparing to erect a statue and a temple for him at the newly reopened Lingbo Ferry Crossing to express their gratitude.

The jianghu people who had not yet left Anqing County, upon hearing this and reflecting on what they had seen in recent days, were all astonished. This was especially true for the members of the Xishan Sect.

***

Amidst the continuous mountains, within a courtyard…

“Mr. Song has left...” The youth still stood respectfully before the elder.

“Cough, cough, cough...” The elder coughed repeatedly, striking his cane on the ground, his voice old and hoarse. “I told you to be bolder; not to conquer the world, revive our clan, or anything grandiose. Cough, cough, cough... I just wanted you to have the courage to do what you want, to not lose what’s yours unnecessarily. Speak louder, get underestimated less, and it will save you many troubles... Being timid isn’t bad, but it can make you miss out on a lot.”

“Ancestor...”

“Don’t talk nonsense, cough, cough, cough...” the elder coughed repeatedly. “Say what you truly want to say.”

“I want... to see Mr. Song off...” the young man said.

“Alright.”

“Thank you, Ancestor...”

The youth turned to leave.

“Wait,” the old man said.

“Huh?”

“Mr. Song is a Daoist master. If you think he’s good, you can follow him. It might be your opportunity. Be it Daoism or cultivation, it will at least make your life more fulfilling.” The old man fixed his cloudy eyes on him and said, “Think it over yourself.”

“I...”

“What?” the old man said.

“I don’t dare to...” the young man replied.

“Then you will miss out.”

“I...” The youth stood there, eyes full of hesitation.

Finally, he said, “I will accompany Mr. Song a bit further. I’ll see him out of Xuzhou and then return.”

“As you wish.”

The swallow flew out the door.

1. Phyllostachys is a genus of Asian bamboo in the grass family. Many of the species are found in central and southern China, with a few species in northern Indochina and in the Himalayas. ☜

2. Cupping hands, also known as gongshou or zuoyi in Chinese, is a traditional Chinese ceremonial gesture or salute used for greeting or showing respect. It involves bringing together the index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger of both hands, with the palms facing inward or downward and the thumbs of each hand interlocking. One hand is placed over the other, and generally, the left-hand covers the right one for men and is reversed for women. ☜

3. meaning 'child' or 'master' ☜

4. meaning 'Daoist' ☜

5. Cang’er, known as Xanthium strumarium, is a species of annual plants of the family Asteraceae. Some sources claim it originates in southern Europe and Asia, but has been extensively naturalized elsewhere. ☜

6. Bidens pilosa is an annual species of herbaceous flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae. Its many common names include hitch hikers, black-jack, beggarticks, farmer's friends and Spanish needle, but most commonly referred to as cobblers pegs. It is native to the Americas but is widely distributed as an introduced species in other regions including Eurasia, Africa, Australia, South America and the Pacific Islands. ☜

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