owlsbooks Chapter 32: I desperately want to improve.
Chapter 32: I desperately want to improve.
Back in the cave dwelling.
They saw Wu Peng lying on the bed wrapped in blankets, shivering violently.
Cao Xing went over to take a look and found that Wu Peng had developed a high fever.
"Wu Peng?"
Cao Xing tried to nudge Wu Peng, but Wu Peng only groaned twice and then fell silent, clearly delirious from the fever.
It seems Gu Su was right; that place is really not for the average person.
Seeing that Wu Peng was on the verge of death, Cao Xing had no choice but to go to Zhuang Duyou.
Zhuang Duyou didn't care whether Wu Peng lived or died; he simply calmly took out a pill and handed it to Cao Xing.
Of course, the elixir wasn't given away for free; it cost ten taels of silver.
Cao Xing didn't have to pay for this; it was put on Wu Peng's account.
"It seems you really can't keep those ten taels of silver," Cao Xing thought to himself.
After the pill was fed to Wu Peng, his high fever gradually subsided, and soon he began to snore.
"younger brother!"
At this moment, Bixia on her wrist made a faint sound, "That hole just now was very dangerous."
Cao Xing was somewhat taken aback upon hearing this: "You mean the one in the woods?"
"Hmm! The deathly aura is so strong, it feels like once you go in, you'll never come out again."
Bixia couldn't explain it clearly either. Although her ability to see clearly had improved after cultivation, she still lacked experience. When faced with such a complex situation, Bixia couldn't figure out what she was seeing.
"Don't worry, I won't go in. The corpses outside are enough for me to cultivate." Cao Xing nodded. Actually, it wasn't just the Corpse Transformation Cave.
And Gu Su, that woman, also made Cao Xing feel dangerous.
A monthly salary of 500 taels of silver is like a windfall.
But this is the world of Journey to the West, where anything can fall from the sky, except for pies.
The next morning, when Wu Peng woke up, he had recovered, but he looked sickly and had lost a lot of weight.
Cao Xing told Wu Peng about what happened yesterday. When Wu Peng learned that he had lost his ten taels of silver, his face turned even uglier.
"Damn it, this godforsaken place, I knew I shouldn't have come."
Wu Peng sighed. He thought that after joining the Shangfang Temple, he would be able to cultivate and become an immortal, but he didn't expect that he would almost lose his life before he even had a chance to cultivate.
"Actually, you can still leave now," Cao Xing said half-jokingly.
"Walk?"
Wu Peng lowered his head with a bitter smile: "I've been completely cut off from my roots. After leaving the Shangfang Temple, what do you want me to do? Become a eunuch in the palace?"
"If I had to become a eunuch or a servant, I'd rather risk it all here. Even if it means death, I'll cultivate immortality. I'll climb step by step to the highest level. I want to become a god!!"
Wu Peng clenched his fists, looking as if he was ready to die.
But as soon as he finished speaking, Wu Peng's stomach started rumbling loudly.
Wu Peng blushed slightly and looked at Cao Xing somewhat embarrassedly: "Senior Brother Cao, can you...?"
"Let's go eat in the cafeteria first, we can talk about the rest later."
Cao Xing knew that Wu Peng was short of money and shy, so before he could say anything, he took him to the cafeteria for a meal.
The food in the cafeteria is also divided into different grades.
There was a sign outside the cafeteria with the cafeteria menu written from top to bottom.
The most luxurious meals not only include chicken, duck, fish, and meat, but also ingredients rich in nutritional value, along with a pot of marrow-cleansing wine that can enhance cultivation and improve physical constitution.
The price... is also quite attractive, 888 taels per seat.
The numbers that follow are 366 taels, 218 taels, 108 taels, 80 taels, 50 taels...
Cao Xing looked directly at the bottom of the menu and saw two dishes, a soup, and two steamed buns, priced at one qian of silver.
It's so dark!
Cao Xing couldn't help but sigh inwardly once again, realizing how corrupt this monopolistic industry was, just like the lousy school he attended before his rebirth.
One tael of silver is enough for an ordinary person to eat rice for half a year.
Next time I go down the mountain, I might as well bring some rice with me and cook for myself.
In fact, it seems that most people do this, so there aren't many people in the cafeteria.
Cao Xing ordered two "poor man's set meals" and sat down with Wu Peng to eat heartily.
The taste was so-so; both dishes were vegetarian and extremely salty.
But as long as they could have a hot meal, neither of them paid much attention to it.
During the meal, the two chatted about their future plans.
When Wu Peng learned that Cao Xing had found a job in that forest, Wu Peng couldn't hide the envy in his eyes. But when he thought about how he felt when he entered the forest yesterday, he felt a dull ache in his lower body and couldn't help but shudder. Suddenly, he wasn't so envious anymore.
"Hey! Isn't that Senior Brother Cao?"
Cao Xing looked up and saw several people swaying as they came down from the second floor. The second floor had private rooms, and the cheapest meal there cost 218 taels of silver.
Several people surrounded a chubby boy and swayed as they walked up to Cao Xing.
Cao Xing looked up and saw that they were all disciples who had entered the sect at the same time as him. These people were surrounding the third young master of the Huang family. Judging from their fawning manner, they seemed to have become the third young master's loyal lackeys.
This is not surprising. From the perspective of the higher authorities, although money is not the same as strength, it can be understood as a kind of soft power.
After these two days of beatings, most people should understand how difficult it is to live in the Shangfang Temple without money. Let alone cultivating immortality, just surviving normally is a luxury.
"Huang Li, what are you doing?"
Wu Peng came from a poor background, but he disliked rich young masters like Huang Li the most. When he saw Huang Li walking over, he couldn't help but frown and question him.
Hearing someone call him by his given name, Huang Li's chubby face showed displeasure, but he had no interest in Wu Peng, or rather, he didn't want to provoke this guy.
After all, a ruthless person who can cut off their own manhood with a single stroke might do anything if pushed to the limit.
What he cared about was Cao Xing, this rogue cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Refining.
"Cabbage, steamed buns... Senior Brother Cao, how can you eat this? If you have any difficulties, just tell me. How can you eat this... this is like the grains of cattle and horses."
Huang Li stared at the food in front of Cao Xing, his face already showing disdain. In his opinion, this kind of food was not even as good as what his servants ate.
Upon hearing this, Wu Peng immediately flew into a rage, stood up abruptly, and glared fiercely at Huang Li, but Cao Xing pulled him back into his chair.
Cao Xing raised his head, a smile on his face: "Junior Brother Huang is an outstanding person with a limitless path to immortality. He will surely become a true disciple of the immortals in the future. Since Junior Brother Huang has asked, then lend me five hundred taels of silver first."
Huang Li's smile deepened as he heard Cao Xing's flattery, but his face stiffened when he heard Cao Xing ask for five hundred taels of silver right off the bat.
"Five hundred taels is nothing to Junior Brother Huang, just the cost of a meal. I hope Junior Brother Huang won't find it difficult," Cao Xing continued.
"Of course not."
Huang Li felt a pang of heartache, but he still pretended to be generous and took out two hundred-tael silver notes from his sleeve and handed them to Cao Xing.
"I left in a hurry and didn't bring that much with me. Senior brother, take it first, and I'll have someone bring you the remaining three hundred taels later."
Cao Xing wiped his hands and took the silver note: "Then thank you very much, Junior Brother Huang."
He then winked at Wu Peng, "Old Peng, let's go."
"Wait a minute!"
Seeing Cao Xing about to leave, Huang Li's expression changed, and he immediately stopped Cao Xing: "Senior Brother Cao, five hundred taels is no small amount. You should at least give me a written agreement."
Cao Xing glanced at Huang Li and asked, "How much do I need to borrow from you?"
"Five hundred taels!"
"Since you're borrowing five hundred taels, you only need to give me two hundred. Once you bring over the remaining three hundred taels, I'll write you the IOU. That's reasonable, isn't it?"
"That makes sense." Huang Li nodded, but quickly realized something seemed off.
However, Cao Xing didn't give him a chance to speak: "Then thank you very much, Junior Brother Huang."
After saying that, he grabbed Wu Peng and left.
Once they were out of sight, Cao Xing handed one hundred taels of silver notes to Wu Peng: "A share for everyone who sees this, one note for each person."
"This...isn't that a bad idea?"
Wu Peng said something was wrong, but his hand was already on the silver note.
"Stop talking nonsense, good brother, why are you being so polite?" Cao Xing stuffed the silver note into Wu Peng's hand. Given how Wu Peng had tried to stand up for him earlier, Cao Xing wouldn't just watch him starve to death.
Upon receiving the silver note, Wu Peng felt much more relaxed, as one hundred taels of silver was enough for him to recover his health.
But Wu Peng soon began to worry: "Senior Brother Cao, you borrowed money from him, you have to pay it back."
"return?"
Cao Xing glanced at Wu Peng and curled his lip: "I didn't write an IOU, nor did I provide any collateral. I borrowed the money based on my own ability, so why should I pay it back?"
Wu Peng?
"That's all for now. You should go home and get some rest. I have other things to do, so I'll be going now."
Cao Xing waved to Wu Peng and walked straight towards the back mountain.
When I arrived at the forest overgrown with dead leaves on the back mountain again, I heard Gu Su's voice as soon as I entered the forest.
"Have you thought it through?"
Cao Xing looked around but didn't see Gu Su. A bitter smile appeared on his face: "I thought about it all night. Senior's job certainly won't be easy, but..."
Cao Xing paused, his voice choked with emotion: "But my fellow disciples have already begun their cultivation, while I can't even afford to buy pills."
Cao Xing shrugged, clasped his hands in a deep bow, and knelt deeply towards the woods ahead: "Senior, I desperately want to improve."