Episode 17

  Look, the sky is approaching winter, and suddenly one day Kyoto had a heavy snowfall. Jin Chan'er stood by the window of her rented house, gazing at the trees, ground, buildings, and pavilions gradually turning white. Her heart suddenly felt a pang, thinking of Jiao Jiao who was alone in the cave, wondering if she was safe on this snowy morning and evening. Having lost her physical body, she must be lonely now that she's trapped in the Biyu Xuanbing ball! As for herself, reading books, appreciating things, and traveling through the mortal world, many years had passed but she still couldn't find a way to save Jiao Jiao from her predicament. Thinking of Jiao Jiao's cheerful face, now suffering alone, made her worry and unable to calm down. Her eyes dropped tears, which suddenly transformed into a white auspicious cloud that soared into the sky, flying over Kyoto City towards the high heavens, then speeding away towards the distant north.

  About half a year later, on a certain day, at the foot of Iron Mirror Mountain, in a market for cultivators, a female cultivator of the first stage of the Law Body and several male and female cultivators had a dispute. A beautiful woman with a yellow dress and a sword-like artifact pointed at that extraordinary-looking female cultivator, her face filled with anger:

  "If you return the Nine Phoenix Divine Claw artifact that I have set my eyes on, then we can put an end to all this! If not, then let you taste the flavor of my immortal sword!"

  "This immortal friend is what you want, but shouldn't be so arrogant. What's the difference between this and robbery?"

  "I've been robbed! What can you do about it?! Brother Gu, you're surrounding me!"

  "Fellow immortal, could it be that you intend to commit murder in broad daylight?! This is the ancient market of the Xuánzhèn Gate clan, you should..."

  "Shut up! Don't provoke me anymore! Surround her for me!" The yellow-robed female cultivator shouted angrily. But to her surprise, no one responded to her.

  "Brother Gu! Can you hear me?! Ah Ye! Look at those thieving eyes, I'll dig out your colorful and seductive gaze!" The yellow-robed female cultivator saw that Brother Gu and the other brothers were staring at the beautiful stranger and ignoring her, so she became enraged and her anger ignited. She raised her flying sword and charged straight at Brother Gu's eyes. The incident happened suddenly, and Brother Gu was caught off guard, wanting to cast a spell to dodge, but he was half a beat too slow! All that could be heard was a miserable cry, Brother Gu fell to the ground, his good eyes now reduced to one, the other eye bleeding profusely, with the damaged eyeball hanging outside, a terrifying sight!

  "Sister! Ah ya! This is... Hurry, hurry, hurry, quickly save Gu Master!"

  "Lu Shixiong, Gu Shixiong's eye is badly injured and the bleeding won't stop!"

  "Let me take a look!" The beautiful stranger approached and said. She helped up the male cultivator with the surname Gu, took out a talisman from her pouch, and after reciting an incantation, applied it to his injured eye. The blood clots disappeared instantly, but this eye was ruined.

  "Don't be afraid, little sister! Big brother's got this!" The male cultivator with the surname Guo said to the stunned Huang Ying who stood frozen beside him.

  "Big Brother! I...I don't know! Big Brother......Waaahhhh......" The yellow-robed female cultivator suddenly burst into tears and ran to Gu Master who was still sitting on the ground.

  "Don't be afraid, sister! Brother is fine!" He comforted the yellow-robed female cultivator on one side, while instructing other junior brothers on the other side:

  "Listen up, this has nothing to do with my junior sister! I was injured in a battle of magical arts with someone else, did you hear that?!"

  "Yes! Brother Gu!" everyone chimed in unison. The male cultivator with the surname Gu stood up and bowed to the beautiful female cultivator, saying:

  "Thanks for your help, Fairy! My junior sister has a fiery temper and often offends people!"

  "This immortal friend is being polite! I was just saying that this place is a marketplace, and if this immortal wants my Nine Phoenix Divine Claw artifact, they only need to trade according to the market rules."

  "Ah! So that's it!" The other cultivators were left crying with laughter. They had argued for half a day, but it turned out to be so simple, yet they had managed to fool Gu Shi-xiong completely.

  "But this fairy wouldn't even let me finish speaking and wanted to use force to take it!"

  "I... I... I also wanted to trade, but misunderstood that you wouldn't give. Now, brother..." *sobs*

  "Alright! Junior sister! Big brother doesn't blame you!" Then he turned his head towards the unfamiliar female cultivator:

  "How much gold and silver does the fairy want, or perhaps a magical talisman, before she will hand over this Nine Phoenix Divine Claw to my junior sister?"

  "Alas! You've already paid a high price, how much more silver can I ask of you?! The value of the Nine Phoenix Divine Claw must be clear to all of you by now, so take it for a thousand gold coins?"

  "Really! But this, this... we can't take too much advantage of you either!" The several fellow disciples were initially overjoyed, but then all became embarrassed and ashamed, as the value of this treasure was at least three to five thousand gold.

  "Never mind, I've said so much already, must I take it back?!"

  "Cough, since this fairy is so generous, then let Master Gu accept it on behalf of his sister!" That cultivator with the surname Lu interjected.

  "Alright, alright! Thank you, Fairy!" Then, the Shifu with the surname Gu took out Qianjin and Jinchanger from his bag, but handed the Jiufeng Shenzhua to his Shimei.

  "This fairy-like person, only familiar in appearance, if not disdainful, how about becoming friends?" That Lu surname cultivator said again after seeing that they had obtained the Nine Phoenix Divine Claw.

  "Right, right... Brother Lu's words are indeed good!" Everyone responded in agreement. Jin Chan'er saw this and, after a moment of hesitation, smiled and said:

  "Thank you all for your kind intentions!"

  Then everyone went to a tea house in the market, sat down at Ya Ge. When the waiter brought up the fragrant tea, everyone started chatting while tasting the tea.

  "Where is the Fairy's chariot headed? What's your noble surname and great name?" asked Valley Master Brother with courtesy.

  "I am a wandering cultivator, with no fixed abode. My hometown is on the ancient continent of Wanshoushan. My surname is Bai and my name is Jiao Jiao. Since childhood, I have been fond of the way of arrays, and I heard that the Xuanyuan Gate's Gu family has a profound foundation in the study of arrays. Therefore, I came here to seek an opportunity, hoping to enter the gate and learn the art of arrays." Jin Chan'er didn't know if they knew about Wanshoushan or not, but she replied seriously. The several fellow disciples looked at each other, all with surprised expressions. Gu Shi Xiong said:

  "The Xuan Zhen Men family does not usually accept wandering cultivators!"

  "Oh! Why?"

  "Because those who travel and study abroad often have unclear origins, the way of array tactics is lightly transmitted outside, but it invites great disaster!"

  "Oh! Yet there is such a thought. Just an ordinary disciple, how could there be any calamitous affair?"

  "The fairy has no knowledge of this, but the Mystic Array Sect is currently facing this predicament!"

  "I'd love to hear more about it." Jin Chan'er said with great interest.

  "Decades ago, a foreign cultivator begged the master of an ancient family to accept him as a disciple. Thanks to the recommendation of one of the master's good friends and the fact that this person was indeed naturally talented, the master agreed. This person studied for thirty years, and his mastery of the art of formation arrays was truly impressive! The master loved talent and taught him the secret array passed down through his family. But unexpectedly, after this person grasped the essence of the array, he disappeared without a trace. Thirty years later, the person reappeared. However, this time he was no longer a disciple, but an enemy!"

  "Oh! This is indeed the case of raising a tiger as a calamity! In that case, I will have no chance to learn the profound meaning of the Xuan Zhen Gate's law array!" The beautiful girl's slender eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she let out a long sigh after speaking. Her dejected appearance was evident on her face, causing those who saw her to secretly sympathize with her, including even the yellow-robed female cultivator who felt unbearable. After a while, Jin Chen'er spoke again:

  "Are all of you fellow immortals also here to study formation techniques?"

  "No, actually we are all disciples of the ancient family of the Mystic Array Sect. This is the sect leader's beloved daughter, Gu Yin." Everyone smiled and gazed at Jin Chan'er with delight.

  "Ah! You are the descendants of the ancient family of Xuan Zhen Men! What a coincidence that we should meet! Little sister offers her respects." Jin Chan'er curtsied elegantly.

  "I dare not!" The Valley Master also bowed in anticipation.

  "May I ask all of you fellow immortals, is it also because of this affliction that the Nine Phoenix Divine Claw is being forcibly purchased?"

  "Yes! The traitor has brought in a mysterious cultivator to attack our mountain gate. Although the exquisite law array of our Xuan Zhen Gate has been holding on for years without any problems, they had no choice but to retreat temporarily. However, recently they have been making moves again. Our new law array is not yet fully formed, and our master is certain that this time the traitor will definitely have a way to break through our defensive array. If the big array is broken, our gate will lose its reliance, and our cultivators' skills will be inferior to those of the enemy, then disaster will strike! Therefore, all the disciples of our sect are using all their resources to compete with each other to buy defensive equipment in preparation for unexpected events."

  "It was just now that my junior sister relied on her strength to buy it, and brewed this great trouble for me!"

  "Lu Shidi, this matter cannot be mentioned again! It's actually Bai Xianzi, I was rude to her just now, please forgive me!"

  "Gao Xian, your words are heavy! You treat fellow disciples like this, it makes me admire you!"

  "White sister is so capable, it really makes me feel ashamed! But my senior brother lost an eye, I...I...I don't know..." Miss Nangui was about to cry again. Brother Gu hurriedly comforted her in a warm voice.

  "Sister, no need to worry! This is a good opportunity for me to ask Master to infuse the Divine Eye Array into this eye. Not only will my divine sense not decrease, but my martial arts skills will also be greatly improved!"

  "Big Brother, don't deceive me, it's my fault! Let alone the wonderful method of refining the Spirit Eye is short of a grain of this world's rare and hard-to-find treasure, the Sun Moon Thunder Pearl! Even if we had this pearl, the protective array of our sect would need it, and my father wouldn't have refined it into your eyes either!"

  "This... this..."

  "Master, I... I've wronged you beyond redemption. Even if I can escape death, a lifetime of imprisonment is unavoidable! This means we won't be able to spend our lives together!" Gu Miss said tearfully, her face pitifully pale. The crowd remained silent.

  "Oh! Ri Yue Lei Zhu!" Jin Chan'er was taken aback.

  "Yes! This thing is the wood-type spirit that has cultivated for millions of years, and it was unable to withstand the power of heavenly thunder during its ascension. It's likely that this realm no longer has such a thing!" The cultivator with the surname Lu sighed.

  Jin Chan'er heard this and slightly furrowed her brow, lowering her head in contemplation for a long time. It seemed as if she had made an extremely great decision, then lifted her head and said:

  "Life is indeed so clever, Gu Xian's friend lost an eye because of me, and yet I coincidentally have the Dayue Lei Zhu. Could it be that there is a predetermined fate in the darkness?"

  "Ah!" Those few people almost jumped up at the same time, all of them staring with their eyes wide open and speechless, looking at Jin Chan'er.

  "Really! White Fairy......" Gu Valley muttered.

  "Is the White Immortal willing to sell it to us?" The Lu surname cultivator didn't wait for his senior brother to finish speaking, and hastily cut in.

  "I've already said it, and I intend to give it to this little sister!" Jin Chan'er said calmly.

  "Sister Bai, I...I'm not dreaming, am I?!"

  "Gu Yin's sister and I have a great fate, how could she deceive you!" Jin Chan'er said as she took out a gold-inlaid jade box from her bag and handed it to Gu Yin. The young lady took a deep breath and carefully opened the box. A faint golden light flashed, and inside the box, a pea-sized pearl emitted white electric lights that flashed like lightning - wasn't this the Day and Night Thunder Pearl?

  "Sister, quickly put it away!" Gu Shixiong instructed in a low and urgent tone after gazing at her for a moment.

  "Yes! Older brother!" Gu Yin was startled and hastily put it away. Then he raised his eyes to look at Jin Chan'er, who was smiling sweetly:

  "Big sister Bai, great kindness doesn't need thanks!"

  "Bai Xianzi, we are deeply grateful for your great kindness and have no way to repay you. I'd like to take you to meet our master. As for the matter of paying respects to the master and entering the school to learn the arts, we cannot make the decision ourselves, it depends on your destiny!" Gu Xiong said with a serious tone, as if he had made up his mind.

  "Thank you!" Jin Chan'er said faintly. She glanced briefly at the Lu surname cultivator, then fell silent, stood up and followed several people downstairs.