The Shu Mountain Sect has always had the saying of the "Three Harms of Shu Mountain," which are the three things people most want to engage with on Shu Mountain... mahjong, hot pot, and Princess Feng.
The Southwest is fond of playing mahjong, and Shu Mountain is no exception.
Once, the Shu Mountain Sect was famous for playing mahjong throughout the Nine Realms, leading some to discuss whether playing mahjong had any benefits for cultivation, which was quite absurd.
Later, as Shu Mountain began to decline, it started to heavily ban this leisure activity that was easy to neglect cultivation for. However, the ban was not effective.
To this day, playing mahjong is still one of the most popular leisure activities on Shu Mountain, but it must be kept within a reasonable range.
At the biennial Shu Mountain Peak Council, aside from formal events like the various peak competitions, there are also entertainment events such as the Shu Mountain Mahjong Tournament, Sword Racing Competition, and Spirit Pet Fighting Competition, with the mahjong competition being the most competitive.
As for the hot pot, it is also popular in the Southwest, so it's unavoidable on Shu Mountain.
However, why has hot pot become a harmful thing?
It's because this eating style is too inclusive, and there is a saying on Shu Mountain that everything can be put in a hot pot. Once, Shu Mountain's hot pot had developed two major characteristics: "No enjoyment without spiciness" and "No oddity left out."
Anything you can think of, Shu Mountain could put it in a hot pot. Birds and beasts, demons and monsters... there was even a trend of vicious competition, with Shu Mountain disciples competing to capture rare creatures to eat a fresh bite.
It was as if today you'd eat dragon liver, and tomorrow I'd eat phoenix marrow. This small pot caused a lot of internal competition. And as it spiraled, many creatures were pulled into the pot.
It was widely rumored in the martial world for many years that people on Shu Mountain would eat anything.
While disciples from other sects thought about trading or killing when they encountered creatures, Shu Mountain disciples thought about chili oil or clear soup.
In the end, it was the current Sect Leader who personally ordered the end of this reprehensible behavior, finally putting a stop to the unhealthy trend.
The first two harms have existed for a long time, and the last harm, Princess Feng, was added in the early years.
In her youth, Princess Feng was truly a tyrant on Shu Mountain, aggressive and bullying, and she was also very skilled in martial arts. There were few disciples of the same generation who hadn't been bullied by her.
Later, when competing for leadership of the various peaks, no one supported her, but she still had the cultivation of the Q&A Realm, leaving people with no choice.
Most of the 36 peak leaders on Shu Mountain are still at the sixth realm, the elemental body realm, and there are only about ten with the Q&A Realm cultivation. If we consider fighting ability alone, Princess Feng isn't even in the top ten among the peak leaders, but she is at least in the top three!
In fact, no peak master has ever dared to claim that they could defeat the Imperial Phoenix.
Fortunately, since she became the peak master, she has been more restrained. In recent years, there have been very few incidents involving the Imperial Phoenix, to the extent that some younger disciples are not very clear about the cause of this trouble.
...
Today, in this place, there are several young disciples of Shu Mountain, playing mahjong, eating hot pot, and chatting about the Imperial Phoenix.
"Boss, are you going to play tough? That definitely won't work," attendant A said loudly.
Inside a wooden house on Yunyao Peak, a pot of red oil was boiling, and slices of meat and fish balls were rising and falling, emitting a delightful fragrance.
Attendant B quickly scooped a spoonful of tripe and put it in a bowl.
Shang Ziliang sat there with a worried look, "What's wrong? Didn't you investigate it? Chu Liang is just at the early stage of cultivating his small godly realm. I have already reached the peak of my godly realm and am in the process of refining my golden core. I am about to break through soon. If I confront him, it's almost a sure thing, right?"
Earlier, he had seen Xu Ziqing and Chu Liang in the sword hall, and their behavior seemed suspicious, accompanied by a strange smell, which made him suspicious.
After some investigation, he found out that the two of them had just completed a mission together, and their relationship was good during the mission... Shang Ziliang was suddenly furious and wanted to go warn Chu Liang to stay away from Xu Ziqing.
"Boss, hey..." Attendant A advised, "You only know that Chu Liang is in the godly realm, but his master is the Imperial Phoenix!"
Attendant B scooped up a large amount of fat beef and dipped it in sesame paste before eating it deliciously.
Shang Ziliang said, “His master is the Imperial Phoenix, and my father is also the peak master. Shouldn't I be afraid of her?”
Attendant A was silent for a moment, but the look in his eyes left no doubt... He was probably scared.
Among the peaks of Shu Mountain, Yunyao Peak's Lord Shang Wenzai was not known for his cultivation. He had always been gentle and elegant in his behavior. This was in stark contrast to the Imperial Phoenix...
"If it were any other peak master, they might consider your father's reputation and not confront you. But the Imperial Phoenix... she has never given anyone face. If you really provoke her, who knows what might happen?" Attendant A earnestly advised.
Attendant B lifted a few pieces of tofu skin and pork throat.
"So what do you suggest?" Shang Ziliang asked.
"Boss, it's not just because of his master. If you inexplicably show up and ask him to stay away from Junior Sister Ziqing, or if you fight him, it won't be justified," Attendant A calmly analyzed. "In my opinion, it's safer for us to act in secret."
Attendant B picked up a large piece of green vegetable.
Shang Ziliang frowned and pondered, "Act in secret? But I just want to warn him. How can we do that in secret?"
Attendant A said, "We could use a strategy to make him suffer a bit, then later send him a warning... If he gets close to Junior Sister Ziqing again, he will suffer in the future... but we won't expose our identities, so even if his master wants to intervene, she can't find us. What do you think?"
Attendant B stood up and scooped up some minced meat from the bottom of the pot.
Shang Ziliang chuckled, "Alright, so how do we make him suffer?"
Attendant A also smiled, "I thought about this earlier, boss. Do you remember Bai Ze?"
Shang Ziliang looked at the cunning eyes of his follower, Jing-Ge, and was momentarily stunned, then he smiled knowingly, "You're quite clever, with some intelligence."
After exchanging a few words, they devised a plan, which turned Shang Ziliang's worry into joy. He felt his appetite improve and picked up his chopsticks to prepare to eat.
Then he saw that the pot was empty.
"Hmm? Where's the food?" he asked.
"Yeah, where is it?" Jing-Ge hadn't noticed either.
"I don't know." Another follower, Ji-B, shook his head blankly. "It feels like it disappeared before we even started eating."
...
Chu Liang returned to his own small room, sat down, and practiced cultivation. Even though he now had a valuable doll, when he had free time, he couldn't neglect his actual cultivation.
After about two hours, he took out the Soul Arrest Token to check for any new messages, but there was nothing new inside.
It seemed that in the time the mysterious person remained silent, the soul realm was still very quiet.
It made sense, though. These magic cultivators usually operated in the shadows, they were all cold and ruthless people, focused on life and death matters; they wouldn't have much time for leisurely activities.
Looking at the stone table outside, he noticed a letter, probably delivered while he was practicing.
He reached out and took the letter, and upon opening it, he saw two lines of small characters written on it.
"Brother Chu, at the Rooster Hour and three-quarters, I'll be waiting for you at the Bao Ta Peak... Xu Ziqing."
"Hmm?" Chu Liang was puzzled at seeing this letter.
Was this letter really written by Xu Ziqing?
"If this letter was really written by Xu Junior Sister, then she..." Chu Liang pondered, "writes quite poorly."