The Will to Hunt Cows

As aforementioned, Cai Jinjian was walking backward, and in the instant that she stepped on the pile of dog shit, she could already feel that there was something strange underfoot.

What was more embarrassing than stepping in dog shit was to be seen by others while doing so, and what was even more humiliating than that was being told by an observer that you really had trodden on dog shit.

Cai Jinjian wasn't someone who was easily riled up, and she certainly wasn't a pampered little girl who couldn't withstand any adversity. The fact that she was able to stand out and be selected out of all of the many descendants of the master of Dawn Cloud Mountain was a clear testament to her character. Dawn Cloud Mountain encompassed a total of 18 peaks of different sizes, all of which were enveloped in clouds and mist all year round.

The Cloud Root Stone produced on the mountain was an important material in alchemy for those following the alchemy branch of Daoism. It was renowned for its pristine purity, and it was unrivaled in that regard. Hence, ensuring cleanliness was an important priority for the people on Dawn Cloud Mountain, and most of them had misophobia, including Cai Jinjian. If it weren't for how important this town was, she would've never set foot in this place, let alone stepped onto Clay Vase Alley, which was laden with mud and fecal matter from all types of different animals.

What was most frustrating to her was that they were supposed to be high and mighty immortals, yet upon arriving in this town, they were like helpless fish that had been tossed onto the shore, losing everything that they had previously taken for granted in the blink of an eye. Their almighty clans that resided in blessed paradise, their mystical powers that allowed them to move mountains and rivers, their powerful treasures that were capable of taming demons and slaying gods, all of that had been instantly taken away from them.

And now, she had trodden on dog shit.

Fu Nanhua was rather amused by this turn of events. Who could've ever imagined that the pristine and pure Celestial Maiden Cai of Dawn Cloud Mountain would ever have a pile of sticky and stinky dog shit clinging to her boot?

However, in the next instant, the amusement on his face immediately faded, and he yelled, "Stop!"

Standing on the earthen wall, Song Jixin's pupils abruptly contracted, and he reflexively tightened his grip around the jade pendant in his hand.

As it turned out, Cai Jinjian had lunged over to Chen Ping'an in what seemed like just a single stride, and her fair and slender hand was hurtling rapidly toward the top of Chen Ping'an's head. In the instant that Fu Nanhua yelled out to stop her, her hand drew to an abrupt halt, and after a brief pause, she gently raised it before patting Chen Ping'an's head in what appeared to be an affectionate, doting gesture.

She bent over slightly to look straight into Chen Ping'an's eyes, which resembled puddles of water so clear that one could see straight to the bottom. Cai Jinjian could almost see her own reflection in those eyes, but she was in no mood to be appreciating such trivial things. A fake smile appeared on her face as she said, "I know what you did there. You intentionally delayed your warning, didn't you?"

Fu Nanhua heaved a faint sigh of relief upon seeing this. If Cai Jinjian had killed someone in broad daylight here, there was a very good chance that they would've been evicted from the town, and the entire Dawn Cloud Mountain would've been made into a massive laughingstock over her actions.

A stern look appeared on his face as he said in an authentic official dialect, "Please think before you act, Cai Jinjian. If you continue to be so reckless, I will be inclined to terminate our collaboration. I don't want to have my plans foiled by your reckless actions."

Cai Jinjian had her back facing Fu Nanhua, and she rapidly chanted a calming mantra to distract herself from her anger.

She then quickly turned around and flashed Fu Nanhua an apologetic smile as she said, "My apologies for losing my cool. I promise you that nothing like this will happen again during our time here."

"Are you sure?" Fu Nanhua asked with a cold smile.

Cai Jinjian merely smiled and offered no response to Fu Nanhua. Instead, she turned to face Chen Ping'an again, then murmured to herself in her official dialect, "Our Dawn Cloud Mountain derives its roots from one of the five branches of Buddhism, and one of the most important things that we're taught is to rein in worldly desires and avoid worldly distractions.

"Prior to coming here, I had no idea what such things even were, and my seniors didn't want to offer the answer up to me on a silver platter, so they told me to figure it out for myself. Never would I have imagined that I would develop an idea of what those concepts are after stepping on a pile of dog excrement on your Clay Vase Alley..."

"It's already been quite some time since you stepped on the dog shit, why have you still not scraped it off yet?" Chen Ping'an asked with a perplexed expression.

Cai Jinjian had just found some semblance of inner peace through the chanting of her mantra, but after hearing what Chen Ping'an had to say, she instantly found herself once again unable to suppress her worldly emotions. A furious look appeared on her face, but Fu Nanhua's warning was still fresh in her mind, so she could only prod Chen Ping'an's forehead firmly with her finger to vent her fury, glowering angrily at him as she said, "Have you not been taught those who are insolent will meet an early demise, and those who are vitriolic will lose all their good fortune?"

Chen Ping'an was unfazed by Cai Jinjian's firm prod to the forehead, and he turned to look at Song Jixin in silence.

Song Jixin immediately flared with rage upon seeing this. "Why are you looking at me, Chen Ping'an? Are you trying to imply something?"

Only now did Fu Nanhua discover that he still hadn't set foot in Song Jixin's yard yet, and a displeased look appeared on his face as he turned to Cai Jinjian with undisguised vexation in his eyes. "To think that there would be someone in this world who would be delayed in their pursuit of the Great Dao all because they had trodden on some dog shit! Never have I seen anyone so foolish!"

In a remarkable display of restraint, Cai Jinjian remained calm and collected despite Fu Nanhua's insult, and she took one final glance at Chen Ping'an before turning to depart.

All of a sudden, Chen Ping'an remarked, "You have very long eyelashes, Big Sister."

How dare a lowly ant like him take liberties with me?

Cai Jinjian was furious, and she immediately turned around, deciding there and then that she was going to teach this filthy mutt a lesson. In her eyes, Chen Ping'an appeared to be honest and innocent on the outside, but in reality, he was as sly and cunning as a fox!

Even though she was extremely restricted upon entering this place, temporarily unable to use any of her treasures and abilities, she had reaped the benefits of cultivating from a young age. Her physical constitution was constantly being enhanced through her cultivation, and the effects weren't very pronounced, far less so than the fruits one could expect to reap from specializing in martial arts training, but she was still more than sufficiently equipped to deal with a young boy who had grown up his entire life in this rural town.

All she had to do was target some of the important acupoints on his body to strike him down with a series of ailments that would lead to an early demise, and it would've been an incredibly simple task, but as she peered into the dim alley, all she saw was a tanned face and a pair of bright eyes looking back at her.

Cai Jinjian's eyes immediately lit up upon seeing this, following which the sympathy innately present in women welled up in her heart. The sympathy in her eyes then gradually faded as a bright smile appeared on her face, and she was struck by a sense of enlightenment.

This was a perfect opportunity for her to overcome an internal demon.

Ever since Dawn Cloud Mountain was founded by Patriarch Dawn Cloud, an idea had always been championed, which was that the beginning and end of every fated meeting was a tribulation-transcending experience.

Of course, there was no set method for transcending these tribulations, and it was required for the transcender to work out solutions on their own.

Cai Jinjian was currently in one of these exact situations.

She felt like she had identified the worldly distraction that she had to suppress, and it was none other than the young boy before her.

Thus, she raised her palm once again before placing it over Chen Ping'an's chest, then gently pressed down on it. That sequence of movements was performed extremely quickly and smoothly, and even though Chen Ping'an had reacted by taking a half-step backward, he was still unable to avoid Cai Jinjian's palm.

Fu Nanhua was staring intently at Cai Jinjian's seductive figure, but not only did he not feel even the slightest hint of attraction or entrancement, his heart was filled with murderous rage. He forcibly suppressed his killing intent as he yelled in a furious voice, "That tap on the forehead alone was enough to constantly rack him with ailments for the rest of his life! Surely such a punishment was already sufficient! Why did you go even further? Have you lost your mind, Cai Jinjian? Are you really going to abandon your pursuit of the Great Dao just to exact vengeance on a filthy stray mutt?"

Cai Jinjian paid no heed to his accusations, and Fu Nanhua lowered his voice as he recovered his composure and sneered, "To think that the vastly renowned Cai Jinjian of Dawn Cloud Mountain would be so petty that she would willingly stoop to the same level as an uneducated youth. Are you not embarrassed by your actions?"

Cai Jinjian turned to him with a smile as she replied, "This alley is truly a blessed place for me, I didn't think that I would stumble upon a fated opportunity even during such a chance encounter. It's nowhere near enough to make a significant difference, but it's certainly a great omen. I have even more confidence in that boy by the name of Gu Can now."

Fu Nanhua was rather taken aback to hear this.

Did she really just attain some type of enlightenment just now?

Cai Jinjian raised her foot to inspect the disgusting fecal matter clinging to her boot, and she chuckled, "Come to think of it, this was the thing that bestowed this fated opportunity upon me."

Song Jixin wore an uncertain expression, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.