A Pawn's Passage

As they simultaneously grasped the two serpent heads with their left hands, the phantom serpents coiling around the staff began to fade.

The aging signs on Qi Xuansu and Yao Pei’s hands reversed—their wrinkles vanished, and their flesh regained its fullness, once again regaining their youthful appearance.

Yao Pei let out a small sigh of relief. She had truly feared that Qi Xuansu might fail to grasp the serpent’s head, wasting this rare opportunity. The possibility of their hands not reverting was secondary. The real concern was losing the chance to claim this semi-immortal object.

She whispered, “I’ll countdown from three, then we’ll exert our strength together to pull this staff out.”

Qi Xuansu nodded.

“Three, two, one—pull!” Yao Pei called out in a low voice.

Both of their arms tensed at the same time, veins bulging across the back of their hands.

Judging by appearance, even if the staff was cast entirely from gold and iron, it should weigh no more than 100 kilograms—something a Heavenly Being or a Martial Arts Practitioner could lift effortlessly with one hand. Yet, despite their combined effort, the staff only trembled slightly and remained firmly in place.

Yao Pei began to channel her true essence.

Qi Xuansu, on the other hand, employed his blood qi, innate qi, magical power, and divine power simultaneously. His entire arm glowed in gold and red hues, his skin turning translucent, revealing the intricate veins and bones within.

However, the Staff of Merit was ultimately an unclaimed artifact. Without a master to fully activate its mysteries, it could not unleash its full power. Yet, as the two poured their strength into it, the staff’s tremors grew more pronounced.

After a brief deadlock, Qi Xuansu suddenly felt the weight in his hands lighten. The Staff of Merit had finally lifted from the ground.

At that very moment, the monochrome haze enveloping the third floor rapidly dispersed, restoring vibrant color and life to everything around them. The only exceptions were the dragon lady—still imprisoned within the black-and-white pillar of light cast by the Eight Trigrams Mirror—and the sealed doorway at the back of the third floor that led to the Daoist Canon Division in Jade Capital. Otherwise, the third floor resembled the first and second in most aspects.

Qi Xuansu loosened his grip, allowing the Staff of Merit to fully settle into Yao Pei’s grasp.

With the staff in her hands, Yao Pei no longer hid her emotions. Her face now bore traces of joy.

She closed her eyes, sensing its energy for a brief moment before finally storing it in her magical receptacle.

Qi Xuansu asked, “Shall we leave?”

Yao Pei turned once more to the dragon lady. “I believe it won’t be long before you break free. I look forward to the day we meet again.”

The dragon lady did not speak, only gazing at the two with a slightly complex expression.

“Let’s go,” Yao Pei finally said, turning to leave.

The jade token’s restriction had a time limit. Once that time passed, the restriction would automatically restore itself, requiring the jade token to be used again to unlock it. Now that the counterfeit jade token had turned to ash, they would be trapped inside if they did not leave quickly.

The two left the third floor one after the other. The mechanical puppet guarding the staircase awoke once more, but this time, its eyes did not glow red, clearly indicating that it no longer saw them as enemies.

Yao Pei paid no heed to the mechanical puppet and simply strode forward.

The two left Tianshui Core Tower without any hindrance and returned to the entrance of the alley where they had come from.

Yao Pei stopped in front of the illusory restriction that she set up earlier. Using a mystical ability called Sky Eye, she conjured a tiny black dot in the sky that resembled a closed eye. This method was able to bypass the anti-flight formation. The eye slowly opened, revealing its pupil, which connected with Yao Pei’s vision.

At this moment, Yao Pei’s perspective shifted from a first-person view to a third-person view, overlooking the surroundings from above. She could even see herself standing beside Qi Xuansu.

The Sky Eye was intangible and invisible to ordinary people. Only those with a cultivation level higher than the caster’s could perceive it. Using this ability required a Heavenly Being’s cultivation level at the least. Sky Eye was linked to the caster’s vision, so anything seen by the eye was also seen by the caster.

After confirming that no one was outside, Yao Pei dispelled the Sky Eye and passed through the illusory restriction along with Qi Xuansu.

Yao Pei did not immediately remove the talisman that created the illusory restriction. Instead, she waited until the real restriction had fully restored itself before keeping the talisman.

This way, while not absolutely flawless, it was still done without anyone noticing.

Qi Xuansu looked at Yao Pei. He had not gone through all this effort just to please her. He was mainly here for the treasure she had promised him.

Yao Pei, being of noble lineage, disdained reneging on a deal. Without waiting for Qi Xuansu to press her, she simply offered, “Let's go to my place.”

Qi Xuansu had no objections and followed Yao Pei back to her residence.

Upon returning, Yao Pei wasted no words. She took out a box from her magical receptacle and placed it in front of Qi Xuansu. “I heard that you are skilled in using firearms. You used to wield the Divine Dragon Pistol produced by the Divine Armory in the 36th year of the Jiushi Era, worth about 800 Taiping coins on the black market. It's equivalent to a spiritual object.”

Qi Xuansu did not show any expression on his face, but he was becoming more wary of Yao Pei because this niece had an unusually keen grasp of information and had even specifically investigated him.

Even so, Qi Xuansu nodded. “That is indeed the case.”

Yao Pei pushed the box toward Qi Xuansu. “This was a gift from an elder after I became a Heavenly Being. It’s made from the same material as the Spirit Guard Armor, still adorned with a dragon-head design.

“It features a breech-loading mechanism, a striker-fired system, and an integrated structure from the Dragon Eye Series. However, it has an added ammunition chamber, increasing its capacity to two rounds. Its effective range is three hundred steps, and within one hundred steps, it can pierce the protective qi shield of a Xiantian Being. If sold on the black market, it would fetch at least 8,000 Taiping coins—ten times the price of the Divine Dragon Pistol.”

Qi Xuansu was momentarily dazed, as if the person before him was not Yao Pei but rather Madam Qi, who always presented him with two choices.

Nevertheless, he instinctively opened the lid of the box. In it lay an exquisite handgun nestled in velvet. At first glance, it did not appear much different from the Divine Dragon Pistol.

Its curves were elegant, and its decorations were intricate. It did not resemble a lethal weapon but rather a fine work of craftsmanship. However, its color was different. This handgun had a glossy, pitch-black sheen, akin to obsidian.

Beside the handgun were 20 special fixed cartridges, engraved with dense and complex talismanic patterns. They were not ordinary armor-piercing projectiles but the costly Grade-B Series One Dragon Eye Bullets.

Qi Xuansu reached out and gripped the pistol’s handle. It felt icy to the touch and was even heavier than the Divine Dragon Pistol. If thrown, even without any infusion of innate qi or divine power, it could easily bludgeon an ordinary person to death.

“What is the name of this firearm?” Qi Xuansu asked softly.

Yao Pei, also admiring this uniquely crafted handgun, replied, “This firearm is called the Dragon Painting Pistol. Compared to the Divine Dragon Pistol, it is even more suited for the Dragon Eye Series ammunition. Its name is derived from the idiom, ‘paint the dragon, dot the eye,’ which means adding the finishing touch to a masterpiece.”

Yao Pei paused briefly before adding, “Do you know the story behind the idiom? It tells of a master painter who painted four dragons on the wall of Anle Temple in Jinling Prefecture but did not add their eyes. He said that if he did, they would fly away. Those who heard this did not believe him and insisted that he add the eyes. As soon as he did so for two of them, thunder and lightning erupted, shattering the wall, and the two dragons soared into the sky. The meaning behind Dragon Painting Pistol is that when paired with the Dragon Eye Series ammunition, its power reaches an entirely new level.”

Qi Xuansu’s face darkened. “I may have misread ‘Master of Jianxiu Mountain’ earlier, but I’m not an illiterate fool. Of course, I know that story! In fact, I can even recite the Primordial Daoist Ancestor’s Five Thousand Words Classic and Daoist Master Nanhua’s Nanhua Classic.”

“You can recite these classics, huh? That is truly impressive,” Yao Pei said expressionlessly. “If I recall correctly, that is a course for ten-year-olds?”

Qi Xuansu rolled his eyes, not wanting to continue the debate on this topic. Instead, he asked, “Why have I never heard of the Dragon Painting Pistol before?”

Yao Pei replied, “That’s because the Dragon Painting Pistol is still in its prototype stage and far from being officially adopted by the Daoist Order. It’s only natural that you haven’t heard of it.”

Qi Xuansu could not help but ask, “Prototype stage? Does that mean the Dragon Painting Pistol still has some flaws?”

“Its biggest flaw is its high production cost. If the cost cannot be reduced, no matter how good the Dragon Painting Pistol is, it will never see mass adoption,” Yao Pei explained. “Additionally, the Dragon Painting Pistol is extremely heavy due to its material. It’s almost comparable to the Black Robes’ portable cannon. So only a Heavenly Being or a Guizhen-stage Martial Arts Practitioner could wield it conveniently.”

Qi Xuansu raised the Dragon Painting Pistol with one hand. As Yao Pei had said, it was indeed heavy, weighing nearly 50 kilograms. It was not that an ordinary Xiantian Being could not lift it, but its excessive weight made it difficult to maneuver.

If it were used as a small cannon, it would lose the essence of a handgun. Moreover, this type of handgun was unsuitable for hanging at the waist because it would severely hinder movement and even risk snapping a belt.

However, Qi Xuansu had the physique and strength of a Martial Arts Practitioner, so the weight was not an issue. Moreover, now that he had a magical receptacle, carrying it daily was no longer a problem.

Although there was still debate within the Daoist Order about whether firearms should be classified as spiritual objects or treasures, Qi Xuansu only cared about the price. At 8,000 Taiping coins, it was a treasure in his eyes. The reason it was somewhat cheaper than other treasures was that the Dragon Painting Pistol had to be used in conjunction with the Dragon Eye Series, which was also expensive. Thus, it had an additional expense compared to other treasures.

Qi Xuansu swung the Dragon Painting Pistol a few times and performed some aiming motions. Although it felt somewhat unnatural due to it being significantly heavier than the Divine Dragon Pistol he would get used to it over time.

Then, Qi Xuansu skillfully loaded a Grade-B Series One Dragon Eye Bullet, raised his hand, aimed the muzzle at Yao Pei, and pressed down the hammer.

Yao Pei remained unfazed and simply asked, “Satisfied?”

Qi Xuansu pulled the trigger.

Almost simultaneously, two interlocking serpent shadows appeared around Yao Pei. As the Grade-B Series One Dragon Eye Bullet entered the area covered by the serpent shadows, its trajectory became visible to the naked eye and gradually slowed down.

Eventually, the bullet completely halted when it was only 10 centimeters away from Yao Pei.

Yao Pei, still expressionless, reached out to pluck the bullet from the air without saying a word.

Qi Xuansu had previously used the Grade-B Series One Dragon Eye Bullet against Marshal Tianpeng of the Heavenly Court, knowing full well that it was difficult to truly harm Heavenly Beings. This shot was merely to startle Yao Pei. After all, she kept mocking him for being an uneducated fool.

“I’m very satisfied. It’d be even better if you threw in some Grade-A Series Nine Dragon Eye Bombs.” Qi Xuansu pushed his luck.

Yao Pei replied coldly, “Buy them yourself.”

Qi Xuansu stored the Dragon Painting Pistol and the remaining Grade-B Series One Dragon Eye Bullets in his magical receptacle.

Yao Pei stood up to see him off. “We’re even now. Please leave.”