21. Is this a counterfeit Golden Elixir?

Xiao Qingpei had already met Senior Brother Shan, the steward responsible for affairs. Their conversation was brief; the other merely smiled and pointed out a few matters to pay attention to, mentioned the corresponding palace subsidies, and then raised his teacup.

It was a clear sign to see the guest off.

Not lingering, Xiao Qingpei took his leave. Since it was their first meeting and they were hardly acquaintances, there was truly nothing to discuss.

"Teaching swordsmanship for an hour every five days? It’s not too troublesome, but unfortunately, I’m a fraud," Xiao Qingpei mused inwardly.

The treatment for instructors at the cultivation institute was naturally quite generous. Six sessions a month would earn him three thousand Taiyi Jade Hooks and a bottle of Runyu Elixir. The former needed no further explanation; the latter was even more precious—sometimes, it couldn’t be bought even with Jade Hooks, and its market price reached four thousand! After consuming the Runyu Elixir, one’s cultivation efficiency would soar for a short period. Used when breaking through a minor realm, it was a formidable weapon.

Sighing inwardly, Xiao Qingpei began plotting how he might quickly rid himself of this swordsmanship instructor position.

He understood swordsmanship only superficially; if he were to actually teach, the more he said, the more mistakes he’d make. Earlier, his offhand remark, “Aren’t all sword cultivators supposed to have clarity of sword-heart?” nearly exposed him. Luckily, by some twist of fate, no one suspected a thing.

Though nothing untoward had occurred, Xiao Qingpei dared not let such incidents happen again.

“Three more days to figure something out…”

As he pondered, he sensed someone approaching and looked over. It was a beautiful young woman, her bearing elegant as an orchid.

Her brows and eyes were like a painting, her figure tall and graceful—a perfect depiction of poised beauty.

“Uncle Xiao, may I ask when your lesson today will begin? The senior brothers and sisters have been looking forward to it!” she asked in a calm, unhurried manner.

“My lesson is today?” Xiao Qingpei was somewhat stunned. He’d thought today was merely for reporting in, with classes starting three days later. But it turned out he was to teach immediately?

The young woman smiled gently, saying neither yes nor no.

At that moment, a familiar sound chimed in his ear: “Ding-dong~”

“Your reputation has spread throughout Cloud Palace. Mission accomplished. Reward: one False Golden Core, already delivered.” The groggy synthetic voice of the system echoed.

Feeling something new in his hand, Xiao Qingpei had no interest in examining it, for he already knew the effect of the “False Golden Core.” He said to the young woman, “Half an hour from now. I’ve just arrived, and some disciples may not yet be at the institute.”

“Yes, Uncle Xiao. I’ll spread the word right away.”

With that, she departed.

“Mm.” Xiao Qingpei acknowledged her and returned to his cave dwelling by riding the clouds.

He’d deliberately chosen half an hour—time he needed for himself.

“You call this a Golden Core?” Ensuring no one was around, he finally couldn’t help but complain aloud. As for why the system counted his mission as accomplished, he had no time to ponder it.

The “False Golden Core” was simply too extraordinary.

False Golden Core: Grants the user a false identity, making the false real. The more deceitful the user, the more genuine the identity becomes!

It wasn’t something to be consumed; despite the name, it was actually a magical artifact.

“Still, this thing came just in time…”

With that thought, Xiao Qingpei left a strand of his spiritual imprint on the artifact. As it was granted by the system, he could use it without refining.

Once the imprint sank in, his Lunar Immortal Power instantly condensed into Lunar Sword Qi—a key trait of sword cultivators.

“I wonder how strong the sword qi of a true sword cultivator is? This Lunar Sword Qi, transformed by the artifact, probably only has ten or twenty percent authenticity…” Xiao Qingpei sighed, regretful.

But there was nothing to be done. Xiao Qingpei was always honest and upright, never deceiving others. The word “falsehood” had nothing to do with him.

Thus, the artifact’s minimum effect was only a tenth or so.

Feeling regretful, but somewhat reassured, Xiao Qingpei then rushed to the cultivation institute. With this Lunar Sword Qi and a handful of empty platitudes prepared, he felt confident he could muddle through this swordsmanship lecture.

…

Upon arriving at the institute, Xiao Qingpei discovered not only a sizable audience, but several Foundation Establishment cultivators as well.

As those Foundation Establishment disciples were seated far away, and smiled and nodded cordially when he glanced their way, Xiao Qingpei returned the gesture and thought nothing of it.

After all, it would be rude to rebuff a friendly face.

Moreover, Senior Brother Shan had mentioned that although the institute’s disciples were all at the Qi Refining stage, any Foundation Establishment alumni were permitted to return for lessons.

So, Xiao Qingpei simply assumed these Foundation Establishment disciples were there to listen.

“Everyone, my name is Xiao Qingpei. Not long ago, I was at the Qi Refining stage just like you. If you have anything to say, please feel free to speak openly.” Xiao Qingpei tried to tempt them into sending him away.

Unfortunately, all the Qi Refining disciples gazed at him earnestly, listening to his nonsense.

Thus, Xiao Qingpei pressed on. “This lesson is a bit rushed; I only just learned I was to teach here, so I’m unprepared. Let’s talk about some things sword cultivators should be mindful of. Sword cultivation is renowned for its offensive power, but for those newly initiated, while their combat prowess is high, it can also be their greatest vulnerability.”

He rambled on, delivering nothing of substance, merely translating and embellishing the contents of the Sword Cultivator Handbook.

Yet some disciples, unaware of these basics, listened with rapt attention. However, the Foundation Establishment disciples farthest from Xiao Qingpei grew impatient.

They had come at the behest of Xu Jian Sheng.

Knowing that sword-heart clarity could discern motives, they deliberately kept their distance, lest Xiao Qingpei notice anything amiss.

“This Xiao fellow isn’t wrong, but what’s the point of these basics?” one Foundation Establishment disciple grumbled.

“Seems the first lesson is just as Xiao said—he wasn’t prepared,” another mused.

“So what do we do? There’s no grounds to cause trouble!” the first complained.

“Have you heard of the Mountain Shifting Method?” the second asked, smiling mysteriously.

“What Mountain Shifting Method? Cloud Palace has this secret art?” The first was bewildered.

“If the mountain won’t come to me, I’ll go to it!” With those words, the second conjured a swirling aura of spiritual light, drawing everyone’s attention. He spoke: “Junior Brother Xiao, most of what you’ve said is familiar to us. As this is your first lesson and you weren’t prepared, it’s understandable. But it might make the lesson dull for our juniors. How about this: shall we have a practical sparring match?”