"We congratulate Chief Chu on brewing the holy wine."
Outside the winery, a dozen elders called out in unison to offer their congratulations.
Chu Feng glanced at the two women beside him, smiled, and walked out of the winery with his wine gourd.
As soon as he stepped outside, he looked at the crowd standing at the door and joked with a bright grin, "You all really do have sharp noses."
The elders each showed an embarrassed but polite smile, replying in unison, "We were only drawn by the signs of the holy wine, Chief Chu. Would you allow us the honor of a taste?"
Chu Feng's smile remained radiant. "Next time, for sure."
The elders: "…"
Seeing all the elders fall silent as if struck by Garen's Q, Chu Feng nearly burst out laughing on the spot.
"I'm just teasing you all. Qiner, bring out a dozen cups."
"Yes."
Qin Qin, inside the winery, responded and soon brought out a dozen small wine cups.
Chu Feng took out his wine gourd artifact and filled each cup to the brim.
"My friends, there isn't much of this Comprehension Wine, so I won't be hosting a full banquet. Please take your cups and enjoy it slowly back at your places."
The elders' eyes lit up at the words "Comprehension Wine," and they all cupped their hands toward Chu Feng in thanks. "Thank you for your generosity, Chief Chu."
Each took a floating cup from the air, and carefully poured the wine into their own containers.
"We'll take our leave now."
"Alright."
Chu Feng nodded and waved his hand.
Satisfied, the elders left the Miscellaneous Dao Institute. After flying out of Miaomiao Mountain, they couldn't help but sigh.
"Chief Chu really is a good man!"
"Old guy, how could you say something like that? I wonder if Chief Chu is accepting any new elders?"
"Haha, you just want to join the Miscellaneous Dao Institute for the wine."
"…"
After sending off the elders, Chu Feng turned to Qin Qin and the others. "Tonight, let's have a tasting party."
Elder Bing and the others responded respectfully, "Thank you, Master/Sir."
Night fell.
Everyone gathered in the main residence. The table was filled with delicious dishes, but no one had much of an appetite—their eyes were all fixed on the wine gourd beside Chu Feng.
Chu Feng didn't speak. He simply pointed at the gourd, and the lid opened instantly.
"Gourd, serve the wine."
At his words, the gourd flew into the air and poured a cup for each person present, starting with Chu Feng.
The aroma of the wine was so enticing that everyone could hardly resist taking a sip.
Chu Feng raised his cup first. "Let's have a drink. This Comprehension Wine is wonderful, but it's strong—don't try to finish it all at once. If anyone gets drunk, I'll make them fly home by themselves."
Nie Xiuyuan and Xu Caichen both blushed at these words—the master had practically called them out by name.
With Chu Feng's warning, no one drank recklessly. After just one cup, everyone staggered back to their own quarters.
In the main residence, Elder Bing's face was slightly red, her large, clear eyes looking at Chu Feng. "Sir, I'm a little sleepy, so I won't be able to bring you your foot bath tonight."
Chu Feng smiled and said, "Then get some rest early."
He watched Elder Bing return to her room before going back to his own to meditate.
Xu Caichen, drunk, returned to his residence. As soon as he walked in, he saw three identical Xiao Zhuos standing in the courtyard, all looking anxiously at him.
He grinned. "Xiao Zhuo, how come there are three of you? Is this a new spell to bring me triple the happiness?"
Xiao Zhuo rubbed her temples and went to support Xu Caichen. "Langjun, you're drunk. Let me help you to bed."
"No, I'm not drunk. I want to be like Master and gain enlightenment through wine."
He said this as he headed for the study.
Xiao Zhuo stopped at the study door, unable to enter because of the image of the Confucian Sage hanging inside—she was still a ghost and couldn't enter the study.
Sigh…
She let out a long sigh and could only wait outside the study.
Xu Caichen walked into the study. For some reason, the moment he saw the portrait of the Sage Confucius, all his drunkenness vanished, and lines from the Analects surfaced in his mind.
Not long ago, the Analects had left him feeling bewildered, but now he suddenly gained a special insight.
"Confucius advocated for ritual propriety, yet why can't I see any trace of ritual in this portrait?"
As Xu Caichen murmured to himself, the Confucius in the painting seemed to come alive, shouting at him.
"Ritual is a skill—like hiding a sickle or other sharp implement within your sleeve or clothing."
As the words fell, the Confucius in the painting suddenly flicked his sleeve, and a short sword flew out from within.
With a flash of sword light filled with supreme righteousness, that sword flew straight into Xu Caichen's mind.
The character for "ritual" was imprinted onto Xu Caichen's soul.
At the same time, Nie Xiuyuan was reading the Nanhua Classic, swaying his head as he read, half-awake and half-asleep.
The only sound in the whole room was the chanting of scripture.
Nie Xiuyuan's heart found a long-lost peace. He felt he was in his ideal state, with all distractions gone—focused solely on reading Daoist scripture.
————
[Ding! Disciple Xu Caichen has comprehended Confucian ritual. Literary intent entry achieved. Reward: +1 Great Dao True Meaning.]
[Ding! Disciple Nie Xiuyuan has achieved entry in the Nanhua Classic. Reward: +1 Great Dao True Meaning.]
Seated in meditation, Chu Feng heard two familiar notifications in succession. The corners of his mouth lifted, and he muttered to himself:
"This Comprehension Wine really is good stuff. When Chen'er and the others return, I must let them have a taste."
As he mentioned Xiao Chen and the rest, the face that popped up in his mind was Ye Beixuan, who caused him the least worry. He wondered how that kid was doing.
It had been a year and a half since he'd gone down the mountain, and still no news of him. If the system didn't occasionally notify him that the boy had broken through a minor realm, Chu Feng might have forgotten he even had such a disciple.
Calculating it, since Ye Beixuan started cultivating the Hongmeng Creation Art, he had broken through three minor realms in total. He should be at the fourth stage of Dao Foundation now, and with the sword jade Chu Feng had given him, he shouldn't encounter any real danger.
Thinking this, Chu Feng lay down and drifted into a sweet dream.
Meanwhile, Ye Beixuan was on a mountain tens of thousands of miles south of the Wendao Academy.
Night was deep as Ye Beixuan silently flew along the cliff edge.
He closely observed a cave on the cliff, murmuring in his heart: My memory shouldn't be wrong—there should be a Xuánhuáng Fruit growing in a stone crevice of an unnamed cliff cave, about two hundred li northwest of Yunlan Sect.
According to his past life's memory, this Xuánhuáng Fruit wouldn't be discovered for another sixty years. When it was, it drew many prodigies to compete over it, and even disciples of Wendao Academy lost their lives here. That's why the academy's disciples always spoke of this unremarkable mountain with extra caution.
That was how Ye Beixuan managed to find this place so smoothly. The Xuánhuáng Fruit shouldn't be fully ripe yet, so there would be no strange phenomena—it was the best time to pick it.
Xuánhuáng Fruit blooms once every hundred years and bears fruit every hundred years, and only every hundred years will it produce a single strand of xuánhuáng qi. When there are nine strands of xuánhuáng qi inside, the fruit is fully mature.
By his calculations, there should be eight strands of xuánhuáng qi inside the fruit right now, which was already enough for him.
Looking at the vines along the cliff, Ye Beixuan gave a light slap and they were instantly blown aside by a gust of palm wind.
A cave just big enough for a child to crawl through appeared before Ye Beixuan's eyes.
He looked at the cave, his face brightening, and used his spiritual sense to probe inside. Before long, he saw a pale golden Xuánhuáng Fruit growing in a crack in the rock.
A smile appeared at the corners of his mouth, his face full of excitement. "I really didn't come to the wrong place!"
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