"This… is my place?"
Dare Drake Tran looked around the cramped attic, feeling as if Laozi himself had tossed him from the Celestial Palace into a chicken coop. The old wooden planks creaked underfoot, and a few cocky cockroaches scuttled across as if welcoming their new guest.
"Um…" Ani scratched his head, embarrassed. "If the Immortal finds it lacking…"
"No, no!" Dare quickly waved him off. "I've committed to living as a mortal, so I need to… experience the whole thing!"
[System: New residence unlocked!
Grade: F- (Worse than the Heavenly Stables)
Amenities: One tattered mat + A large army of cockroaches
Space: Just enough to lie down… curled up
Note: "From palace in the clouds to the chicken coop… Truly touching character development!"]
"Hey!" Dare glared at the screen. "Could you be a little… more discreet?"
[System: "Apologies, I only speak the truth!"]
"Immortal…" Ani looked at him with concern. "Who… who are you talking to?"
"Oh…" Dare coughed. "I'm… communicating with the Heavenly Court! Yes, just handling some, uh, official business!"
[TinyFairy2k: "Lying +1"]
[Guest1810: "Even Immortals can lie, LOL"]
[Viewers: 10,000+]
As he cleaned the attic—a completely new experience for a Celestial Master—Dare noticed something odd. One of the floorboards made a hollow sound when he stepped on it.
"Ani, this floorboard…"
"Yes!" The young man rushed over. "That's… that's where the old Daoist hid…"
"Old Daoist?" Dare raised an eyebrow. "You mean… the Great Heavenly Boar—no, the Daoist, right?"
"Yes! He was always drunk, shouting, 'Oh heavens, what delicious wine!' before vanishing down there…"
Dare carefully lifted the floorboard. A dark hole appeared beneath it, but what really drew his attention wasn't the darkness—it was the faint, familiar scent of wine wafting up.
"This smell…" He sniffed. "It's Heavenly Wine! Only Zhu Bajie could have access to something like this!"
[System: New location discovered!
Type: Cultivation Cave
Features: 40% Spiritual Qi + 60% aroma of wine
Quality: A- (Would be S-grade without the wine scent)
Note: "Seems the Marshal Zhu Bajie has turned this place into… a bar?"]
"Ani, have you ever been down there?"
"No…" Ani shook his head. "But at night, I hear laughter and songs like 'Vast heavens, boundless earth, I am king, drunk on my own wine…'"
"Zhu Bajie, without a doubt," Dare thought to himself. "Only he could come up with such… unique lyrics."
[TinyFairy2k: "Drunken Daoist poet?"]
[Guest1810: "Hidden room content is top-notch!"]
[CelestialPalace_001: "Zhu Bajie… what are you up to here…"]
Dare carefully descended the stone steps. By the dim torchlight, he noticed intricate carvings on the cave walls. These weren't the random scribbles of a drunk—they were complex diagrams detailing Qi circulation.
"This is…" He studied the carvings closely. "The cultivation technique of Zhu Bajie! But why are there traces of demonic energy here too?"
[System: Unique cultivation technique discovered!
Name: "Drunken Immortal Technique"
Author: Marshal Zhu Bajie (90% probability)
Features: Blends spiritual energy with… alcohol?
Note: "Only Zhu Bajie would think to cultivate while drunk!"]
"Of course it's you…" Dare chuckled, recalling the drinking sessions they'd had in the Celestial Palace. "Still can't break your old habits…"
"Immortal!" Ani suddenly called out. "Look at this!"
In a corner of the cave lay a neatly arranged collection of wine jars. Each jar had a label: "Drink for breakthrough," "Drink while training," "Drink if you forget which one you drank already."
[TinyFairy2k: "The Daoist's a pro!"]
[Guest1810: "Limited edition cultivation wine!"]
[Viewers: 50,000+]
Dare was about to study the carvings further when he remembered the note in his pocket. The meeting by the village well!
"Ani, you can go get some rest. I have… a matter to attend to."
"But… it's late…"
"No worries." He patted the young man on the shoulder. "Besides… I am an Immortal!"
[System: Boasting +1
Current Strength: Qi Refining, Stage 2 (As weak as… a chicken)
Note: "If an Immortal is afraid, it would be quite embarrassing!"]
"Quiet!" Dare glared at the screen. "I'm just going to meet someone, not start a fight!"