On the way, Chen Yi chatted with the young man and learned that his name was actually Li Chengqian.

"What's your name?"

"Li Chengqian. My father is the Prince of Qian Province, and in the imperial clan, his generation uses the character 'Ji'. My generation uses the character 'Cheng'.

When I was born, my martial arts master discovered I had Heaven-Grade bone structure. My father was overjoyed and directly enfeoffed me as the heir apparent.

Naming me Li Chengqian meant I would inherit his princely throne in the future."

"Oh... that 'Qian'... I thought... indeed, that's impossible."

The name of the Great Qian dynasty, even for members of the imperial family, could not be used in personal names. It had to be avoided.

"Young man, then I must criticize you a bit. You are the heir apparent and have such excellent bone structure, why aren't you diligently cultivating? Instead, you sneak out to play?

At your age, it's the crucial time for cultivation. Cultivation is like sailing a boat against the current..."

Chen Yi stopped halfway, realizing something was off, and quickly shut his mouth.

Damn that Ten Thousand Souls Banner!

Li Chengqian gave a bitter smile.

"I stopped being the heir apparent when I was twelve. The current heir apparent of the princely mansion is my eldest brother."

"So you're a deposed heir apparent."

Chen Yi wanted to say, it's also because the homophone of your name is unlucky.

Li Chengqian being deposed wasn't surprising. He had been playful since childhood.

He muddled through his literary studies, slacked off daily in his martial studies, and even drove away several masters in anger.

The Prince of Qian Province was utterly disappointed in him, which is why he was deposed.

"Brother, judging by how you interact with people, you don't seem like a spoiled noble brat, nor someone who doesn't understand reason. Why did you slack off and play around?"

A hint of maturity not belonging to his age inadvertently surfaced in Li Chengqian's gaze.

"If I hadn't wasted myself, I probably wouldn't have lived to see today."

Chen Yi understood instantly.

The struggle for the heir apparent position had always been like this!

"I see."

After entering the city, Li Chengqian was quite generous with his spending.

Mainly by using his face.

He first took Chen Yi to the dock outside the city and bought him a new boat for his return journey.

Then, he went to a money house and withdrew a large stack of silver notes, gifting them all to Chen Yi.

The first bucket of gold obtained from the Black Stone Gang was ultimately limited.

With this gift from Li Chengqian, Chen Yi essentially achieved financial freedom in terms of money.

Finally, Li Chengqian took Chen Yi to the martial artists' trading market in White Horse City.

Spirit Artifacts, elixirs, formations, cultivation techniques—all kinds of resources. Whatever they saw, they got one set of each.

The market settled transactions using spirit crystals.

Li Chengqian didn't have many spirit crystals in his storage ring.

So, when settling the bill, he would flash the princely mansion's waist token, indicating the account should be charged to the Prince of Qian Province's mansion.

The various cultivation resources Li Chengqian gifted had already turned into heavy bundles hanging all over Black Wind's horse back.

Even Chen Yi's hands were full of large and small packages. There was simply no more room to carry anything else.

Seeing this, Li Chengqian directly took off the storage ring from his own hand.

"Benefactor, take this."

Storage Spirit Artifacts in this world, even the lowest-grade storage pouch, were very precious. Ordinary martial artists rarely had them.

For rogue cultivator martial artists, owning a Storage Spirit Artifact would make them superior among their peers.

Storage rings were even more advanced.

"Lord Li, how can I accept your storage ring?"

"Benefactor, you must take it. The debt of a life-saving grace should be repaid a hundredfold. What are these worldly possessions worth?"

"No, no, it's too valuable, too valuable."

Chen Yi stretched out his hand while waving it repeatedly.

Li Chengqian smoothly slipped the ring onto his finger.

Chen Yi looked at it and said, "The size fits quite well?"

Li Chengqian smiled. "It's self-adjusting."

"High-end!

But, Lord Li, actually, these resources aren't that important to me.

What I want most right now is a forging master, preferably one capable of forging Earth-Grade Spirit Artifacts."

Chen Yi wanted to get the Ten Thousand Souls Banner a new, better body.

Heaven-Grade would be even better.

But such forgers were surely in the Divine Arms County area.

That place was quite far from Qingzhou. Presumably, even the Prince of Qian Province's influence couldn't stretch that far.

"That can be arranged. The Hundred Refinements Sect in White Horse City is a forging sect. All the equipment and Spirit Artifacts for our princely mansion's garrison troops are forged by the Hundred Refinements Sect.

Their Sect Master is an Earth-Grade forger who can forge Earth-Grade Spirit Artifacts!"

Li Chengqian didn't ask unnecessary questions. Chen Yi just stated his request, and Li Chengqian, relying on his face that was eighty percent similar to the Prince of Qian Province's and that jade waist token, went to help Chen Yi arrange it.

Soon, Chen Yi met the Sect Master of the Hundred Refinements Sect in White Horse City, Zhou Wuliang.

He was a middle-aged man with a head as smooth as a mirror, a burly build, large bone structure, but not very tall.

"Young Master Chengqian has come! A rare guest, a rare guest!"

The story of Li Chengqian, the deposed heir apparent, was not exactly household knowledge in the Qian Province area, but it was widely known.

Especially for organizations like the Hundred Refinements Sect that deeply cooperated with the princely mansion.

Others might mock Li Chengqian a bit for not being favored and not cherishing his position as heir apparent.

Zhou Wuliang couldn't do that.

He had to receive Li Chengqian like he would a client.

Hearing that Li Chengqian brought a friend to request the forging of an Earth-Grade Spirit Artifact, Zhou Wuliang immediately thumped his chest.

"No problem! Any specific requirements?"

"Sect Master Zhou, please add the forging fee to the princely mansion's bill next month. When you go to settle accounts at the mansion, just include it together."

"What are you saying, Young Master Chengqian! You're helping a friend. How could I charge for that? Young Master Chengqian's friend is my friend. It's just one Spirit Artifact!"

As he spoke, Zhou Wuliang leaned closer to Li Chengqian and whispered.

"Young Master Chengqian, I'm still on your side. Don't give up..."

This guy didn't even bother hiding such partisan talk. Chen Yi knew there was probably more performance than sincerity in his words.

Probably if Li Chengqian's eldest brother came, Zhou Wuliang would say the same thing.

Betting on both sides, he wouldn't lose no matter who won.

A shrewd old fox!

Chen Yi handed over the blueprint.

Reality was different from simulations, so Chen Yi was more cautious.

He had the Ten Thousand Souls Banner provide a blueprint where the appearance wasn't that of a soul-summoning banner, but rather a large military standard banner.

This type of Spirit Artifact was common in military formations, used to boost morale, coordinate charges, and the like.

A banner and a soul-summoning banner were relatively similar. Although slightly inferior to a soul-summoning banner, it was the optimal solution for the moment.

Zhou Wuliang glanced at it, simply assuming Chen Yi was the leader of some small force needing a military banner Spirit Artifact for group buffs.

"Simple. Give me one month, and I'll definitely forge it. The raw materials will also be provided by my Hundred Refinements Sect. Young Master Chengqian can return and wait for my good news."

Chen Yi left White Horse City with his arms full of gains.

Li Chengqian escorted him all the way to the dock over ten miles outside the city.

"Lord Li, there's no need to see me off further. I'm about to board the boat."

"Benefactor, take care! I sincerely hope you can visit the Prince of Qian Province's mansion more often in the future. I still owe you a banquet to fulfill the proper etiquette!"

"Lord Li, you are too polite. Saving you was just a trivial effort on my part. You have already fully expressed your gratitude with your sincerity. How dare I disturb you again."

"In that case, I shall bid farewell to my benefactor here... By the way, benefactor, after the Spirit Artifact is forged, how should I deliver it to you?"

"I will come to collect it myself. No need to trouble you."

Chen Yi led Black Wind onto the boat.

On the shore, Li Chengqian, who knows where from, pulled out a pipa, sat on the ground, and began to play and sing.

He sang a slightly melancholic farewell song.

Chen Yi boards the boat, about to depart, when suddenly he hears singing and playing from the shore. The Qing River flows for three thousand miles, yet it cannot match Chengqian's feelings seeing me off.