Ch. 80 – Sneaking In

At a villa atop the mountain of Lingxiao Sword Sect.

There was an open space in the courtyard, where a young man was currently dancing with a sword. Metal reflected in the sunlight, emitting a dazzling silver gleam.

The sword danced, swift and graceful like a silver snake, soft and undulating, yet containing an explosive inner strength.

“Good!” Ji Chengyue couldn’t help but shout, having arrived at the villa at some point.

Only then did Cao Zirui notice his master’s arrival, and sheathed his sword after finishing his current move. Ignoring the sweat dripping from his forehead, he walked to Ji Chengyue with his sword in his hands and saluted.

His cultivation was still at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and he had never forgotten Ji Chengyue’s warning not to use his spiritual power recklessly. But after playing in North Sea City for a few days, Cao Zirui had felt a little guilty.

He was different from Feng Ye, who could feel at ease not cultivating or practicing his swordplay, and didn’t want to get out of bed. Cao Zirui felt uncomfortable all over after not training for three days. 

So today, he took advantage of the pleasant sunshine to practice his swordplay, not expecting his master to catch him practicing.

Even though Ji Chengyue was pleased with his diligence, he still rebuked him with some disapproval: “Your internal injuries haven’t healed yet. It is more important for you to recuperate.”

“I understand, Shifu.” Cao Zirui bowed his head and admitted his mistake.

“Your Lingxiao Swordsmanship has improved a bit since your journey to the Floating Island Secret Realm. It seems that adventure wasn’t entirely a disaster,” Ji Chengyue commented, recalling the sword techniques he had just witnessed.

Cao Zirui’s swordsmanship was different from that of everyone else in Lingxiao Sword Sect. He was learning Ling Yun’s original sword style, which Ling Yun had once used to reach Hedao stage and become number one in the cultivation world. 

The power of Lingxiao Swordsmanship had also become famous throughout the land along with Ling Yun’s name, and was unparalleled. However, not long after Ling Yun’s death, this unparalleled sword technique had vanished.

In the eyes of outsiders, Ling Yun had kept this sword technique tightly hidden. No one had ever learned it apart from Ling Yun, not even his fellow Lingxiao Sword Sect disciples.

Neither did Ji Chengyue.

But it was not Ling Yun’s secrecy that had kept him from learning it.

In fact, judging by the Jianmu incident, it could be seen that Ling Yun was not a narrow-minded person. After planting it, rather than keeping it to himself, he had invited cultivators from all over the world to ascend to the heavens together.

He had acted in such a way regarding the sacred Jianmu that reached the sky. So although he was the one to create Lingxiao Swordsmanship, he would not treat it as a secret, hiding it and refusing to pass it on.

On the contrary, he was actually very happy to teach it to his fellow disciples.

One hundred years ago, before Ling Yun became the sect leader, his swordsmanship had already developed into a very unique style as his Lingxiao Swordsmanship began to take shape.

But Ji Chengyue, who cultivated alongside him, was still practicing the sword techniques taught to them by their master in a very rigid manner. Ling Yun couldn’t help but want to teach him how to use his own sword techniques. 

It wasn’t that Xuanxu-zhenren’s techniques were bad – it was just that Ling Yun was such a talented swordsman, and that the swordsmanship he had honed was more powerful than the techniques Xuanxu-zhenren had taught them.

But swordsmanship was not just about power. It also depended on the qualifications of the person learning it. For example, if a woman was not naturally strong, she could not be forced to learn vigorous and aggressive sword techniques, as she simply would not have the strength to keep up. 

Ji Chengyue’s aptitude was suboptimal. He had dual spiritual roots, which was second only to a single spiritual root. But even so, he was unable to learn Lingxiao Swordsmanship from Ling Yun.

Because Lingxiao Swordsmanship was created entirely by Ling Yun based on his own comprehension of swordsmanship. He had a one-in-a-million top-grade single spiritual root, and his spiritual power was simply incomparable to that of cultivators on the same level.

And he had always been a proud person who pursued excellence. With every move he made with a sword, he took himself to the limit of both his body and his spiritual power. 

This resulted in the fact that, other than those with the same level of talent as him, others could only learn the basics of his swordsmanship and were completely unable to grasp the essence of it.

So after realizing this, Ling Yun did not promote his swordsmanship within the sect, because teaching it would be useless.

Ji Chengyue knew this very well. He had also never considered teaching this sword technique to Xue Ren, because like him, Xue Ren had dual spiritual roots, and neither of them were capable of it due to their limited talent.

Only Cao Zirui, who had a single spiritual root like Ling Yun, was able to learn it. Cao Zirui’s figure as he danced with a sword just now had vaguely resembled Ji Chengyue’s deceased shixiong.

Ji Chengyue was distracted for a moment and failed to hear Cao Zirui’s reply, coming back to his senses when Cao Zirui called out with some confusion: “Shifu?”

He didn’t explain what was on his mind just now, simply saying to Cao Zirui: “Oh, right, I had someone refine the Ice Grass. It was made into two pills, one for you and one for him.”

Hearing this, there was some unconcealable joy in Cao Zirui’s eyes despite his persistent icy face. He had fallen back to Qi Refining from Foundation Establishment, and although he had never said anything, he was still somewhat upset about it.

Now that he could finally recover his cultivation, he was naturally very happy.

Cao Zirui accepted the porcelain bottle containing the elixirs and said: “Thanking Shifu.”

Ji Chengyue patted Cao Zirui on the shoulder with a smile: “After taking the pill, find a safe place to retreat and digest it. And if you need help refining the spiritual energy in the elixir during your retreat, go to Elder Zhou. You can bring your little friend with you and ask Elder Zhou to stand watch over you.”

Cao Zirui was a little puzzled: “Is Shifu leaving?”

Ji Chengyue would normally take care of this sort of thing himself, and it was abnormal for him to instruct Cao Zirui to seek out Elder Zhou. This could only mean that Ji Chengyue had matters to attend to that would take him outside the sect.

Ji Chengyue nodded.

Cao Zirui asked again: “Is Shifu very busy?”

He and Fang Yang had played around in North Sea City for three days, during which time his master had been absent. He only appeared now and then, and nobody knew what he had been doing. He had only just returned to the sect, and now he was leaving again.

Ji Chengyue was silent for a moment before replying: “I am almost finished. The results will be out soon.”

Cao Zirui didn’t question him further. He watched his master leave, then took the porcelain bottle and set off down the mountain to find Fang Yang.

But before departing, he realized that the accumulated sweat from sword practice was a bit unsightly, so he retraced his steps to wash up and change into clean clothes before going down the mountain.

When he actually descended and located Fang Yang, he realized that he had worried entirely too much.

Sweat was not so unsightly at all. Fang Yang was holding a broom, his face and hands coated in filth.

Ignorant of his state, Fang Yang threw down the broom when he spotted Cao Zirui and ran over, patting Cao Zirui’s clean clothes with his dirty hands as he said in greeting: “Why did you come down?”

Cao Zirui glanced at the dirt stains on his shoulder and remained silent: “……”

What a waste.

Fang Yang then realized what he had done. He smiled apologetically and reached out to help Cao Zirui wipe it off. Of course, the more he wiped, the dirtier it became.

Before Fang Yang could turn him into a clay figurine, Cao Zirui quickly stopped him and explained: “I came to deliver something to you.”

As he spoke, he pulled out the porcelain bottle his master had given him.

Fang Yang examined it carefully and asked: “What is this?”

Cao Zirui said succinctly: “The Ice Grass.”

“The pills are ready?” Fang Yang’s eyes lit up when he heard this. He immediately turned and reported the good news to Feng Ye, who was still cleaning nearby: “Shixiong, the Ice Grass is finally ready!”

Feng Ye and Hao Chen, whose own bodies were not very clean, temporarily put down their work and approached Fang Yang.

In fact, simply sweeping up fallen leaves wouldn’t have created such a mess.

But these two would likely never be willing to honestly sweep the floor. They would always resort to some overt or underhanded tricks, which had led to this miserable situation.

Administrator Zhang was wrong. Working as a couple did not make the work less tiring. Instead, it became more tiring the longer they worked.

When Fang Yang finished cleaning the meditation hall he was responsible for, these two had not yet finished half the area they had been tasked with. The enthusiastic Fang Yang had joined the cleaning team with a broom in hand, so the three of them were close by in the same square.

Feng Ye and Hao Chen came over quickly. Upon hearing Fang Yang’s good news, Feng Ye nodded and congratulated him: “Then you’ll be able to recover your cultivation.”

“Hehe.” Fang Yang smiled happily as he held the porcelain bottle.

“Oh, right, before Shifu leaves, he wants us to go find Elder Zhou to protect us while we refine the elixir.” Cao Zirui repeated his master’s instructions.

Fang Yang nodded in understanding: “When should we go?”

“Let’s go tonight,” Cao Zirui suggested. The sooner they recovered their cultivation, the better.

Fang Yang was of the same opinion, to recover early in order to train early.

Although the two teenagers weren’t as tall as the two adults next to them, they crushed Feng Ye and Hao Chen in terms of diligence.

And when these two men saw how eager they were to recover their cultivation, they showed no signs of being ashamed.

Hao Chen was brazen due to his thick skin, and Feng Ye had other things on his mind.

The key point Fang Yang took from Cao Zirui’s words was that they would take the elixir and go to Elder Zhou for protection, but Feng Ye only heard the words, “Before Shifu leaves.”

Cao Zirui’s shifu was, of course, Sect Leader Ji. And now that he was gone, there would be nobody in the sect leader’s rooms tonight.

Feng Ye’s mind suddenly sprung into action. The trip to the Floating Island Secret Realm had fully cut off the possibility of there being a second Jianmu seed, so the only remaining clues lay with Ji Chengyue.

Although he had sneaked into Ji Chengyue’s rooms before, he now thought that he might have missed something, and wanted to go check again.

Ji Chengyue rarely went out, so tonight was the perfect opportunity.

Therefore, although Feng Ye was listening to the conversation between Fang Yang and Cao Zirui with a smile on his face, his thoughts had already flown toward tonight’s infiltration plan.

Hao Chen secretly observed Feng Ye’s thoughtful expression.

The day ended quickly, and once the sun set, Fang Yang went up the mountain with Cao Zirui to seek Elder Zhou’s support.

And Feng Ye returned to his room, preparing to shut the door and pretend to sleep.

But as expected, before he could close it, Hao Chen obstructed him once again. This fish just couldn’t leave his bed. He was clearly restless the last time he slept with him, and there was no telling what was going on in his brain now.

Feng Ye really didn’t understand, and wasn’t going to let Hao Chen climb into his bed a second time. Just like the day before, he slammed the door shut and unconditionally refused to let a certain fish inside.

Having been turned away again, Hao Chen touched his nose awkwardly outside the door. He didn’t leave immediately, but instead lingered by the door and listened to the movement inside.

Feng Ye naturally knew that the unwilling fish hadn’t left. So he went to the bed, kicked off his shoes, and fell onto it, closing his eyes and pretending to be asleep.

If he wanted to perform a play, he had to go all-in.

After a while, the sound of receding footsteps could be heard outside the door. Feng Ye opened one eye and glanced at the wall in the direction Hao Chen had left.

He didn’t act immediately. It was only just getting dark, and most people weren’t asleep yet, so it wasn’t the best time for him to act.

Feng Ye lay in bed with his eyes closed and rested until midnight. When it was late enough that everyone was asleep, with only the chirping of insects outside the room, Feng Ye furtively slipped out the door.

Before going up the mountain, he glanced at the nearby room where Hao Chen resided. It was silent. The person inside seemed to be soundly asleep.

But Feng Ye still refused to let down his guard. He made his way carefully through the dormitory area, even more carefully than when he later entered the heavily-guarded mountaintop.

There were nine defensive arrays inside and outside the peak, plus patrolling disciple guards – but in Feng Ye’s opinion, this watertight defense was far less difficult than bypassing one Hao Chen.

Although this fish was extremely unreliable, he was, after all, the Lord of the North Sea, and his perception should not be underestimated.

But this time, Hao Chen didn’t seem to notice.

Feng Ye easily climbed through the window into Ji Chengyue’s room without being spotted.

The room was dark.

The owner of the room was out, so the oil lamps were naturally unlit. Although there were no disciples patrolling nearby at the moment, Feng Ye cautiously forwent lighting candles.

The moon was bright enough to allow for a rough overview of the interior.

Thus, Feng Ye began his search in the dark.

Ji Chengyue’s quarters were divided into an inner room and an outer room. The inner room was furnished with a wardrobe and a bed, while the outer room held an incense table and several cushions.

The rooms couldn’t be said to be small or large, and the area was only so big. Feng Ye thoroughly examined places like the corners and under the bed, where there might be hidden mechanisms, but his search turned up nothing.

This result was identical to that of his last search.

But this shouldn’t be the case. Feng Ye stood in the middle of the outer room, stroking his chin as he was lost in thought.

Apart from Ji Chengyue, who could have hidden a part of Jianmu without anyone noticing?

Plus, according to his inquiries from various sources, Ji Chengyue had nowhere to hide Jianmu other than in his rooms.

Putting himself in the sect leader’s shoes, something like Jianmu, which was inconvenient to show others but held great importance, must be constantly monitored in order to ensure that it wasn’t discovered or stolen away. Only then could he feel at ease.

So the possibility of a hiding hole dug in the wilderness was ruled out, the only possibility left being somewhere Ji Chengyue often went to.

But as sect leader, Ji Chengyue was responsible for all kinds of matters and it was impossible for him to leave the sect often. If he really was in possession of Jianmu, he had most likely hidden it within the sect.

Among all of the buildings and pavilions in the sect, his bedroom was by far the best hiding place.

But although Feng Ye searched the place twice over without leaving a single inch untouched, he found nothing.

He had left Ji Chengyue’s rooms after not finding anything the first time, but he didn’t rush out at present. Instead, he sat down on a cushion in front of the incense table.

He hadn’t been sure that Ji Chengyue had Jianmu the first time, but now he had no other leads apart from the sect leader, so he must discover a clue here.

Feng Ye crossed his legs and rested his elbows on his thighs, supporting his chin as he wracked his brains.

The cushion beneath him was sagging in places due to frequent use. After sitting for a while, his butt began to slide down and he adjusted his position.

Feng Ye couldn’t help but think about this frequently-used cushion.

Why would Ji Chengyue sit here so often?

Feng Ye craned his neck to look around, before ultimately focusing on the incense table before him. This was the only thing that would draw anyone to sit here.

The decorations on the incense table were very simple, just an incense burner and…..a spirit tablet.

Spirit tablets were for the dead, and it was not unusual to place them in the bedroom.

Many people had taboos when it came to death, but when it came to deceased relatives, they would inevitably want to pay tribute to them. Thus, they would set up a spirit tablet where they could see it every day and burn incense to commemorate the deceased.

The name written on this tablet was naturally not Ling Yun’s, but Ji Chengyue’s master, Xuanxu-zhenren.

Ji Chengyue never spoke his shixiong’s name, so how could he set up a tablet for him in his rooms?

There were mixed opinions about Ling Yun even within Lingxiao Sword Sect. Administrator Zhang, for example, was extremely disdainful of the deceased sect leader.

If Ji Chengyue set up a tablet for Ling Yun in his rooms, he would inevitably be criticized.

So no matter what Ji Chengyue’s true feelings were, he could only allow his shixiong to turn to dust and sink into obscurity, without even a spirit tablet bearing his name.

But Ji Chengyue’s attitude toward Ling Yun had always been confusing. In fact, according to Administrator Zhang, Ji Chengyue may not hate his shixiong very much. Hatred could not be concealed. If Ji Chengyue really hated Ling Yun, how could he never speak a word against him in front of others?

Even though the dead should be respected, a few complaints wouldn’t be excessive. 

But Ji Chengyue had not done so. 

And he also showed no signs of commemorating Ling Yun, appearing to feel nothing for him.

These two completely opposing attitudes being present in one person meant that…..Ji Chengyue must be deliberately hiding something. One such attitude must be a facade to pull the wool over the eyes of others.

The question was…..which one was fake…..

Feng Ye stared absentmindedly at the spirit tablet in front of him. After some thought, he suddenly got off the cushion and approached the spirit tablet to inspect it.

Most spirit tablets were made of wood, and this one was no exception.

Feng Ye took in the words “Late Master Xuanxu-zhenren” carved on the tablet and reached out to touch them. It was very commonplace nanmu wood.

The tablet was also square, with the thickness of a thumb joint.

It looks a little too thick, Feng Ye thought as he measured its depth. But he didn’t know much about the dimensions of spirit tablets, and couldn’t tell if such thickness was normal.

The moonlight was a little dim, so Feng Ye went to light a candle in order to study the tablet more closely.

However, before he could light it, firelight suddenly appeared in the room.

It was coming from behind him. Feng Ye spun around the moment the fire flared and punched out, attempting to take the opponent down in one blow before they could make any noise.

The person who had snuck up behind him to light a candle was very agile, and raised an arm to block Feng Ye’s punch.

With his initial attack thwarted, Feng Ye exchanged several moves with his opponent in an instant. He spotted an opening and kicked the other’s right knee, causing him to briefly lose his balance.

Feng Ye seized the opportunity and grasped the other’s right hand, which was holding the candlestick. Raising his elbow forward, he pressed it against their neck and pushed them back.

Once he had the person pressed firmly against the wall with his elbow firmly lodged against their throat at an angle, Feng Ye finally had time to look at the person who had snuck up on him unnoticed. 

“Wu.” The person tried to speak, but Feng Ye’s elbow bore down heavily. A little more force would crush the other’s throat, and they were completely unable to say a word.

But even though they couldn’t speak, Feng Ye was still vaguely aware of something under the moonlight.

Holding the other’s wrist, he moved the candlestick upward.

Candlelight illuminated the other’s face – a very familiar face that seemed to be smiling at him despite being unable to get enough air.

Feng Ye: “……”

He’d thought he had successfully pretended to be asleep, but was unaware that the other party was also a character in his play, and that Hao Chen had also been pretending to sleep.

Not long after he ascended the mountain, Hao Chen had also slipped out of his room and followed Feng Ye all the way up.

Feng Ye slightly loosened his grip to allow the other to breathe freely, but didn’t let him go entirely. He continued to hold Hao Chen against the wall as he whispered: “What are you doing here?”

“Cough, cough.” Hao Chen took a deep breath, then replied unhurriedly: “I saw Fellow Daoist Feng Ye going out alone at night and worried that you would run into someone with ill intent, so I followed in order to protect you.”

Feng Ye: “…..” He had the nerve to talk about protecting him? Clearly, his stalker-like behavior made him look like a person with ill intent.

The expression on Feng Ye’s face was obvious, but Hao Chen still feigned unawareness, maintaining a look that said “I’m doing this for your own good.”

Feng Ye was speechless. He didn’t know what to do about this fish.

He was a little unwilling to just let him go. Hao Chen had abruptly appeared behind him and startled him, so he couldn’t just let him off. But there really wasn’t anything he could do to Hao Chen.

Caught in a dilemma, Feng Ye remained motionless for a stretch of time.

At this moment, Hao Chen was also a little distracted.

His thoughts were focused on where their skin touched.

In a sense, the intimacy of close combat could be compared to that of a romantic couple. It was still close contact, although one was for the purpose of love, and the other for violence.

At this moment, Feng Ye’s left hand held his right wrist with an inescapable force unique to men. And with Feng Ye’s forearm placed across his neck, tense muscles pressed against the jut of his throat.

Such a fragile, vital area.

Hao Chen’s throat rolled up and down, and he felt the other’s heat against his skin.

His attention was somewhat distracted. With Feng Ye pressing him against the wall, he could even hear the other’s breathing. The body was the best weapon to suppress his opponent, and Feng Ye had utilized this in order to render Hao Chen unable to resist in the shortest possible time.

But Hao Chen had no desire at all to resist, and rather enjoyed this sort of closeness.

After all, getting close enough to Feng Ye to take liberties with him was incredibly difficult.

It’s worth a beating! Hao Chen thought happily.

“You…..” Feng Ye finally came to a decision. He planned to tell Hao Chen to leave, while he himself remained behind to continue searching.

However, just as he spoke the first word, he and Hao Chen simultaneously turned their heads toward the corridor outside the room, where light footsteps could be heard.

Someone was coming.

They both realized this at the same time.

They glanced at each other subconsciously, and their eyes moved in tandem to look down at the very conspicuous flame.

Poof. Hao Chen blew out the candle in their hands.

When Ji Chengyue opened the door, the room was empty.

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Chapter 79 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 81