“How do you just stand there and let them pelt you with persimmons?” Situ Hong asked, shaking the perfectly ripe fruit in Wu Lingtian’s face. Situ Hong flicked the side of it. “Even when they’re soft, they’re still heavy! And the tomatoes. And the spoiled vegetables. I even saw an apple in the mix!”
Wu Lingtian pushed Situ Hong’s hand from his face. “Thank you for letting me borrow your room.”
“No problem,” Situ Hong tossed the persimmon over his shoulder to Situ Min. He took his leg from the stool and sat down, his arm resting against the table. “Are you hurt anywhere? Concussed?”
Wu Lingtian moved away from Situ Hong’s prying hands. “I am fine.”
“Are you sure?” Situ Hong shifted closer again. “Here, let me check your head.”
“Situ Hong,” Wu Lingtian stood. He moved awkwardly since he wasn’t used to the style of robes Situ Hong normally wore. He flipped the sleeves away from his body and looked at his childhood friend. “I am fine.”
Situ Hong clicked his tongue. “We’ve already seen each other naked. What do you have to be shy about?”
Wu Lingtian glanced at Su Han and Liang Jun eating snacks in the corner. He looked back at Situ Hong. “We were thirteen. And we were standing far away from each other.”
“Fine, fine, fine,” Situ Hong settled back down. He let out a sigh as his fan flapped open. “You’re always like this aren’t you. Whenever someone wants to beat you up, you just stand there and allow them to beat you up. Even if you just breathed you could have made those stupid people fly away.”
“They were regular human,” Wu Lingtian said.
“So what? Are you not a human? They weren’t just using their words to insult you—they were pelting rotten food at you,” Situ Hong held up the persimmon again. “Then what about that oily guy? He was a cultivator! Why didn’t you hit him earlier?”
“I thought he was upset because he thought I killed Shizun,” Wu Lingtian said.
Situ Hong scoffed. He pointed out the door. “Do you think half those people out there care about how Rong Meihua died? They care about you, Wu Lingtian. You sat at the pinnacle of the world. They saw your silence as arrogance—they envied your power. Now that you have no power, no status, and no backing they’re just going to step on you until you get buried.”
“I know.”
“You know but you still let them throw rotten food at you!?” Situ Hong placed the persimmon down.
“Ge, don’t yell at him anymore,” Situ Min said. “Even if you’re not tired, I’m tired.”
“Children should stay out of this,” Situ Hong said. He waved his fan at Su Han and Liang Jun. “Look at those two. Go sit with them and eat.”
Situ Min rolled his eyes but obediently sat beside Liang Jun and began to peel an orange. Liang Jun nudged over a plate of grapes, his eyes glancing up at Situ Min without saying a word.
“Wu Lingtian, I’m begging you, don’t act as if you owe the whole world, alright? Do you know how worried I was when that Fan Yi took you away? I was afraid you would just sell yourself!”
“Feng Ling.”
“Don’t call me Feng Ling! I know just how you are,” Situ Hong huffed. He fanned himself frantically as if he were trying to cool down. He knocked his closed fan against the table. “So? What happened?”
“Eat orange,” Wu Lingtian lifted an orange slice to Situ Hong.
“…Ah,” Situ Hong opened his mouth and allowed Wu Lingtian to feed him. While he chewed, he continued to look at Wu Lingtian grudgingly. Once he finished, he opened his mouth again only for Wu Lingtian to put another orange slice in. He tried again after the second orange slice but Wu Lingtian only placed another in his mouth.
Situ Hong tapped his fan against the side of the table. “Are you done?” he asked with his mouth full.
“Do not speak with your mouth full,” Wu Lingtian replied seriously.
Situ Hong glared at Wu Lingtian and covered his mouth as he finished chewing. Even after he was done, he kept his hand there. “What are your plans now?”
Wu Lingtian set down the half-eaten orange onto its skin. “Attend the conference and clear my name.”
Situ Hong nodded. “Sounds like a good plan. Is there…some top-secret thing I’m missing?”
Wu Lingtian nodded.
“Oh good, good,” Situ Hong sighed. “A-Min and I went to investigate Drifting Clouds Mountain Sect. We thought everything seemed a little odd, but we couldn’t come up with any concrete evidence. It’s good that you have something.”
He smiled and leaned forward. “Once this is all over, do you want to come to Purple Bamboo School? We can be…hm, what should we be?”
“I do not want to be anything with you.”
“Oh, don’t be such a downer. Let’s just be the Twin Prodigies again, yeah? That’s what we were always called.”
“Feng Ling, I do not want to go back to Purple Bamboo School with you.”
Situ Hong looked at Wu Lingtian. A guarded expression appeared on his face. “You aren’t going to go back to Drifting Clouds are you?”
“I will not.”
Situ Hong let out a sigh. “Scared me for a second there.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
He suddenly straightened. “Wait! So, where are you going then, if not there? Are you going back to your hometown? Are you retiring? You—”
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Oljcu Aec yfujc mtbxlcu. Ve Ljc gertfv ab gey tlr yjmx ktlif Vlae Zlc rqja tlr afj bea.
“…Mfcu Olcu, vlv sbe ifjnf sbeg ygjlc lc atf ueaafg?”
“Then what was the promise? You made it sound so romantic, I’m almost disappointed now,” Situ Hong grumbled.
“There is one,” Wu Lingtian glanced at Situ Hong. He stood and straightened his robes. “I will get these back to you later.”
“You’re leaving?” Situ Hong stood as well. “We still haven’t caught up.”
“I have to wake Sect Leader,” Wu Lingtian said.
“What? Are you his errand boy now?” Situ Hong clicked his tongue.
Wu Lingtian waved for Liang Jun and Su Han to come with him. He turned to Situ Min. “I will see you later as well.”
“See you later, Tian-gege.”
Situ Hong pouted and walked Wu Lingtian out of the room.
Wu Lingtian stepped into the hallway with Liang Jun and Su Han following them. The two disciples remained silent as they traveled out of the extravagant inn. As they approached the bottom of the steps, Wu Lingtian’s eyes caught a familiar face to the side. He stopped and clasped his hands out into a salute.
“Lingtian greets Sect Master Zhong.”
Su Han and Liang Jun mirrored Wu Lingtian.
Sect Master Zhong looked at Wu Lingtian with a hint of surprise. He smiled. “Have you been well?”
“I have. Has Sect Master Zhong been well?” Wu Lingtian rose.
“I have, I have,” Sect Master Zhong smiled. “Are you here to report for Screeching Sparrow Sect?”
“No. I happened to have some business here, so I stopped by. I am heading back to call Sect Leader now,” Wu Lingtian replied.
“Ah, alright, alright,” Sect Master Zhong glanced at the two disciples behind Wu Lingtian and smiled. “You seem to be settled well.”
Wu Lingtian nodded once. He appeared hesitant as he pulled something from his Qiankun pouch. “Sect Master Zhong, may I ask a big favor of you?”
Sect Master Zhong glanced at the letter in Wu Lingtian’s hands. He looked at Wu Lingtian with a soft smile. “And what might that be?”
Wu Lingtian knelt down before Sect Master Zhong could stop him. He held up the letter with two hands and lowered his head. “Sect Master Zhong, please verify my innocence. I did not kill my shizun. This letter will prove that.”
“Stand up first,” Sect Master Zhong reached out and guided Wu Lingtian up. He took the letter and pulled it from its envelope. He carefully scanned the contents, his gaze growing sadder the longer he read. He turned to Wu Lingtian and nodded. “I will keep this letter until the conference so I may prove your innocence and bring justice to the late Sect Leader Rong.”
“Thank you,” Wu Lingtian lowered his head again.
Sect Master Zhong let out a long sigh and gave Wu Lingtian’s arm a squeeze. “I may believe this, but there will be others who do not.”
“I understand,” Wu Lingtian said. He looked at Sect Master Zhong. “So long as Frost Cliff Pavilion and the Hall of Impartiality know I am innocent, the rest does not matter.”
Sect Master Zhong was taken aback by the resolution in Wu Lingtian’s eyes. He was reminded of a Fan Yi from long ago, though there had been much more darkness behind his eyes. In Wu Lingtian’s eyes, what used to be darkness was replaced with a newfound hope. Sect Master Zhong couldn’t help but sigh. He nodded reassuringly.
“If any one tries to make trouble for you after this, just tell me or Feng Ling,” Sect Master Zhong said.
“Yes, Sect Master Zhong,” Wu Lingtian bowed again. “We must leave now.”
“Mn. And tell Fan Yi to rush over. I don’t have all day,” Sect Master Zhong joked as he sauntered up the stairs.
Su Han and Liang Jun glanced at each other as they followed Wu Lingtian out.
“So, are you staying?” Liang Jun tentatively asked once they were on their way back to their inn.
“If Sect Leader still wants me too,” Wu Lingtian answered honestly.
If Fan Yi didn’t want Wu Lingtian around anymore, then…then perhaps Wu Lingtian would return to his hometown. Maybe he will find a house up in the mountains and live out the remainder of his days there in silence, as he always had. He will take care of whatever demons make a ruckus on the edge of Fengya and protect what few villages and towns of regular people there were. If Fan Yi didn’t want him, then he would leave the cultivation world forever.
“Why wouldn’t Sect Leader want you to?” Liang Jun puffed out his chest. “If he doesn’t, then I’m sure my shizun would find a way to let you stay!”
Wu Lingtian bowed his head and smiled, but he didn’t say anything in response.
Very soon, Liang Jun turned back to jumping around and spewing out random stories. Su Han soon began speaking as well. He teased Liang Jun as he had nearly an hour ago. The common people who had witnessed the fiasco from earlier in the day stayed away from the trio. Someone watched on with hateful gazes while others seemed scared.
The trio managed to ignore them until they reached the inn. Liang Jun and Su Han were met with a few other disciples. Wu Lingtian bid them farewell and climbed the stairs. Liang Jun’s hurried whispers tickled his ear, but he ignored whatever fantastical tale the disciple was about to spin and continued on until he was back in his room.
He stepped in and walked towards the bed where Fan Yi still remained sleeping. Wu Lingtian reached out and gently nudged him.
“Sect Leader, wake up.”
Fan Yi’s brows furrowed and turned away from Wu Lingtian and pulled the blanket up further. Wu Lingtian bent down and nudged Fan Yi once more.
“Sect Leader, Sect Master Zhong is waiting for you.”
Fan Yi murmured something. It was inaudible, but he was obviously reluctant to get up.
Wu Lingtian lowered himself. “What did you say?”
“Lingtian, I don’t want to move…”
Wu Lingtian paused.
“I’m so tired,” Fan Yi groaned as he turned to face Wu Lingtian. He groggily opened his eyes and looked at Wu Lingtian. He froze or a moment before sitting up. Wu Lingtian took a step back. He looked Wu Lingtian up and down. “…What are you wearing?”
“…My robes got dirty.”
“…But these aren’t yours,” Fan Yi reached out and rubbed the luxurious silk between his fingers. He looked at Wu Lingtian in confusion. “Where did you go that you got so dirty you ended up wearing someone else’s clothes?”
“I will change out of them,” Wu Lingtian said. “However, I ran into Sect Master Zhong earlier and he said he would be waiting for you.”
Fan Yi groaned and nearly fell back onto the bed. He pouted up at Wu Lingtian and shook his head. “Lingtian, I don’t want to be sect leader today.”
“…Shall I tell Ren-jie or Third Pillar to take your place?”
“Yes,” Fan Yi leaned against the wall of the bed. He sighed. “But if you do, I’ll just get scolded later.”
He stared sleepily at Wu Lingtian. He held out a limp hand to Wu Lingtian. His gaze shifted between his hand and the man in front of him. Wu Lingtian glanced at Fan Yi’s hand and then back at Fan Yi.
“Pull me up.”
“Sect Leader.”
“Pull me up, please,” Fan Yi’s head slumped forward.
Wu Lingtian hesitated for just a moment before holding onto Fan Yi’s hand and giving him a tug. Fan Yi allowed himself to be “dragged” out of his bed. Once he was on his two feet, he looked Wu Lingtian up and down again. “Do you need robes to wear?”
“No,” Wu Lingtian shook his head. “I will go change now.”
“Oh, okay,” Fan Yi nodded. He dazedly grabbed his robes and went to request for a bath to be drawn.
While he was gone, Wu Lingtian quickly changed out of Situ Hong’s robes and into his own set of clothing. He stayed around until Fan Yi was fully dressed and ready to head out.
“I assume you passed on your evidence to Sect Master Zhong, since you saw him already?”
Wu Lingtian nodded. “He said that he would verify my innocence.”
“That’s good,” Fan Yi smiled. “I will be back…after lunch, most likely. Make sure to remind everyone to not get into trouble.”
Wu Lingtian nodded again. Fan Yi gave Wu Lingtian one last look before stepping out into the hall and closing the door behind him. He made his way to the appointed inn that the Hall of Impartiality and Frost Cliff Pavilion would be staying in with a list of participants in the conference as well as a signed contract that stated the rules of the conference.
It was only two days before the conference now. The street was filled with many more cultivators. Those of the righteous sect scowled when they saw Fan Yi pass, but Fan Yi also caught glimpses of demonic sects as well as unorthodox sects. His gaze trailed over a group of cloaked cultivators with one person in particular standing out.
The person’s eyes met with Fan Yi’s and he merely bowed his head. Fan Yi offered him a smile and continued on, noting how the other person had changed over the past five years they hadn’t seen each other.
By the time Fan Yi reached the inn, he had already been scowled at and acknowledged more times than he was willing to count. His head ached from a bad sleep and he just wanted to return to his bed and lay down. Unfortunately, he soon found himself sitting beside Sect Master Zhong with a chess board between them with a freshly brewed pot of tea being brought in.
Sect Master Zhong looked at Fan Yi with a frown. “Did you not sleep again last night?”
Fan Yi resisted the urge to yawn. He glanced at his uncle languidly. “If you know, why ask?”
Sect Master Zhong showed a displeased expression but turned back to the board. “It’s been so long, I figured your little sickness would have been fixed.”
“It was, but…” Fan Yi murmured. His brows furrowed the slightest.
“But?”
Fan Yi sighed and massaged his temple. “I’ve been thinking too much recently.”
Sect Master Zhong glanced at Fan Yi. “About that Yu Lan?”
Fan Yi hummed.
“What’s so worrying about him?” Sect Master Zhong asked.
Fan Yi glanced at Sect Master Zhong. “Do you really have a Heavenly Eye or are you actually old and blind?”
“…What I mean is, Wu Lingtian is a resilient child.”
“Resilience is one thing, but the world being against you is another,” Fan Yi said. “Besides, he has a terrible habit of keeping things silent. He’s been like that since he was a child. He may seem fine on the surface but underneath, maybe he’s about to snap.”
“This sounds like you’re overthinking it,” Sect Master Zhong said. “Besides, the world isn’t against him. He has you and your sect, doesn’t he? And from what I hear, the demonic sects and the other unorthodox sects don’t seem to care about the matter.”
Fan Yi stared blankly at the chess board. “I suppose.”
“You worry too much,” Sect Master Zhong said. “He will be perfectly fine.”
Fan Yi sighed.
“If you keep sighing, you will sigh all your happiness away.”
Fan Yi raised an eyebrow at Sect Master Zhong. “By the way, Lingtian said that he met you earlier.”
“He did.”
“And you gave you the evidence?” Fan Yi asked tentatively.
“He did.”
“And…is it…good?”
“It is,” Sect Master Zhong nodded. He frowned at the chess board and reached for his tea instead. It seemed he would not be getting a good game out of Fan Yi this morning. “The words are written by Rong Meihua. The signature is Rong Meihua’s. The seal is also the seal only sect leaders can have and the one that is Rong Meihua’s. Everything is authentic and nothing was forged. However,” Sect Master Zhong smiled bitterly, “You know how they get. Who knows how many will actually be able to swallow this fact?”
Fan Yi scoffed. “Of course.”
While upholding the mantel of justice, the righteous sects detested being incorrect. To prove them wrong was equivalent to kicking their mother and then spitting in their face. On the surface, Wu Lingtian’s name would be cleared. However, who knew how many people would reject the evidence in secret and stir more trouble behind the scenes?
“Petty creatures, they are,” Sect Master Zhong shook his head. “They get worse and worse by the generation.”
“They are arrogant, that’s all,” Fan Yi murmured. He looked at Sect Master Zhong. “As long as you vouch for him, it’s fine.”
“I can vouch for him as long as I live, but what will you do?” Sect Master Zhong asked.
“What will I do?” Fan Yi echoed the question.
“Mn! What will you do? Are you keeping him or throwing him out?”
“He’s saved me three times. I am still indebted to him, so naturally I will keep him,” Fan Yi said. “I offered giving him a position as Fourth Pillar. He might accept it.”
“I see,” Sect Master Zhong hummed. “But is it just a debt that’s making you got this far?”
“Is it far?”
“Fan Yi, you aren’t still blaming yourself, are you?”
Fan Yi’s fingers tapped against the table between them. His gaze was concentrated ahead as the drowsiness abruptly left his body. He sat unnaturally straight as his lips curled into a small smile. “Sect Master Zhong, it’s been well over several centuries. Those who needed to repay the debt has already repaid with their life. I’m fine now.”
“Then why couldn’t you sleep last night?”
Fan Yi’s lip twitched.
Sect Master Zhong let out a long sigh. “You really could not have done anything.”
“…I know,” Fan Yi smiled and looked at Sect Master Zhong. “I know, but this isn’t about me. This is about the debt between me and Wu Lingtian.”
“And what sort of debt is that?”
Fan Yi’s forced smile slowly faded. His gaze traveled to the floor as he took a sip of tea. “A debt of gratitude and guilt.”
↳ Purple Bamboo School (紫竹门; Zǐzhú mén)
Haha gratitude and guilt was not the part that keeps getting him warned and scolded by Wu Lingtian. Oh, and earlier when I accidentally said Hong brothers, I didn’t worry because I didn’t know there would actually be Hong brothers 🤦
who are the hong brothers? :0
I had mistakenly referred to both Situ brothers as Hong, but then the guy who was harassing Wu Lingtian said his name is Hong and also threatened to get his brother to help him.
oohhhhhhhh ok i gotchu lol
Just what happened btw them????? Can’t wait to know!