With Fang Huai and Pei Huai both departed, only Hanzhou and Yan Mingqiu remained inside the cabin.
With tears welling in his eyes, Hanzhou pleaded, “Master, I… I truly only acted that way toward you because I was under the influence of the drug…”
“I know, I don’t blame you.” Yan Mingqiu undid the Spirit-Binding Cable binding Hanzhou. “However, you shouldn’t have lashed out and falsely accused your master’s brother just now.”
Lowering his head to project an appearance of contrition, Hanzhou murmured, “Senior Uncle always displays an excessive level of concern toward you; just now, I was simply blinded by jealousy.”
“Do not speak such nonsense again. I am your master, and you must never harbor improper sentiments toward me,” Yan Mingqiu said in a stern, low voice.
“Yet the way Master treats me far surpasses the boundaries of a master-disciple relationship. I refuse to believe Master has never once felt a romantic stirring toward me!” Pushing the act to its absolute limit, Hanzhou resolved to press forward and extract Immortal Yunling’s true feelings.
Closing his eyes, Yan Mingqiu murmured, “We… we cannot be together.”
Hanzhou pressed relentlessly: “Why?”
With a tight throat, Yan Mingqiu slowly answered, “Because I am your master.”
Indignant, Hanzhou argued, “What is wrong with that? There is no sect rule stating that a master and disciple cannot fall in love.”
Heat rushed into Yan Mingqiu’s face. “It’s not just that, furthermore, we are both men.”
“What of it? I am not asking Master to carry on the family lineage for me.”
Yan Mingqiu’s expression shifted. “You… you were not like this before.”
Intent on shattering the dream realm, Hanzhou threw all remaining shame to the wind. “That’s right, in the past I liked to put on a mature facade because I didn’t want Master treating me like a child. Now, I want to return to my true self; I want to voice every ounce of my love for Master. In this lifetime, I want nobody other than Master.”
Struggling against the tension, Yan Mingqiu turned his face away. “No, your two senior uncles will never consent.”
Hanzhou seized upon the opening with excitement. “So… Master, you love me too, right? You are only withholding your consent because Senior Uncles object?”
“I…”
Reaching out, Hanzhou grasped Yan Mingqiu by the shoulders and forced him to turn around so they were face-to-face. “If I can make both Senior Uncles agree to this match, will Master consent to marry me?”
A delicate flush stained Yan Mingqiu’s cheeks as his voice dropped to a mosquito-like hum: “Mhm.”
“Master, I heard it—you said mhm. Let’s go find Senior Uncles right now.”
Unable to resist Hanzhou’s persistence, Yan Mingqiu allowed himself to be pulled along toward Fang Huai’s warship.
Upon stepping onto the deck of Fang Huai’s vessel, however, both men immediately sensed something amiss.
The warship was rocking rhythmically from side to side, while the main cabin door directly before them was sealed behind two layers of formidable defensive barriers.
Though the barriers effectively muffled any audio spilling from within, the physical motion of the vessel made it blatantly obvious to both Yan Mingqiu and Hanzhou what the two occupants inside the cabin were currently engaged in.
Yan Mingqiu muttered, “In broad daylight… my two good senior brothers…”
Feeling a subtle prickle of awkwardness, Hanzhou hastily pivoted to a new topic. “Master, how long will it take for Zhu Zhuxia to arrive?”
Yan Mingqiu replied, “Sect Master brother already dispatched someone to pilot a Feather-Wing Skiff back to Qingyuan Mountain to fetch him. A round trip will take two hours.”
The Feather-Wing Skiff was a specialized vessel engineered exclusively for rapid communication. Built in a slender, shuttle-like form with a compact hull accommodating only two passengers, it was meticulously carved from a rare species of spiritual timber, boasting an exquisite pair of feathered wings along its flanks.
These wings were no ordinary ornament; crafted from a precious material known as “Wind-Spirit Feathers,” they drastically enhanced both flight velocity and stability.
Because of their extraordinary speed, the various mysterious sects relied extensively on Feather-Wing Skiffs for high-priority dispatches.
Transporting Zhu Zhuxia back required utmost efficiency, making the skiff the ideal instrument for the task.
Two hours later, when Zhu Zhuxia was hauled under guard onto Fang Huai’s warship, the vessel had just ceased its rhythmic swaying.
The instant Zhu Zhuxia caught sight of Hanzhou, a flash of stark terror crossed his eyes, though he swiftly reined in his expression, reverting to a docile, harmless demeanor.
Clearing his throat, Hanzhou called out toward the cabin door: “Reporting to the Sect Master, Zhu Zhuxia has been brought here.”
After waiting roughly half a quarter-hour, Fang Huai finally stepped out of the cabin, his steps displaying a pronounced, unmistakable lack of steadiness.
Yan Mingqiu inquired, “Where is Sect Master brother?”
Wearing a look of profound awkwardness, Fang Huai rasped in a strained voice, “Well… he tweaked his lower back and can’t get up right now. I am stepping in on his behalf.”
Yan Mingqiu: “…”
Coughing lightly twice, Fang Huai clasped his hands behind his back and adopted a severe, authoritative expression. “Let us begin.”
Stepping forward, Hanzhou confronted Zhu Zhuxia. “On the twenty-fifth of last month, when I went to the dining hall, did you tamper with my Ten-Direction Nourishing Soup by adding drugs?”
Zhu Zhuxia shook his head vehemently. “I did nothing of the sort! That night, I was merely delivering spiritual fowl to the dining hall. Manager Wang needed to visit the outhouse and asked me to watch the stove temporarily, which is why I remained behind. I never drugged anything.”
Coldly, Hanzhou retorted, “Whether you did or not, a single look will reveal the truth. Master, use the Retrospective Curse to inspect whether he spiked the soup that night.”
“Very well, step aside,” Yan Mingqiu instructed. Chanting an incantation and weaving hand seals, he directed a stream of spiritual energy straight into Zhu Zhuxia’s divine consciousness.
Extracting Zhu Zhuxia’s memories from that fateful night, Yan Mingqiu projected them frame by frame right before his eyes.
After reviewing the entire sequence, Yan Mingqiu withdrew his spiritual energy. With a swift, casual wave of his hand, a localized burst of explosive spiritual force struck Zhu Zhuxia squarely, knocking him flat to the deck. “And you had the nerve to claim you didn’t drug it! You dumped an entire bottle of Aphrodisiac Pills into the pot!”
Struggling upright, Zhu Zhuxia reached up to wipe a fresh trail of blood from the corner of his mouth.
A harsh, mocking laugh escaped his lips. “I simply despise Hanzhou! Why should someone of demonic lineage like him effortlessly possess everything enjoying endless glory, prestige, and favoritism simply due to a superior birth? Meanwhile, I must scrape and crawl through this miserable world, enduring endless hardship simply because I was born to humble origins.”
“If you cannot stand someone, your immediate impulse is to destroy them? Your heart is truly twisted and venomous!” Yan Mingqiu snapped coldly.
Emerging from the cabin just in time, Pei Huai chimed in, “Have you ever considered that life is not entirely dictated by one’s origin? Hanzhou’s starting point may exceed yours, but the hardships and trials you endure can serve as invaluable tempering for your willpower and future success. If you remain blindly consumed by envy and resentment, you will ultimately destroy yourself.”
Hurrying over to steady him, Fang Huai whispered anxiously, “Why did you come out? Is your lower back alright?”
Pei Huai’s face flushed a deep red as he leaned in to murmur into Fang Huai’s ear: “It’s fine, nothing to worry about.”
Clearing his throat to pivot back to the assembly, Pei Huai adopted a stern, commanding tone. “Now that the truth has come to light, Zhu Zhuxia has committed the gravest offense of assaulting a superior and poisoning a fellow disciple. According to our code, such actions merit execution. Lock him in the dungeon first; his execution will take place in three days’ time. Give the order: all warships are to reverse course and return immediately to Qingyuan Mountain.”
As guards dragged the struggling Zhu Zhuxia away, Hanzhou pressed forward with eager anticipation. “Sect Master Senior Uncle, I have one more matter—”
“Halt right there,” Pei Huai cut him off flatly. “We’ll discuss that once we return to Qingyuan Mountain.”
Casting a deeply meaningful, knowing glance toward Yan Mingqiu, Pei Huai added, “I know precisely what you wish to say, but allow me some time to properly digest it.”