Qiu Lingzhou was confused when he did not hear his name called and turned to Hai Yangzi for an explanation.
Hai Yangzi looked at him and said, “You and Zhimu will stay by my side for training. As your master, it is time I started acting like one.”
“I do not want you!” Qiu Lingzhou rejected Hai Yangzi without a second thought.
Hai Yangzi felt deeply hurt. “Why? Your master is very strong. I can protect you and teach you powerful techniques.”
“I still do not want you!” Qiu Lingzhou stood his ground. “You abandoned us for so many years and ignored us completely. Who wants your sudden kindness now? No!”
“Little Lingzhou, Master knows he was wrong. Please do not be angry anymore.” Hai Yangzi tried to coax him as if he were a small child.
However, if Qiu Lingzhou were that easy to appease, Chen Ji would not have struggled so much over the years.
“A-Ji, how much silver do you have on you?” Seeing that he could not win over Qiu Lingzhou, Hai Yangzi turned to Chen Ji.
“I have quite a bit,” Chen Ji replied.
“Give some to Master.”
“Oh.”
Chen Ji pulled a coin pouch from his sleeve. Just as he was about to count the silver, Hai Yangzi snatched it away.
“Is there any more?” Hai Yangzi asked.
Chen Ji shook his head. “No, that is all of it.”
Hai Yangzi opened the pouch and counted the coins. “These were all given by the Sect Leader, right? He certainly gave you a lot. From now on, they belong to me.”
“You old man, you are taking all of my money.”
“What do you mean taking? This is called safekeeping!” Hai Yangzi replied righteously. “When I was your age and went down the mountain for training, I did not have a single copper. I relied on completing commissions to earn my travel expenses. You should go down and earn your own money too!”
“Little Lingzhou, Little Zhimu, look,” Hai Yangzi said, using the money pouch to tempt them. “Your Eldest and Second Senior Brothers do not have a single cent on them. Imagine how hard it will be to follow them. Stay with me, and you will be well fed and taken care of!”
Feng Zhimu’s relationship with Chen Ji was not yet close enough to warrant defying his master just to stay together, so he obediently nodded. Qiu Lingzhou, however, refused no matter what. No matter how much Hai Yangzi tried to persuade him, it was useless.
Hai Yangzi sighed heavily, experiencing for the first time what it felt like to have a rebellious disciple. In the end, they decided to discuss it further.
Now that Hai Yangzi had returned, the four of them no longer needed to stay at Juyang Peak. After leading Chen Ji and the others to say their goodbyes to Tian Jizi, they returned to Emerald Bamboo Peak. The peak had been rebuilt to look exactly as it did before.
They each returned to their rooms to rest, and night soon fell. Although they did not show Hai Yangzi much traditional respect, they still prepared a welcome feast for him. Hai Yangzi, ever the old prankster, made a lively scene at the banquet and did not let them leave until late into the night.
As the sky began to turn a faint gray at dawn, Chen Ji was still sound asleep when Hai Yangzi shook him awake.
“A-Ji, wake up. Take your bags and leave with Little Jingyun.” Hai Yangzi’s voice was very soft.
Chen Ji opened his bleary eyes and asked, “Old man, what is the meaning of this?”
“Leave quickly while Little Lingzhou is still sleeping!”
“Old man, are you not afraid Qiu Lingzhou will flip out on you when he wakes up?”
“Let him flip. He cannot beat me anyway.”
Chen Ji thought that no one but Hai Yangzi would trick their own disciple like this. He got out of bed, dressed, and took the bundle Hai Yangzi handed him. When he walked outside and saw Liu Jingyun already waiting, he was momentarily stunned.
If he truly followed Liu Jingyun down the mountain for training, the plot would change! In the original story, Liu Jingyun went down the mountain alone, and Hai Yangzi never took Qiu Lingzhou and Feng Zhimu with him.
Realizing another major plot deviation, Chen Ji turned back excitedly. “Old man, are you really going to take Qiu Lingzhou and Zhimu with you for training?”
“Yes. The scenery at Emerald Bamboo Peak is boring after a while. I am taking them out to see the world.” In reality, Hai Yangzi’s personality simply did not allow him to stay in one place for long.
Chen Ji did not know why Hai Yangzi had made this decision, but he urged him, “Old man, you must ensure Little Zhimu’s safety! Do not let anything happen to him.”
“A-Ji, you are looking down on my abilities. How could I possibly fail to protect Little Zhimu?”
“As long as you can protect him, that is all that matters.” With such a massive change, Chen Ji was genuinely worried that the boy’s fate of dying young might actually come true.
“Alright, alright. Go down the mountain with Jingyun now. Do not waste time, or Little Lingzhou will wake up.” Hai Yangzi pushed Chen Ji toward the path.
Chen Ji reached the mountain pass and looked back at Hai Yangzi, who waved at them to leave quickly. With a sense of reluctance, Chen Ji left Emerald Bamboo Peak in the dim light of dawn.
“What is that old man thinking? Why send us all down the mountain for training so suddenly?” Chen Ji muttered quietly.
“Master told me the reason,” Liu Jingyun said.
“What reason?”
“He said that the enemy is in the shadows while we are in the light. Even at the Tianyun Sect, we could be attacked. If we were to die unfortunately, it would be too sad if we had only ever seen the scenery of the Tianyun Sect. So, he wants us to travel so that even if we die, we will have seen more of the world.”
Chen Ji frowned unhappily. “Does that old man never wish for our well being? What does he mean by die unfortunately? Wait!” He suddenly thought of something. “He thinks that Ghost King will attack the Tianyun Sect again, and he believes some disciples will die. Does that mean he knows the Ghost King is so powerful that even the Sect Leader might struggle to win?”
Liu Jingyun looked at him. “A-Ji, do you not already know that the creature is an old acquaintance of the Sect Leader?”
“What? The Ghost King is an old acquaintance of the Sect Leader?” Chen Ji feigned shock.
Liu Jingyun looked at him doubtfully. “Mo Tianzi is the Sect Leader’s real name. A-Ji, did you not already know this? That is why you told those things to the Sect Leader.”
“What? Mo Tianzi is actually the Sect Leader’s real name?” Chen Ji continued to act surprised. He had not expected Liu Jingyun to figure this out. Since Liu Jingyun had not said anything before, Chen Ji assumed he had not noticed.
Even though Liu Jingyun was suspicious, Chen Ji had to play dumb until the end. If he did not, how could he explain how he knew Tian Jizi’s real name?
“If you did not know, then why did you tell those things to the Sect Leader?” Liu Jingyun asked.
Chen Ji replied naturally, “He is a Ghost King. Everything he says is important, so of course I had to tell the Sect Leader!”
“The coffin with the six infant souls pinned inside was also important. Why did you ask me to hide that?”
Chen Ji remained silent.
“A-Ji, you do not need to hide anything from me. No matter what you want to do, I will stand by your side,” Liu Jingyun said.
Chen Ji sighed softly. Liu Jingyun was the male lead, after all; it was impossible to hide secrets from him. Chen Ji admitted defeat. “Liu Jingyun, if you are truly on my side, then do not ask for reasons. I will tell you when the time is right.”
“Fine,” Liu Jingyun answered readily.
Chen Ji smiled and looked straight ahead. The sun was rising, and the sky was brightening. A thin mist shrouded the towering mountain peaks.
“We are heading out for training today. I wonder how many adventures and hardships we will encounter on this journey?”
Bathed in the morning light, Liu Jingyun looked into the distance. “No matter what happens, it should be interesting.”