“No, niece-in-law, let us talk things over, do not draw your sword, ahhh!”
“Big nephew! Quickly control your wife!”
“Xiao Rang! If you want to die, you could have just said so!”
“Help! Wuwuwu, big nephew, save me!”
Before the joy of the reunion could last even a few seconds, Xiao Rang began to worry about a new problem.
His big nephew’s partner seems to have a rather bad temper.
Between a cheap uncle he could not quite remember and a Master who was incredibly important to him, Yan Fulang did not even need to consider which one to side with if they started fighting.
He sat calmly in his seat, his straight posture not even wavering, and ordered another cup of licorice ice-cold water for Ji Yunzhao to help him cool his temper.
Seeing this scene, Xiao Rang’s heart turned cold.
Just like the new iced drink brought over by the snack stall owner, it was thoroughly chilled.
“A nephew with a wife is like splashed water,” Xiao Rang babbled incoherently in a whimpering tone, nearly crying out loud.
It would have been better if he had not recognized the kin at all.
The snack stall owner had been setting up stalls in Yuncang City for many years and had seen plenty of cultivators who would draw their swords and argue at the slightest disagreement. He ignored the long sword in the hands of the gorgeously dressed beauty and came over to deliver the food.
He also routinely asked if the guests wanted to order any other snacks, taking the opportunity to promote the shop’s specialties, anyway, even if they really wanted to fight in the city, they would just be packed up and taken away by the patrolling guards.
Ji Yunzhao was still gnashing his teeth, wanting to drag Xiao Rang out for a beating. His expression was slightly fierce, and he did not pay attention to the owner’s pitch.
The only calm person present was Yan Fulang.
A gentle smile remained on his lips. Seeing that the shop’s signature snack looked like something Ji Yunzhao would enjoy, he ordered an extra portion.
Ji Yunzhao watched coldly. Seeing that his retirement insurance did not plead for mercy on behalf of the uncle who had been extremely irritating from the moment he opened his mouth, he felt very satisfied.
The countdown for the female disguise had not ended yet, so this was not the time to hack Xiao Rang.
Ji Yunzhao gave a cold snort and placed Mingque heavily on the table.
He would let Xiao Rang live for another half an hour. When the time came, he would watch Xiao Rang transform from a Heaven-grade artifact into broken scraps on the floor.
Xiao Rang choked back sobs for a while. Seeing that no one was paying him any attention and that Ji Yunzhao’s sword had not landed on him, his crying voice gradually died down. He realized that this beautiful Immortal Lord was probably waiting for the disguise effect to wear off.
He felt intuitively that he could not have misidentified his nephew, but Yan Fulang’s attitude was very vague. It did not seem like he thought he was a fake uncle, but he did not really treat him like an uncle either, leaving him feeling somewhat uneasy.
Now, thanks to the disguise duration, he had luckily saved his life, but what if he was not so lucky next time!
His future was bleak! It might be better to just be sold to the Treasure Pavilion!
After Mingque was placed on the table, it continued to hum, filled with a murderous aura. Xiao Rang shrank his non-existent neck and buried his head, not daring to make a sound.
Finally, his ears were at peace.
With no more “niece-in-law” or “wife” words being thrown around, Ji Yunzhao ate the delicious signature dishes of the snack stall and gradually calmed down.
It was truly strange. Why did so many people think he and Yan Fulang were a couple?
Yan Fulang was his disciple, after all. Although this disciple was a bit handsome, sometimes a bit thoughtful, hmm, and sometimes quite infuriating, that did not mean he would make a move on his disciple!
Ji Yunzhao felt a bit puzzled as he dug out a large spoonful of green bean shaved ice and put it into his mouth, only to be made to shiver from the cold.
[A-Tong, you say, where exactly is the problem?]
The little black cat, which had been sitting obediently in his lap, wanted to join in the fun when it saw him eating shaved ice, and its two pitch-black front paws were clawing at the edge of the table.
[N, no, there shouldn’t be anything wrong…]
The system’s mind was entirely on begging for a bite, so it gave a perfunctory answer.
In reality, if it were asked to analyze it, it could not.
What could a little kitten know? It was just a small system that had never been in a relationship with another system and had even been implicated in a maintenance center because of some crazy things its previous host had done for love.
To use Ji Yunzhao’s words, which he used to tease it from time to time, its IQ really was not that high.
Ji Yunzhao used the shaved ice to lure the system into talking properly. The system pondered for a long time, then had a sudden flash of insight, and confidently said, [Host, I understand! It must be because they have never seen such a profound Master-disciple bond, so that’s why they think your relationship with the male protagonist is abnormal!]
[…Is that for real?]
Ji Yunzhao always felt something was off, but like the system, he had never been in a relationship and was never very keen on emotional matters, so he could not make sense of this situation no matter how he thought about it.
Things he could not figure out, he simply stopped thinking about to avoid wasting his rest time.
The teahouse across the street was too popular. After they had sat at the snack stall for so long, there still seemed to be many people queuing outside, which made Ji Yunzhao feel a bit desperate.
Before looking for the snack stall to rest, Ji Yunzhao had let Yan Fulang take a number ticket, when the disguise effect was about to end, he had to find a private place to stay. Otherwise, it would be quite shocking to suddenly turn back into male clothing in public.
Ji Yunzhao would glance at the disguise countdown in the top-left corner of his vision from time to time, waiting to settle accounts with Xiao Rang, while also checking the number calling situation at the teahouse across the street.
He was a little worried that their number would not be called by the time the disguise duration ended.
But if they just returned home on their spirit boat, he felt it was too early to go back.
He still wanted to stroll around and play in the city.
Just then, the diners at the table next to them finished their meal and left. As soon as the table was empty, several young cultivators chatted and sat down.
“Hey, hey, hey, have you heard? The auction location for this year’s Qiling Pavilion has been set in Yanyang City, Southern Continent!”
“Ah? Is it the Southern Continent’s turn this year? I’m afraid I will not have time to rush over there…”
“The entry ticket did not go up in price, did it?”
“Sigh, do not mention it. Last year, it was clearly priced at five thousand spirit stones, but this year it actually went up to ten thousand! I heard people say that among the items being auctioned this year, there is a remnant page of the Danqing Treasure Array Map!”
“Danqing Treasure Array Map? Is the fellow Daoist talking about the map of Fuluo Island?”
When the cultivators talked about this, they became quite excited, their voices raising quite a bit and attracting sidelong glances from everyone.
Ji Yunzhao had been eating the snacks passed to him by Yan Fulang quite happily, but upon hearing this, he pricked up his ears.
Speaking of which, when they went to the Xuan-level secret realm last time, Yan Fulang was already at the late stage of the Qinxin Realm. During this period, under his supervision, he had already reached the Great Perfection of the Qinxin Realm.
The Cold Spring at the back mountain was good, but the effects it brought would likely not support Yan Fulang’s cultivation to the Tengyun Realm.
If Yan Fulang wanted to reach a higher realm, they had to obtain another spirit treasure to repair his spiritual roots, the Mingxin Stone.
As one of the important items in the original book, the Heaven-grade secret realm containing the Mingxin Stone occupied a significant portion of the plot.
According to the normal timeline, it should take some time before the Biyun Sect collected the remnant map pages of that secret realm to activate it.
But now,
Since the remnant map pages were mentioned by passerby cultivators, it meant that Qiling Pavilion, as the largest auction house in the entire cultivation world, having the remnant page of the Danqing Treasure Array Map was already common knowledge.
Moreover, most of the remnant map pages were actually in his hands.
The Heaven-grade secret realm containing the Mingxin Stone was located on the border of the Eastern Continent, on an island called Fuluo Island.
That sea area was filled with white fog all year round, and there were thousands of islands of all sizes. Fuluo Island was hidden among the many islands, its size a mystery and its location erratic. Only by collecting all the remnant map pages and synthesizing them into the complete Danqing Treasure Array Map could one obtain the location of Fuluo Island.
Ji Yunzhao’s job was to replace the missing character and keep the plot intact, but this world had already become self-contained, it was no longer cold words and settings, and it allowed for a certain amount of deviation, as long as the important plot points did not go off course.
He had been finding time to collect many important items and plot clues that Yan Fulang would use later.
With the help of the system, it was all too easy to deceive the retirement insurance.
Therefore, Ji Yunzhao had long since caused many unimportant small subplots to deviate.
One more deviation probably would not be a big problem.
[A-Tong, get ready to enter the Mingxin Stone plot ahead of schedule.]
Without waiting for the system’s reply, Ji Yunzhao made the decision himself.
He would be the one to open the Heaven-grade secret realm of the Mingxin Stone.
He could even go to the Southern Continent for a trip and take his retirement insurance along to travel and broaden his horizons.
Ji Yunzhao poked the youth beside him, “During your cultivation recently, did you feel any discomfort anywhere?”
Yan Fulang answered very decisively, “I did not.”
Then he was slapped by the young girl on a certain meridian.
The position of the meridian was somewhat subtle. Touching it at a snack stall surrounded by people, although covered by his sleeves and invisible to others, still caused the youth’s ears to turn red involuntarily.
In the next second, a sense of obstruction struck him suddenly. Yan Fulang failed to maintain his expression, the crimson color on his ears faded away entirely, and a crack appeared in his perfect mask.
“Hm? You did not?”
Ji Yunzhao slapped him again. He wanted to scold him, but seeing his cheap disciple’s complexion turn even paler, he closed his half-opened lips.
…Never mind, he raised him, after all.
Ji Yunzhao’s voice could not help but soften slightly, “If you are not feeling well, do not hide it.”
As soon as he finished speaking, before Ji Yunzhao could wait for Yan Fulang’s answer, the teahouse suddenly called their number.
It was probably because of the long wait, and with so many people canceling their numbers, they happened to get lucky.
Thinking that Yan Fulang was not feeling well and that the meridian problem might need careful adjustment and observation, Ji Yunzhao had the waiter take them directly to the most expensive private room after entering the teahouse.
This private room was in an excellent location and was very quiet. Once the waiter received his instructions, he would not come to disturb them except to serve tea and refreshments. The private room’s standard background music harpist was also taken away by the waiter along with her harp.
Not long after Ji Yunzhao sat down, the duration for the female disguise expired.
The young girl’s figure and appearance changed in an instant. In just a brief moment, the soft, beautiful contours belonging to a woman disappeared, and the gorgeous dress turned back into the white robes Ji Yunzhao usually wore. The young girl became a beautiful young man with picturesque brows and eyes.
The young man’s fair fingertips raised and slowly groped at the side of his face, taking a pitch-black mask off his face.
Xiao Rang’s original form was thrown onto the table with a clang. He dared not be angry, nor did he dare to speak. Moreover, at this moment, he and Ji Yunzhao shared the same worry.
“Big nephew, where are you feeling unwell?”
Xiao Rang was a bit anxious. After all, he was his good brother’s offspring. He had not had time to ask in detail how Yan Fulang had escaped the disaster back then, so how could his body suddenly have problems again?
Ji Yunzhao also quietly raised his eyes to look at him, waiting for an explanation.
“It is nothing major, I just did not want Senior to worry,” Yan Fulang said, “Perhaps it is because I have not been focused enough in my cultivation recently, and there are too many distracting thoughts. I can adjust it myself after some time.”
Ji Yunzhao blinked and asked strangely, “Distracting thoughts? What distracting thoughts?”
His retirement insurance had been smooth sailing all the way. Half his revenge had been taken, and with him around, defeating the Biyun Sect was only a matter of time. What else could he be troubled about?
Immersed in his confusion, Ji Yunzhao did not notice an extremely obscure gaze coming from beside him, falling on him, slowly sweeping over his beautiful almond-shaped eyes, his slightly drooping long eyelashes, and his rosy lips.
Suddenly, that gaze was abruptly withdrawn. The youth beside him looked away, and his earlobes were again stained with a touch of crimson.
Since he did not want to say, Ji Yunzhao did not intend to force an answer.
The child was grown up, it was normal to have his own little secrets.
Ji Yunzhao acted as if he had not heard the words distracting thoughts, moved his chair, and sat closer to Yan Fulang, their shoulders almost touching.
Taking advantage of the moment before the youth could react, he directly grasped that hand with distinct knuckles.
Warm and surging spiritual energy spread from the place where their bodies were tightly pressed together, wormed into the blocked meridians, and swam through his whole body in a gentle but unyielding way, dispelling that feeling of stagnation.
Yan Fulang looked up in a daze, only to see the young man beside him smiling brightly. “How can it be nothing? In my eyes, everything that concerns you is a major matter.”