After listening to the story told by Elder Xiang Su, Yun Zhou sat in silence, as though deep in thought.
Elder Xiang Su had already stood up and walked out of the Lanyun Pavilion. As he left, his parting words drifted away on the breeze: “Since you both have feelings for each other, why not just speak your mind when you have the chance? Just face whatever comes next together. If one day the person is gone, you won’t even have a place to cry.” These words drifted straight into the heart of Immortal Venerable Yun Zhou.
Standing up, Yun Zhou bowed respectfully toward the direction where Elder Xiang Su had departed.
He then transmitted his voice: “I have learned much. I’ll be taking a few jars of your Cheng Hua liquor, and I’ll find some more talisman tokens for you. Let’s gather again another day. Also, right where I fetched the wine, I left some medicinal ingredients for you to make up for your drained cultivation and the leakage of heavenly secrets. Thank you, Xiang Su.”
The poised and profound Elder Xiang Su could no longer maintain his composure. Brandishing an ink brush, he pointed and gestured angrily at the empty air, completely unable to vent the frustration of having his thoughts thoroughly seen through. His outburst startled the surrounding immortal cranes, which stretched out their necks to investigate the noise.
Meanwhile, Yun Zhou picked up the wine and descended the peak. He carefully wrapped one jar of liquor, placed it in his storage pouch, and carried the remaining jars to go find Ling Wanxing and Tang Nanxi, believing that good things ought to be shared with friends.
When Yun Zhou arrived at the temporary quarters of the Qinyinxin Sect disciples, before he even stepped inside, he heard a continuous “rustling” sound coming from the adjacent bamboo grove, accompanied by the piercing sound of blade qi crossing paths it appeared someone was sparring.
As he drew closer and listened carefully, it was indeed a sparring match, with someone on the sidelines excitedly cheering on the participants.
Ah, Tang Nanxi was stepping on the bamboo stalks to fight from above, while Ling Wanxing was cheering enthusiastically from below a perfectly normal style of chaos. There was also someone wailing miserably in a voice that sounded like they had provoked these two. He would have to see what was going on later; it would make the perfect accompaniment to some fine wine.
Stepping across the bamboo leaves, Yun Zhou walked toward Ling Wanxing. “Shen Qingchen, what brings you here? Over here, over here!” Ling Wanxing’s joyful shout successfully caused the two fighting combatants to stop at the same time.
Tang Nanxi pivoted off a bamboo branch, flipped gracefully through the air, and landed before Yun Zhou. Catching the sleeve of Yun Zhou’s robes, he led him over toward Ling Wanxing.
Reaching Ling Wanxing’s side, Tang Nanxi used one hand to hold Ling Wanxing’s arm and the other to grasp Yun Zhou’s, guiding the three of them deeper into the bamboo grove toward the stream.
Looking back at the disciple who had been beaten into a swollen mess resembling a pig’s head, Ling Wanxing asked Tang Nanxi, “What about him? Are we just going to let him off like this?”
Tang Nanxi’s tone remained completely flat and indifferent, as though he were merely stating an impending fact: “The evidence of his stealing from the family’s main household and framing his fellow disciples should have already reached the Sect Master by now. What awaits him next is the charge of damaging the friendly relations between the two sects. The best outcome for him will be having his spiritual roots crippled and being expelled from the sect, and the worst will simply be losing his life.”
Ling Wanxing: “Good enough for him.”
Yun Zhou: “Brilliantly done.” In his heart, he thought that this pig-headed fellow deserved it; crooked-minded individuals are always better off being weeded out sooner rather than later.
As the three of them sat by the stream roasting fish and drinking wine, Tang Nanxi finally posed the question that had been weighing on his mind: “Immortal Venerable Yun Zhou of your esteemed sect can be considered a supreme figure of an era. Yet whenever missions to subdue demons and pacify fierce beasts arise, why does he always respond to every single plea? Some of the other sects lack the strength to fight them off, but others simply refuse to sacrifice their own sect’s power. Did Immortal Venerable Yun Zhou… not understand this?”
Yun Zhou fell silent. How could he possibly not understand? He was the person directly involved, so of course he knew whether he understood or not.
In the eyes of Tang Nanxi and Ling Wanxing, the Shen Qingchen before them was smiling. Though his eyes were covered by a blindfold, they could still sense a profound sense of relief and ease, mingled with a faint trace of teasing. Yet why on earth would he feel that way?
“He understands; Immortal Venerable Yun Zhou naturally understands,” Yun Zhou replied calmly. “However, if he chose to ignore it, those people would argue back and forth endlessly without ever reaching a good decision, likely resulting in even more casualties without ever solving the problem.
“Furthermore, while they can afford to wait and drag things out, what about the ordinary people caught in the crossfire? They cannot afford to wait.
“The interests entangled between various sects should never be fought over by trampling on the lives of common folk. In that case, it is far better for someone with no conflicting interests to step in and resolve the issue. The grand reputation is left to the Pinglan Sect, while the other sects’ prestige and interests remain unblemished.
“Besides, is there not also a possibility that the Immortal Venerable actually knew he could easily win, and by accepting these requests, he could use the excuse of slaying demons and defending the Dao to travel and enjoy himself outside? Even if anyone wanted to disturb him, he could simply brush them off under the banner of upholding justice. Why wouldn’t he take such a deal?”