Glancing at his two subordinates who were chatting in high spirits, the Little Young Master withdrew his gaze and subsequently presented his right hand before the Master of the Earthly Realm’s eyes. Raising his chin slightly, he knitted his brows and said: “If you had been a moment slower, these fingers might be gone by now.”
reached out intending to hold it, but the Little Young Master dexterously dodged away. Instead, he pointed at the Realm Gate of the Earthly Realm a few paces away, raised his chin, and said: “This—how do you explain it?”
The Master of the Earthly Realm’s gaze fell heavily upon the Little Young Master, not sparing even half a glance for the Realm Gate. Shaking his head slightly with a trace of helplessness, he said: “Naturally, it is this Master’s fault. How does Chushi wish to punish me?”
The Little Young Master had never quite understood it: the Master of the Earthly Realm was customarily a person of cold demeanor and aloof disposition, and when he spoke, he never bore any warmth; yet once those two words, “Chushi,” left his lips, even the greatest temper the Little Young Master held would inexplicably quiet down for a bit. What’s more, his anger this time was merely feigned…
Turning his head sideways to avoid the Master of the Earthly Realm’s gaze, the Little Young Master straightened his back, speaking with righteous indignation: “This Young Master said earlier: if this Realm Gate barred me today, then your Earthly Realm shouldn’t dream of having any more peaceful days.”
Looking at the young boy’s slightly raised chin, the corners of the Master of the Earthly Realm’s lips curved slightly, and he responded: “The Earthly Realm is naturally at the Little Young Master’s disposal.”
Hearing this, the Little Young Master turned back around, pretending to deliberate: “In that case… considering that this Young Master didn’t actually suffer any injury, let us punish only the Realm Master alone—how about it?”
The Master of the Earthly Realm had already anticipated this turn of words from the Little Young Master in his heart; hearing it at this moment, he naturally nodded in agreement without half a moment’s hesitation. The moment he agreed, the faint stroke of displeasure that the Little Young Master had put on between his brows vanished into thin air. He seemed about to retrieve some item from his storage bracelet, but perhaps thinking that the location was hardly appropriate, he pulled his hand back again. Stepping back over to the Master of the Earthly Realm’s side in a few paces, he said: “Then let us return to Yunrui Hall first before discussing it further.” Naturally, the Master of the Earthly Realm had no objections.
Bai Yu had chatted leisurely with Mo Yu for a while before suddenly remembering the reason he had walked out of the Realm Gate. Just as he was about to make inquiries, Mo Yu patted his shoulder to signal that he shouldn’t speak too much. Afterward, the two stood waiting respectfully off to the side, only understanding why the Realm Gate had issued a warning after the Little Young Master finished speaking.
Only… the Realm Gate of the Earthly Realm shut the Little Young Master out? And what’s more, it even produced an intent of expulsion?!
Bai Yu couldn’t help looking toward Mo Yu, but saw that Mo Yu merely shook his head lightly to signal that he shouldn’t say too much, leaving him with no choice but to forcefully swallow a chest full of bewilderment. Seeing that the two masters had finished their discussion, he took the initiative to step forward and open the Realm Gate, bowing as he said: “Your subordinate respectfully welcomes the Little Young Master and the Realm Master’s return!”
The Little Young Master was just about to lift his feet to walk when his shoulder was wrapped by the Master of the Earthly Realm’s arm. Pausing, he couldn’t help turning his head sideways: “What is it?”
The Master of the Earthly Realm led the Little Young Master along at a slow pace, resolving his confusion for him: “It is unknown where the problem lies with this Realm Gate; for the sake of prudence, the Little Young Master had better enter inside together with this Master.”
The Little Young Master subconsciously clenched his palms tight, immediately nodding in agreement with a solemn expression: “The Master of the Earthly Realm has thought things through thoroughly.”
The Master of the Earthly Realm also adopted a solemn expression alongside him, saying: “The Little Young Master is noble and precious; this Master should naturally look after you well.”
In the Immortal Realm, the Heavenly Realm governed literary affairs while the Earthly Realm governed martial affairs; hence, the martial strength of the immortals in the Earthly Realm was much higher than that in the Heavenly Realm. If something requiring the handling of the Immortal Realm occurred among the three realms, it would also be decided whether it fell under the jurisdiction of the Heavenly Realm, the Earthly Realm, or required the joint handling of both realms based on the nature of the event.
Therefore, the immortals of the Earthly Realm also differed from those of the Heavenly Realm in their attire. The immortals of the Heavenly Realm favored wide-sleeved long robes, whereas the immortals of the Earthly Realm preferred form-fitting, sharp attire. This point was reflected especially prominently in the two Realm Masters.
However, although their attire and duties differed, the heart for watching a spectacle was astonishingly unanimous across the entire Immortal Realm. It was just that while the immortals of the Heavenly Realm came for both the Master of the Earthly Realm and the Little Young Master, the immortals of the Earthly Realm came solely for the Little Young Master.
The moment the group stepped into the Realm Gate of the Earthly Realm, what closely followed was a uniform and resonant greeting:
“Respectfully welcoming the Little Young Master!”
Extremely uniform and resonant; yet, they had completely forgotten their proper master clean away.
Thus, within the Realm Gate, the immortals of the Earthly Realm stood respectfully on both sides, all clad in neat, sharp attire, standing tall and straight in neat rows.
In the past, when the Little Young Master came to the Earthly Realm, although there were also many immortals greeting him, such a grand spectacle had never been seen before. Storing doubt in his heart, the Little Young Master asked directly: “Why are you all so… grand today?”
Hearing this question, an immortal official standing at the head of the queue stepped forward, cupping his hands in response: “Reporting to the Little Young Master, the Little Young Master hasn’t returned to the Earthly Realm for three hundred years, and your subordinates all miss you dearly. Having just received Immortal Official Bai Yu’s message, we were all overjoyed in our hearts, which was why we gathered spontaneously to welcome you, Young Master.”
Hearing this, the Little Young Master couldn’t help smiling: “Ye Xin’s words are very well said. Since that’s the case, hasn’t your Realm Master also not returned for three hundred years? How come you all forgot about him?”
Immortal Official Ye Xin hastily said: “The Little Young Master may not know, but your subordinates previously accompanied the Master to attend to matters outside, so…” Because they saw him every single day, there was naturally nothing to miss.
Hearing this, the Little Young Master couldn’t resist bursting into a light laugh. Out of consideration for a certain Master’s face, he hastily held it back in again, then returned a courtesy to the crowd of immortals, saying: “Then many thanks to everyone for the welcome.”
The Little Young Master had originally intended to board the immortal carriage to head to Yunrui Hall, but at this moment he changed his mind. Turning his head back slightly to the Master of the Earthly Realm, he said: “Having not been to the Earthly Realm for a long time, is the Master of the Earthly Realm willing to accompany this Young Master to look around?”
The Master of the Earthly Realm knew what he was thinking, so naturally there was nothing he wouldn’t agree to. Afterward, the two walked hand in hand across the long path until the immortals waiting on both sides gradually thinned out, whereupon the Little Young Master finally pulled the Master of the Earthly Realm onto the Heavenly Jade immortal carriage. The immortal beast Dijiang, having folded its wings and patiently walked on foot for quite a while, was naturally more than overjoyed at this moment. Its four wings snapped open violently, its wing feathers seeming to carry flames; with just a single flap of its wings, it had already carried the Heavenly Jade immortal carriage behind it a hundred miles away. By the time everyone blinked again, not a trace of its silhouette could be seen anymore.
The Earthly Realm · Yunrui Hall
Yunrui Hall was located in the east of the Earthly Realm, mirroring Qian Palace of the Heavenly Realm from above and below; it was the Little Young Master’s residence in the Earthly Realm. Qian Palace in the Heavenly Realm was built by the Master of the Heavenly Realm’s own hands, while Yunrui Hall in the Earthly Realm was constructed personally by the Master of the Earthly Realm. The two Realm Masters possessed completely opposite dispositions, so naturally, the styles of Qian Palace and Yunrui Hall differed by ten thousand miles.
Qian Palace was magnificent and exquisite, whereas Yunrui Hall appeared resolute and simplistic. The Master of the Heavenly Realm had once asked the Little Young Master half-jokingly which place he preferred, and the Little Young Master answered that he liked both places. The Master of the Heavenly Realm naturally didn’t believe it, so he coaxed the Little Young Master—who was still young at the time—telling him that he didn’t need to consider the feelings of the two Realm Masters, and to just state the true thoughts in his heart.
He had originally thought that the Little Young Master would definitely choose Qian Palace. However, the Little Young Master propped up his tender, fair little cheeks, thinking again and again, and ultimately chose Yunrui Hall. The Master of the Heavenly Realm immediately felt his eyes go dark; after easing up a bit, he refused to give up and asked the Little Young Master why he preferred Yunrui Hall, when clearly that house built by Di Kun was just as uninteresting as the man himself.
The Little Young Master was still young back then, and the Master of the Heavenly Realm was a close elder brother, so having been asked, he answered seriously and earnestly. It was just that this answer almost caused the Master of the Heavenly Realm to pass out from anger.
The Little Young Master switched to his other hand to prop up his little chin, his voice sounding tender and childlike as he said: “Because I like Brother Kun! Of course I like Brother Qian too, but compared to him, I like Brother Kun just a tiny bit more—though it’s only a tiny bit. Brother Qian, you won’t be angry, right?”
The Master of the Heavenly Realm: “…Ahem, your Brother Qian will naturally not be angry.” Originally, the conversation ought to have ended right there; yet the Master of the Heavenly Realm thought about it over and over, holding back again and again, but failed to hold it in, opening his mouth to ask the next sentence after all.
“Then is Chushi willing to tell Brother Qian—what is the reason for liking Brother Kun that tiny bit more?”
The young Little Young Master had never thought about the reason behind it. Hearing the question, he shook his head and pondered a bit, finally knitting his little brows as he replied: “Chushi hasn’t really thought about this carefully either… Perhaps it’s because Brother Kun looks better?”
The Master of the Heavenly Realm: “…” Deceased…
Ever since then, the Master of the Heavenly Realm developed a heart for competing with the Master of the Earthly Realm, searching up all sorts of excuses left and right to ask the Little Young Master which one he preferred. In the end, he discovered that the Little Young Master’s aesthetic taste regarding any person, thing, or matter was completely fine, yet whenever it touched upon anything related to the Master of the Earthly Realm, his heart would lean drastically toward him. The Master of the Heavenly Realm was helpless, ultimately having to admit that it must be the Master of the Earthly Realm’s appearance that happened to strike right at the Little Young Master’s heart, thus making him the one who was unconditionally favored.
This state of affairs continued all the way until after the Little Young Master came of age and understood the world. For unknown reasons, after coming of age, the Little Young Master’s attitude toward the Master of the Earthly Realm underwent some changes. He no longer followed behind him calling “Brother Kun” this and “Brother Kun” that like in the past; instead, he opposed the Master of the Earthly Realm at every turn, snapping back at him for a few sentences even during ordinary conversations.
Originally, the Master of the Heavenly Realm still felt a bit of worry, but later he was informed by the Master of the Mortal Realm that all children in the world go through a rebellious phase. Looking again, although the Little Young Master was always snapping back at the Master of the Earthly Realm, his behavior still carried an air of closeness. After that, the Master of the Heavenly Realm set his heart at ease and stopped minding the way the two interacted.
Further on, the Little Young Master grew into a youth, and his interaction with the Master of the Earthly Realm grew increasingly strange. Looking at the two of them, the Master of the Heavenly Realm felt that one was always recklessly throwing little tantrums, while the other—who clearly didn’t possess much patience—was always able to patiently coax him in a soft and gentle voice. The Master of the Heavenly Realm felt as though he had seen through something, yet thinking carefully about it, it seemed completely ordinary as well. Afterward, he simply dropped it, no longer bothering with how the two got along.
Returning to the topic, the moment the Heavenly Jade immortal carriage descended before the main gates of Yunrui Hall, the palace attendants in the hall had already been waiting before the gates for a long time. As the chief attendant of Yunrui Hall, Bai Yu hastily took a step out of the carriage first, instructing the attendants to welcome the Little Young Master and the Master of the Earthly Realm into the hall.
Trivial matters were naturally left for Bai Yu and Mo Yu to attend to. Before the Little Young Master even had the chance to carefully examine how Yunrui Hall looked nowadays, he pulled the Master of the Earthly Realm straight into the inner chamber of Yunrui Hall—Qiyun.
The two characters “Yunqi” in Yunxiang Palace of the Heavenly Realm were written by the Master of the Earthly Realm’s own hand, whereas the two characters “Qiyun” in Yunrui Hall of the Earthly Realm originated from the hand of the Master of the Heavenly Realm. The handwriting reflected the person: compared to “Yunqi,” the two characters “Qiyun” lacked a sharp, martial aura, yet the intent of protection within them was not diminished in the slightest. Anyone entering Qiyun who harbored malicious intent would naturally be unable to step foot inside.
The Little Young Master pulled the person to sit down in the room. Thinking for a moment, he formed a hand seal to activate Qiyun’s barrier. Just as he was about to speak, he was preempted by the Master of the Earthly Realm.
“Could the Little Young Master’s punishment be an attempt to place this Master under house arrest here?”