AVL Chapter 31

On the ruins, everyone’s expressions were hard to read.

 

Sheng Zhongfeng seemed to age decades in an instant, his hands shaking as he gathered the still-warm ashes into a spirit urn.

 

Sheng Biyan, in disgrace, knelt and crawled over, lips trembling as he begged, “Brother, brother, please save my son…”

 

Sheng Zhongfeng’s fingernails dug into his palm as he clutched the ashes, and he snapped in a low voice, “Enough!”

 

With a heartless monster like Sheng Jiao, who dared kill Sheng Zehuai right in front of him, would he hesitate to kill another?

 

Law does not yield to emotion.

 

Ever since coming out of Shentian She, Sheng Jiao had truly become “Worthy of Heavenly Dao.”

 

How could Heaven’s Will know emotion?

 

Sheng Biyan’s face turned ashen, his once-straight back collapsing in defeat.

 

The other noble families present looked at each other, their faces equally grim.

 

Seeing that this tactic wouldn’t work on Sheng Zhongfeng, they didn’t waste any more time, exchanging a few polite words before leaving in a huff.

 

Elder Qu clutched his chest in anger, following behind Qu Xiangren and muttering, “Xi Jue’s return to Central State is definitely for revenge, we…”

 

Qu Xiangren shot him a cold look.

 

Elder Qu immediately shut up.

 

Once outside the Sheng estate, Qu Xiangren finally gave a low order: “Summon Heng Qinglian, Rang Duan, and Feng Chongyang to the Qu family. There’s something important to discuss.”

 

Elder Qu was stunned and said anxiously, “Those three families are at their peak now, why would they come?”

 

“Heh.” Qu Xiangren sneered, “Of course they’ll come. Back then, all the Central State families trampled the twelve xiangwen. Now that Xi Jue is back, how could any of them sleep easy?”

 

Elder Qu didn’t quite understand.

 

“Go.” Qu Xiangren’s eyes were icy cold. “If they want to live, they’ll come.”

 

Elder Qu could only nod.

 

Nowadays, few Central State families still had Tianyan spiritual veins. Though the Qu family’s had mostly withered, a centipede dies but never falls down; on the surface, they still maintained the façade of a great clan.

 

The Heng, Rang, and Feng families controlled half of Central State. Elder Qu thought they would ignore the Qu family as before, but surprisingly, both the Heng and Feng families agreed to come.

 

The Rang family’s head, Rang Duan, was in closed-door life-or-death seclusion, so the current head, Rang Chen, handled the matter.

 

In the Qu family’s underground Tianyan ancestral hall, the lamps burned bright as Qu Xiangren lit incense, flicked it, bowed respectfully, and placed it on the altar.

 

The Heng, Feng, and even the Liu family had come uninvited—nine people in all.

 

The entire ancestral hall was deathly quiet, only the sound of burning candles.

 

After finishing the incense, Qu Xiangren turned and said coldly, “A decade ago, many knew of the twelve xiangwen. Now only a few remain—these past six years, it seems most elders and lords have been killed by Xi Jue, right?”

 

Everyone was silent.

 

Over the past six years, those who knew what Xi Jue’s xiangwen was had died one after another, but only the foolish Qu family had broadcast to the world that their elder was killed in a brothel in the Southern Territory.

 

Qu Xiangren’s gaze was sharp as a blade: “Do you all still think it was my Qu family that took the twelve xiangwen?”

 

“Oh, that’s not for us to say.” The man on the left, Heng Qinglian, lounged lazily, playing with a rhinoceros horn lamp. “He was crippled in your Xiezhi Sect. How do we know your Qu family wasn’t playing the victim?”

 

Qu Xiangren snapped, “Heng Qinglian!”

 

Heng Qinglian, former head of the Heng family, was handsome and smiled lazily: “Our families have lost plenty of people these years, but have we ever blamed anyone? And you, daring to provoke Xi Jue in broad daylight—aren’t you afraid Sheng Jiao will investigate?”

 

Qu Xiangren: “You—”

 

“The Xiezhi Sect isn’t the mess it was six years ago, and Sheng Jiao isn’t your greedy, unscrupulous brother. He stands for justice.” Heng Qinglian said lightly, “Sheng Jiao even dared to seal Shentian She. If he investigates what happened back then, I’m afraid everyone here will die under ‘Worthy of Heavenly Dao.’”

 

Qu Xiangren was left speechless.

 

Heng Qinglian finished, then looked at the cold-faced man beside him with a smile: “Chongyang, what do you think?”

 

Feng Chongyang, surrounded by chilling yin energy, said simply, “We can’t let Sheng Jiao find out.”

 

Qu Xiangren took a deep breath, suppressing his anger: “If Xi Jue tells Sheng Jiao…”

 

“He won’t.” Heng Qinglian smiled. “If he did, that killer god Sheng Jiao would kill him too. That kid is much smarter than us.”

 

Qu Xiangren, frustrated and fearful, asked, “Then what should we do?”

 

Heng Qinglian replied carelessly, “Kill Xi Jue, of course.”

 

The ancestral hall fell silent.

 

The candle wick suddenly popped, the warm light flickering, knocking a bit of burnt incense ash onto the altar.

 

Three sticks of incense—two short, one long.

 

***

 

Xi Jianlan sneezed, nearly bumping into Sheng Jiao’s back.

 

Central State was much colder than the Northern Territory. Even though the summer solstice had passed, he still felt cold in his thin clothes.

 

Sheng Jiao rarely stayed at the Sheng estate; only the courtyard he’d lived in as a child was his refuge. The elegant main room had a dust-repelling rhino statue, and though it had been empty for years, it was still spotless.

 

When Xi Jianlan was young, he loved coming here to play with Sheng Jiao, and he slipped in now as if he owned the place, looking around for a while and even flipping through a half-read book on the desk. He smiled, “Looks like you haven’t been back in ages. I remember you were reading this six years ago.”

 

Sheng Jiao noticed the fatigue in his eyes and frowned: “Go rest.”

 

Xi Jianlan was no longer a cultivator; his sickly body was even weaker than an ordinary mortal, and with his injuries still unhealed, his face was faintly pale. But he acted as if nothing was wrong, brushing it off and pushing open the carved window.

 

Several osmanthus trees grew in Sheng Jiao’s courtyard; as soon as the window opened, a strong fragrance rushed in.

 

Xi Jianlan, out of habit, reached out and grabbed a handful of osmanthus blossoms, sitting on the windowsill and licking them as he ate, casually asking, “Can’t you kill all the Sheng family?”

 

Outside, Juan Xunfang nearly tripped, and he and Shang Yuan stared wide-eyed at each other.

 

This Xi Jue… really dares to say anything!

 

Sheng Jiao didn’t seem offended. He shook his head: “No crime.”

 

“You’re so *sigh*.” Xi Jianlan said in disgust, “You’re a stuffy gourd who can’t even argue, and you won’t even bother to set a trap so they’d commit a crime?”

 

Sheng Jiao: “…”

 

Xi Jianlan could just barely make out a subtle “Are you sure you want to say that in front of the Xiezhi Sect Master?” on Sheng Jiao’s coffin face, so he hopped down from the windowsill, patted his hands, and said, “Forget it, you’re hopeless. I’m going to sleep.”

 

Seeing how Xi Jianlan had just left the Sheng family speechless, Juan Xunfang reluctantly went to prepare a side room for him.

 

But Xi Jianlan had no intention of leaving, instead strolling with his hands behind his back straight toward the main bedroom.

 

Juan Xunfang’s eyes nearly popped out and he called out, “Xi Jue!”

 

Xi Jianlan looked at him in confusion.

 

“To the side room!” Juan Xunfang gritted his teeth. “How can a mere criminal sully the sect master’s quarters? What kind of propriety is that?!”

 

If it were any other man, Juan Xunfang wouldn’t be so on guard, but Xi Jianlan’s mouth was always full of “true love” and “defiling innocence,” so in Juan Daren’s heart, a seed had already been planted—“fox spirit, hopeless cut-sleeve.”

 

Seeing Xi Jianlan dare to go sleep in the sect master’s bed, he wished he could set up a dozen barriers to block him.

 

Guarding the bed was like guarding the sect master’s “innocence”!

 

Every time Xi Jianlan saw Juan Xunfang acting like he was facing a great enemy, he found it hilarious and said with a grin, “But your sect master hasn’t said anything.”

 

Juan Xunfang glared at him.

 

Xi Jianlan lazily asked Sheng Jiao, “Sect master, may I lie on your noble bed?”

 

Sheng Jiao glanced at him but said nothing.

 

Xi Jianlan knew that meant tacit approval, and shot a triumphant eyebrow at Juan Xunfang, enjoying the sight of him turning red and thick-necked with anger, then happily strolled into the main bedroom.

 

Juan Xunfang glared and glared, wishing he could stare him right out the door.

 

Sunlight slanted in from outside, falling by chance on the earring at Xi Jianlan’s ear, the Tianyan pearl reflecting the sunlight straight into Juan Xunfang’s eyes.

 

Just as he was fuming, Juan Xunfang froze, quietly sucking in a breath.

 

Tianyan pearl…

 

No one could take a Tianyan pearl from Sheng Jiao, let alone wastefully set it in an earring.

 

Juan Xunfang’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

 

He seemed to want to say something, but after holding it in for a long time, he just drooped his head like a frostbitten eggplant.

 

Shang Yuan didn’t understand why he looked so devastated, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

 

Juan Xunfang muttered, “Don’t talk to me, I need to be alone.”

 

Shang Yuan said, “Oh,” and let him be.

 

Xi Jianlan had played Juan Xunfang for a fool, and leisurely lifted the bamboo curtain to enter the inner room.

 

The furnishings and decor were just as they’d been six years ago. Xi Jianlan looked around, feeling strangely dazed, as if the past six years of hardship had all been a dream.

 

Back then, whenever Xi Jue wanted to see Sheng Jiao, he never used the main entrance, but always snuck over the wall through the osmanthus grove, then popped his head through the window to try and startle Sheng Jiao as he was reading.

 

But Sheng Jiao was never startled, as if he always knew Xi Jue would appear, opening the window to let the youth leap in like sunlight, brightening the somber room.

 

Xi Jianlan looked around nostalgically, his gaze finally settling on the broad bed.

 

If it were in his youth, he would have jumped up and rolled all over it, messing up the perfectly made bed, then scrambled to fix it under Sheng Jiao’s disapproving gaze, grinning as if to apologize.

 

But now…

 

Xi Jianlan stared at the familiar bed, unable to stop a scene from playing in his mind.

 

A youth in warm yellow robes, lazy and arrogant, leaning on the carved bedpost, eyebrows raised as he glared at Sheng Jiao, calling, “Sheng Wuzhuo.”

 

Sheng Wuzhuo, backlit, his expression unreadable, just remembered him being silent for a long time before suddenly bending down.

 

A faint osmanthus scent brushed his lips, crimson lips quivering under the pressure.

 

“Ah—!”

 

Xi Jianlan suddenly kicked the bed hard, nearly storming out of the inner room in embarrassment, grabbing Juan Xunfang and growling, “I’ll sleep in the side room.”

 

Juan Xunfang: “…?”

 

Juan Xunfang’s mouth twitched, and after a long moment, he finally said, pale-faced, “S-sleep in the main room. The sect master… the sect master didn’t say anything.”

 

“No.” The tips of Xi Jianlan’s ears under his long hair were so red they could drip blood. He put on a serious face: “How can a mere criminal sully the sect master’s quarters? What kind of propriety is that?!”

 

Juan Xunfang: “…………”

 

Shang Yuan: “?”

 

What are these two doing?

 

Juan Xunfang said, “No, the sect master agreed, you can sleep in the main room.”

 

Xi Jianlan said, “No, I’m a criminal, I have no right.”

 

“No, no!”

 

“No, no, no!”

 

The two tugged back and forth three or four times, staring at each other.

 

By the window, Sheng Jiao, who was checking his storage ring, frowned and looked over coldly.

 

Xi Jianlan’s ears turned even redder under that gaze, and he straightened his messy robes, giving a dry laugh: “Sect master, why… haven’t you gone to Xiezhi Sect yet?”

 

Sheng Jiao asked coldly, “Why should I go to Xiezhi Sect?”

 

Xi Jianlan suddenly felt guilty and mumbled, “Oh, I just thought Xiezhi Sect had ‘business’ that needed you.”

 

Sheng Jiao frowned.

 

Just then, Shang Yuan, who was fiddling with the rhino lamp, suddenly froze and said blankly, “Sect master, Xiezhi Sect really does have something urgent. They want you to come right away.”

 

“What is it?”

 

Shang Yuan glanced at the rhino horn lamp again.

 

“They said… the sealed Shentian She illusion realm has suddenly opened for no reason.”

 

Sheng Jiao’s face darkened.

 

The opening of Shentian She was no small matter. If it got out of control and swept people from Xiezhi Sect inside, there would be big trouble.

 

Xi Jianlan, on the other hand, showed a “just as I thought” subtle smile, and stopped pretending to be shy, urging, “Sect master, hurry and go take care of it.”

 

Sheng Jiao instinctively wanted to take him along, but for some reason, his lips tightened as if hesitating.

 

Juan Xunfang was getting anxious: “Sect master!”

 

A moment’s delay outside could mean days inside Shentian She.

 

In a few breaths, Sheng Jiao made up his mind, raising his hand to set up several layers of barriers around the courtyard, saying coldly, “Don’t leave.”

 

Juan Xunfang quickly said, “Better bring Xi Jue to Xiezhi Sect too.”

 

This Sheng family is truly a den of wolves and tigers. Leaving this crippled, powerless person here, he’ll probably be eaten alive.

 

Sheng Jiao seemed very unwilling to let Xi Jianlan enter Xiezhi Sect, his face dark as he said nothing.

 

Xi Jianlan sat in the chair Sheng Jiao had just vacated, lazily flipping through a few pages of a book, and said blandly, “You all should go, Xiezhi Sect business is more important.”

 

Sheng Jiao didn’t say a word and turned to leave.

 

Juan Xunfang glanced back at Xi Jianlan, but was dragged away by Shang Yuan.

 

Xi Jianlan sat in the sunlight, watching Sheng Jiao’s decisive, unhesitating departure. His numb, indifferent heart felt as if it had been struck by a bolt of lightning, a tingling bitterness spreading through his whole body.

 

His fingers clenched the book so tightly he nearly tore the page.

 

“Pretentious,” Xi Jianlan thought coldly. “It’s right that he left. Staying would only get in my way.”

 

But as soon as that thought surfaced, the coldness on his face faded, and he returned to his usual carefree, heartless look, swinging his legs idly, mood bright as if waiting for a good show to begin.

 

If they could use Shentian She to lure Sheng Jiao away, it meant the Central State crowd was truly pulling out all the stops.

 

This show was sure to be spectacular.

 

Xi Jianlan’s lips curled up.

 

Suddenly, a streak of light flew in from outside, slamming down onto the desk.

 

Xi Jianlan, face full of mysterious confidence like a blooming poppy, was so startled he nearly jumped, instantly pulling back his paw, his previously crossed legs now tensed to their tips.

 

Still recovering from the shock and about to curse, he looked at the desk and froze.

 

The thing that had landed on the desk…

 

Was actually Sheng Jiao’s Tianyan pearls, which he never parted with.

 

All 106 Tianyan pearls shimmered with faint lightning patterns, their presence as immovable as a towering snowy mountain, blocking out all the wild winds and waves.

 

Their chill was biting, yet also as warm as spring.

 

Xi Jianlan stared at the obedient Tianyan pearls for a long time, then suddenly burst out laughing.

 

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 (advanced chapters available on kofi)