CHAPTER 37 Where is my Shifu?

Fu Changling didn’t speak, foolishly looking at Qin Yan.

Qin Yan seldom smiled at him. In his memories, the moments when he smiled could be counted on one hand, and the number of times he smiled at Fu Changling, are even closer to none. As he smiled in this moment, his smile was gentle and controlled, like the clear, bright moon with the elegance of a gentleman.

Ordinary people would probably heave a sigh of relief hearing this.

No matter what it was like in the past, the moment one receives the forgiveness of the person involved, they should let go. But the moment Fu Changling heard this, he felt an ineffable, dull pain spreading in his heart. He didn’t feel nervous anymore and quietly sat down. Qin Yan waited for him to reply for a moment, and after not hearing Fu Changling’s voice, he said, “If there’s nothing else.. I’m leaving for the Reaching Moon Palace.”

“You wouldn’t be concerned about it.”

Fu Changling suddenly spoke. Qin Yan didn’t expect him to actually say something like this, so he couldn’t help feeling a little startled. Fu Changling raised his head to look at him calmly. He gravely said, “You cannot say that you don’t mind if you don’t know what had happened at all. If you have not experienced it at all, and don’t understand, you’re not that person. You haven’t endured that person’s pain, nor have you experienced that person’s despair. You cannot, and neither are you qualified to say that you don’t care in his stead.”

There was a tremor in his voice as Fu Changling spoke. “You don’t know how much he cares. He won’t let go. If you knew what he has gone through, then you’ll also be unable to let go.”

As Fu Changling spoke, he was also a little at loss. He wasn’t able to clearly distinguish them himself, what he meant about not being able to let go.

He only knew that he actually felt more terrified facing this unfamiliar and calm Qin Yan, compared to facing the Suiyan Mojun back in those years, who pointed at him with a sword, and tried to kill him.

This fear subconsciously made his body tense, and his hand holding the sheet faintly quivered. Qin Yan looked at him and realized that the Fu Changling at this moment, was like a taut string. If he continued to speak again, maybe this string will snap. So, he remained silent, and only after hesitating for a while, he said, “Perhaps.”

“After all,” he slowly spoke. “The person you spoke of isn’t me.”

Only when Qin Yan reminded him in this manner, Fu Changling realized his gaffe. He reluctantly smiled, trying to cover up the nonsense he just babbled. “I was thinking of other things and confused myself. Shixiong, please forgive me.”

“No harm done.”

Fu Changling didn’t dare to think of anything else. He lifted the quilt to get up, and said, “Is Shifu opening the Hidden Realm of Xuanji tonight?”

“Mn.”

“Then I will go too.” Fu Changling stood up to change his clothes. “I got the array. I understand it the best.”

Qin Yan hesitated for a moment then nodded. “Alright.”

Fu Changling put on his clothes. He was still somewhat fragile, and his gait was rather visibly weak and unstable, but Qin Yan didn’t let him have a rest. As the two people reached the front of the moon arch gate, Fu Changling was about to manoeuvre his sword when he heard Qin Yan say, “I’ll carry you.”

Fu Changling was stunned. He saw Qin Yan pointing out with his finger and the Zhenxue sword leaped out, halting under their feet, and expanding into a circle. Then Qin Yan turned his head and pulled out his white jade sword halfway out of its sheath and handed it to Fu Changling.

Looking at the half white jade sheath, Fu Changling couldn’t help himself from smiling. He reached out with his hands to hold that half-out sheath, and a familiar sensation surged forth.

He followed Qin Yan and stood on the Zhenxue sword with him. Qin Yan seemed to have shown consideration for him since he just woke up feeling unwell as they flew steadily. Fu Changling looked at the back of the person in front of him and the sourness in his heart eased again.

Moonlight sprinkled on the person in front, like a silvery snow cloak on his body, like a glittering river of light. Only looking at his figure from behind, an indefinable contentment bubbled up within Fu Changling.

All of a sudden, he felt that he had behaved ridiculously. As a matter of fact, him coming here already made him independent from his previous life. In his previous life, the relationship between him and Qin Yan definitely did not have a good end. Regardless of whether it was the Fu Clan or Jiang Yebai, they’re a hurdle between them. To relive his life once again, he simply wanted to cherish the present.

He didn’t need to intertwine it with the past, or get entangled with Qin Yan’s random words over letting go or not.

If a person truly liked someone, then regardless whether it was in the previous life or this one, their feelings wouldn’t change. Just like the Qin Yan of the present. Even if they met only for the first time in this life, when he quietly looked at this person’s view from behind, seeing his noble bearing; he would also feel that whether there was a previous life or not, he could always hold this person dear.

Then the same should go for Qin Yan as well.

He had loved Fu Changling in his previous life.

Fu Changling couldn’t help pursing his lips. Looking at the figure of the person in front of him, he suddenly felt a little embarrassed and shifted his gaze to the side, and couldn’t help himself from looking right back.

He also didn’t know where this confidence came from, but he felt that the Qin Yan from this life, will also like Fu Changling just as much.

The instant Fu Changling thought of this, he couldn’t help speaking out. “Shixiong! Shixiong!”

“What?”

“When did you know that I was Shen Xiufan?”

“I had my suspicions during the literary exam. After meeting you at the Spiritual Mountain, I was certain.”

Qin Yan didn’t hide it. Fu Changling was somewhat baffled. “Why did you suspect it was me?”

Listening to this question, Qin Yan gave Fu Changling a rather disdainful side look, and directly said, “Intuition.”

“You understand me so well?”

Fu Changling took a small step forward, and tentatively pulled at Qin Yan’s sleeve. He leaned forward and said, “Shixiong, since you already knew that it was me earlier, why did you still let me enter the Heavenly Palace of Hongmeng?”

“If I didn’t let you in, won’t you just think of other ways?”

“That, I would definitely think of.” Fu Changling earnestly said, “Even though I came for the Moonlight Herb, but Shixiong,” Fu Changling looked at him with bright eyes. “Is the reason you let me in because you were moved when I saved you at the Spiritual Mountain?”

Qin Yan was speechless, as if for a moment, he didn’t understand how he should answer. Fu Changling’s smile brightened even more. “You didn’t sell me out in front of the Golden Light Temple. Isn’t it because in your heart you’re a little bit,” Fu Changling gestured, pinching his thumb and index finger, and said, “a little bit fond of me?”

“Fu Changling,” Qin Yan finally spoke. “Don’t think too much.”

“I won’t think too much,” Fu Changling waved his hand and pursed his lips in a low smile. “Shixiong can be at ease, I know that you’re a shy person. I really didn’t think too much.”

Qin Yan gave him a cold glance, and frowned as he spoke. “I have my own reasons for not confessing about the fact that you were present. Don’t think too much.”

“I understand,” Fu Changling nodded. “This is regarding the responsibility of a Shixiong towards his Shidi. You’re this good towards everyone. You can rest assured, I didn’t think too much. ”

When he said this, Qin Yan knew perfectly well that he was being sarcastic, but he also didn’t know how to dissuade him. He hesitated for a long time, and finally spoke stiffly. “It’s up to you.”

“Shixiong, don’t be a stick in the mud,” Fu Changling teased him. “We’re fellow apprentices, you should smile more at me. Look how beautiful your smile is...”

Qin Yan’s face turned cold. He didn’t speak, and only pulled out his sleeve with a fling, directly swatting Fu Changling to the ground of the Inquiry Moon Palace.

Fu Changling’s entire person slammed straight into the ground, startling everyone in the Inquiry Moon Palace. Qin Yan put away his sword, and slowly came down from midair. Right now, people were wandering to and fro in the Inquiry Moon Palace, evidently making it crowded. Xie Yuqing, who was standing guard at the entrance with other direct disciples, saw Qin Yan and Fu Changling. Her eyes held a little astonishment as her gaze fell upon Fu Changling and feeling uncertain, she said, “Shen Shidi, this is...”

“Stand up.”

Qin Yan kicked Fu Changling with a foot and Fu Changling immediately propped himself up, revealing a smile brimming with vitality on his muddy face. He faced Xie Yuqing and said, “Good evening Shijie! Just now, I have upset Shixiong. Please don’t be surprised.”

Xie Yuqing nodded and turned to look towards Qin Yan. Qin Yan walked forward and bowed to Xie Yuqing. Fu Changling stood up by himself and patted the dirt on his body.

“Is it alright to go in at this moment?”

After Qin Yan and Xie Yuqing finished their greetings, he directly inquired as they looked into the palace. Xie Yuqing shook her head. “The Palace Lord is already leading all the Elders, Chiefs and Patriarchs inside to open the Hidden Realm of Xuanji, and let us stand guard outside.”

Qin Yan nodded. He was extremely confident in Jiang Yebai’s abilities.

“Then I’ll join you.”

After he finished speaking, Qin Yan stood at the entrance with Xie Yuqing. Hearing their questions and answers, he turned his head to look around.

He had come to the Inquiry Moon Palace in his previous life, and then later rebuilt it piece by piece. But there was a huge difference between the former Inquiry Moon Palace and the current Inquiry Moon Palace. He recalled that the Inquiry Moon Palace used to be perennially cold, covered in ice and snow. However, the current Inquiry Moon Palace was lush and green with vegetation, and the courtyard was irregularly strewn with charming flowers and plants. There was obviously someone who meticulously took care of it.

Fu Changling looked at those flowers and plants, and raised his head to tell Qin Yan. “Shixiong, I’m going to take a stroll in the garden.”

Qin Yan lifted his eyes to look at him. Fu Changling gave him a meaningful glance, and Qin Yan said, “Go.”

Fu Changling smiled and leisurely walked over to the backyard.

At this moment, the Inquiry Moon Palace was already placed under an energy barrier and all the great powers of Yunze had gathered together in this. He did not dare to snoop in directly, so he used the pretext of appearing to admire the flowers, and sauntered around the backyard.

After Fu Changling walked away, Xie Yuqing held her sword and lightly said, “I heard that you ran into a demonic cultivator today and saved Yun Yu, Mingyan, and Shen Xiufan.”

“Yes.”

“There is nothing much with Yun Yu and Mingyan, they were only knocked out with a hand chop. It seems like your Shidi was targeted. You’d do well to take notice of that.”

“Alright.”

Qin Yan nodded. Xie Yuqing was silent for a moment, then unexpectedly said, “You seem to like him quite a bit.”

Qin Yan’s movements halted. He raised his head to look at Xie Yuqing and creased his brows. “What makes you say that?”

“You never take affairs involving someone else so much to heart.”

Xie Yuqing spoke straightforwardly. Qin gave a helpless low smile. “You could actually tell.”

“I’ve known you for many years.”

Xie Yuqing held her sword as she looked at the flowers and plants nearby. “At first, I thought that I still understood you, but now, I suddenly see that I don’t.”

“Huh?”

“In the beginning, I thought you didn’t like Shen Xiufan.” Xie Yuqing raised her head to look at him with her clear and bright eyes, as if they could see through everything. “Why a change of mind all of a sudden?”

“It just suddenly felt,” Qin Yan lowered his eyes. “Avoiding really isn’t a solution. There are things that would be better if he was here. I should not act impetuously based on sentiment.”

“You seem to have experienced a lot.”

“Indeed.” Qin Yan lowered his voice. “I had a few encounters outside.”

“Why do you want to help Fu Changling cover up?”

Xie Yuqing seldom spoke much, Qin Yan was a little surprised. This Shijie of his cultivated the same Path of Lovelessness as he did but she had entered the isolation stage much earlier than him. She seldom spoke to people like this. In his memories, he and Xie Yuqing almost never spoke of such personal matters.

But when Xie Yuqing asked, he also didn’t cover up and straightforwardly said, “He has an identity that is inappropriate for others to know.”

“He is a friend?”

“He is an innocent person.”

When Xie Yuqing heard this, she already more or less understood. This person, Qin Yan, even if it was simply an irrelevant person, he would still uphold justice in their stead. Xie Yuqing nodded and hesitated, as if she wanted to say something. Qin Yan saw that she wanted to say something but hesitated, and took the initiative to speak. “Shijie, why do you ask A-Yan so many questions today? ”

Xie Yuqing pursed her lips. These words were difficult for her to speak yet, after holding back again and again, she finally spoke. “If you’re experiencing any difficulties, you can always talk to me.”

Qin Yan revealed a little surprise hearing these words. Xie Yuqing held her sword as she turned around and stiffly said, “I am your Shijie, afterall.”

Qin Yan didn’t speak. He looked at the courtyard in front of him, and for a split second, he recalled that raging fire in the Heavenly Palace of Hongmeng from his previous life; as well as those white flowers that filled the entire sky on the day of the funeral procession of the disciples.

He looked at the figure of the tall and cold-faced woman in front of him, and looked down. After a long time, he said in a low voice. “Shijie need not worry, I haven’t experienced any difficulties. It’s just that after travelling outside, my state of mind has changed somewhat. Before, A-Yan didn’t pay proper attention to the people around him. Now, I want to look after a lot of things- take care of the courtyard for Shifu and not let him drink too much, give the Shidis and Shimeis a lot of good lessons and take them out to learn through experience, and also,” Qin Yan lifted his head and looked at Xie Yuqing. His face was still as cold as usual, but his eyes had softened a lot more. “Accompany Shijie to practice sword more often so Shijie would not be bored.”

With these words, Xie Yuqing’s movements became a little stiff. She didn’t look at Qin Yan and only said, “That is a lot of words.”

Qin Yan knew that she was awkward and didn’t say anything anymore.

When these two were speaking, Fu Changling wandered around the backyard. He observed the terrain and simultaneously walked according to his memory and came to the most suitable place to look straight into the room. After reaching that place, he looked through his surroundings and saw there were a few people around him. He leaped up and landed on a big tree. From this big tree, he could see the scene inside. The Seven Elders of the Heavenly Palace of Hongmeng had formed a circle inside the room. There was a small sphere suspended in the air. This small sphere was precisely the Hidden Realm of Xuanji.

The small sphere gyrated in the air, emitting a faint radiance. Right beneath it, was a special array, interlinking with the light rays from the small sphere, slowly flowing like water.

Fu Changling thought about it and understood that right now, the Hidden Realm of Xuanji was practically in an almost half destroyed state, and could collapse at any time. To enter the Hidden Realm of Xuanji now, they have to rely on external forces to support the internal conditions of the Hidden Realm of Xuanji.

Fu Changling observed the fluctuations in the spiritual energy of the Hidden Realm of Xuanji. At first, it was still stable but not long after, the small sphere began shaking. It should be because there was some fight inside. The Seven Elders immediately changed the energy seals in their hands, allowing the small sphere to settle down.

Fu Changling scanned the Seven Elders and observed their expressions. All of them held a grave countenance as cold sweat streamed down their foreheads.

Only one among them was emitting far more cold sweat compared to the others. It was the Elder of the Daoist Sect, Yuqiong Zhenjun.

Fu Changling’s complexion turned a little cold.

In his previous life, when the energy pulse of the Avici opened, a lot of cultivators from Yunze were seduced by demonic cultivators to defect to the demonic side. This Yuqiong Zhenjun was one of them back then.

So did this Yuqing Zhenjun finally collude with the demonic cultivators behind, and open the energy pulse of the Avici or, was he an undercover of the demonic cultivators right now?

Fu Changling couldn’t tell clearly. He observed Yuqiong Zhenjun’s posture. The Seven Elders were shielding the array of the Hidden Realm of Xuanji. It is reasonable to say that the spiritual energy used by all of them should be about the same. However, this Yuqiong Zhenjun’s spiritual energy was evidently drained faster compared to the other people.

He wrinkled his brows as he saw the Hidden Realm of Xuanji turn more and more faster. This was because there was an enormous mishap taking place in the hidden realm. It was caused by excessive fighting. Even though he didn’t know what caused the accident, he also knew that at this moment, the cultivators inside would want to withdraw as much as possible, but what hindrance did the cultivators encounter inside that they couldn’t retreat and come out?

Fu Changling hesitated for a moment, then turned his hand to cast a spell, and raised it to flick towards Yuqiong Zhenjun’s direction. Yuqiong Zhenjun was disturbed by him and was jolted out at once. In that instant, there was a huge burst of fluctuation in spiritual energy from the Hidden Realm of Xuanji. Everyone was shaken away. The Chiefs of the Three Sects and the Patriarchs of the Four Clans were simultaneously thrown out of the Hidden Realm of Xuanji as they tumbled to the ground and vomited blood; and so, Fu Changling took advantage of the chaos, turning himself into a sphere of light and went into the Hidden Realm of Xuanji.

As soon as he entered the Hidden Realm of Xuanji, he saw that the sky and the earth inside were already splitting apart as huge boulders unceasingly rained from the sky. The ground shook violently, tearing apart the small town he once resided in, leaving no place for one to land.

Fu Changling manoeuvred his sword and urgently rushed towards the location of the seal. In the distance, he saw a burst of magnificent light soaring up. Fu Changling approached closer and saw Jiang Yebai standing alone in the middle of the array with his sword inserted above the seal, and the array beneath the sword was slowly sinking down towards the seal. A beast-like sound came from under the seal as arms continuously broke through it, colliding with the energy barrier and trying to interfere with Jiang Yebai.

Hundreds of people had completely surrounded him. Jiang Yebai’s energy barrier was on the verge of crumbling and he had obviously suffered injuries. Those people seemed like they would split the energy barrier at any time and rush in to gnaw Jiang Yebai clean.

Fu Changling saw this sort of a scene and without demur, took out a medicinal pill from a bottle as he sent forward the Soul-Gathering Pagoda in his hand. The entire spiritual energy of the Hidden Realm of Xuanji rushed forth towards the Soul-Gathering Pagoda. Fu Changling very carefully controlled the transmission of the spiritual energy as he simultaneously pressed his golden fan to his lips and hummed; a golden talisman whizzed forward towards Jiang Yebai, sticking fast onto the energy barrier around him. Jiang Yebai squinted at Fu Changling and seeing who it was, he yelled, “Defend the array!”

It was needless to say that, as Fu Changling was already well prepared. He halted in the air as his golden fan very quickly cut through his hand and the blood drops dripped down from his palm. Fu Changling clenched his first and pressed the golden fan against his lips, as he started humming a few words.

The blood fell down and formed an array in midair. The people below seemed to have become aware of something and rushed towards Fu Changling one after the other. Fu Changling’s array finished taking shape very quickly, and the instant those people rushed up, the blood array beneath his feet enlarged in a flash, and smashed straight down!

Jiang Yebai closed his eyes and pressed down the long sword in his hand as spiritual energy rushed forth in his direction. His sword sealed within the array, entering it inch by inch.

Standing at a high altitude and surrounded by the sound of the fierce winds, Fu Changling only felt that the crack in the sky had worsened. He couldn’t see Jiang Yebai clearly within the vortex of spiritual energy; only feeling the sand flying about and stones hurtling through the air, and flames rising up from all the directions.

Fu Changling glanced up.

The Hidden Realm of Xuanji was about to collapse.

All the Chiefs of the seven sects were jolted out of the Hidden Realm of Xuanji and this kind of big movement would naturally alarm the outside.

Qin Yan and Xie Yuqing glimpsed at each other. Xie Yuqing stepped forward and respectfully asked, “Seniors, do you need any help?”

Yuqiong Zhenjun impatiently spoke. Hearing this voice Qin Yan took out his sword extremely quick and directly split open the door without the slightest hesitation. After that, with everyone else, his sight fell on the Hidden Realm of Xuanji turning at a lightning speed. He sweeped a glance over the people in the room and his complexion changed drastically in an instant as he couldn’t help raising his usually steady tone. “Where is my Shifu?!”

Author’s Notes:

[Small Theatre]

Fu Changling: I liked Qin Yan in my previous life, and like Qin Yan in this life as well. Therefore, liking in the previous life is equal to liking in this life too. Thus, it can be deduced that since Qin Yan liked me in the previous life, he will like me in this life as well. Perfect.

Qin Yan: Your logic is awful. Don’t go around deducing these kinds of things.