Zhan Xiaotian is a very straightforward person.
For example, if he accidentally said too much or ended up in an awkward situation, metaphorically "lifting a stone and dropping it on his own foot," and then got mocked by the Ghost King, he might assume the Ghost King had deliberately pretended to be clueless earlier to keep him in the dark about Wen Jiu’s lack of awareness, just so he could enjoy watching him embarrass himself now, using this as blackmail to keep him down for a hundred years.
Similarly, a dog accidentally tripped over by a human getting up in the middle of the night might naively believe the human had specifically gotten up just to kick him.
So, when Zhan Xiaotian glared at him, Ying Wangzhi’s first reaction was no longer to retaliate fiercely, but to feel a headache coming on. Annoyed, he glanced at him and said impatiently, "Don’t look at me! I don’t know either!"
Then, with a wave of his hand, he sped away. Up ahead was the real Ghost Realm. Ying Wangzhi shot forward with a burst of speed, leaving the other two behind, as if that would somehow shake off his troublesome romantic rivals.
At that moment, Wen Jiu was in a state of excitement, as if he had just cleared the clouds to see the moon. He had just had a breakthrough, feeling light in both body and mind, with a clear and bright future ahead, no longer plagued by the hesitation and dullness of the past few days, where any little thing could send him into deep thought or trigger a meditative trance. When he saw Ying Wangzhi running off with the Linglong Snail, Wen Jiu immediately rushed after him.
Zhan Xiaotian, seeing the two suddenly speeding up, didn’t quite understand what was happening but quickly shifted from sitting on his sword to standing, pouring spiritual energy into his feet as he accelerated to chase after them.
Ying Wangzhi glanced back. He had kindly left them some space to bicker, but they didn’t appreciate it, which only made him more frustrated and annoyed. Instinctively, he didn’t want them to catch up, so he put on an extra burst of speed and flew even faster.
It was like a chain reaction. The three of them, chasing and racing each other, flew faster and faster, until they became like three streaks of colored meteors in the sky. A journey that should have taken them half a day was shortened to less than an hour.
Zhan Xiaotian still hadn’t come to terms with reality. When he caught up with Wen Jiu, he grabbed him and asked, "It’s impossible. If you didn’t know your feelings for Master before, then why have you always opposed me?"
Wen Jiu responded calmly, "It was probably instinct."
Zhan Xiaotian: "And you even tried to scheme against the Ghost King?"
Wen Jiu: "Instinct."
Zhan Xiaotian: "You even went out of your way to speak ill of us in front of Master! You gave Master the snacks I had prepared for so long as if they were your own, and you even went to the trouble of disguising yourself as a spirit pet to stick by Master’s side—how do you explain that!?"
Wen Jiu: "There’s no need to explain. I did it because I wanted to. I think it’s probably just intuition and instinct."
Zhan Xiaotian, enraged: "Is instinct all you have to say?!"
Wen Jiu tilted his head slightly, as if seriously considering it. "Wanting to be close to Master and feeling that the other disciples are an eyesore, so I did everything I could to monopolize Master’s attention—aren’t you doing the same? All this just proves my feelings for Master are pure enough to have become a part of my subconscious."
Zhan Xiaotian couldn’t take it anymore. Overwhelmed by the provocation, he turned and ran away.
Wen Jiu watched his retreating figure and followed at a leisurely pace, a subtle, sharp-edged smile slowly spreading across his composed face.
At the same time, he noticed that Ying Wangzhi was watching him cautiously, as if he were staring at some strange and terrifying creature. The cold aura he exuded was impossible to ignore.
Both of them had worn the same expression for years—Wen Jiu with his constant smile, and Ying Wangzhi with his perpetual coldness—each using their chosen mask. Their brief exchange of glances felt like a silent confrontation. Wen Jiu’s smile soon faded, and he said in an eerie tone, "I didn’t understand things before, but there won’t be a second time where I make an enemy’s wedding gown."
Ying Wangzhi snorted coldly, not saying another word.
Back when they were returning to the cliff, Ying Wangzhi had already grown suspicious when he got the chance to sneak into Master’s dream. He had wondered how Wen Jiu could be so patient, even going so far as to help him by luring Zhan Xiaotian away. Such a romantic rival would only become more troublesome with time.
But now the truth was out: Wen Jiu wasn’t some unbelievably patient romantic rival. He simply hadn’t been aware of his feelings before. Yet, even so, Ying Wangzhi still couldn’t bring himself to laugh. If Wen Jiu, with all his cunning methods and skills to win favor, could do so much without being fully aware, now that he had awakened to his feelings, he would surely become even more difficult to deal with.
In comparison, Zhan Xiaotian, that simple-minded romantic rival, seemed much more lovable. Even though he was dramatic, at least you could hit him when he got on your nerves.
Ying Wangzhi was a man of action. At this moment, Wen Jiu had irritated and frustrated him. But fighting Wen Jiu was impossible—he only knew how to escape, defend, and manipulate formations. Feeling vexed, Ying Wangzhi simply distanced himself and decided to find Zhan Xiaotian for a fight instead.
He truly got bullied by Alpha, so now he wanted to take it out on Beta. After all, that dumb dog would forget why they were fighting by the end of it.
—
Yu Sheng was having a sweet nap inside the Linglong Snail when he suddenly felt the ground shake. Yawning, he emerged from the snail, his entire body turning into a white flash, appearing right in the middle of the imminent clash between a blade and a sword.
The two fighters, Zhan Xiaotian and Ying Wangzhi, were in the heat of battle, but upon seeing their master suddenly appear, they panicked. Both tried to pull back, but it was too late—the arrows had already left the bow. If this continued, the one to be gravely injured would undoubtedly be their master, who was standing in the middle, too drowsy to even open his eyes as he stretched.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye, yet for these three, whose skills were exceptional enough to play tricks with the palms of their hands, it felt agonizingly slow. Wen Jiu, too, noticed the sudden change and rushed to protect their master, but he knew he was too far away to make it in time.
As the tips of the sword and blade neared, they even sliced through a few strands of white hair. In that instant, as two of them turned deathly pale and one nearly fainted in fright, the scene of their master dying before their eyes decades ago flashed through their minds like a lantern, about to overlap with the terrifying reality.
Just when Yu Sheng’s hair was about to be pierced, his sleeve torn, and his chest nearly stabbed through, he finally finished his stretch. In a swift movement, he turned his body, and a burst of golden light erupted from him. His horsetail whisk extended like two live snakes, striking the two incoming weapons. At that moment, all their attention was focused elsewhere, and as the golden light flared, the image of an elderly man faded, replaced by the faint outline of a young man with delicate features and long, flowing black hair. The aura he exuded was unstoppable.
In the next instant, there were two clear "ding" and "clang" sounds, like metal striking metal, accompanied by sparks. Yu Sheng spun in place, still standing firmly in the middle, without a single scratch on him. Meanwhile, Zhan Xiaotian and Ying Wangzhi had swapped places, drenched in cold sweat, as their misdirected weapons collided with the rocks on the opposite side.
When they looked back, the strange phenomenon had vanished. The white-haired elder was still the same smiling old man, holding his whisk and looking harmless, as if he had just casually stopped two quarreling children. Even the tear in his sleeve had been repaired by some spell, leaving no trace.
Ying Wangzhi was filled with fear and dread. He didn’t even bother to sheathe his blade. Steadying himself, he immediately knelt and pleaded for forgiveness. His mind was in a mess, and he couldn’t think of anything to say, so he merely called out, "Master!"
Zhan Xiaotian was equally terrified. His legs buckled, and he too knelt to apologize. But Yu Sheng used two waves of force to lift them back to their feet. "He panicked, but why did you panic too? Don’t you remember that your sword has a spirit? The person you don’t wish to harm won’t be hit by a fatal blow."
Zhan Xiaotian finally realized, his eyes turning red as he lowered his head. "Disciple... Disciple forgot in a moment of panic."
Yu Sheng turned to Ying Wangzhi. "Do you have so little faith in your master’s abilities? If you have so many worries, how could you possibly go all out in a sparring match with me?"
Ying Wangzhi remained silent, clenching his fists as his chest rose and fell. After a long pause, he finally found his voice, hoarse as he spoke. "Master, please don’t... don’t test your disciple like this again. This kind of fright, I cannot bear."
Yu Sheng casually picked a direction and started walking, nodding as he went. "Alright, as long as you don’t give me the chance, I won’t scare you."
Both disciples fell silent.
Wen Jiu followed quietly behind, raising his hand to gently grasp the strand of hair that had been cut off. A soft white glow enveloped it, and the 'white hair' slowly grew back to its original length. Only then did he release it.
Yu Sheng, noticing this, was momentarily stunned, his eyes brightening. "I didn’t expect you to have this kind of skill. You know, even cultivators who maintain their youthful appearance struggle with hair loss and baldness. It might take a thousand years before they find any elixir to help with that."
Wen Jiu smiled lightly. "Disciple only wished to restore Master’s hair."
Yu Sheng: "No… let’s hope I never need to restore or grow any hair."
Wen Jiu kept his head down, smiling without a word.
Yu Sheng: "…Could it be I’ve already had hair loss issues? Wen Jiu, have you secretly helped me grow back hair when I wasn’t paying attention?"
He suddenly felt that Wen Jiu’s technique seemed far too practiced!
Wen Jiu shook his head, his expression pure and innocent. "No, Master, you’re overthinking it."
Yu Sheng looked at him doubtfully. "Really? How come I remember that most cultivators my age have receding hairlines? Why haven’t I had to worry about that?"
Wen Jiu nodded earnestly. "Truly, no. Master is naturally beautiful, perfect in every way. How could you face such problems? There’s no need for your disciple to step in."
Yu Sheng, still worried, reluctantly believed him.
The earlier tension had passed. Yu Sheng yawned again, and in the distance, he saw a group of people rushing towards them, led by someone with an imposing aura, clearly a figure of authority. Feeling uneasy, he hurried over to Ying Wangzhi and tried to snatch the Linglong Snail from his arms, eager to hide back inside.
But those people were moving at lightning speed, and in just a few breaths, they had arrived nearby, greeting with voices like thunder.
"Subordinate greets Lord Ghost King! Greetings to Alliance Master Zhan of the Celestial Alliance! Greetings to Holy Master Wen of the Spirit Realm! And… uh, could this be the legendary one destined to save the three realms from fire and water, the fabled Chosen One?!"
As these impassioned words fell, dozens of pairs of eyes immediately focused on Yu Sheng.
Yu Sheng's expression remained blank, only a bewildered and awkward smile remained. "Huh?"
What? The Chosen One? Are you talking about the main character? Is there something you need?
Who am I? Where am I? What’s going on here?
Why did I have to face so many strangers unprepared right after coming out of the snail for the first time?
Yu Sheng appeared calm as he patted the shoulders of his two disciples, Ying Wangzhi and Wen Jiu. "You’re looking for them, so I’ll just step aside."
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