Chapter 84: Let Go

The Seventh Young Master guessed half right—Lady had indeed cried.

He gazed at the Seventh Young Master in the distance, whose eyes were dim, sighed inwardly, and said softly to Lady: "Why must you do this?"

These two were so awkward that even Zheng Fa felt conflicted.

One had entered Qingmu Sect, mouthed off against heaven and earth, yet what pleased him most was simply the thought that he had brought honor to his mother, and what he anticipated most was just a few words of praise from her.

The other had cried behind her son's back for who knows how long, her eyes still red now, yet when her son came before her, she dared not face him.

Clearly, they were blood-related.

Lady was stunned, smiled awkwardly, and said softly as well: "... It's too shameful for a mother to cry in front of her son."

Perhaps because Zheng Fa's status in Jiushan Sect was different from before, or perhaps because she had already seen through him, Lady was somewhat candid: "I had held it back, but the moment I saw that foolish boy, I felt like crying again."

No matter how well Zheng Fa performed at the Immortal-Grade Gathering, it would not make Lady try to curry favor with him at this moment.

It was merely that the relationship between this mother and son was awkward, and Lady had found an excuse to avoid showing those few moments of uncontrollable genuine emotion.

"But I really do want to curry favor with you," Lady said, as if having confessed the most shameful thing, she felt much more carefree: "Even True Person Zhang said your talisman arts talent is number one in ten thousand years. Once you enter the Baixian Alliance, this foolish boy might even need to borrow a bit of your influence."

"The Seventh Young Master is intelligent and treats others with utmost sincerity; he has lived well in Qingmu Sect."

"He has a bit of cleverness, but his conduct is too foolish..." When criticizing her own son, Lady's words became far more genuine: "If he were malicious, I would feel more at ease. But this person has a soft heart and a foul mouth; he lacks the courage to be a villain and the brains to be a good person. How do you think he will manage in the Baixian Alliance in the future?"

"..."

Zheng Fa truly could not refute this.

"There are some words... just consider me, as a mother, shameless. I ask nothing else of you, only that if in the future he offends someone or encounters a life-or-death calamity, you remember the small kindness of today, and I would be willing to repay it with my life a thousand times over."

Zheng Fa could feel that with the end of the Immortal-Grade Gathering, Lady's posture before him had become extremely low, and the look in her eyes as she spoke was filled with great anxiety.

He thought for a moment and said: "I have one request."

"I know. As long as my Zhao family exists, as long as I am still here, not a single hair on your mother's or your sister's head will be harmed."

Lady promised.

"Oh, then that makes two requests."

"Ah?"

"Turn around and praise the Seventh Young Master twice," Zheng Fa said.

"..."

Sun Daoyu, leaving the Zhao residence, frowned, feeling somewhat bitter in his heart.

Whether the bet was won or lost actually didn't matter—hadn't their faction lost to Shijie Zhang many times before?

But Zheng Fa's appearance truly made him deeply worried.

One Shijie Zhang was already hard enough to contend with.

Now add Zheng Fa, whose talisman arts talent was number one in ten thousand years?

Sun Daoyu found it hard not to worry about the future days of their faction.

Only when he returned to the Chen residence and saw Zhou Qianyuan waiting for him did he feel slightly relieved—Zheng Fa's talisman arts talent might be strong, but Zhou Qianyuan was not bad either!

Setting aside other things, a single spiritual root plus the Geng Metal Dao Body was considered top-tier talent even within the Baixian Alliance.

Once he entered Jiushan Sect and received some cultivation, he could firmly establish his master's school and support the big picture for us senior brothers!

"Junior brother, do not be disheartened. Today you merely lost the talisman arts assessment to Zheng Fa. In the future, once you enter Jiushan Sect, your talisman arts talent will not be as substantial as your spiritual root and Dao Body."

Seeing Zhou Qianyuan frowning, he thought Zhou was still resentful about losing to Zheng Fa and hurriedly comforted him.

"I am not disheartened," Zhou Qianyuan looked at him and said: "A loss is a loss; I, Zhou Qianyuan, am not someone who cannot accept defeat."

"Good!" Hearing him say this, Sun Daoyu immediately became happy: "Master and I were originally afraid you would become too successful, arrogant, and fail to understand that there are always people better than you and skies beyond skies. I did not expect you, junior brother, to be so able to take things up and let them go; you are truly impressive!"

He was truly very happy in his heart. Just as Master said, this Junior Brother Zhou having such a state of mind was far more important than a single Foundation Establishment technique.

Zhou Qianyuan's state of mind combined with such talent made Sun Daoyu's expectations for him even heavier.

"Rest assured. Once you enter Jiushan Sect, Master will certainly impart everything he knows, and even we senior brothers will do our utmost to help you! In the future, not to mention Zheng Fa, even Shijie Zhang, you will surely be able to keep pace!"

"Do your utmost to help me?" Zhou Qianyuan's eyes lit up: "Junior brother actually has a difficult matter!"

"What is it?" Sun Daoyu patted his chest and said: "Whatever Senior Brother can help with, I will help!"

"When Junior brother first met Zheng Shixiong, my attitude was somewhat impolite..." Zhou Qianyuan smiled: "Does Senior Brother know what Zheng Shixiong likes? I wish to go and apologize."

"... Who is Zheng Shixiong?"

"Zheng Shixiong Fa! I heard people say he not only has astonishing talisman arts talent but is also skilled at teaching others. Senior Brother, you know I have always loved talisman arts; I truly admire Zheng Shixiong."

Sun Daoyu's face turned green. He knew this junior brother was somewhat obsessed with talisman arts, valuing it even more than cultivation, otherwise he would not have set his initial grade and still gone to participate in the talisman arts assessment.

"... You don't know that Zheng Fa belongs to Shijie Zhang?"

"I know."

"You don't know that Shijie Zhang's master and our Master are at odds?"

"I know."

"Then you want to go..."

Sun Daoyu felt somewhat shattered in his heart. Master and I both hoped you would become an unparalleled genius, bringing pride to the disciples of our faction, yet you go to apologize to the opponent?

Zhou Qianyuan frowned: "Didn't Senior Brother say I can take things up and let them go? Shouldn't this factional prejudice be put down?"

"... Junior brother, you don't have to listen to everything Senior Brother teaches."

Zheng Fa did not know that Sun Daoyu was currently having a headache trying to straighten out his slightly off-course junior brother; he was now receiving instruction from Shijie Zhang.

Shijie Zhang said to him: "Take out the token."

Zheng Fa took out that black token and handed it to Shijie Zhang. She held the token and nodded: "Do you know how to use this thing?"

Zheng Fa shook his head in confusion.

"It is a beacon. In three days, it will be your day to enter the sect; a boat will come to fetch you—but you must first light this thing, or the boat will not come to find you."

"How do I light it?"

"With money."

"..." This simple and utterly unexpected answer left Zheng Fa speechless.

"One hundred taels of silver, or ten taels of gold... it will light up automatically." Sister Zhang glanced at him lightly, a hint of amusement hidden in her eyes.

That was no small sum of money.

"Is Jiushan Sect so short of funds?" Zheng Fa could not help but ask.

He found it hard to understand; why would the Xian Sect need gold and silver?

"This money is not for Jiushan Sect, but for the disciples who come to fetch you; it is essentially a running errand fee—well, even low-level disciples use gold and silver, after all, most cultivators have relatives and families, and they might all return to the mundane world someday."

... A bit of disillusionment.

Sister Zhang continued, "Let me remind you again: bring as much money as you can..."