Chapter 51

“That Senior Brother Jin really has patience, even set the wedding date three months from now.”

Lu Ming chuckled with a smirk full of “I get it but I couldn’t do it” sleaziness: “If it were me, I’d want to be the groom that very night! Waiting even a day is an insult to a True Yin body!”

Chen Lili rolled her eyes dramatically and struck back without mercy:

“Look at your behavior. That’s why he’s third on the True Disciple Leaderboard, while you’re just an ordinary inner disciple. He has vision; you? You’re just lustful for her body—you’re base.”

“Heh, so what if I’m lustful? All men are like this!” Lu Ming didn’t get angry, grinning back with his usual cheekiness.

Jiang Ye sipped his tea without expression, casually interjecting: “The wedding’s set for three months from now… but what if someone seizes Xu Qinghuan’s True Yin before then?”

Before he finished speaking, Lu Ming waved his hands frantically, his expression saying “You’re overthinking it”: “Master Jiang, you’ve just joined the sect—you don’t yet understand the weight of a True Disciple.”

He lowered his voice, his expression growing more serious:

“To put it bluntly, a True Disciple wields more power than an Elder.”

“Senior Brother Jin is among the top names on the True Disciple Leaderboard, and his temperament is tyrannical and violent!”

“It’s said that even Elders stronger than him on Jinchen Peak must give him leeway!”

“Within the Tianqing Sect, few dare to provoke him.”

“So, everyone just talks behind their backs about Xu Qinghuan being taken—but who dares act on it? That’s suicide.”

Jiang Ye nodded slowly, a faint glint of hidden brilliance flashing in his aged eyes, his voice still calm:

“I see.”

Who dares?

I dare.

Beside him, Chen Lili burst into laughter, her eyes twinkling with amusement as she stared at Jiang Ye, shaking with mirth:

“Hahaha! Who knew, Master Jiang—you’re old in body but young at heart! You’re interested in this little girl with the True Yin body too?”

Jiang Ye’s expression remained serene; he shook his head slightly, tone tinged with resignation: “Miss Chen, you jest. This old man was merely asking out of idle curiosity—I’m half-buried in the grave already. How could I harbor such thoughts?”

“Heh, don’t pretend!” Chen Lili leaned closer, the faint scent of her perfume drifting into Jiang Ye’s nose.

She pursed her moist red lips, her gaze brimming with teasing amusement: “It’s only natural. Men only grow tame when they’re nailed to the wall. You’re old, yes—but your heart? Maybe it’s still young.”

Jiang Ye’s old face warmed slightly at her bold words; his hand holding the teacup stiffened unconsciously.

He lowered his gaze, pretending to sip tea, silently groaning inside—this talkative little brat was truly hard to handle.

Fang Ming, watching from the side, his already gloomy face darkened further, as if his expression could drip water.

He simply could not accept it.

Chen Lili ignored him completely, yet chatted so warmly with this old man who was half-dead, leaning in so close!

“Miss Chen!” he finally snapped, voice thick with suppressed anger: “Mind your conduct!”

Chen Lili glanced at him, her look as if he were a spoiled child throwing a tantrum.

She didn’t even bother replying—just rolled her eyes and turned away.

Fang Ming froze in place, his facial muscles twitching, unable to utter another word.

The atmosphere inside the wooden hut grew slightly colder.

Lu Ming gave Fang Ming a look of silent exasperation, privately regretting his decision.

He’d only invited Jiang Ye and others over because he’d taken a few thousand taels from him—he felt obligated to show some hospitality, liven things up.

Who knew this Fang Ming was such a buzzkill? Every three words he brought up Chen Lili, and any little thing set him off.

In the end, it was the seasoned Jiang Ye who diffused the tension, offering a few bland pleasantries to smooth over the awkwardness.

But the mood was ruined, no matter what.

After a few more idle words, they rose to take their leave.

Before departing, Chen Lili turned back with a bright smile, waving at Jiang Ye: “Master Jiang, I’m staying in the wooden hut beside the Earthfire Ginseng Herb Garden—it’s not far! Come visit me sometime!”

“This girl…”

Jiang Ye’s old face flushed faintly—he bowed in farewell.

“Farewell, Master Jiang,” Fang Ming muttered coldly, following closely behind Chen Lili.

Jiang Ye narrowed his eyes slightly.

He had seen it clearly—the venomous hatred in Fang Ming’s gaze.

This damn sycophant, how dare he resent this old man?

A flicker of cold malice passed through Jiang Ye’s eyes.

He disliked being hated.

“My apologies, Master Jiang,” Lu Ming lagged behind, approaching with a contrite expression, lowering his voice: “Fang Ming… he’s got a crush on Miss Chen. Sometimes he acts irrationally.”

“I noticed.”

Jiang Ye nodded slightly, offering a warm, seemingly genuine smile—as if he truly didn’t care: “Young love—I understand.”

“You’re so magnanimous, Master Jiang!” Lu Ming sighed in relief, chuckling: “Don’t worry—I won’t bring him next time. He just ruins the fun.”

With that, he bowed and turned away.

Jiang Ye stood at the doorway of the wooden hut, watching the three receding figures, his smile slowly fading into serene indifference.

Fang Ming’s venomous gaze flashed through his mind.

He turned back inside and shut the door.

Three days passed in a blink.

During those three days, Jiang Ye’s routine was full.

By day, he practiced the Five Animal Fist before his hut, using the health-preserving form to nourish his blood and qi, solidifying his foundation in hardened strength.

Occasionally, the chubby Lu Ming would drop by, bringing news from within the sect.

Jiang Ye didn’t mind—he gladly absorbed every detail from the talkative man.

At night, he took his curved blade and entered the crimson Tiankui herb garden.

He moved like a shadow merging with the night, gliding soundlessly between the rows of herbs.

One by one, fire centipedes emerged from the soil—before they could nibble the leaves, he snatched them up, inspected them, and killed them.

Yet, despite capturing over a hundred fire centipedes over three nights, not a single one bore a fire mark on its abdomen worthy of his attention.

“I’ve been here several days now. Time to go down and check on the Director and the others.”

After finishing his Five Animal Fist routine, Jiang Ye calmed his blood and qi, standing still as he gazed toward the mountain’s base.

Humans are not plants or trees—they cannot be without feeling.

The ones he cared for most were Liu Qingshi’s family.

Jiang Ye was a man of decisive action—he quickly packed a few essentials and headed downhill.

Jiang Ye moved swiftly; within the span of an incense stick, he reached the outer sect entrance.

The grand mountain gate shimmered in the sunlight, still imposing and majestic.

To his surprise, he encountered an “acquaintance.”

Li Jianghua—the former fiancé of the True Yin body, Xu Qinghuan.

This boy had once called him “old thing.”

Jiang Ye wasn’t one to hold grudges, so he remembered him well.

Now, the boy was furious, trying to storm the gate, but two Tianqing Sect guards held him firmly.

“Let me in! I’m Xu Qinghuan’s fiancé!”

Li Jianghua’s face flushed crimson, voice hoarse, struggling violently—but he couldn’t break free.

The two guards exchanged glances, their eyes filled with pity and impatience.

One sighed, tone weary: “We’ve told you countless times—Miss Xu is no longer your fiancée. She’s now Senior Brother Jin’s betrothed on Jinchen Peak. The wedding date is set. Give it up.”

“You’re lying! Don’t try to fool me!” Li Jianghua roared. “Qinghuan and I grew up together since childhood—how could she abandon me to become someone else’s fiancée!”

He snapped his head up, locking eyes with the guards, voice trembling with desperate conviction: “Do you even know who I am?!”

The two guards paused, startled: “Who are you?!”

The boy’s confidence threw them off.

Was he from one of the martial arts families in Fucheng?

“I am the eldest legitimate son of the Li family—the number one family in Kanglin County!!!”

Li Jianghua lifted his chin, speaking slowly, as if revealing a monumental secret.

Hearing this, the two guards burst into laughter.

They’d thought he was a noble from Fucheng.

Turns out he was just a backwater county brat.

Now that they knew his origins, their tone turned colder: “If you keep pestering us, don’t blame us for treating you harshly!”

Upon hearing this, the two Tianqing Sect disciples couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Li Jianghua, driven to the brink by never seeing Xu Qinghuan, gathered all his strength and lunged forward.

But the two gate guards were both at the late Dark Force stage—they struck simultaneously with a palm, sending him flying, crashing hard to the ground.

After learning the boy’s background, their demeanor grew even colder and harsher: “If you keep pestering us, don’t blame us for treating you harshly!”

He lay sprawled, struggling to rise—but the force of the two blows left his bones and tendons aching, immobilized.

Li Jianghua, having never seen Xu Qinghuan, was enraged to the point of fury and gathered all his strength to charge inside.

But the two Tianqing Sect gatekeepers, both at the late Dark Force stage, struck simultaneously with a palm strike and sent him flying, crashing heavily to the ground.

“Ah...”

He collapsed on the ground, struggling to rise, but the force of those two palms left his muscles and bones aching faintly, rendering him momentarily unable to move.

At this moment.

A figure emerged slowly from within the Shanmen.

It was an elderly man clad in the robes of a Zhishi of Tianqing Sect, his hair streaked with white, tall and slender, his face as calm as still water.

“Greetings, Zhishi!”

The two guarding disciples immediately smoothed their expressions and bowed respectfully with clasped fists.

“Hmm.”

Jiang Ye gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.

His steps showed no pause, not even a flicker of his gaze toward the slumped figure on the ground—he walked straight past, as if the man were merely a stone by the roadside.

“You... you’re...”

Li Jianghua’s eyes widened.

He recognized him.

The old man was the very one he had cursed as “old bastard” while waiting in line!

The old bastard he had vowed to “deal with slowly after I join Tianqing Sect!”

He never imagined that just days later,

their second meeting would be so awkward.

He lay sprawled on the ground, humiliated, unable even to enter the Shanmen.

Yet that old bastard had become a Zhishi of Tianqing Sect—even the guards at the gate bowed to him respectfully.

Worse still, the man had treated him as if he were air, not even glancing his way.

A crushing sense of humiliation surged through him, compounded by the rage he had already felt at being barred from the Shanmen.

Thud!

A soft sound.

Li Jianghua, overcome with rage and fury, fainted, his head slamming hard against the ground.

Jiang Ye was walking down the mountain when he suddenly sensed a familiar aura.

Below the steps, two figures were slowly ascending.

The lead figure wore a pale green robe, his face as resolute as a mountain, his back straight as a pine that had endured wind and frost.

Behind him walked a young woman.

Her figure was slender and graceful, her features exquisitely carved, her expression cold and distant like snow lotus atop a peak—beautiful to behold, but untouchable.

She wore a simple, plain dress, her steps light, her clear, icy eyes quietly studying the towering Shanmen.

Jiang Ye’s pupils contracted slightly.

Liu Qingshi and Liu Yiyi.

They had arrived.