Early spring had arrived, with grass flourishing and orioles wheeling through the air. It was a splendid season. Outside Xujia Village, amid green hills and clear waters, a young boy lay on his back in the lush grass, his arms folded beneath his head, relaxed and at ease.
Pale golden sunlight fell across the boy’s face, warm and gentle. Comfortable beneath it, he narrowed his eyes and rested peacefully.
He stayed there for the entire afternoon. Only at dusk, when the last traces of light had vanished beyond the horizon, did the boy lazily yawn and sit up.
As he reached the village entrance, a young servant boy came trotting toward him and said quickly, “Young Master, someone from the branch family has arrived. I was told to come find you.”
The boy frowned, then immediately relaxed. “Then let’s hurry back.”
The servant quickly led the way. After crossing several stone-paved paths, they reached a large residence. The boy followed him inside. A guest was already seated in the main hall: a middle-aged man in a long robe, his eyes gleaming brightly and his temples prominently raised. He appeared to be an Acquired-Realm expert.
The boy paused, then hurried inside the next moment. “I heard we had a guest. Forgive me for not coming out to welcome you.”
The middle-aged man was named Xu Cheng. He was one of the branch family’s capable stewards, and the head of the branch family had sent him to fetch this young master, much to his displeasure.
This was hardly a desirable assignment.
What sort of place was Xujia Village? The Xu family was a great clan. Leaving the main family aside, even one of its branch families ranked among the foremost households in a city such as Fenglin. Xujia Village, meanwhile, was little more than an outlying estate belonging to the branch family. Over the years, the people sent there had gradually grown into a modest population.
Any young master who enjoyed even a little favor, even a concubine-born son, would rarely be sent away to such a place. This particular young master’s circumstances were even more awkward. He was not the son of the current head of the branch family, but the only son of the previous head, the current head’s sickly elder brother. He had originally been a legitimate son of the direct line, but his father’s death had left him in an uncomfortable position. Not long afterward, he was simply sent to Xujia Village. In name, the entire estate had been bestowed upon him. In truth, it merely ensured that he would never lack food or clothing; whether he genuinely held authority over Xujia Village was another matter.
Had he been more capable and able to keep the people on the estate under control, he might never have achieved anything particularly grand, but at least he could have become a local tyrant. Unfortunately, the young master had a gentle temperament. He neither berated the servants nor had much of a temper. As the years passed, only the Xu family’s strict household rules kept the servants performing their duties properly on the surface. In their hearts, however, few of them thought much of him.
Xu Cheng had naturally come this time because something important had happened. Otherwise, why would an eighth-level Acquired-Realm martial artist like him, one of the more notable figures of the Acquired Realm outside the family, come to a backwater full of country bumpkins?
Still, there was a distinction between master and servant. Xu Cheng was highly valued by the head of the branch family, but he was a martial artist who had risen from the family’s hereditary servant stock. His martial strength might command respect, but he could not forget the most basic rules. A master was a master, and a servant was a servant. Even toward a forgotten and neglected young master like Xu Ziqing, Xu Cheng had to maintain a minimum degree of courtesy.
He rose to his feet. Relying on his status as an eighth-level martial artist, he did not bow and merely inclined his head. “Young Master, I, Xu Cheng, have come on the head of the branch family’s orders to bring you back.”
Xu Ziqing smiled. “May I ask why Uncle has summoned me?”
Xu Cheng replied, “Young Master is already thirteen by traditional reckoning this year. In the Xu family, whether one comes from the direct line or a branch line, every descendant who reaches this age must be sent to the main family to have their spiritual roots tested. As a descendant of the direct bloodline, Young Master is naturally no exception.”
Xu Ziqing lowered his gaze. Naturally, he did not want to leave Xujia Village, but the weak could hardly contend with the strong. What had to come would come, so he readily agreed. “When do we leave?”
Seeing that the young master was neither spoiled nor overbearing and carried himself with calm composure, Xu Cheng gained a little more respect for him. “If Young Master does not mind, the sooner the better. Why not come with me first thing tomorrow morning?”
Xu Ziqing nodded. “Then we’ll do as you say.”
That night, Xu Ziqing tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
He had not originally belonged to this world. In his previous life, he had been the son of a wealthy family in a world utterly unlike this one. He had grown up surrounded by love, but unfortunately, his health had always been poor. He lived for eighteen years, yet spent most of them confined to his sickbed or sitting by the window. Even going downstairs to stroll through the garden and admire the flowers had been a rare luxury.
The system of power in that world was also completely different. People there were naturally in decent physical condition, but what they relied on far more was something called “technology.” With technology as their foundation, humanity had already made several journeys through the cosmos. Their lifespans, however, remained short; even the longest-lived could not reach two hundred years.
This world was different. Here, people absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and drew that power into themselves to temper their bodies. Those without spiritual roots could, at best, forge themselves into martial artists. By entering the Dao through martial arts, they could reach the Innate Realm, but that was the end of the road. Those born with spiritual roots, on the other hand, had hope of an immortal destiny. Unlike martial artists, once they could truly draw spiritual energy into their dantian, they would no longer be ordinary mortals.
Xu Ziqing had been reincarnated directly into his mother’s womb. All he knew was that she must have been a beautiful woman, yet he had never seen her since his birth. His father, on the other hand, had been a gentle and refined man, but his health had also been poor. He died before Xu Ziqing was old enough to speak. His father had clearly been the legitimate eldest son and had headed the branch family for several years, yet the moment he died, control of the branch family passed into the hands of his own younger brother.
That uncle was named Xu Mengqian. He was shrewd, but not a bad man. Still, once his principal wife had borne him sons of his own, how could he comfortably keep the legitimate eldest grandson nearby? Xu Ziqing was therefore merely kept and provided for elsewhere. Had he not, in his previous life, apparently drunk one bowl too little of Meng Po’s soup, the people whispering in his ear might long ago have shaped him into an idle, spoiled wastrel and ruined his entire life.
Elio’s Notes: Meng Po’s soup is a legendary drink taken before reincarnation that causes souls to forget their previous lives. Xu Ziqing’s joke is that he must not have drunk enough, since he still remembers his.
Xu Ziqing himself had never possessed much ambition. Having spent his previous life bedridden, he already considered himself extraordinarily fortunate simply to have a healthy body in this one. As he grew older, he came to love the mountain scenery he had so rarely been able to enjoy before and hoped to spend his entire life peacefully in Xujia Village. He had never expected that he would still have to leave in the end. Now he only hoped they would not discover some blasted thing called a spiritual root growing in his head. Otherwise, he would be forced to remain with the main family, and what sort of life awaited him afterward was impossible to say.
The next morning, a carriage rumbled out of Xujia Village. Xu Ziqing had never practiced martial arts and rarely performed physical labor, so his constitution was not particularly strong. Xu Cheng had anticipated this. He had made the journey to the village at full speed on horseback, relying on the strength of an eighth-level martial artist, but for the return trip he had arranged a carriage. He drove from the front while Xu Ziqing slept inside. They traveled day and night, eating dry provisions and drinking stream water. Xu Cheng remained full of energy, and even the horse pulling the carriage was no ordinary traveling horse and showed no sign of fatigue. Xu Ziqing, meanwhile, slept whenever he grew tired and watched the scenery through the carriage window whenever he was awake. The journey was not especially difficult.
Three days later, they arrived at Fenglin City, where the Xu branch family resided.
The carriage did not stop along the way and headed directly for the Xu residence. It was a sprawling compound filled with layer upon layer of buildings. Two stone lions stood at the entrance, carved by some unknown master craftsman into imposing figures of remarkable grandeur. Xu Cheng jumped down from the carriage and struck the ring against the vermilion gate twice. A servant opened the door.
Xu Cheng called out, “Young Master Xu Ziqing has returned! Hurry and come help the Young Master down from the carriage!”
At his shout, two maidservants quickly emerged from inside. They approached the carriage, lifted the curtain, then lowered their heads and extended their arms to help their young master down.
At last, a hand came to rest on one maidservant’s wrist. Unable to help herself, she looked up and found herself facing a smiling face. Though some childishness still lingered in his features, his brows and eyes already held a refined, gentle handsomeness. Her cheeks reddened. Too flustered to speak, she hurried to help him down.
After Xu Ziqing stepped from the carriage, he said, “Thank you for the trouble,” then released her arm and stood on his own. Xu Cheng was growing impatient and called to the young master several times before Xu Ziqing hurried to catch up, and together they entered the main residence.
Someone inside had already reported their arrival to the head of the branch family. Xu Mengqian came out to see Xu Ziqing. After exchanging a few polite words, Xu Ziqing addressed him as “Uncle,” then a servant led him back to his room. He heard that everyone had already assembled. After resting for a few days, they would set out for the main family.