Xu Ziyan stared at the ruins of his home, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
All right, all right. He admitted it was partly his fault. At first, he had been too injured to move, let alone repair the cottage. Later, he had been struck by lightning every day, and whenever he came back once every few days, Xu Zirong practically had to support him home. He had even less energy for repairs then. After finally stealing a thread of divine lightning, they had gone straight to Qilin Tower. Come to think of it, the shabby little cottage had done remarkably well to last as long as it had…
(Mr. Thatched Cottage: Sob, sob… At last, someone understands how hard I’ve struggled!)
Lightning-element spells were of no use for this kind of work, and Xu Ziyan did not want to make Xu Zirong do it. His brother’s wood-element spells could help enormously, but Zirong had already worked hard for more than half a year. It was time for Xu Ziyan, as the elder brother, to take responsibility.
He carried out everything still usable from the collapsed cottage, piled it to one side, and began sketching a design for a new house on the ground.
This would be his and Zirong’s home for a long time. Since it was their own place, they might as well make it as comfortable as possible.
After drawing and revising his plan for quite a while, he finally came up with something that satisfied him.
With the design settled, the next step was to build it.
Fortunately, cultivators possessed far more stamina than ordinary mortals, and Foundation Establishment cultivators had particularly astonishing strength.
Working together, the brothers finished everything in a single afternoon. Xu Ziyan had originally wanted to do the work himself, but Zirong looked at him so pitifully, with an expression that practically said, I want to help Big Brother, that he could not bring himself to refuse.
On second thought, working together was also a way for two brothers to show their closeness. Why insist on doing everything alone just to make his little brother rest? ╮(╯▽╰)╭ Once the wooden house was complete, Xu Zirong took charge of cleaning while Xu Ziyan lit the stove and prepared dinner. They had gone an entire month without fresh, delicious food. Even after taking Inedia Pills, he still felt as though his stomach were empty.
Having already worked all afternoon, Xu Ziyan made nothing elaborate. He kneaded some dough, cut it into noodles, fried up a big basin of his secret seasoned sauce, and then the brothers sat in their brand-new kitchen, bowls in hand, slurping away with abandon…
Xu Zirong had never cared much for satisfying his appetite. Perhaps spending so much time with Xu Ziyan had changed him, because now he felt a meal was incomplete without delicious food. Only food made by his brother counted, of course.
“Mmm… That smells wonderful! You two wretched disciples! You’re eating without calling your master?!”
The brothers had eaten nearly half the basin of noodles when Luo Bigfoot’s thunderous roar suddenly sounded outside the wooden house.
Both paused. Then they reacted in completely different ways.
Xu Ziyan naturally got up to fetch an empty bowl, while Xu Zirong immediately scooped another enormous helping of noodles into his own.
“Zirong, there’s plenty left,” Xu Ziyan said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. What was it with Master and Zirong? Were they born to dislike each other? His normally sensible little brother became remarkably childish whenever Master was around…
“Wretched disciple!” Luo Bigfoot happened to kick open the door at that very moment. The sight of Xu Zirong’s maneuver made his eyebrows shoot up in anger.
Xu Zirong glanced at him with the smug satisfaction of a victor. He knew perfectly well that, if forced to choose between his master and his little brother, Xu Ziyan would protect him unconditionally.
Luo Bigfoot understood that look at once and nearly choked with frustration. He really wanted to beat this rotten child! But would it not be utterly humiliating for a Nascent Soul cultivator to bully a little boy?
“Master, please, have some.” Detecting the dangerous gleam in Luo Bigfoot’s eyes, Xu Ziyan, the self-appointed peacemaker, hurriedly filled a large bowl with noodles and respectfully set it before him.
Luo Bigfoot snorted forcefully through his nose and looked at Xu Ziyan as if to say, For your sake, I’ll let that brat off this once.
Xu Ziyan could only smile apologetically. Being caught between his brother and his master was exhausting…
If Luo Bigfoot came second in a contest of eating speed, no one would dare claim first. A massive bowl of noodles vanished almost in the blink of an eye.
Looking at the empty bowl thrust toward him, Xu Ziyan’s eye twitched. He silently filled it again, glanced at the nearly empty basin, and obediently went back to kneading more dough…
Only after the three had eaten their fill did Luo Bigfoot pat his satisfied belly and leave.
Xu Ziyan stared after him in bewilderment. What exactly had Master come here for?
Xu Zirong watched Luo Bigfoot’s retreating back with a dark expression. That fellow came here for nothing but free food and drink…
Xu Ziyan quickly put the incident behind him and resumed his busy routine.
He practiced Thunder Storage and the Nine Transformations of the Purple Firmament. When he had time, he wandered around the sect’s various peaks and even ran into Wei Qing, whom he had not seen for quite a while.
To everyone’s surprise, Wei Qing had not become Wei Ying’s disciple. Instead, Zhou Xueting of Shuyun Peak had recruited him on behalf of her own master. Wei Ying had not been left empty-handed, either. Apparently, he had taken a liking to Le Hu, who had come from the Far Western Lands, at first sight. The other new disciples had likewise been accepted by different elders. Yu Hao, meanwhile, had been assigned to a Golden Core cultivator so obscure that hardly anyone seemed aware of his existence.
During the examination, they had all been rivals. Now that they were fellow sect disciples, however, it was only natural to keep in touch.
Xu Ziyan’s openhearted personality allowed him to get along reasonably well with most people. Whether these friendships would hold up in a life-or-death crisis remained to be seen, but on the surface everyone was perfectly cordial.
Of course, Xu Ziyan was not a supreme-grade spirit stone. He could not possibly win everyone’s favor, and some people were determined to dislike him no matter what.
“Pah! Who does he think he is?” A tall, thin youth spat viciously toward Xu Ziyan’s retreating figure.
He turned toward Hu Yutian with a fawning expression. “Senior Brother Hu, that fellow really thinks he’s somebody! He ought to take a good look at himself. With his background, he isn’t even fit to carry your shoes! And now he wants everyone to get to know each other better? He’s obviously trying to cling to your coattails!”
Hu Yutian said nothing. His background and talent gave him every reason to be proud, but pride did not make him stupid. How could he fail to recognize such crude attempts to sow discord?
The youth came from a family related to the Hu clan. His three spiritual roots were thoroughly ordinary, and although he was an inner-sect disciple of the Flowing Light Sect, an elder had accepted him only as a nominal disciple. The difference between a nominal disciple and a true disciple, even within the inner sect, was enormous.
Bluntly speaking, accepting someone as a nominal disciple meant an elder did not think especially highly of him. The elder would offer some guidance while keeping him under observation. If he developed well, he might eventually be promoted to a true disciple. Otherwise, he could remain a nominal disciple his entire life.
This fellow followed Hu Yutian around all day, running errands for him, simply because he hoped Hu Yutian’s protection would make life easier within the Flowing Light Sect. If someone as powerful as Xu Ziyan wanted to align himself with Hu Yutian, there would be little room left for an insignificant hanger-on like him.
In the cultivation world, even becoming someone’s lackey required a certain level of ability!
Hu Yutian remained silent, so the tall youth assumed his words had sunk in. Delighted, he continued pouring out increasingly malicious theories about Xu Ziyan’s intentions.
First it was cultivating connections and ingratiating himself. Eventually, he even suggested that Xu Ziyan wanted to infiltrate the Hu clan and steal its secrets. Watching the boy talk nonsense with spittle flying, Hu Yutian felt profoundly helpless.
Before he came here, his mother had repeatedly warned him that he must establish his own network of influence within the Flowing Light Sect. His status as the clan head’s son alone would not earn him the other elders’ recognition.
When his father succeeded to the position of clan head, he had endured a bloody struggle. Without enough strength, forget becoming clan head; simply staying alive would have been an achievement.
Sighing inwardly, Hu Yutian turned and left. He had too many worries. He might as well go cultivate…
* * *
“Senior Brother Xu!” On his way back to Tianluo Peak, Xu Ziyan suddenly heard a delighted girl’s voice behind him.
His cheek twitched, but he turned with a smile. “Junior Sister Xiahou.”
“Hehe, congratulations on reaching Foundation Establishment, Senior Brother,” Xiahou Lian said cheerfully.
Xu Ziyan hastily thanked her and exchanged a few polite pleasantries. For some inexplicable reason, he was wary of this junior sister. He was not afraid she would threaten his life; it was more a strange premonition that she would bring him a tremendous amount of trouble. Yet he could hardly ignore someone on that basis alone. That would be terribly rude.
After a few casual remarks, he hurried away. He could not explain his instinct, but he was convinced that spending too much time around this junior sister would end badly.
“Big Brother, you’re back?” Xu Zirong ran out to meet him from a distance and threw himself into his arms.
“Mm. Were you tired after cultivating today?” Xu Ziyan asked, casually stroking his brother’s head.
Ever since discovering that Xu Zirong’s hair was smoother and softer to the touch than silk, Xu Ziyan’s habit of patting his head had grown completely out of control.
He patted it when something happened, patted it when nothing happened, and patted it when he was bored. If Xu Zirong had not been blessed with such excellent hair, Xu Ziyan might already have rubbed him bald…
“Not tired.” Xu Zirong smiled, buried his face against his brother’s chest, and took a deep breath.
What’s this faint scent of orchids?!
His eyes flashed red, returning to normal by the time he lifted his head. In an offhand tone, he asked, “Big Brother, why do you smell of flowers? Have you started using incense again?”
“A scent?” Xu Ziyan looked at him in confusion and sniffed his own sleeve. Strange. He could not smell anything.
Still, if Xu Zirong said there was a scent, there must be one. He thought back over the day but could not recall going anywhere near flowers. The only opportunity to pick up such a fragrance must have been his chance encounter with Xiahou Lian.