Unless there was some deep, irreconcilable hatred, no one would deliberately offend such a remarkably talented cultivator. Jiang Tianxing was a clever man and naturally wanted to leave Xu Ziyan with a good impression.
Xu Ziyan smiled. “Nothing in particular. Did you have something planned, Fellow Daoist Jiang?”
Jiang Tianxing smiled and shook his head. “Not really. But I heard a guest from Tianyu Sect arrived at the Fang residence yesterday. I’d like to pay a visit. Would you two be willing to come along?”
“Tianyu Sect?” Xu Ziyan repeated the three words slowly, his expression changing. Behind him, Xu Zirong’s face remained cold, but a spark flashed in his eyes.
“What? Is something wrong?” Jiang Tianxing was highly skilled at reading people and immediately sensed that Dao Lord Luo Yun’s esteemed disciples seemed none too fond of Tianyu Sect. He groaned inwardly.
He had invited Dao Lord Luo Yun’s disciples only to show the Fang family that the Jiangs also had powerful backing. Although Jiang Ying herself had chosen to marry Fang Tianyun, as the Jiang patriarch he had to consider his entire family.
He did not know whether the Fang family, supported by Tianyu Sect, had ambitions to annex the Jiangs. His purpose in inviting Luo Yun’s disciples was to prevent just such a possibility.
He had hoped to rely on the Flowing Light Sect’s reputation to balance Tianyu Sect. But if members of the two great sects actually fought, the man who brought them together would certainly suffer for it.
“All right. Let’s pay them a visit.” After some thought, Xu Ziyan agreed. The Tianyu Sect disciple might well be Bai Hua. He had already decided to stay away from the man, but at least he needed to recognize his face. Otherwise, if he did not even know what Bai Hua looked like, he might blunder straight into trouble later.
“Uh…” Xu Ziyan had agreed readily, but now Jiang Tianxing hesitated. “Do you have some dispute with Tianyu Sect disciples, Fellow Daoist Xu?”
He finally had to ask. If there truly was a conflict between them, he would rather give up the brothers’ support than risk bringing them face-to-face.
“A dispute?” Xu Ziyan blinked, then laughed. “No. I once met a Tianyu Sect disciple briefly, that’s all. I just wonder whether it’s the same person this time.”
Naturally, Xu Ziyan’s claim was nonsense. The only Tianyu Sect disciple he remembered meeting was Lin Xiaotian, a disciple of the sect leader who would never attend the wedding of a minor family in a remote city. Based on what he knew from the novel, the visitor was much more likely to be Bai Hua.
Bai Hua had not crossed paths with him in this life, so Xu Ziyan was not worried the man would fall in love at first sight. The original Xu Ziyan had fallen for Bai Hua instantly, but the current Xu Ziyan was sure that transmigration had not changed his orientation.
Fall in love with a man? Ahahahaha… What a joke!
Xu Ziyan had only been trying to placate Jiang Tianxing. But behind him, Xu Zirong’s pupils contracted sharply.
Brother is lying!
He knew very well that the only Tianyu Sect disciple Xu Ziyan had encountered was Lin Xiaotian. Given Lin Xiaotian’s status, he would never appear at a small family’s wedding as an ordinary Tianyu Sect representative.
Why is Brother lying?
Xu Zirong narrowed his eyes dangerously before a smile touched his lips. The expression vanished so quickly that Jiang Ying, who happened to glance over, thought her eyes had deceived her.
Secretly delighted, Xu Zirong unconsciously licked his lips. Brother’s secrets were endlessly fascinating. He could hardly wait for the day when he uncovered them all. What expression would Brother make then? Just thinking about it was entertaining.
Once Jiang Tianxing was assured that Xu Ziyan had no dispute with the Tianyu Sect disciple, he made up his mind to take them both to the Fang residence.
The Xu brothers were accompanied by two of Jiang Ying’s older male cousins. Their aptitude was considerably inferior. Although both were a little older than Xu Ziyan, they had only reached the early stage of Foundation Establishment.
Even so, they counted as outstanding young talents in Wuti City. Unfortunately, next to the Xu brothers, their achievements seemed almost insignificant.
Jiang Bin looked enviously at Xu Ziyan chatting easily with Jiang Tianxing. The two addressed one another as equals. Jiang Bin, on the other hand, felt enormous pressure whenever he faced the family patriarch.
He had once fancied himself one of Wuti City’s outstanding young men. After seeing the Xu brothers, he finally understood what it meant to be a frog at the bottom of a well.
Was reaching early Foundation Establishment in his twenties something to boast about? Just look at those brothers! The younger one was not even twenty and had already reached late Foundation Establishment. How laughable that Jiang Bin had always considered his own strength impressive. Now he saw that he was only a slightly bigger chicken among chickens, nowhere near being a crane.
His disappointment showed on his face, and his steps slowed. Unexpectedly, his younger cousin pushed him from behind. “What are you daydreaming about?”
Jiang Bin and Jiang Ling got along well. They were competitors in some sense, but their rivalry was healthy. Looking at the two figures ahead, however, Jiang Bin suddenly found their competition rather pointless.
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Ling asked, puzzled by his cousin’s dejected expression.
Jiang Bin pursed his lips toward the two men ahead. “There’s no comparison. Next to them, the rest of us might as well be thrown away…”
Jiang Ling looked up just as Jiang Tianxing turned back to glare at them. He immediately shrank behind Jiang Bin. “What nonsense are you saying? Lower your voice!”
“Why?” Jiang Bin looked at him, confused.
Speechless, Jiang Ling pinched him lightly in the ribs. “The patriarch just looked back at us!”
“Huh?” Jiang Bin started and looked up. By then, Jiang Tianxing had already turned away, and he saw nothing.
He gave Jiang Ling a questioning look. Jiang Ling sighed. “Enough with this talk of throwing us away. They have excellent spiritual roots and talent. What’s the point in being envious? I keep telling you that you think too much. Our talents are ordinary, so let’s work hard. Who knows what opportunities we’ll encounter in the future? You spend all day sighing like a little old man. Why not use this as motivation instead?”
Jiang Bin thought his cousin’s consolation was somewhat unreliable, but it was still better than the trap of self-pity he’d fallen into. Besides, Jiang Ling had a point. Natural talent mattered, but effort and opportunity mattered too. Who knew how much harder the brothers had worked to reach late Foundation Establishment before turning twenty? If Jiang Bin worked harder himself, he might yet have a chance to surpass them.
Having reached that conclusion, Jiang Bin felt much lighter, and the change soon appeared on his face.
Xu Ziyan happened to glance back, then smiled at Jiang Tianxing. “The younger generation of your family has plenty of promise, Fellow Daoist Jiang.”
Jiang Tianxing laughed. He knew Xu Ziyan had seen through his little scheme to motivate the younger generation by exposing them to the brothers’ superior achievements. Fortunately, Xu Ziyan did not seem offended.
The two continued chatting and laughing as they approached the Fang family residence, and the little episode was soon forgotten.
Naturally, the Fang family would not neglect a visit from their future in-laws. They specifically instructed Fang Tianyun to greet them at the gate. Ordinarily that responsibility would have fallen to Fang Tianrui, but he had been in a poor mood lately and had even spent the previous night away from home without returning. Fang Mian had been so angry that he smashed a table.
“Hahaha! Brother Jiang, you’ve finally arrived!” A hearty laugh rang out from the reception hall, accompanied by a blazing fireball.
Jiang Tianxing’s brow twitched. He was about to counterattack when another streak of red light suddenly appeared close to him.
Cursing inwardly, he dodged the red flash. But in doing so, he could no longer defend against the ice spike that flew toward the unprepared Xu Ziyan.
The ice spike was not particularly powerful, and Xu Ziyan should have been able to stop it. But an unexpected attack could still leave him looking thoroughly disheveled even if he blocked it successfully.
“Eh?” The person whose booming laughter had sounded earlier was already engaged in a fight with Jiang Tianxing, but he continued observing the others. What he saw shocked him so badly that Jiang Tianxing landed a blow and knocked him out of the air.
Xu Ziyan was surprised by the sudden fireball, but not so surprised that he could not defend himself. He was raising his wrist to strike when a blood-red blur flashed past. With a boom, the fireball was whipped away…
Xu Ziyan looked at the distant red point disappearing into the sky, then at the enormous blood-red vine swaying gently as though asking him for praise. He gazed melancholy toward the heavens at a forty-five-degree angle—
As Zirong grew stronger, he had begun protecting his older brother in return. There was nothing wrong with that, of course, yet Xu Ziyan felt strangely dissatisfied.
The growing gap in their strength left him with complicated feelings. If things continued like this, someday he might not even be able to beat his own little brother. What would become of his magnificent image as the older sibling?
“Brother, are you all right?” Xu Zirong stepped forward and thoughtfully checked Xu Ziyan for injuries.
Xu Ziyan stared at him speechlessly. That fireball was at least five meters away when your vine sent it flying! Even if I wanted to be injured, how could I possibly manage it?
Meeting his brother’s resentful look, Xu Zirong’s eyebrows twitched. Then he smiled brilliantly. “I’m glad Brother is all right.”
Hiss…
Several sharp intakes of breath sounded nearby. Quite a few Fang family disciples watching the scene were utterly transfixed by Xu Zirong’s smile.
Xu Zirong’s features were undeniably exquisite, but he was always expressionless and cold toward everyone except his brother. Just now, that distant beauty had actually smiled. Although the smile had not been directed at them, the onlookers suddenly understood why someone might spend a thousand pieces of gold to win a single smile.
Some even felt that if they could make Xu Zirong smile at them, they would willingly hand over not merely a thousand pieces of gold but their entire fortunes…
“Hmm? You aren’t Jiang family disciples?” A man in red robes, with an enormous beard that nearly hid his whole face, walked over and addressed Xu Ziyan and Xu Zirong.