After Changing to the Ruthless Way, the Brothers Cried and Begged for Forgiveness-Chapter 458: Eldest Senior Brother, We’ll Wait for You
The Secret Pavilion of Bei Ming Palace was set aside to store the sect’s less important classics and files; few people visited it, yet someone still had to guard and keep it in order. Such a dull, tedious task fell to the steady Fang Cheng Lang.
At first he did not even know what the Secret Pavilion was, and he had no right to refuse, so he went gladly. When he arrived and saw row upon row of dust-sealed records, he was like a traveler lost in the desert who had finally found sweet spring water; he devoured the texts as if starved.
However, to his disappointment, most of the pavilion’s contents recorded the history of the Bei Ming Realm—how Dao Lord Tai Wei established Bei Ming Palace, several important events—and did not contain the detailed information about the outside world he wanted, nor cultivation methods from the Lower Realm. Even so, Fang Cheng Lang did not slack off. He personally examined every single jade slip, unwilling to miss the slightest important detail.
That day, just after he finished his routine cleaning, he had reached for an uninspected jade slip when he sensed someone enter the pavilion. He turned and saw a middle-aged man strolling inside. The man’s face was lean; he wore a moon-white robe, its wide sleeves stirring lightly, with ink bamboos embroidered along the hem—he looked every inch the refined scholar, yet atop his head was a rakish mane of red hair. The two entirely different auras created a curious contradiction in him.
Fang Cheng Lang could not help but take one look, then another. Only when the newcomer gave a soft, amused chuckle did he come back to himself; he cupped his hands and said with some embarrassment: “Senior, your bearing is extraordinary; this junior lost himself for a moment. I ask Senior’s pardon.”
The middle-aged man said with a faint nod: “I have never seen you before. Are you a newly admitted outer disciple?”
“Yes,” Fang Cheng Lang said, then offered directly: “This disciple is Fang Cheng Lang. Since Senior has come to the Secret Pavilion, you must have business here; this disciple is willing to follow Senior’s instructions.”
The man said: “I came to find the selection records of the Grand Alliance for the last thousand years. Do you know where they’re kept?”
“Please wait a moment, Senior.” Fang Cheng Lang fetched a tray, then went to a shelf, took down several dozen jade slips, set them on the tray, and presented them before the middle-aged man.
The man casually picked up a slip and sent his Divine Sense within, then smiled slightly: “This one is not a Grand Alliance selection record.”
“It isn’t,” Fang Cheng Lang said, “it records the inner-sect assessments of Bei Ming Palace over the past five hundred years. I thought it might be helpful to Senior, so I brought it as well.”
The smile at the man’s lips deepened: “You know why I came?”
“If I have not guessed wrong,” Fang Cheng Lang said, meeting the man’s eyes without servility or arrogance even as cold sweat pricked beneath his collar, “Senior should be the steward for the next Grand Alliance selection, reviewing past records for reference so you can set the new trials.”
[He had no idea whether this bit of cleverness would earn the Senior’s dislike. He could only gamble.]
The middle-aged man gave him a meaningful look, then laughed heartily: “You are clever, meticulous, and you know how to take the initiative. Are you willing to follow me and work by my side?”
Fang Cheng Lang was about to answer when the man raised a hand to stop him and said: “Hear me out first. My name is Nangong Yu, third-generation Elder of Bei Ming Palace and a member of the Grand Alliance. I am currently in charge of talent selection in the Middle Thousand World. Your task will be to sort these records for me and obey my orders. When the matter is concluded, I can bring you into the gate as a true inner disciple. What do you say?”
Fang Cheng Lang agreed almost without thinking: “It is this disciple’s honor. This disciple is willing to serve Elder Nangong.”
He had been fretting over how to leave Bei Ming Palace; now that a rare chance had landed in his lap, he would not refuse. Nangong Yu nodded: “I have affairs to handle on this return to Bei Ming Palace. Once I resolve them, I will come back for you. In the meantime, you can continue studying the slips.”
“Yes.”
Leaving Fang Cheng Lang a token, Nangong Yu departed in haste. Fang Cheng Lang held the token tight, his gaze a little dazed. [At last, he had gotten a chance to leave.]
His happiness lasted until he returned at night and saw Quan Ye’s injuries—then it halted abruptly. After an afternoon’s brewing, the wounds looked even more ghastly. Even with salve applied, large swathes of bruised purple remained.
“Ah Ye, who beat you?”
Quan Ye pressed his lips tight and shook his head. Even if he told Eldest Senior Brother, Eldest Senior Brother would have no way to deal with those people; why add to his burden?
Anger flashed across Fang Cheng Lang’s face, followed by guilt: “It is my incompetence. I couldn’t protect you.”
“Eldest Senior Brother…”
“It’s all right,” Fang Cheng Lang rallied, then told Quan Ye and Cui Jue about his conversation with Nangong Yu: “Hold on a little longer. Eldest Senior Brother will find a way to take you out of here.”
Quan Ye’s spirits lifted: “Eldest Senior Brother, I believe you.”
“The Middle Thousand World?” Cui Jue seemed to think of something; he froze for a moment, his heartbeat quickening.
“A’Jue, you…”
“Eldest Senior Brother!” Cui Jue stood up in excitement and said: “Eldest Senior Brother, our Five Elements Dao Sect and other seniors who ascended the Heavenly Ladder went to the Middle Thousand World. You might have a chance to meet them!”
At that, Fang Cheng Lang could not help growing excited as well. Yes—those seniors who had Ascended from their cultivation world were in the Middle Thousand World. If he could find and recognize them, perhaps there would be a way to return to the cultivation world.
His breathing grew heavier: “A’Jue, Ah Ye, don’t worry. If I can find the road home, I will come back for you. We came together; we will leave together.”
“Good!”
“Eldest Senior Brother, we’ll wait for you!”
The three pressed their palms together, faces alight with hope and excitement.
But Fang Cheng Lang waited a whole year.
Over that year, there was no word from Nangong Yu. Su Ming, who had gone out with an Elder, returned; Cui Jue passed the Alchemy Hall’s assessment and took the opportunity to give Quan Ye the identity of a pill slave, bringing him into the inner sect as well. Now only Fang Cheng Lang remained, still in the outer sect, waiting bitterly for Nangong Yu.
At the same time, in the cultivation world, Five Elements Dao Sect—
Zhou Jin Yue paused for a step when a figure flickered past like lightning before her eyes, then continued into the sect’s main hall.
Inside, Sect Master Ji Yuan sat in his chair, sighing long.
“Did Daoist Master Qing Yan come to trouble you again?” Zhou Jin Yue asked.
“He is suffering,” Ji Yuan said.
“He isn’t the only one suffering.”
Ji Yuan did not wish to dwell on it and heaved another sigh. Zhou Jin Yue took the initiative to change the subject: “Those hiding in the shadows have started moving again. News just in today: Kunwu Sect’s Spirit Vein was drained overnight, and its Spirit Core destroyed.”
With a bang, Ji Yuan slammed the table and sprang to his feet: “Outrageous!”
Chapter 458: Eldest Senior Brother, We’ll Wait for You
Comments