Yu Wenmu smiled faintly and placed the brocade box in Luo Shangyan"s hands. "Sect Leader Liu is right. We don"t need to stand on ceremony." And then he said to Liu Yunzheng, "Since Young Master Han is taking part in the Immortals League Compet.i.tion this time, it"s better for me not to. I am on the cusp of breaking through. My master has ordered me not to exert too much inner energy."
"Oh?" Liu Yunzheng"s face was wreathed with smiles. "Your Highness is about to break into the Core Forming Realm? Congratulations!"
"I have to take my leave now." Yu Wenmu seemed to be quite indifferent about things. He smiled faintly at Luo Shangyan with these words. With his chest and head held high, he strode out of the hall, his hands behind his back. He did not even deign a look at Xiao Chen while pa.s.sing him by.
Beckoned gently with a whistle, the kirin clambered over. Yu Wenmu jumped onto its back with a light leap. The kirin raised its head and bellowed, striding out toward the horizon.
Xiao Chen turned and re-entered the hall. He returned the f.u.xi Zither strings to Liu Yunzheng. Liu Yunzheng said to him, "Han Chen, you"d better trained diligently in the coming days at the Wind-riding Pavilion. I will send a few disciples over to wait on you."
Xiao Chen smiled gently. Was he sending men to guard him? He answered, "Thank you, Master."
Liu Fenghuang said with a t.i.tter, "Junior Brother Han, you are so awesome just now! You scared His Highness"s beast mount so much that it dared not get up." Liu Yunzheng put on a cross face. "Fenghuang, don"t talk nonsense!"
Liu Fenghuang stuck out her tongue and spoke softly at Xiao Chen"s ear. "Although I don"t like His Highness for his bit of haughtiness, he isn"t weak in cultivation. He is ranked 26th on the Heaven List."
Xiao Chen began to ponder a little. Ranked 26th on the Heaven List. And Ling Yingfeng was only 29th! It looked like this man was even more powerful in cultivation than Ling Yingfeng. It seemed that he spoke about his teacher too...
Liu Yunzheng coughed and said, "Fenghuang, bring Miss Luo back to take a rest." Liu Fenghuang nodded and pulled Luo Shangyan outside. Xiao Chen said, "I shall take my leave too, sir."
"Wait!" Liu Yunzheng called him back.
"Master, what other instructions do you have?" Xiao Chen turned back and addressed him.
Liu Yunzheng hesitated for some time. Actually, he was most worried that Luo Shangyan would develop feelings for Xiao Chen while helping him recover. The strange looks in their eyes gave him more reason to worry. One was an eccentric genius who could rouse the potential of the divine zither. The other was the Third Prince of the Zhou State.
He could only blame himself for letting Yu Wenmu see Luo Shangyan one month ago. And he should not have let Luo Shangyan treat Han Chen too, a month later.
"Nothing. Have a chat with me, won"t you?" Liu Yunzheng knew it was too late to say anything else. He smiled and said this instead.
Liu Yunzheng only allowed him to leave when Liu Fenghuang returned. Returning to the Wind-riding Pavilion, Xiao Chen could only let off a quiet sigh. It would be even more difficult for him to see Luo Shangyan in the future. He cast a look in the direction of the courtyard she resided in. Then his figure shifted as he moved out.
Now that his inner strength had completely recovered, it was not difficult for him to circ.u.mvent the guards and penetrate the formation barrier. He disguised his aura and started to execute the Immortal-override Steps. His Divine Sense sweeping before him, he tried to locate the room where Luo Shangyan was. He approached its door lightly and knocked.
Normally, no one would knock at her door. Usually, the guards would be yelling outside if anything happened. Luo Shangyan immediately guessed it was Xiao Chen. She opened the door hurriedly and dragged him in.
"Why are you here? It"s very dangerous."
Xiao Chen was silent for a long time before letting off a gentle sigh. "Leave with me. I"ll bring you away during the Immortals League Compet.i.tion."
Luo Shangyan did not say anything. She watched herself quietly in the bronze mirror. After a long time, she answered softly, "Go. Don"t come and see me again."
"Senior Sister Luo!" Xiao Chen could not believe his ears. Was the person before him that Senior Sister Luo of the past? It had only been three months. Why had she changed so much?
Luo Shangyan turned back her head and smiled gently at him. "Junior Brother Xiao, many things are predestined. You can"t change it. It"s fate."
Xiao Chen could not quite understand what she meant. Surely, she could not say it was fate which made her marry Yu Wenmu! He said, "You are obviously unwilling. Why must you force yourself? The only thing that Yu Wenmu can give you is the t.i.tle of a Princess Consort!"
He could not understand why she had changed so much in a matter of three months in Violet Manor.
Luo Shangyan smiled plaintively. "But you, what can you give me?"
In the room, both were silent. Her question rendered Xiao Chen speechless. He moved his lips but ended up saying nothing. Then, he turned and smiled. "You"re right. I"m no Prince. I cannot give you a Core-forming Pill too."
Listening to these words, Luo Shangyan"s face turned even paler. Her body trembled slightly. Before Xiao Chen could leave, she went forward to grasp his arm. She sobbed. "That"s not what I mean... "
Xiao Chen turned around and saw tears welling in her eyes. His heart ached suddenly and he wanted to give himself a slap. She had once risked searching out the skills of the Three Pure Sect for him. She had even won him a Training Tablet at the Battling Platform. Why had he said this and made her sad?
Luo Shangyan suddenly fell upon his shoulder and started weeping. It was as if all her grievances of the past days were turning into tears. They gushed out without any restraint.
Xiao Chen pulled her gently into his arms and said to himself, "Oh, Xiao Chen, Xiao Chen, you know full well these are not her thoughts. You know full well that she did this so that you would not get implicated. Why must you say something to break her heart? Hasn"t she suffered enough for the past few days... ?"
After a long time, Luo Shangyan finally raised her head. She continued to sob. She had no news of her master who had raised her and instead was brought to Violet Manor by a strange turn of events. She had undergone ordeals of death. She could find no one to speak about all her sufferings. The only friend she was left with was Xiao Chen.
"Do you really have to do this? Zhou State is far bigger than you think. And the true power of the Teal Jade Sect is beyond your present imagination... "
Xiao Chen understood she was referring to the f.u.xi Zither strings. He had told her everything. The only thing he left out was the fact that he was a Mystic Cyan Sect disciple in his last life--that this f.u.xi Zither was a gift from his master.
With a gentle sigh, he wiped the tears from her face. He headed out of the room and strode on the mountain path. His mood was low. He could never forget the helpless look in Luo Shangyan"s eyes just now.
If only he was still that Mystic Cyan Sect disciple at the Nascent Soul Realm of the past... if only his Master Ling Yin was still around! Then Yu Wenmu would not matter, the Zhou State would not matter...
His footsteps shifted and soon Xiao Chen headed for Chu Lingjiao"s courtyard.
"Why are you so free to visit me, Junior Brother? Your earth-shattering pluck of the string just now was a real eye-opener for me!"
Chu Lingjiao sat under a flowering tree, gently wiping the cold, shining Immortal"s Sword in her hand. Xiao Chen walked over and cut the chase. "Do you have a comprehensive plan for the Immortals League Compet.i.tion seven days later?"
Chu Lingjiao raised her head and looked at him. She smiled lightly. "Of course I have a comprehensive plan. Have you got yourself ready, Junior Brother Han?"
"You must guarantee Luo Shangyan"s safety. If she suffers even a graze, don"t even think about getting the divine zither."
Chu Lingjiao smiled quietly and enchantingly. Her smile was faint. "Draw your ear closer... "
He drew closer, guiding his ear to her lips. After 30 minutes, he returned to the Wind-riding Pavilion. He must certainly bring Luo Shangyan away this time. Even if it meant opposing the entire Zhou State.
After he did his breathing exercises, he stood up and hit the ground with a palm. The shock sent tremors across the entire Wind-riding Pavilion. He was about to break into the Foundation Building Realm and the feeling of his Qi Refining Realm welling to its acme returned to him again.
The Spiritual Qi was plentiful at Violet Manor and his cultivation speed far exceeded that in the Human World. Thanks to the Mystic Cyan Cultivation Method, he could fight a Core Forming Realm warrior once he began Foundation Building. If he drew on the Immolation Spell of the Three Elements and executed the Dragon"s Wrath, he might even slay a Lvl 1 cultivator in the Core Forming Realm.
One more thing. The training methods of the Heaven"s Talisman was still in his recollection. Once he executed the Three Devil"s Turns, he could even kill any Core Forming Realm superior!
These were all his trump cards for the moment.