Chapter 7

The disciple could only see the side of An Wuxue’s face as he lowered his head, unable to read his expression, and assumed he was simply frightened.

"There is no need to worry," the disciple said. "At present, only a few ignorant people are gossiping about this; many elders and seniors within the sect remain ambiguous on the matter. Besides, the Immortal Venerable is clear in his rewards and punishments and is not a fickle person. There was only one time..."

An Wuxue watched as the frost flower in his hand was crushed, melting into icy water that mingled with the blood on his palm. He tried to focus on the wound, but after a moment, he found his vision blurring.

He blinked. "What?"

"Only once, and it concerned Elder Qin Wei," the disciple paused. "I forgot, you don't know Elder Qin. He is of the same generation as the Immortal Venerable and that former Head Disciple, and is one of the most formidable experts in the sect."

"Elder Qin once publicly demanded that the Immortal Venerable strike that former Head Disciple from the Luoyue Peak registry. The Immortal Venerable pointed his sword, Chuhan, directly at Elder Qin’s brow, nearly severing his very foundation. It seems Elder Qin is still in seclusion, recovering from his injuries. Since then, no one has dared to mention it again."

Qin Wei. A familiar name.

Qin Wei governed the Silyu Peak, one of the many peaks of Luoyue. Any disciple who broke the rules had to pass through his hands. An Wuxue had known Qin Wei since childhood; they had fought side by side and accepted missions to exorcise demons together.

When Nan He had not yet fallen, he and Xie Zhefeng had only the responsibilities of disciples, occasionally leaving the mountain to eliminate demons. When they were free, he would take Qi Xun to Silyu Peak to find Qin Wei.

Qin Wei knew nothing of formations, and since Qi Xun was mischievous and the Lihuo Sect excelled in artifact refinement and arrays, Qi Xun would often hide playful little formations in front of Qin Wei’s cave dwelling. When An Wuxue rang the soul bell to summon Qin Wei, Qi Xun would trigger the array, and Qin Wei would often trip and fall flat on his face.

Once the formation was dispelled, Qin Wei would angrily brush the dirt off his clothes, chasing Qi Xun with his sword while demanding, "Axue, how can you just watch him tease me!?"

An Wuxue would laugh. "Qi Xun means well. You’ve seen enough of these spiritual arrays; perhaps you’ll learn to solve them next time."

"What if I actually get stuck in one and can't get out!?"

"Then Qi Xun and I would naturally break the array for you. What is there to fear?"

Qi Xun would chime in, "Exactly, exactly!"

"..."

Alas...

Later, when the immortals fell, he acted with ruthlessness, showing no mercy either internally or externally. Qin Wei grew dissatisfied with him, seizing every opportunity to make a scene. Since Xie Zhefeng had killed him, Qin Wei must have wanted to use that as leverage to strike him from the Luoyue Peak registry.

But Qin Wei never truly understood Xie Zhefeng.

Xie Zhefeng was too heartless. So heartless that he could clearly distinguish public from private, and merit from fault. Merely because he had held the sect’s legacy steady when Luoyue Peak was crumbling, assisted Xie Zhefeng in securing his position as Immortal Venerable, and deterred the villains of both realms, Xie Zhefeng would never have removed him from the registry.

In his past life, he had indeed made many enemies and gained a notorious reputation. But everything he did in his life was never a betrayal of Luoyue.

"I understand," he said. "Are there any other taboos?"

The disciple shook her head. "Luoyue is the number one sect in the cultivation world; with so many eyes from both realms watching, how could there be so many taboos? However..."

She remembered something and lowered her voice. "Beyond the elders and peak masters, Elder Qin Wei has a personal disciple—just don't mention that former Head Disciple in front of him."

"Why? Because Elder Qin doesn't like it?"

"That’s not it. Senior Brother Song is the pride of our generation. By custom, he should have been the one to take the position of Head Disciple, but for some reason, the Immortal Venerable never permitted it."

"As for anything else, there really isn't anything."

Looking at it this way, it seemed nothing extraordinary had happened over the past millennium. Xie Zhefeng was likely just acting with caution, just in case.

He smiled. "Thank you for telling me, Senior Sister."

"It’s nothing, a small matter. Follow me, it is very late."

An Wuxue nodded.

***

But just as he walked a few steps with the disciple, a scarlet figure suddenly appeared ahead.

The man was sitting on the branch of an ancient tree, leaning against the trunk, his long robes hanging down. He looked down at the two of them with a casual expression.

The disciple was startled. The previous conversation had touched upon many sensitive matters, and she was terrified the stranger might have heard something. She hurriedly bowed respectfully. "Sect Master Qi."

An Wuxue recognized the face of the man in the scarlet robes. He stopped dead in his tracks.

It was Qi Xun.

His former best friend, and the very first person to draw a sword against him when he was surrounded and killed by the masters of ten thousand sects.

Qi Xun leaped down from the tree with a wave of his hand. "No need to be nervous. I have no interest in eavesdropping on what you Luoyue Peak disciples say behind closed doors."

"I came to find Xie Chuhan. But upon arriving at the Frost Sea, I discovered a stranger I hadn't seen before in a place where even birds dare not enter, so I was curious enough to come take a look."

He walked over slowly, staring straight at An Wuxue.

An Wuxue did not speak. He was having a terrible day. Why did everyone he didn't want to see have to show up today?

He lowered his eyes, preparing to feign being a stranger and act reserved, but Qi Xun stopped right in front of him, stared at his face, and suddenly let out a loud laugh.

"I knew it!" Qi Xun laughed, though it sounded nothing like joy. "I wondered why Xie Chuhan had suddenly changed his nature. No wonder! No wonder..."

...No wonder what?

Another gust of spiritual energy swept through. Qi Xun’s laughter still echoed, but he was already gone—likely to find Xie Zhefeng.

The disciple looked around, and seeing that he had truly left, she said to An Wuxue, "That was the Sect Master Qi of the Lihuo Sect I mentioned earlier."

"Lihuo Sect..." An Wuxue murmured. "Didn't the entire sect perish in the tribulation?"

"On the day of the Lihuo Sect’s great calamity, Sect Master Qi happened to be away from the sect and escaped disaster. Afterward, he rebuilt the Lihuo sect gates. Centuries have passed; although the Lihuo Sect is not as prosperous as it was a thousand years ago, the lineage has not been broken."

An Wuxue felt a sting in his nose. He said softly, "That is truly for the best."

The disciple suspected nothing. After Qi Xun left, she led An Wuxue to an unoccupied dwelling on the east side of the Frost Sea. She used her spiritual energy to clean it for him and set up several small spiritual arrays to ward off the cold—it was much warmer than his previous quarters.

Things being as they were, he had no choice but to stay on the Frost Sea and wait for an opportunity.

He slept without dreams. The moment An Wuxue woke up, he realized he had slept exceptionally well, and vaguely sensed why. He opened his eyes and looked to his side.

Sure enough, a fluffy, white ball was curled up right beside him. Sensing him awake, the white ball lifted its head slightly and stretched its wings. "Woo-woo."

An Wuxue sighed helplessly. "...Kunkun."

"Woo-woo..."

He sat up, leaning against the pillow, and Kunkun climbed into his arms. He hugged the creature and whispered, "...It’s me."

He hadn't expected the first person he would confide in to be this little creature in his arms. The Frost Sea was biting, but for the first time since he woke up, he felt a sense of warmth.

Kunkun looked up, its round eyes fixed on him for a few moments, and it let out several soft "woo-woos." It leaned forward and licked An Wuxue's wrist, which was exposed outside his sleeping robe. That was the way they had been intimate in his past life.

He raised a finger to his lips. "Shh, but you cannot tell Xie Zhefeng."

"Woo?"

Kunkun did not know the past and assumed he and Xie Zhefeng were the same as before.

He said, "In any case, you cannot tell anyone. I will find a chance to leave. When the time comes, I will find a way to take you with me."

The miasma beast did not have high intelligence and could not understand the complexities, but when it heard An Wuxue say he would find a way to take it with him, the confusion in its eyes vanished.

An Wuxue stroked its head. Kunkun leaned into his touch. An Wuxue smiled.

He held Kunkun and tilted his head slightly, seeing the sea of pine and cypress outside the half-open window. Today was a clear day, and as the sunlight spilled down, even the Frost-Burial Sea was vibrant. The wind stirred the branches and leaves that never withered in the frost and snow, swaying them gently.

For a brief moment, he felt that the identity of Su Xue wasn't so bad. As long as he could shake off the great trouble that was Xie Zhefeng, who cared about the cultivation world? Being a good-for-nothing was quite nice.

"Woo-woo..." Kunkun rubbed against him again. It seemed to remember something, and with its claws, it pulled a golden leaf from beneath its wings and offered it to An Wuxue.

The moment he took the golden leaf, his long-exhausted soul felt as though it were unfurling, feeling much lighter than before. Was this some kind of spiritual treasure beneficial to the soul?

"Where did you get this—"

Before he could finish the question, someone called him from outside: "Su Xue!"

Kunkun gave a start and leaped out the window. A white shadow flashed and disappeared into the pine and cypress forest behind. An Wuxue quickly stood up, threw on his outer robe, tucked the golden leaf into his sleeve, and went to open the door.

He saw Yun Zhou and Yun Yao walking toward him, one after the other. He was stunned. Yun Zhou saw his confusion and said, "The Immortal Venerable ordered someone to bring us up."

After Yun Zhou spoke, Yun Yao gave a silent nod.

"This is the core of Luoyue; the Immortal Venerable allowed you to live here?"

Yun Zhou scratched his head. "He said it was for us to look after you."

"Just because of that?" Yesterday, Xie Zhefeng had been filled with killing intent toward him because of Chunhua.

Yun Zhou stared at his face for a while. "What else?"

Xuan Fang and Qi Xun had also stared at his face just like them. An Wuxue wondered, "Am I that good-looking?"

Regardless of his past grievances with Xie Zhefeng, based on Xie Zhefeng’s own appearance and cultivation, one couldn't even tell who was nourishing whom in a dual cultivation. Su Xue had originally been a mortal with terrible aptitude, not even qualified to be a furnace; what could possibly be special about him? He hadn't paid attention to his current appearance since he woke up, so he hadn't checked.

Could it be that Su Xue was a breathtaking beauty?

Yun Zhou didn't seem to expect him to ask that. "Huh?"

"Forget it," he couldn't be bothered with things that had nothing to do with him. "Did the Immortal Venerable say anything else?"

"How would I know? I didn't see the Immortal Venerable; we were brought here by the disciples stationed at the Frost-Burial Sea," Yun Zhou rambled. "But it's fine being on the Frost Sea. The Immortal Venerable is back, but the mountain-sealing order hasn't been lifted. Luoyue Peak doesn't seem very peaceful; I heard some demonic cultivators have infiltrated. When my senior brother and I came up, we saw people carrying Soul-Nurturing Tree spirits, conducting a thorough search of all the peaks."