Chapter 12

Although traveling by the celestial boat was comfortable and pleasant, it was nowhere near as fast as flying on a sword. From Xizhou to Taihua Sect, the celestial boat had to leisurely fly for an entire day. Thankfully, the view of the sky was quite beautiful, and Helan Xi and Zhu Ruo Shang stood side by side at the bow, enjoying the breeze and the splendid sea of clouds, which made the journey quite enjoyable.

However, as they got closer to Taihua Sect, both of their expressions grew more serious.

He Lanxi knew that Zhu Ruo Shang was worried that he might be expelled for breaking the Unfeeling Ring. He was worried for Zhu Ruo Shang while also feeling gloomy about the upcoming new school year.

It was about to begin again… Three or four classes every day, each class lasting an hour. Even on days without classes, there would be homework. Apart from major festivals like Qingming and Mid-Autumn, there were only two days off each month—this endless, dreary life was about to start again.

He had also heard from his senior brothers that the second year of school was the most important year. Not only did the difficulty of the coursework rise sharply, but the frequency of exams was also twice that of the first year…

The more Helan Xi thought about it, the more depressed he became. He stopped speaking and began fantasizing about jumping off the celestial boat, sacrificing himself to stir the pity of the sect leaders for the students, allowing Taihua Sect’s disciples to escape their suffering, and then having them “praise and extol him,” forever remembering his “kindness.”

Not far away, Changsun Ce and Song Xuanji stood under the Changsun family’s crest. The former looked at the scene of He Lanxi and Zhu Ruo Shang standing side by side and, while admiring their appearance, couldn’t help but wonder, “Why do I feel like these two have become much closer overnight? Is it just my imagination?”

Song Xuanji did not respond.

Taihua Sect had only one chance a year for disciples to reunite with their families. Many disciples only left for the sect on the last day of the holiday. Along the way, the four of them also ran into many disciples from other sects, mostly from sects outside the Four Great Sects. Not to mention the Unfeeling Path’s three beauties, Changsun Ce and the others weren’t familiar with them and could only tell which sect they were from by their uniforms.

Until a group of young boys in black and gold school uniforms flew in on their swords, laughing and waving at Changsun Ce.

“Changsun Ce, I heard you snatched away Zhi Yun’s partner from the Unfeeling Sect in Xizhou?”

Changsun Ce choked up, his ears turning red. “How do you guys know about that? The news travels too fast!”

“I never expected you to like that kind of person. Won’t you suffocate being with him?”

Changsun Ce, flustered and panicked, hurriedly explained, “I’m not, I didn’t! I snatched him for the greater good, I don’t like men!”

“Changsun Ce, listen to my advice—give up. You won’t be able to win over the beauties of the Unfeeling Sect, if even the Helan Sect can’t do it, what makes you think you can?”

Changsun Ce, in a flurry of panic, turned to ask for help from Song Xun. “Song Xun, you tell them, it was your fellow disciple who asked me to snatch the partner! I was forced by Helan Xi!”

Song Xun: “No.”

Changsun Ce: “…Fine, you stay right there, I’m going to get some hot chili water for you.”

Song Xun: “No.”

Song Xun then turned and walked over to his two fellow disciples. Helan Xi subtly glanced at Song Xun, thinking to himself, “I wonder if Song Xun will say more than just a few short sentences to me this year.”

The three disciples of the Unfeeling Sect silently watched as the silhouette of the Taihua Sect gradually became clearer in the distance.

The Taihua Sect, with its overlapping mountains, experiences unpredictable seasonal changes. The twelve sub-sects are built along the mountains, each separated from the others. Among them, the four major sects are closest to the main peak, arranged in four directions. Their abundant spiritual energy allows them to maintain the same season all year round, which is a characteristic of the four major sects.

The Helan Sect is located in the south, where the seasons are like spring all year round, with flowers blooming like dreams. Even a passing visitor would be covered in light pink cherry blossoms, the sweet fragrance lingering for a long time.

The Hehuan Sect is in the east, where the summer mountains are like jade, with scorching sun. The disciples there are constantly basking in the sunlight, and Changsun Ce’s wheat-colored skin is considered fair in their sect.

The Taishan Sect is in the west, with crisp autumn air, abundant fruits, and fragrant osmanthus flowers. The atmosphere is quiet but not lonely, calm yet not dull, and one can find peace even in the most restless heart.

As for the Unfeeling Sect, it is located in the far north of the sect, with towering mountains that reach the clouds, covered in snow year-round. From a distance, one can feel a cold chill emanating, causing one’s heart to freeze and hesitate before approaching.

The remaining eight smaller sects have their own distinct characteristics. There’s the Beast Sect, known for raising rare beasts, where the sounds of chickens and dogs never cease, and the Freedom Sect, known for its carefree philosophy, and the Dao of the Self, where individualism reigns supreme…

The disciples of the other eleven sects often interact with each other, visiting each other’s halls frequently. However, the Unfeeling Sect seems to be isolated, as it never welcomes disciples from other sects. As a result, Changsun Ce, despite being in the sect for a year, has never even stepped inside the Unfeeling Sect’s gates. He is extremely curious about what it’s like inside.

Last year, Changsun Ce tried to explore the Unfeeling Sect with a few fellow disciples in the middle of the night, but as soon as they approached the gate, something knocked them flying. He was badly hurt and didn’t dare make a sound, earning a year’s worth of teasing from his fellow disciples.

Soon, the Changsun family’s celestial boat stopped at the gate of the Taihua Sect, drawing many curious glances from the disciples.

It was rare enough to see the three beauties of the Unfeeling Sect together, but even more so to see them returning to school on the Changsun family’s celestial boat. Since when had Changsun Ce become so close to the Unfeeling Sect? How could anyone be close to them?

The four disembarked, and Changsun Ce had no intention of returning to his own sect. He followed Helan Xi and the others straight to the Unfeeling Sect.

They flew north on their swords and eventually landed at the gate of the Unfeeling Sect.

The bright sunlight that had been shining just moments ago immediately dimmed upon reaching this place, leaving only the faint glow of fireflies. Looking inside, everything appeared pristine, silent, and pure white, as if detached from the world. The hustle and bustle of the mundane world disappeared entirely.

Changsun Ce stood at the gate for a while, looking at the character above, and asked suspiciously, “Am I deaf? Why can’t I hear anything?”

Helan Xi empathized with Changsun Ce’s feeling. After spending a long time in the Unfeeling Sect, he would often make noise just to make sure that the surroundings were quiet and not because he had gone deaf.

Changsun Ce, still shaken, followed behind the three disciples and stepped inside the gate. This time, with the three beauties leading the way, he was not knocked away but stood steadily on the ground.

Changsun Ce sighed with relief and looked up to see a large monument standing in the frost, with a perfectly round circle engraved on it, nothing else.

The Hehuan Sect also has a monument with its sect motto engraved on it. Changsun Ce had seen it countless times, but this one…

Changsun Ce walked up to the monument, looked around it, even walked around it a couple of times, but still couldn’t figure out what was so special about the little circle. He asked, “What’s this?”

Song Xun, Helan Xi, and Zhu Ruo Shang all replied at the same time, “Sect motto.”

Changsun Ce was confused: “What does that mean?”

Helan Xi: “.”

Song Xun: “.”

Zhu Ruo Shang: “It means that.”

Changsun Ce: “???”

Changsun Ce stood frozen, seemingly stunned. Helan Xi looked at him, thinking of his own first days at the sect, feeling a bit of sympathy, but couldn’t help but want to laugh.

Yes, that’s right, [.] is their Unfeeling Sect’s motto. One can imagine, a single character already made the first dean so impatient, he probably didn’t have the mood for any further doctrines. A [.] was his greatest patience.

It must be said, [.] is actually quite fitting—it says everything without saying anything.

Changsun Ce stared at the little circle, his throat felt dry, and after some time, he couldn’t say a word.

Helan Xi said, “If you want to leave now, you still can.”

“Who—who said I want to leave?” Changsun Ce barely found his voice, looking around, “Where is everyone else from your sect?”

Let me know if you need further changes!

Helan Xi spoke indifferently, “No one else.”

The Taihua Sect holds a disciple election once every ten years, and the Wu Qing Taoist Academy typically recruits five people at most, or three at least. Among Helan Xi’s few senior brothers, most were in seclusion for cultivation, so Helan Xi had only met one or two.

Other Taoist academies might have hundreds of disciples, but Wu Qing Taoist Academy only had a few, and its territory was the largest in the entire sect. It wasn’t uncommon for people to wander for a day or even a month without encountering a single living soul in the academy.

At that moment, Helan Xi noticed that Song Xuanji’s gaze shifted slightly, and he followed Song Xuanji’s line of sight. Then, Zhu Ruo Shang and Changsun Ce turned to look as well.

It was a slender, snow-white hunting dog with long, strong limbs and soft, pure white fur. Its eyes were clear and serene, exuding a sense of familiar tranquility, as it walked slowly toward the four of them.

Changsun Ce widened his eyes in disbelief. Was he seeing things? He actually saw the words “clear and graceful” on a dog!

Changsun Ce asked, “Does your academy keep dogs?!”

Helan Xi nodded, “Yes.”

He had often used Wu Qing Taoist Academy’s dog as a metaphor, saying things like “the dog of Wu Qing Taoist Academy never barks more than three times a year,” “even if I stripped naked and imitated a dog in the academy,” “I sleep later than the dogs of Wu Qing Taoist Academy,” and so on. He wasn’t just saying it casually—Wu Qing Taoist Academy really did have a dog!

To be precise, this dog wasn’t intentionally kept by the academy; it just wandered into Wu Qing Taoist Academy’s territory and naturally settled down there. Possibly because of its extraordinary temperament, the people of Wu Qing Taoist Academy didn’t chase it away.

Changsun Ce liked raising dogs and had a few large, powerful wolves back home in Xizhou. He bent down and extended his hand to pet the silky fur, but the dog turned around and coldly avoided him.

Changsun Ce asked, “What’s its name?”

Helan Xi replied, “No name.”

Changsun Ce said, “No name, come here, let me give you a big bone.”

“It doesn’t have a name,” Helan Xi couldn’t help but add, “Do you think we have the leisure to name a dog?”

Changsun Ce frowned, “…Will it respond?”

Helan Xi replied, “Once a year.”

Changsun Ce was speechless.

The four of them continued walking, and Helan Xi intentionally slowed down, falling behind with Zhu Ruo Shang. In a low voice, Helan Xi whispered, “Actually, I gave it a name—’Xue Xue Du’—because its belly is really snow-white.”

“‘Xue Xue Du’? What a cute name,” Zhu Ruo Shang chuckled softly. “I’ve been calling it ‘Wu Yan’ in my mind.”

Helan Xi hadn’t expected that Zhu Ruo Shang, like him, secretly gave the dog a name. Although “Wu Yan” sounded nice, it didn’t capture the essence of the dog as well as “Xue Xue Du.” Helan Xi still thought his naming skills were superior.

When they reached a pavilion, Song Xuanji suddenly stopped and said, “Headmaster.”

Changsun Ce perked up, “Is Headmaster Jiang here? Where is he?”

Helan Xi knew that when Song Xuanji said “Headmaster,” it meant it was time to meet with the headmaster. Since the “Ghost Image Speech” was still with Song Xuanji, it should be handed over to the headmaster soon. Helan Xi told Changsun Ce, “You go ahead, we’ll meet later.”

After leaving Changsun Ce behind, the three of them arrived at the usual residence of the headmaster of Wu Qing Taoist Academy.

The headmaster’s residence was located above an icy lake. The surface of the lake was smooth as a mirror, pure and flawless, reflecting the snowy mountains. The mountains were empty, the clouds were clear, and the distant view stretched far.

However, instead of seeing the headmaster, they saw a man in bright red, who shouldn’t have been there.

The man had a delicate, cherry-like face, eyes crescent-shaped like a waning moon, dressed in luxurious attire. His hair accessories were as extravagant as those of a woman, sparkling and radiant, with a double tassel golden pin signifying his family status, which seemed insignificant compared to the rest of his adornments.

The red-robed young man smiled as he said, “Ah, you’re finally here.”

Such an ostentatious and extravagant appearance might seem out of place to many, but it was quite fitting in the Hehuan Taoist Academy.

This man was the headmaster of Hehuan Taoist Academy, Song Rong, also known as Liushu, or “Fiery Moon True Monarch.”

Song Xuanji and Fiery Moon True Monarch seemed to have some blood relation, though Helan Xi didn’t know the specifics. Their appearances didn’t resemble each other much, but one thing was certain—Song’s family from Gusu produced many beauties, and this was an eternal truth.

Fiery Moon True Monarch glanced at the three members of Wu Qing Taoist Academy, saying, “Zhu Ruo Shang seems a bit thinner, looking pitiful. Song Xuanji has become more beautiful, truly enviable… Hm, is Shi Yu taller? Are you going from a little beauty to a big beauty?”

The three young men in white stood in a row, exchanging silent glances: Why is it you? Where is our headmaster?

“Your Headmaster Jiang is in seclusion. He probably won’t come out for ten or eight years. But don’t worry, before going into seclusion, he entrusted you all to me,” Fiery Moon True Monarch said with a smile. “So, starting today, you three little beauties are officially temporary disciples of Hehuan Taoist Academy.”

Song Xuanji: “…”

Zhu Ruo Shang: “?”

Helan Xi: “!” This kind of good thing actually happened?!