“Decadent music, it bewitches the mind!”
Beneath the ancient pine at the mountain gate, Luo Tingjue heavily closed the music score. His white jade-like knuckles were clenched until they turned pale, startling the emerald birds on the branches.
“Senior Sister, watch your words.” The accompanying Disciple hastily set up a sound-insulating barrier:
“The Beast Taming Sect’s territory has many eyes and ears. We still need to rely on this person to find traces of Palace Master Yun.
The troublesome task Luo Tianyi avoided is precisely our opportunity.”
“Easier said than done!” His dark broad sleeves rustled the pine needles, “That Yun Qingrao protects him like a fortress. Am I to act like a common rogue and climb over walls under the moonlight?”
In the twilight, two figures stood by the cliff, Luo Tingjue’s waist jade pendant emitting a faint glow.
“The Deputy Head’s long-cherished wish should finally come to an end.” The attendant’s words were scattered by the mountain wind.
The sound of a sword light tearing through the air suddenly came, and Luo Tingjue’s pupils reflected the graceful figure streaking through the rosy clouds.
That sword light was even more dazzling than the evening glow; the sword rider’s red robes fluttered, and the silver bells in her hair vibrated with the sword qi, producing clear, melodious sounds.
“Qin Yue.” He lightly rolled the name on his tongue, watching the young woman disappear into the end of the sea of clouds in an instant.
The attendant promptly handed over a secret scroll: “The Beast Taming Sect’s youngest Golden Core cultivator of this generation, from Tianji Peak, just like Qing Feng.”
Luo Tingjue’s fingertips traced the vermilion annotations on the secret scroll, then he chuckled lightly:
“A marriage alliance would be a good excuse. What do you say, if I marry this Senior Sister, will the stagnant water of Tianji Peak ripple?”
“Young Master, think thrice, Qing Feng is…”
“Precisely because he is highly valued by Yun Qingrao, we must pry open this crack.”
The jade slip in Luo Tingjue’s sleeve emitted a faint light, making his profile flicker between light and shadow:
“Do you think someone who can firmly hold the position of a direct Disciple would be an ordinary talent? Those rumors about him being foolish are merely his best protective charm.”
......
Clouds surged atop Shuwang Peak, and the ancient pines on Qinya Cliff rustled in the fierce wind.
Luo Tingjue stepped over scattered pine needles, his dark cloak sweeping past the carved words “Dao Inquiry” on the stone.
“Is the Beast Taming Sect’s way of hospitality to make distinguished guests comprehend the Dao by facing withered pines and stubborn rocks?”
He mocked the void, and before his voice faded, his clothes were sent fluttering by a surge of sword qi.
Luo Tianyi materialized from the cloud mist, his sword “Jinghong” still unsheathed: “It seems Yixian Palace has only taught you how to boast with your tongue all these years.”
The two brothers faced each other across a distance of ten feet, their similar brows and eyes tempered with different sharpness.
Luo Tingjue’s gaze swept over the other’s pale knuckles, a sign of someone whose Dao Heart was damaged trying to suppress sword qi.
“I heard the Jinghong Sword Master had his Dao Heart shattered by a ‘fool’?”
He deliberately emphasized the last two words, “It truly gladdens this younger brother that Imperial Brother can still firmly grasp his sword.”
A sword hum suddenly arose, and three pine needles were cut off at their base.
Luo Tianyi’s sword tip trembled slightly, carving deep grooves into the bluestone: “Once I vanquish my inner demon, I will naturally teach you what the Way of the Sword is.”
“Enough!”
An aged shout, imbued with oppressive power, shook down the snow from the pines.
Both brothers fell silent simultaneously, looking towards the black-robed figure who had appeared by the cliff at some unknown time.
The man was toying with two blood-colored chess pieces in his palm, and the scattered black and white pieces on the chessboard emitted an eerie, faint glow.
“The Qing Feng situation has begun, and you two still have the leisure to bicker?” The sound of the chess pieces tapping against the jade was crisp like a knife:
“Tianyi, go keep an eye on Qin Yue. Tianjue, continue to get close to Qing Feng. I want to see Tianji Peak become our clan’s possession before next year’s Waking of Insects.”
The mountain wind swept up the remaining snow, covering the chess formation on the stone table that was gradually becoming a predicament.
Luo Junrui, the Chief of Fengyang Hall, stood with his hands behind his back before the hall, while the two young men knelt with bowed heads at the foot of the steps.
“Greetings, Honored Elder.” Luo Tingjue and Luo Tianyi bowed in unison, the hems of their brocade robes stained with frost.
Luo Junrui lightly tapped the armrest of the jade throne with his fingertip: “I hear you have some complaints about the Sect’s arrangements?”
“I would never dare to speak presumptuously!” Luo Tingjue’s Adam’s apple bobbed, and cold sweat seeped from his back. He indeed didn’t understand why they abandoned the Beast Taming Sect for Yixian Palace, but a musician’s status at a Sect banquet was so glorious, it suited his wishes.
A sound like tearing silk suddenly came from the jade throne, as Luo Junrui crushed a celadon jade paperweight: “Do you think gaining the favor of a few female cultivators allows you to put on airs in front of this Deputy Head?”
Fragments of the broken jade flew past Luo Tingjue’s ear, “The Great Liang Royal Court has no shortage of Imperial Princes.”
Luo Tianyi’s fingers in his sleeve curled slightly, a hint of secret joy flashing in his eyes. However, this unusual expression was pierced by an icy voice: “You seem to be laughing quite happily. Don’t tell me you think being a Disciple under this Deputy Head’s elder brother means you can rest easy?”
Both quickly kowtowed, the sound of their foreheads hitting the golden bricks echoing in the hall.
Luo Junrui sneered and flicked his sleeve, the faint fragrance of winter plum blossoms mixed with a bloody scent permeated the air: “Once you enter my Sect, life and death are branded with a demonic tattoo. Even if you ascend to the immortal ranks in the future, this Chief has a hundred ways to make your souls scatter.”
Once the two stopped trembling slightly, Luo Junrui threw out a yellowed animal skin scroll: “Dragon Emperor Ao Pan’s tomb has appeared, and the secret of the celestial dao’s anomaly that the Master wants is within it. Now, the clues are tied to Qing Feng and Yun Qingrao.”
“Chen Ming Peak and Yixian Palace are in their honeymoon period.” He flicked out an ink-jade bottle with a bent finger, “Qing Feng frequently visits Xiao Yao Peak lately. This item, mixed into spiritual tea, supplemented with mind-controlling techniques, you don’t need this Chief to teach you how to do it, do you?”
Luo Tingjue was about to speak when a sneer suddenly came from the side: “Why bother so much with a Foundation Establishment cultivator? Just directly…”
“Idiot!” Luo Junrui’s sleeve wind swept the jade bottle away, “Qin Yue received Dao Lord Zisu’s true inheritance. Have you forgotten how Ma Bingyun died?”
He glared at Luo Tingjue, who was prostrate on the ground, “If this matter succeeds, you will gain the position of Yixian Palace’s Chief Disciple, plus the qualification for a Saint Son candidate.”
Thunder exploded outside the hall, making Luo Junrui’s face flicker erratically.
He bent down, picked up the jade bottle, and placed it in Luo Tingjue’s palm, his fingertips tracing the other’s wrist pulse: “Remember, what I want is a living tongue.”
The mountain wind swept through the window lattice, and the candlelight flickered erratically on Luo Junmo’s desk.
Luo Tingjue gently tapped the teacup in his hand: “Nephew is not seeking quick success, it’s just that Qing Feng cultivates the Uncontending and Unfailing Technique. Even if his talent is mediocre, to be able to retreat unscathed from the continuous schemes on Hu Ji Peak shows his quick-wittedness.”
His fingertips unconsciously caressed the patterns on the celadon porcelain, “If we directly confront him, it’s hard to guarantee that the secrets of Tianjue Peak won’t be exposed.”
“What does this have to do with the Qin clan’s female cultivator?” Luo Junrui leaned against the rosewood armrest, the dark iron abacus beads hanging from his waist making faint clinking sounds.
A sharp glint flashed in Luo Tingjue’s eyes: “According to Senior Sister Su Yan, Qing Feng and Qin Yue have been together day and night for twelve years, even jointly studying their innate sword techniques.”
He suddenly lowered his voice, “Half a month ago, Qin Yue was ordered to inventory the scripture pavilion, and I specifically arranged for her to come into contact with that scroll of ‘Tian Gong Secret Records’.”
“Absurd!” Luo Junmo suddenly sat upright, ripples spreading across the spiritual tea on the desk, “Do you think Chen Ming Peak is full of blind people? If that girl truly knew Qing Feng’s hidden background, how could she allow you to approach her?”
The young man unhurriedly unfolded the jade-boned folding fan in his hand: “Does Senior Uncle know why Dao Lord Zisu made an exception to accept a Disciple? The ‘Nine Revolving Lotus’ that Qin Yue displayed on the sword-testing platform back then was precisely the unique body-protecting secret art created by the first family head of the Chu family.”
The ink bamboo painted on the fan swayed slightly with the flow of spiritual energy, “If this junior can marry this woman, I will gain an intelligence channel and also cut off Dao Lord Zisu’s protection over Qing Feng.”