âWhat are you in a daze for? Canât you see that Iâm injured? Hurry up and treat me! Iâm going to lose all my cultivation at this rate; can you even take responsibility for that? Help me!
âYou all... you all... Save me! Please, Iâm begging you, alright?â
From his initial arrogant attitude, Xia Ran ended up pleading with the crowd, but everyone simply watched him coldly, not a single person willing to offer him a helping hand. In fact, no one could help him even if they wanted to. Xia Ranâs cultivation was already completely crippled.
Left with no choice, Xia Ran could only try pleading with Xia Yan, âBig sis, save me! I know my fault now. Please donât cripple my cultivation. I canât live without my cultivation! If I donât even have my cultivation, I wouldnât want to live anymore!â
Looking at the current state Xia Ran was in, Xia Yan also felt awful inside. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
Everyone thought that Xia Yan couldnât bear to see Xia Ran in this state. After all, she had doted on him so much over the years. They might not be true siblings, but their relationship had already far surpassed that of one. How could she possibly put aside her feelings so quickly?
But all of a sudden, Xia Yan opened her eyes, revealing a sharp, steely look.
âXia Ran, donât you know very well what youâve done over the years? Iâve tolerated you for far too long. Itâs already kindness out of my part that I chose to spare you today. If you donât want to live anymore, youâre free to end your own life.â
Xia Yan tossed a dagger and a poisonous pill over, which landed right beside Xia Ran. These were tools for Xia Ran to end his own life.
âYou...â
Xia Ran stared at the dagger and poisonous pill in disbelief. He still dared not believe that things would turn out like this.
The crowd was equally shocked as well. They couldnât understand why Xia Yan would suddenly have a change of mind and treat her younger brother with such callousness.
Of course, the crowd didnât think that Xia Ran was worthy of pity, but his state was indeed too miserable for them to continue watching without cringing.
After Xia Yan tossed the dagger and poisonous pill over, she decisively turned her attention away from Xia Ran. She turned to Chu Feng and said, âChu Feng, whereâs your residence? Arenât you going to invite me over for a sit?â
âItâs right here. Come.â
Chu Feng pointed to his own residence.
âLetâs go then,â Xia Yan said with a joyful smile.
âHey, let go of me. Itâs hard for me to walk like that.â
The reason why Chu Feng was saying those words was because Xia Yan still hadnât released Chu Feng from her hug yet.
âWeâre good brothers, right? Whatâs wrong with a little hug? Donât be so stingy and quickly lead the way. Youâre so wishy-washy like an old hag,â Xia Yan chuckled softly.
She had a cold and lofty appearance, reminiscent of a mature ice queen, but her personality was bubbly and forthright, especially when she was standing before Chu Feng. The crowd had never expected to see such a side to her.
âHaa, you sure are troublesome.â
Chu Feng sighed deeply before dragging Xia Yan toward his residence.
Even after the doors closed behind the two of them, they could still hear Xia Yanâs muffled hearty laughter coming from inside. They turned to look at Xia Ran, who was lying on the ground, crying pitifully as he begged the elders to beg them, and they belatedly realized that the relationship between Chu Feng and Xia Yan had already surpassed that of ordinary friends.
Otherwise, why would Xia Yan cripple Xia Ranâs cultivation for Chu Fengâs sake? Not to mention, she even revealed such a happy smile despite this appalling turn of events.
The elders of the North Tortoise Hall turned to the chief elder and asked, âChief elder, how should we deal with this matter here?â
âHeâs a disciple of the South Vermilion Hall after all. Toss him back to the South Vermilion Hall and let the elders there deal with it. Relay Xia Yanâs exact words to them, and tell them to ask Xia Yan if they donât believe it,â the chief elder said.
The elders of the North Tortoise Hall did as they were told.
At this point, no one was afraid of Xia Ran anymore. The latter had lost his backing and his cultivation, making him nothing of threat in the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect anymore. His life from this day onward was bound to be miserable.
âSong Xi.â
The chief elder suddenly beckoned Song Xi over with his hand. Song Xi quickly rushed over and bowed to the chief elder.
âWhatâs the background of your brother?â the chief elder asked softly.
Song Xi told the chief elder what he knew about Chu Feng. To be frank, he knew nothing much about Chu Fengâs background, but he admired Chu Fengâs personality and courage. While Chu Feng wasnât particularly strong when they first met, Song Xi still viewed him as his idol.
âIt looks like Chu Feng is quite a figure. Itâs no wonder why he showed no panic offending Nangong Yuliu. Itâs really great luck on the part of our North Tortoise Hall!â
The chief elder didnât learn much about Chu Fengâs background from Song Xi, but the expectations he carried for Chu Feng grew even greater.
If Chu Feng and Li Muzhi were just acquaintances, Chu Feng and Xia Yanâs relationship had definitely exceeded that of ordinary friendship. This could be seen by Xia Yanâs attitude toward Xia Ran.
Xia Yan was no fool, so how could she possibly not know what kind of person Xia Ran was. It was just that she chose to side with Xia Ran instead of pursuing his faults.
Yet, she didnât hesitate to turn against Xia Ran today despite treasuring him so much in the past, as if he no longer meant anything to her anymore.
Everyone knew the one who sparked such a change in Xia Yan was no other than Chu Feng.
...
Chu Feng led Xia Yan back into his residence, but the latter immediately showed a hint of disdain upon seeing the entrance.
âYour residence is too rundown. Just what kind of treatment are you getting here? Come, Iâll take you to somewhere better.â
She dragged Chu Feng into the sky with her after saying those words, Before leaving, she made sure to turn around and warn the crowd, âDonât follow us. If anyone dares to come along, Iâll take his life.â
Who would dare to follow them after hearing Xia Yanâs threat? Putting aside the disciples, even the elders of the North Tortoise Hall dared not to do so.
Xia Yan brought Chu Feng all the way into a forest. This was still within the territory of the North Tortoise Hall, but it was land that belonged to no one. The two of them landed on top of a large tree in the depths of the forest.
âHow is it? Isnât it beautiful?â
Xia Yan finally released Chu Feng. She spread her arms wide and stretched her back lazily before placing her both hands on the tree trunk to stretch her legs too. While doing this set of movements, her eyes were directed into the distance.
She looked just like a mischievous little girl, a huge contrast from her mature appearance.
Chu Feng followed her line of sight and saw a clearing in the forest. Even though it was nighttime, the sky was covered by the calamity, so there were no stars or moon.
Nevertheless, Chu Feng could still spot a small little lake here.
âItâs just a lake. Thereâs nothing really beautiful about it,â Chu Feng replied.
âIs that so?â Xia Yan looked at him with a deep smile, keeping him in suspense.
Then, she suddenly raised her arm and tossed a rock she had conjured out of her spirit power into the lake.
Whoosh!
The water began to bubble furiously. Countless specks of blue light began surfacing in the lake, dancing in the water.
Chu Feng had long noticed that there were fishes in the river, but he didnât expect them to shine so brilliantly. The corals were beautiful as well, bringing a marvellous scenery to the river.
Even the surrounding trees seemed to brighten up in the presence of the blue light.
âWhat about now?â Xia Yan asked Chu Feng gleefully.
âNot bad. How did someone from the South Vermilion Hall like you come to know this place?â
Chu Feng thought that this was a place where even the disciples of the North Tortoise Hall rarely frequented, but Xia Yan seemed oddly familiar with the vicinity. It looked like she had been here before.
âDo I look like a foolish person to you?â Xia Yan suddenly asked.
âYou do,â Chu Feng replied with a nod of his head.
Xia Yan pouted her lips upon hearing Chu Fengâs response, clearly not expecting such an answer. She asked, âHow do I look foolish?â
âDonât they always say that big-breasted girls tend to have smaller brains? Itâs only normal for you to have a bad head then,â Chu Feng replied.
âYou... Are you asking for a beating? You should know that we can use martial power here.â
Xia Yanâs face reddened like a little apple as she raised her hand to hit him. Her strike didnât land hard though; it was just a way for her to hide her embarrassment.
She knew that Chu Feng wasnât just speaking empty words here as he did see it back then in the Graveyard Realm...
âAre you trying to silence me? Help! Murder!â
Chu Feng hugged his head as he tried to escape, but he couldnât hide from Xia Yanâs âattackâ at all. After all, his cultivation was lower than hers, so he could only shout his grievances.
âYou mustnât speak of that matter to anyone else, or else youâll have to take responsibility for me if my reputation were to be ruined!â Xia Yan exclaimed.
âAlright alright, I wonât tell anyone. I swear that Iâll be struck by lightning if I speak of it to another soul,â Chu Feng vowed.
âWait a moment, why are you suddenly showing such conviction? You even went to the extent of making a vow! Are you trying to say that Iâm not worthy of you?â Xia Yan asked with a pout.
âAh well... Hey, look at the moon! What a round moon we have today!â Chu Feng pointed to the sky and said.
âBullshit! Where can you find the moon in such a gloomy sky?â
Xia Yan shot Chu Feng a glare, but she wasnât really angry.
âAlright, Iâll stop fooling with you. I still need to head back later on to settle the matter. Actually, I only brought you here to tell you why I treated Xia Ran so well. Itâs not that Iâm oblivious to his tyranny, but as long as he doesnât go too far, I was willing to tolerate his misdeeds,â Xia Yan said.
âTell me more.â
Chu Feng was a little curious as to why Xia Yan would blindly side with Xia Ran on this matter. Based on what he knew about her, Xia Yan wasnât an unreasonable person who would condone Xia Ranâs folly.
And after hearing the explanation from Xia Yan, he could somewhat understand where she was coming from.