Chapter 81 Emotions

Qingjue wanted to applaud him: "Amazing, Tianyu, you spoke for quite a while."

Jie Zhoujian nodded: "Yes, usually it's Master who says such highly aggressive things."

Qingjue: "Hmm? Do I look like that?"

Yan Shiqun: "Can you guys please stop stealing my thunder? This is clearly my home turf."

Wen Tianyu chuckled: "...It's true that no matter what, if I can hear your witty remarks, it means there's not much of a problem."

After hearing these words, even the demonic cultivators who harbored resentment had to waver.

Indeed, they are only alive now because of the Demon Lord they do not acknowledge.

Ten miles away.

“His spiritual veins are completely damaged. Even if he cultivates demonic arts again in the future, it will be very difficult,” the healer said, shaking his head regretfully after bandaging the wound. “Moreover, he has too many old injuries, and it is inevitable that he will suffer from hidden ailments. It is already a miracle that he survived this ordeal.”

“…In that case,” Ruan Linglai looked at Yun Yuelin beside her and said, “I still thank Young Master Yun for his help. After all, there are still many details to ask this demonic cultivator. He has been subjected to inhuman treatment because he has always believed in and followed Junior Brother Yan, so he is not a bad person. You can rest assured.”

Yun Yuelin: "...As you said, there are details to ask him, so there's nothing I can do about it. But I don't approve of the demonic path, and we've never been able to reach a consensus on that. If I didn't have a specific purpose, I wouldn't have come today."

Aju: "We didn't say we approved of it. We just believe in Ayan and Master. Didn't you come here today because you believe in Master? Otherwise, you could have just ignored it."

“Ah Ju,” Ruan Linglai leaned closer to him and said, “You can’t talk to Young Master Yun like that. He helped us.”

Aju whispered, "...I don't think my tone was too harsh, right..."

“…Alright,” Yun Yuelin turned around, “I’ve watched you grow up, and I haven’t forgotten about teaching you to write. As long as you’ve brought the person here, go back now.”

He shouldn't get angry over such a small thing.

The two turned around and took a few steps when they heard Yun Yuelin's voice.

“The abode of the divine child”.

"..."

Aju was taken aback, and it took him a few seconds to realize that they were calling him.

He turned around stiffly.

"If one day the cultivation world needs you, or needs the Demonic Sect, would you step forward like the Qingyun family?"

They may possess the world's most outstanding talent, the most powerful background, and the most distinctive personality.

The most troublesome situation would be if any one of them turned against the cultivation world.

Ruan Linglai knew that Aju didn't like her other identity, and subconsciously shielded her junior brother behind her: "Young Master Yun..."

But this time, he did not choose to run away. Instead, he bypassed his senior sister and said, "It will definitely happen. Whether it's me, Ayan, or other people from the same school, it will happen."

“When I was little, I didn’t like this world. I grew up in the slums, without identity, without family, and not even a name. If it were me back then, I would definitely have refused.”

"So when I first learned that I was born out of a mission, I resisted it because I didn't think it was necessary or meaningful. I didn't think those things had anything to do with me. I was just forced into this position."

“But now I have a family, my relatives and friends live in this world, so of course I want to protect this world, not for some vague rule or a high-sounding mission, but for a group of living people.”

"So Young Master Yun can rest assured that as long as they live in this world for even a second, I will definitely dedicate myself to this world."

Ruan Linglai: "Little Aju..."

"..."

Yun Yuelin nodded and said, "Understood. Yunjia will stay here until you all come out. If there are any emergencies, come find me."

"Thank you, Young Master Yun!" Aju turned around and said, "Let's go, Senior Sister, let's go back."

As Ruan Linglai rode her sword against the wind, she saw Aju's back standing on the sword. In that instant, she suddenly felt that her junior brother had really grown up.

His hair had grown long, and when it was all braided up, it reached his waist, but the hem of his shirt was a bit short.

“Ah Ju,” Ruan Linglai felt that as her senior sister, she should say something: “What Young Master Yun said just now was probably just that he was worried that we would be detrimental to the cultivation world, but actually…”

“I’m really fine, senior sister,” Aju turned around and said those words. He felt a real sense of relief afterward. “I was serious about what I said just now. I wasn’t trying to be clever.”

"No, I didn't say you were being cunning," Ruan Linglai quickly waved her hand and continued, "It's just that when you suddenly said those things, it felt like you'd grown up?"

"Haha, senior sister, you're not that much older than me, why are you acting like an elder?"

They should be a pair who often goof around, right?

“I’m being very serious, oh dear…” Ruan Linglai shook her head and rubbed her forehead, then said, “I noticed you paused for a moment when your name was called, so I wanted to ask if you don’t like this name? Or do you prefer to be called by your full name?”

"Actually... it's alright," Aju thought for a moment and said, "Maybe for me, a name is just a label. What's important is who calls me and with what kind of emotion? After all, Young Master Yun didn't mean any harm, so I don't feel any dislike."

"Of course, I'm happy if you call me Little Aju! After all, I'm the younger brother of my senior brothers and sisters!"

“Besides,” Aju said, “I’m not so conflicted anymore, because no matter how late I stay out, even if I break the curfew, there will always be someone who leaves a light on for me and waits for me to come home, right?”

Just like Master said, even if fate comes crashing down on them, he will protect them.

Just as they would protect their master and each other.

Ruan Linglai's expression instantly turned from dangerous to safe, and she smiled and nodded: "Mm!"

Ruan Linglai thought that among all the lights in the world, one was left on for her, and that was a wonderful thing.

In Qianlun Mountain.

When Ruan Linglai and Aju arrived, all the demonic cultivators had gathered outside the Black Stone Palace.

Yan Shiqun ordered that the rebels be executed, determined to make Xi Jing pay double for the wounds he sustained and the dozens of lives he had taken.

The imposter was subsequently imprisoned in a dungeon, never to be released again.

The entire Demonic Cult will be reorganized starting today, and the news of the Demon Lord's return will soon spread throughout the outside world.

This will be a long and busy process, but Qingjue believes that his apprentice, whom he raised himself, can do it.

After a busy day, it was getting late. After Qingjue learned about the situation from Yunyue, who was ten miles away, the group decided to spend the night at Qianlun Mountain before leaving.

After the seal was broken and Yan Shiqun regained control, the temperature inside Qianlun Mountain returned to normal, which was literally a matter of his mood.

As Qingjue passed through the living room, he overheard his disciples chatting.

Yan Shiqun turned his head away: "After all, I have come to understand your way of operating over the years, and I must say, there are some merits to it."

Wen Tianyu: "I also plan to return to Beishan. Although it is no longer the Su Jing of the past, the residents there also need a place where they can offer their faith."

Aju: "Sigh, boys really are like birds that grow up and can't stay at home forever, but isn't that a good thing?"

Wen Tianyu: "Well, once things are settled on Ayan's and my side, we won't be too busy. Linglai has always wanted to travel around, right? She can take this opportunity to go out and explore."

“Okay, I’ve already spoken to my parents and brothers, and Master has agreed.”

Aju volunteered: "If you need any help, just ask me anytime. I'm free anyway, and Shuofeng doesn't need me anymore."

Hearing this, Qingjue assumed it was just his disciples having a simple chat. After all, eavesdropping wasn't something a good teacher would do, so he chose to leave the room.

Jie Zhoujian: "It seems I have no choice but to stay by Master's side and continue to assist him."

Ruan Linglai: "Senior brother, with all your skills, don't you plan to go out and explore the world?"

“Forget it, the ways of the martial world are not for me,” Jie Zhoujian shook his head. “Like Xiao Aju, I’ll just help you out. If we all leave, Master will be lonely.”

Wen Tianyu: "It seems that Senior Brother really likes Master."

Aju: "I like Master too!"

Ruan Linglai: "Me too, me too!"

Yan Shiqun: "...I feel like what you're saying isn't the same thing."

Jie said during the day: "Tianyu, Master will be troubled."

Wen Tianyu: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I just felt that it wasn't a big deal. We should be brave in these kinds of things."

The wild goose, separated from its flock: "What?"

Wen Tianyu: "It's alright. Don't you have a lot of official documents to process? I'll take a look at them for you too. Let's go."

brave……

well……

Jie sighed during the day.

After all, the person he had admired since childhood was a celestial being.

Moreover, given his status, it's not something that can be solved simply by being brave or not.

Although his junior brothers and sisters are very accepting of it.

Aju observed the expressions of the group and roughly guessed what had happened.

Actually, he wasn't quite sure whether men could like other men.

But it should be the same as men liking women, right?

My senior brother said it wasn't love, but rather he was afraid of bothering our master.

...But he was a little curious about how to tell whether his feelings for someone were friendship or love.

"Senior brother."

At night, Aju knocked on the door that had been open during the day.

"Aju?" Jie Zhoujian couldn't sleep either, and was sitting by the window reading a book he had borrowed from the Black Stone Palace's library. "It's so late, why aren't you resting? What's wrong?"

“I’m here to ask you a question, Senior Brother,” Aju squeezed in and sat down in front of him. “Senior Brother, you like Master, right? I mean, the kind of liking where you want to get married.”

Jie Zhoujian was frank and open: "Yes, but don't mention it to Master, it will bother him."

"No, no, I didn't mean to mention it to Master. I'm just curious, what kind of feeling is 'liking'?"

"Ah, indeed. After all, Aju seemed quite interested in this question before, and asked several times if she would get married or something."

"After all, I'm not strictly a human being, so I really don't know if I can have the same emotions as you. It seems that apart from you, I haven't had any strong feelings for anyone. I'm wondering if that's one of the reasons?"

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Author's note: I have a follow-up appointment tomorrow, so I'm taking a day off.