Chapter 17 Yanghua Cloud Sea (Part 4)

Yanghua Sect, Lianyun Peak.

A sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy was nestled in a soft silk quilt. He was wearing a loose-fitting undergarment that revealed a large expanse of his fair and tender shoulders and back. He was fast asleep, hugging a soft jade pillow.

Xuan Zhiyan burst through the door in a flurry of activity, only to find this peaceful and tranquil scene before him.

"Wei! Feng!" But Xuan Zhiyan was far from at ease.

Wei Feng's eyes were still closed when he was pulled up and shaken; his voice was shaky from the shaking, "I'm here!"

"You just sneaked back like that?" Xuan Zhiyan was so angry he was about to vomit blood. "Right under your master's nose!?"

"No, Zhiyan, you're not being precise enough." Wei Feng yawned and stretched, then raised a finger and said seriously, "First of all, the apprenticeship ceremony hasn't been held yet, so he can't be considered my master. Secondly—"

"Secondly?" Xuan Zhiyan stared intently at him.

"Secondly, he immediately demanded that I cultivate, and even required me to reach the second level of Qi Refining within four days. The worst part is that he put something on my neck that hurts and itches whenever I feel sleepy." Wei Feng was indignant, his ears turning red with anger. "You be the judge, isn't he being unreasonable?!"

“…That is indeed excessive for you.” Xuan Zhiyan’s anger subsided somewhat.

Everyone in the Yanghua Sect knows Wei Feng's temperament. He's naturally unruly, extremely lazy and fastidious. Let alone four days, even four months to reach the second level of Qi Refining would be a miracle of diligence and hard work for Wei Feng, let alone having a magical artifact placed around his neck—

A responsible elder once tried a similar method, using talismans to force Wei Feng to cultivate. Wei Feng, being naturally rebellious, refused to do it. He almost killed himself trying to destroy the talismans, causing chaos throughout the Yanghua Sect. In the end, the sect leader had to step in and appease him. The elder was so angry that he left the Yanghua Sect that very day to travel.

"What does he take me for! I'm not an animal, how dare he force me!"

At that moment, Wei Feng was so enraged that his eyes turned bloodshot.

However… Xuan Zhiyan looked at Wei Feng, who was drooping his eyelids and touching his neck, and felt that he didn’t seem that angry.

On the contrary, she felt a little wronged.

"He's like this before I've even become his disciple. If I do become his disciple, will he tie me up and force me to cultivate?" Wei Feng hugged his pillow and sullenly said, "If he talks to me nicely, maybe I can give it a try."

Xuan Zhiyan sighed, "Ancestor, he is your master, not your father. Besides, he is also a young master of the Jiang family. How could he possibly indulge your bad habits?"

"He's from the Jiang family?" Wei Feng was shocked.

"You didn't know?!" Xuan Zhiyan was even more shocked than him.

"Nobody told me that!" Wei Feng said matter-of-factly, then frowned and said, "I don't care about the Jiang or Li families, I'm not taking this master as my disciple!"

Xuan Zhiyan was so worried that his hair was turning white. "Jiang Gu is the most powerful among the new elders. He is at the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm, almost on par with the sect leader. Moreover, he is only thirty-two years old this year. Most importantly, he only has four spiritual roots. Do you know what that means?"

"Ha, only four spiritual roots." Wei Feng said gloatingly, "You think you can cultivate immortality with that?"

Xuan Zhiyan wanted to kick him, and said with exasperation, "You blockhead! He has four spiritual roots and reached the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm in his thirties. Do you know how many years it took our sect leader to reach the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm? Three hundred years, a full three hundred years, and the sect leader only has a single spiritual root."

Wei Feng hissed.

"This means that even if your aptitude is so poor that you only have four spiritual roots, Jiang Gu still has a way to cultivate you to the Nascent Soul stage. What's even more terrifying is that he's only thirty-two years old, and his future is limitless." Xuan Zhiyan was practically grinding his teeth. "Do you know how many disciples in our sect are fighting tooth and nail to become his disciples? Many inner disciples would rather go to his Qingping Peak as outer disciples, because even a few words of guidance would be immensely beneficial! Mo Daojin even knelt down at his foot and begged him to take him as a disciple! And you, he personally instructed you and you just ran back here, Wei Feng, is your brain filled with mud?!"

Wei Feng asked in confusion, "Who is Mo Daojin?"

"Is that the cultivation maniac you tricked at the initiation ceremony a few days ago—is that the point?!" Xuan Zhiyan grabbed his neck. "You secretly ran back three days ago and only told me now that tomorrow is the apprenticeship ceremony. You'd better get up and go to Qingping Peak to apologize!"

Wei Feng yawned while hugging his pillow. "Let me think about it."

"You still want to think about it!?" Xuan Zhiyan pretended to strangle him.

"Wait, let me finish." Wei Feng patted his shoulder and said seriously, "Don't you think something's not right about this?"

"What's wrong?" Xuan Zhiyan asked with a look that said, "Let's see how you make this up."

"With so many disciples in our sect, why did he, a powerful figure belonging to the Jiang family, specifically choose me?" Wei Feng crossed his legs and lowered his voice, saying, "Furthermore, he specifically named me as his only disciple, and right off the bat he put this thing on my neck. I've tried many magic treasures to remove it since I got back, but I couldn't. I asked a medical cultivator, and he said it might be some kind of marking spell... Anyway, think about it carefully, isn't this quite strange?"

His reminder sent a chill down Xuan Zhiyan's spine. He tried to salvage the situation by saying, "Maybe it's just that you catch his eye? Many of the disciples Master takes on are like that."

"Don't be silly, Zhiyan. Ask yourself honestly, which elder has ever looked up to me since I was a child?" Wei Feng licked his dry lips, clutching the pillow and mocking himself, "He must have some ulterior motive."

Xuan Zhiyan sighed as he recalled those who had tried to get close to Wei Feng in the past. "That's why you need to cultivate even more so that you won't be controlled by others."

Wei Feng lay back, covered his face with the pillow, and mumbled a few words indistinctly.

"Good things never come my way."

After Xuan Zhiyan left, a maid came and knocked on the door.

"Young master, the items you ordered from Longyun City have been prepared. Would you like to pick them up now?"

It was a gift that Wei Feng had prepared for the apprenticeship ceremony many days in advance.

He hesitated for a moment, then said, "No need, I'll go get it myself."

If only his master was after his money.

It seems like it wouldn't be a loss to exchange all the assets for a new master. I wonder if I could discuss it with Jiang Gu.

——

Qingping Peak.

Seeing that Jiang Gu was not going to look for him, Wu Tuo became a little anxious and couldn't help but say, "Master, he's been scared away. Aren't you going to go find him?"

"I was too hasty," Jiang Gu said, looking at the clumsy illusion in the small cave beside him. "I didn't give him time to adapt."

Wu Tuo said with relief, "Master, it's good that you understand. Wei Feng is still young, and the Yanghua Sect has raised him to be such an arrogant and unruly person. We have to take it slowly. Even if you want to punish him, you have to coax him into becoming a disciple first, don't you think?"

Jiang Gu remained noncommittal, looking down at the earring in his hand.

The phonograph is quite exquisite.

"Where are you going, Master?" Wu Tuo asked as he stood up. "It's already dark outside."

"Just kidding," Jiang Gu replied coldly.

Wu Tuo decisively stopped, and only after Jiang Gu disappeared into the cave did he lower his head to lick his still-healing claws, muttering to himself, "Anyone who didn't know better would think you were going to kill someone."

"I can hear you," Jiang Gu's voice came from afar.

Utuo slapped himself in the face with his kitten paw.

He has an extra mouth.

Jiang Gu was not familiar with Yang Hua Sect, but with his heart's blood wrapped around Wei Feng's neck, he could easily sense Wei Feng's exact location.

It wasn't at Lianyun Peak where he lived.

Yanghua Sect is often shrouded in clouds, with cloud pools and waterfalls creating a picturesque scene, making it a great place to enjoy the scenery. Many disciples would come to the summit to stroll around, but after nightfall, few people would come.

Jiang Gu found Wei Feng in front of a cliff, and there was more than one Wei Feng, so he subconsciously concealed himself.

Wei Feng was holding a large, gaudy wooden box and staring at the person in front of him with a sour face. "So it's Senior Brother Xin Wen who's been following me all this way."

Jiang Gu followed his gaze and saw a boy who looked a bit older than Wei Feng. The boy was glaring at Wei Feng with resentment and sneered, "I'm just on a routine inspection. The apprenticeship ceremony is just around the corner tomorrow. Why aren't you preparing for your apprenticeship at Lianyun Peak? What are you doing wandering around the sect?"

Wei Feng instinctively hugged the box in his arms tighter and couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Of course I've prepared things, unlike you, Senior Brother, who's short of money and can't even bring out a decent thing to become my disciple."

These words struck a nerve with Xin Wen. His family was of modest means, and when he became an apprentice, he almost couldn't even afford a decent gift. In the end, he had to borrow spirit stones from Wei Feng. Even though he eventually paid Wei Feng back, the incident remained a thorn in his side, and he felt extremely uncomfortable whenever he saw Wei Feng.

Remembering his master Ruan Keji's instructions, Xin Wen's face flashed a twisted smile, "Junior Brother Wei, you don't really think Jiang Gu wants to take you as his disciple, do you? With his abilities, what kind of disciple can't he have? Yet he insists on taking a good-for-nothing like you as his last disciple. He probably just wants what you have."

"That's perfect." Wei Feng smirked. "Even if I give it all to him, I won't let you people have it."

"Junior brother, you really won't listen to advice." Xin Wen slowly drew his sword and suddenly rushed towards Wei Feng. "Do you really think you can successfully become Jiang Gu's disciple? Don't be naive!"

Xin Wen was at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, far beyond what Wei Feng, a mere Qi Refining cultivator, could withstand. In addition, he was carrying a large box, and there was a cliff behind him, so he had no chance of dodging the sword.

Jiang Gu, hidden in the shadows, showed no intention of helping. The hand behind his back was intentionally or unintentionally stroking the white jade on his earring.

Just as the longsword was about to pierce Wei Feng's arm, the boy who was standing on the edge of the cliff suddenly disappeared and appeared behind Xin Wen in the next instant, kicking him in the back without any politeness, sending him off the cliff.

Unfortunately, Xin Wen already knew how to fly on a sword, and in the blink of an eye, he flew up and rushed towards Wei Feng, who was running forward with his back to him. "I'd like to see how you run!"

"Xin Wen, it is forbidden to harm fellow disciples within the sect. Are you going to openly violate this rule?" Wei Feng said while using the teleportation function of the wooden plaque to dodge.

He could have used the wooden sign to move further, but his Qi Refining Level 1 cultivation only allowed him to barely dodge Xin Wen's attacks. After only a few dozen moves, he was forced to the edge of the Cloud Pool by Xin Wen.

Wei Feng glanced at the surging clouds in the pool. At first glance, it didn't seem very big, but at the bottom of this cloud pool was a deep spring. If he fell in, with his cultivation level, he would basically be close to death.

"That's hilarious! Aren't you the one who breaks the rules the most every day?" Xin Wen pressed the sword against his neck. "Wei Feng, I have no intention of making things difficult for you. Just give me this box, swear to the heavens that you will never take Jiang Gu as your master, and kowtow to me three times, and I'll spare your life. How about it?"

Wei Feng wasn't really keen on becoming this disciple, but Xin Wen's words only fueled his anger. "What, is Ruan Keji so afraid of me becoming his disciple? Or is it not just Ruan Keji, but all those old fogies who always act all respectable and now can't keep up the act anymore? Jiang Gu is from the Jiang family, they can't afford to offend him, and after becoming his disciple, they won't be able to get anything from me, right? I'm determined to have him! I'll give him everything then, I won't let you get anything by feeding the dogs!"

"You—" Xin Wen exerted force, and the blade sliced ​​through the flesh on the side of his neck.

"Master!" Wei Feng suddenly beamed with joy and shouted loudly behind Xin Wen.

Xin Wen was startled and turned his head sharply. The next second, Wei Feng grabbed his collar and dragged him straight into the cloud pool.

"If I die, see if those old bastards will let you off the hook!" Clouds and mist rushed past his ears. Wei Feng stared coldly at Xin Wen, raising the Jade Shadow Stone in his hand. "This stone belongs to Xuan Zhiyan. He can sense it at any time. Either you obediently send me up, or I will make Xuan Zhiyan reveal what just happened to the public right now."

Xin Wen gritted his teeth and said, "You actually secretly recorded it using the Jade Shadow Stone."

"You have to have some means to save your life." Wei Feng said with a forced smile, "Or if you hesitate a little longer, we'll die together."

"I'll take you up!" Xin Wen's face turned green. "Looks like you're not as stupid as they say."

“But you are indeed stupid,” Wei Feng chuckled.

Xin Wen chanted an incantation to activate his longsword, preparing to take Wei Feng up, but for some reason, he couldn't infuse the sword with any spiritual power. "What's going on!?"

"What? What happened?" Wei Feng frowned.

"I can't get spiritual energy in!" Xin Wen exclaimed in a panic, "This shouldn't be happening, how could this be?"

"Are you even at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment? How can you not be able to infuse spiritual energy into it!" Wei Feng suddenly became anxious. "Try my sword!"

But the result was still the same.

They kept falling and were about to hit the pool.

"You'd better think of a solution!" Wei Feng said angrily.

"I do think I have a way!" Xin Wen was even more anxious than him.

Meanwhile, by the Cloud Pool, Jiang Gu gathered his excess spiritual energy in his palm and observed Wei Feng's expression with great interest, somewhat surprised by the other's foolishness and naivety.

Seeing that the two were about to fall into the pool, Xin Wen's expression hardened, and he suddenly grabbed him and cushioned his fall with his own. "I'm sorry, Junior Brother Wei! I was just following orders, and I didn't originally intend to take your life!"

Wei Feng's expression changed drastically. He grabbed the man's arm and tried to turn over, but he was too weak and was pinned down and unable to move.

Jiang Gu twitched his eyebrows slightly, and with a gentle flick of his wrist, Wei Feng and Xin Wen switched places.

Thump!

The dull thud of water hitting the surface was accompanied by ripples spreading from the bursting blood.

Wei Feng was stunned for a long time before he regained his senses. In his hazy state, he looked down and saw the silver-blue scales on his arm. He instinctively wiggled his tail twice and then saw Xin Wen vomiting blood in the water.

Xin Wen seemed to still be conscious. When he saw his shark tail, he stared in shock and pointed at it as if he wanted to speak, but he choked on some water. However, since he was more powerful, he tried to swim towards the shore.

Wei Feng felt a little panicked. Xin Wen couldn't know his identity as a merman. If Xin Wen was still alive, he would definitely tell Ruan Keji... He grabbed the long sword that was floating over and stared intently at Xin Wen's back.

Jiang Gu, standing above Yunchi, twitched his eyebrows slightly, barely satisfied with this cheap disciple.

Wei Feng gripped the hilt of his sword and swam toward Xin Wen, but hesitated for a moment just before striking. In that instant, Xin Wen sensed the danger, turned sharply to dodge, and the sword in his hand pierced through Wei Feng's shoulder.

A hint of disappointment flashed in Jiang Gu's eyes.

Wei Feng swung his tail forcefully to slap Xin Wen away. Seeing Xin Wen faint in the water and blood begin to seep from his back, he trembled and released his sword, trying to swim upwards.

However, unexpectedly, a warm hand covered the back of his hand, causing him to tighten his grip on the loosened sword.

Wei Feng was startled and tried to turn his head to look, but someone grabbed his waist with an arm and pressed his back against a solid chest. Powerful spiritual energy wrapped around his wrists and tail, carrying him towards Xin Wen, who was floating in the water.

A sharp sword pierced Xin Wen's heart, and a large amount of blood spread in the water. Wei Feng stared in shock, but it wasn't over yet. The person behind him grabbed his hand and led him to cut off Xin Wen's head.

A pale head floated past his eyes, and Wei Feng, his face ashen, blew out a string of bubbles.

"You can't even kill anyone, but you're quite adept at trapping me with that broken bell." A familiar voice rang in his ear.

Wei Feng was immediately startled; it was the voice of that old pervert from the Chaolong Secret Realm.

He tried to turn his head to look, but the other person grabbed his chin with one hand. "If anyone else finds out your identity as the Divine Shark again, I'll kill you first."

Wei Feng struggled angrily, but was roughly grabbed by the tail and thrown upwards, breaking through the pool water and mist, and crashing straight to the ground.

Wei Feng gasped for breath, looking down as his tail slowly transformed into legs, but the blood on his body hadn't disappeared. He had just been led by that old pervert to kill Xin Wen.

He stared in shock at the misty pool. Why was that freak from the Chaolong Secret Realm here at the Yanghua Sect? Could it be that the other party had been watching him all along? Was removing his protective scale not enough? Did he have to refine him into a puppet before he would be satisfied?

Half a year has passed, and the terrifying memories of the Chaolong Secret Realm have clearly faded from his mind. But the old pervert's hoarse voice just now rang out again, instantly pulling him back to half a year ago. A strong sense of panic overwhelmed him, and his hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

He knew neither what the other party looked like nor their identity, nor their purpose. It was very likely that even the voice was fake. If that pervert disguised himself as an ordinary disciple in Yanghua Sect, he would not recognize him at all, and the other party could take his life at any time!

What should he do?

"Wei Feng." A clear voice sounded behind him.

Wei Feng turned around in a panic and saw Jiang Gu's handsome face. The fear of killing someone and the terror of seeing that pervert again were intertwined. Jiang Gu's appearance was like a lifeline, and his eyes instantly reddened. "...Master?"

"What are you doing here?" Jiang Gu asked coldly.

Wei Feng sniffed and looked around before realizing that the box containing the apprenticeship gift was gone. He felt even more aggrieved, and his eyes welled up with tears. "I... I lost my box."

Jiang Gu watched as the crystal-clear little luminous pearl slid down his cheek, his lips twitched almost imperceptibly, and he stretched out a hand towards him, trying to make his voice sound less disdainful, "Get up first."

In Wei Feng's eyes, his immortal master not only did not reprimand him, but also extended a hand to him. His snow-white robe seemed to emit a warm and soft light in the dark night. He was stunned for a long time before he grasped that slender and beautiful hand.

It was a bit cool and not very soft.

But he easily pulled him up from the ground.

"What box?" Jiang Gu asked knowingly.

Wei Feng, his eyes red, said, "It's a box containing the apprenticeship gift for tomorrow."

"For me?" Jiang Gu's eyebrows twitched slightly.

"Hmm." Wei Feng nodded listlessly.

Jiang Gu flicked out some spiritual energy from his fingertips, washing away the dust and bloodstains on his body, then turned and walked forward, saying, "It's just a formality, no need to take it to heart."

Wei Feng followed closely behind him, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, and whispered, "Master, Xin Wen blocked my way and tried to steal my box. Then I dragged him down into the Cloud Pool. I only wanted him to pull me up, but something went wrong and I couldn't channel my spiritual energy into the flying sword, so we fell into the pool. Then an old pervert who had been watching me for half a year suddenly appeared and forced me to kill Xin Wen. Master, I killed someone. What should I do now?"

When Jiang Gu heard the words "old pervert," he fell into a strange silence for a moment, then stopped and said, "I thought you didn't want to become my apprentice."

Wei Feng, who was complaining pitifully, was taken aback and said guiltily, "I... I didn't mean I didn't want to become a disciple..."

But the more he spoke, the softer his voice became.

Jiang Gu looked at him calmly, "Xin Wen wanted to kill you first, so you did nothing wrong. As for that mysterious person, I will report it to the sect. You don't need to worry too much. Just be careful in your daily life."

Wei Feng nodded blankly.

Jiang Gu handed him the white jade earring. "The purpose of becoming a disciple is for both master and disciple to be willing. I accepted you because you caught my eye. Since you are unwilling to cultivate, I will not force you. Let's call it quits."

After saying that, he turned to leave.

"Master!" Wei Feng hurriedly grabbed his sleeve.

Jiang Gu glanced down at the sleeve that he was holding, but said nothing.

Wei Feng didn't dare let go, afraid that he would disappear in the blink of an eye. He raised his head and said cautiously, "I... I didn't not want to become your disciple. It's just that in all these years in the sect, no elder has ever liked me. They all dislike me. I thought you... wouldn't like me either. I was afraid you would be disappointed."

Jiang Gu lied without changing his expression, "If I didn't like you, why would I want to take you as my disciple?"

Wei Feng looked up in surprise, gazing intently at him.

Jiang Gu lied to his conscience and said, "You have excellent aptitude and superb comprehension. You are the perfect person to be my disciple."

Wei Feng's eyes slowly reddened, but he wore a bright smile and said firmly, "Master, I will definitely follow you and cultivate diligently!"

"Hmm." Jiang Gu looked away somewhat awkwardly, pulled the sleeve out of his hand, and turned to walk forward.

Wei Feng followed closely behind him, calling him "Master" in an incredibly sweet voice.

With a flick of his wrist, Jiang Gu's hand exploded into a cloud of blood mist in the cloud pool, and with another flick, the small night-shining pearls that Wei Feng had dropped on the ground all disappeared.

He glanced at the boy next to him who was practically glued to him, and gave a barely perceptible smirk.

They're so easy to fool.