Chapter 16 Just Friends
After Ren Yi learned that Xiao Hanzhou had gone to find Bai Jinliu, he had no intention of staying to wait for them.
However, the value and danger of the Snow Soul are both present. If he leaves it behind directly, there is a risk of being blamed. If something happens to these disciples with the Snow Soul, he will have to involuntarily interrupt the protagonist's private time. But if he just leaves and waits for the next time, it is not good either. This means that the hot potato in the storage bag will have to stay with him for a while longer.
After quickly weighing the pros and cons of the two approaches, Ren Yi made a decision: he decided to keep Xue Po.
After all, even if he leaves now, he might still run into the main characters together next time he comes back—never underestimate the malice of the world's consciousness towards the villainous male supporting character.
Just as Ren Yi was about to speak, the disciples at the door turned their gaze to what was behind him, paused, and then bowed in unison, saying, "Greetings, Senior Brother Xiao."
Ren Yi followed their gaze and saw a young man dressed in the robes of an inner disciple of the Xiao Clan. He was about the same age as Jiang Zhaoyu, and if you looked closely, you could see some resemblance to Xiao Hanzhou in his features.
Considering his surname is Xiao, and looking at the respectful attitude of the gatekeepers, Ren Yi suddenly realized that this must be Xiao Zhiyu, one of Xiao Hanzhou's two favorite disciples in the story.
Xiao Hanzhou wants to revitalize the Xiao family, so he naturally has many disciples. However, there are only two who can be considered his direct disciples: one is Jiang Zhaoyu, an orphan he rescued years ago, and the other is Xiao Zhiyu, a member of a collateral branch of the Xiao family.
Ren Yi was very familiar with Jiang Zhaoyu. After all, Xiao Hanzhou had focused most of his attention on revenge back then, and had not paid much attention to his apprentice. Ren Yi was the one who helped guide him most of the time.
However, Ren Yi didn't really know the latter—Xiao Zhiyu, who only joined the sect after Xiao Hanzhou had taken his revenge. If he had to say, he had met this young man once before, but the other party kept his head down and Ren Yi didn't get a good look at his face. Even though they had met now, he was still not sure.
However, the person who came was indeed Xiao Zhiyu, who had been passing through this area.
He saw the situation from a distance, walked over, and asked, "What happened?"
The two disciples hurriedly said, "This True Person of Xuanqing Sect has come to see the Patriarch."
Xiao Zhiyu's gaze naturally fell on Ren Yi. A strange sense of familiarity arose in his heart, as if a red shadow had flashed before his eyes, causing him to momentarily lose his senses. Before he could recall, he remembered what his two junior brothers had just mentioned about the "Xuanqing Sect," and he quickly dismissed those fleeting thoughts.
He guessed that he might have happened to meet her at Xuanqing Sect these past few days, and that her demeanor was indeed worthy of the phrase "unforgettable upon first sight."
Xiao Zhiyu pulled himself out of his thoughts, bowed and greeted the elder, "I am Xiao Zhiyu, a disciple of the Xiao family. I greet you, senior. The patriarch is currently busy and has been slow to entertain our distinguished guest. We are grateful for your kindness and would appreciate it if you could come inside and have a seat?"
Sitting is out of the question; this option is not left in Ren Yi's choices.
Just then, Xiao Zhiyu arrived. I wouldn't feel comfortable entrusting Xuepo to an ordinary disciple, but I had nothing to worry about entrusting her to Xiao Zhiyu, his personal disciple.
Ren Yi felt that he was lucky today. He briefly explained the whole story, left his things behind, and took his leave.
Although Xiao Zhiyu felt that the patriarch would not leave something as precious as Xue Po to someone else, the person in front of him had a sincere expression, and when those clear eyes swept over him, it made one feel that doubting him would be a huge sin.
...
Not long after Xiao Hanzhou returned from the villa where he was temporarily staying at the Bai family's residence, he obtained the Snow Soul from Xiao Zhiyu.
Xue Po's container was special, and Xiao Hanzhou recognized it immediately. Without waiting for Xiao Zhiyu to explain, he stood up and asked, "Where is he?" It seemed he was already preparing to go see him.
Xiao Zhiyu was taken aback by the family head's strong reaction and was momentarily stunned. After regaining his senses, he quickly stopped him, saying, "That senior heard that the family head was not here, so he did not stay any longer. He left after putting down his things."
Xiao Hanzhou was stunned. He then remembered that he had just been with Bai Jinliu.
Although he went to ask the Bai family if they had any elixirs to relieve old injuries to his meridians, Xiao Hanzhou felt uneasy at the thought that A-Yi knew he was alone with Bai Jinliu.
He didn't know why, but A-Yi seemed to dislike Jin-Liu...
Ke Jinliu was his savior. If it weren't for the other party's secret help back then, he wouldn't have been able to escape Tianhuan City.
Xiao Hanzhou took a deep breath, barely managing to compose himself, and asked again, "How long has he been gone?"
Xiao Zhiyu had never seen the patriarch so out of control. Although he quickly regained his composure, it still shocked him greatly, leaving him momentarily stunned. But when asked, he instinctively replied, "They just left, but according to the pace of a normal cultivator, they should have left Yingsong Peak by now."
Xiao Hanzhou stood still for a while, seemingly hesitating whether to give chase.
A fleeting image flashed through his mind of the wary look the other person had given him not long ago. He felt as if he had been stung, and couldn't help but take a half step back. The cold jade box in his hand was chillingly cold. He couldn't help but look down at it, but then he vaguely realized why the other person had returned it.
—Does A-Yi not want to be associated with him?
As soon as this thought arose, Xiao Hanzhou felt the chill in his palm seep into his internal organs through his meridians, and even the flow of spiritual energy in his dantian became sluggish and congested.
No, impossible!
Having not seen each other for many years, they were a little more distant than before.
But what exactly happened during those three years? Ah Yi was actually that badly injured!!
Then he realized that even though they had been separated for so long, they hadn't even had a chance to sit down and have a proper talk. He knew nothing about the other person's experiences over the years, nor did he know why he had changed so much.
Xiao Hanzhou finally decided to chase after him; he needed to know at least what had happened to A Yi over the years.
Just as he was leaving, he turned to look at Xiao Zhiyu.
“If he comes again in the future, he should come directly to me—no matter what I’m doing.”
Xiao Hanzhou emphasized the second half of the sentence.
Xiao Zhiyu was taken aback, his face showing astonishment.
Only after Xiao Hanzhou turned and left did he seem to realize what was happening. He bowed his head and replied to the patriarch's retreating figure, "Disciple obeys."
Ren Yi hadn't actually left Yingsong Peak yet, not because he was walking slowly, but because he had run into an old friend.
It's ginger fish.
If we were to ask who on the entire Yingsong Peak is the least informed, the answer would undoubtedly be Jiang Zhaoyu.
This senior disciple of the Xiao family appeared to be someone "devoted to swordsmanship and detached from worldly affairs"—and indeed, that wasn't far off—so his junior disciples consciously avoided disturbing their senior brother's peace of mind with mundane matters. Xiao Hanzhou wasn't one to have heart-to-heart talks with his disciples either. For Jiang Zhaoyu, going to Xizhou was merely a change of scenery for practicing swordsmanship; even his rigid daily routine remained exactly the same as when he was in the Xiao family. He still didn't know that Ren Yi was in the Xuanqing Sect.
Therefore, when he suddenly saw that figure he hadn't seen for three years, he stood there stunned for several breaths. By the time he came to his senses, he had already blocked the other person's way.
For the first time, Jiang Zhaoyu felt such a strong urge to say something, but he was usually taciturn, and now he had too much to say, so he couldn't say anything. He just stared intently at the person in front of him, as if he was afraid that if he blinked, the person in front of him would disappear.
Ren Yi looked at the boy standing there like a wooden stake, then looked down at the sword mark that split the ground an inch in front of his shoe. His eye twitched. "After three years apart, this is how you greet your martial uncle?"
God knows that when that sword energy grazed past him, he almost instinctively attacked.
If that were the case, the person standing in front of him now might not necessarily be a complete and intact nephew.
Hearing that familiar voice, Jiang Zhaoyu seemed to finally confirm it.
—The person in front of me is real!
This person has really come back! He wasn't dreaming!!
The joy in his chest rose belatedly after the initial shock, but before this emotion could overwhelm him, he heard Ren Yi's words and followed the latter's gaze down, seeing that very familiar sword mark.
Jiang Zhaoyu "..."
The smile that this future Sword Master of the Eastern Continent hadn't seen in eight hundred years froze on his face.
Jiang Zhaoyu was in a daze when she saw the familiar figure, and the only thought in her mind was to "stop the person".
How do sword cultivators stop people?
In most cases, there is only one choice, especially when the swordsman is holding a sword, that choice almost becomes the only option.
Ren Yi looked at the seemingly expressionless but actually bewildered young man in front of him and finally couldn't help but laugh.
He stopped teasing the boy and instead patted him on the shoulder, where the boy had grown considerably taller, and smiled as he commented on the boy's move, "Not bad, much better than before."
Ren Yi knew Jiang Zhaoyu quite well, and it would be too much to expect the child to say anything, so he simply took the initiative to speak, "After I left back then, I encountered some accidents and ended up in Xizhou. Fortunately, I received help from the Xuanqing Sect and am now a guest elder in the sect."
Ren Yi briefly explained his situation, then looked at Jiang Zhaoyu and asked, "And you? How have you been these past few years?"
Jiang Zhaoyu seemed to struggle to recall her experiences over the past few years, and after a long pause, she finally uttered two curt words—
"very good."
Ren Yi: "..."
Jiang Zhaoyu "..."
After those two words were spoken, the two people facing each other fell into an awkward silence.
However, since the person opposite him was Jiang Zhaoyu, Ren Yi didn't feel awkward at all. Instead, he felt a sense of familiarity and nostalgia, and couldn't help but smile.
He looked the boy, who seemed to have grown much taller, over again and suggested, "How about we spar a couple of times? Let's see how much you've improved over the years."
This time, however, Jiang Zhaoyu hesitated slightly and did not immediately agree.
Ren Yi guessed what he was thinking and raised an eyebrow. "You don't actually think you can hurt me, do you?"
Jiang Zhaoyu nodded very honestly.
Although Ren Yi had anticipated this reaction, he still couldn't help but laugh.
As he broke off a tree branch, he glanced at the boy over there, forcing a stern expression and feigning anger. "Well, it's been a few years, and you've certainly grown bolder."
He twirled the branch in his hand like a sword, and Ren Yi also put away his extra expression. He slightly raised his chin and said, "Let's try it."
Seeing the change in Ren Yi's aura, Jiang Zhaoyu was stunned for a moment.
But his eyes soon lit up, and his expression changed from initial hesitation to eagerness.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
