Chapter 16: Encountering an Old Friend Again
"Huh? I succeeded?" The bearded man stared blankly at the bustling street, looking left and right, his face full of disbelief.
"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" Before the bearded disciples could react, they were tumbling and rolling on the ground, wailing and staggering.
Watching his fellow apprentices thrashing about in the street corner like fish out of water, the bearded man's surprise gradually turned to elation. He clenched his fists and raised them high, shouting, "I did it! I did it!"
"See that? See that?" he exclaimed excitedly, slapping his goat beard.
After being slapped by the bearded man without knowing his own strength, the already exhausted goatee turned even paler and almost couldn't stand up. He gritted his teeth and warned, "I know! Stop hitting me!"
"What's wrong with you?" The bearded man was confused and instinctively tried to push him.
The man with the goatee, unable to dodge in time, turned deathly pale.
"Senior brother is amazing!" "Senior brother is amazing!" "As expected of senior brother!" The junior brothers, snapping out of their daze, cheered and surrounded the bearded man. The bearded man, who had raised his hand, touched the back of his head and smiled slightly embarrassedly: "Isn't this just natural?"
The goat-bearded man, who had been tense and bracing for a heavy blow, breathed a sigh of relief and slowly moved towards the wall. He found Ji Mingran standing beside him, holding a black sword, her eyes shining with excitement. The young man who had been following her was nowhere to be seen.
He hadn't had time to pay attention to Ji Mingran during the battle, and didn't know if the two of them were injured. He asked with concern, "Is Miss Ji alright?"
The answer is obvious.
"Hey, I'm fine." Ji Mingran reluctantly turned his gaze back to the goatee when he heard someone call out to him. Seeing the goatee's pale face, he said, "Oh, you don't seem to be doing so well."
A look of worry appeared on her face. She leaned closer and lowered her voice, "I know you quite well. How about I give you a 10% discount on your coffin and the rest of your funerary objects?"
"..." Goat Beard: "I won't die for now."
The loud laughter of the bearded man could be heard from not far away.
The shadow of what happened a few seconds ago loomed over him, and Goatbeard's breath hitched: "However, things are unpredictable, so it's better to be prepared. Let's make it 20% off."
"15% off." Ji Mingran bargained skillfully: "Any lower and I'd lose money."
"Alright, thank you, Miss." Having settled his affairs, the goatee remembered one person whose situation was still unclear: "Where is that young master who was with you?"
"He went somewhere else as soon as he came in, leaving me to wait here." Ji Mingran was in a better mood after closing a deal, and began to peer around the town again.
Busy completing tasks assigned by Boss Jiang all day long, she usually stayed either in the shop or at home, only stopping by the sweet water shop and the pharmacy to buy rice and medicine, and never going anywhere else. This was her first time outside of Fengqi Town, let alone such a large prefecture city.
People come and go, not only ordinary people, but also many cultivators.
It's so lively!
As she thought about it, she couldn't help but chuckle.
The man with the goatee looked at Ji Mingran, who was grinning foolishly, and hesitated to speak.
While the group of people were still reeling from the teleportation into the city, and even feeling lingering fear, the two of them had already acted as usual, completely unaffected by the fluctuations in the formation.
It's not surprising that Boss Jiang's people have secret methods to protect them.
But he knew his senior brother's background very well. The reason why the group was able to successfully enter the city was clearly because of the seemingly ordinary little girl in front of him.
The ability to dissolve and draw upon the spiritual power of a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator simply by drawing qi into the body, and to activate an array that even broke through the city's protective array in one fell swoop, is simply a fantasy.
Those who cultivate themselves have different destinies, and it's not something to be overly investigated. But someone like her was someone he had never heard of before. The goat-bearded man finally couldn't hold back and asked, "How did you do that?"
Ji Mingran had no idea that Yang Hu Zi's thoughts had gone through several rounds of twists and turns. He only thought that Yang Hu Zi was asking about his standing still and waiting for someone. He said in confusion, "Just... just stand still."
Still wondering to myself, what method is needed to stand still? Has Goat Beard lost his mind?
Seeing Ji Mingran's expression change from bewilderment to pity as she looked at him, Yang Hu Zi instantly realized that his question had caused a misunderstanding. He explained with a wry smile, "I meant to borrow my senior brother's spiritual power to activate the formation."
Ji Mingran clenched her fist and said, "Oh, you mean this?" She shrugged, feeling there was nothing more to say. "If you think about this from morning till night every day, you can succeed too."
For eight years, she was unable to store spiritual energy. Since she had nothing better to do, she would roll and flatten spiritual energy, stretch and fold it every day, and naturally became adept at controlling spiritual energy.
"..." Goat Beard: "I don't think so." However, the matter-of-fact expression on Ji Mingran's face was all too familiar.
Over the years, he had seen someone many, many times.
hateful.
Another wicked genius.
"Hey girl, you're here!" At this moment, the bearded man finally turned his attention back to the matter at hand, turned around and strode towards Ji Mingran.
He shouted as he walked, "Hey girl! We're so lucky to have you with us this time! We're so glad we met you!"
Fortunately, the bearded man's invisibility spell and the goat-bearded man's silencing spell were still effective, and the noise of the crowd did not attract the attention of the people on the street.
Ji Mingran waved to the bearded man with a grin: "We are the ones who are able to enter the battle thanks to the help of our elder brothers."
"What a lovely girl!" The bearded man felt as if he had met her too late and immediately extended an invitation: "Let's go into the city together, or maybe we can go together later? We'll stay here until Tianmen makes any moves."
Ji Mingran smiled and shook her head. She herself didn't mind, but with Yu Tianxing by her side, it wasn't appropriate for her to be with them.
"Why?" The bearded man felt it was a pity and was about to persuade him when he was stopped by the very perceptive goatee.
“Miss Ji has her own arrangements, and we shouldn’t bother you.” The man with the goatee clasped his hands in a respectful bow. “We haven’t introduced ourselves to you along the way, which is impolite of us. I am Shao Qingshang from the Nihilistic School, and I hope we will have the chance to meet again.”
"I am Fu Renlan." The bearded man quickly introduced himself upon seeing this.
Crossing the Heavenly Gate signifies severing ties with this realm, so most cultivators who wish to cross it see no point in forming further connections with others. Moreover, these two, determined to sacrifice their Dao bones rather than not cross the Heavenly Gate, felt even more that forming connections was pointless.
now......
Goat Beard gave Ji Mingran a meaningful look.
If he and his senior brother are fortunate enough to cross the Heavenly Gate, they might one day meet her again in the spiritual cultivation world.
Led by the bearded youth, the disciples of the Void Sect were reluctant to part with Ji Mingran, after all, they were people who had gone through hardships together and crossed the formation. After a long while of shouting farewells, they finally left in a hurry, led by Shao Qingshang and Fu Renlan.
As soon as they left, the spell cast on Ji Mingran completely disappeared.
Unlike before when she was quietly observing the town, she completely blended into the crowd on the street, like a pebble thrown into a sea of sand, becoming a drop in the ocean of Minghua County.
The streets were crowded with people, shoulder to shoulder.
Soldiers patrolled closely, vendors hawked their wares, shopkeepers solicited customers, customers haggled over prices, and pedestrians strolled leisurely—this was clearly a large town still functioning normally.
Unlike the surrounding towns, the people here selling, buying, and walking around include not only ordinary people, but also monks.
Spells appeared just a few steps away, and magical artifacts hummed.
Clearly, the locals were used to it, and even children were not surprised when they suddenly saw people appearing in the air.
The goat-bearded man told her that the cultivators who could break through the formation had their own special skills, and the ten cultivators of the Dao Sect were already in the wrong and would not cause any more trouble in the county. In addition, if they accidentally disturbed the fortune of the mortal world, they would suffer a backlash from the Heavenly Dao. Both sides took a step back, which maintained the superficial balance in the county.
It seems that this is indeed the case.
Ji Mingran observed the people coming and going on the street with great interest, and gradually he was able to tell which ones were disciples of the Ten Cultivators of the Dao Sect and which ones were not.
Among the cultivators, those who are alone or in twos and threes are mostly disciples from other sects or independent cultivators who broke through the formation, while those who are in groups and wear uniform robes are often disciples of the ten major sects of Daoist cultivation.
Just like the group of young people chatting and laughing not far away, each with a cheerful face and exuding an air of ambition and vigor, they strode forward, the jade pendants at their waists swaying on their frost-colored brocade robes with each step, which was quite a sight.
"Yes! Yes! Yes! Beautiful! Extremely beautiful! Everyone who has seen her has their eyes nearly pop out of their sockets!"
"What nonsense are you talking about? You're just spouting gibberish. If you had even a fraction of your attention on cultivation, your progress wouldn't be so slow."
"Yes, I'm very suspicious. Seeing is believing! Hehe, junior brother, do you have any information about the whereabouts of this otherworldly person? I'll personally verify the information to see if it's true or not."
"Look at you all, so spineless! Cultivators value strength! Besides, when it comes to appearance, our senior brother is handsome and dashing, and our senior uncle Yu is even more beautiful. It's just a pity that senior uncle Yu's old injury has not healed and he cannot participate in this trip. If those mortals had seen senior uncle Yu, they wouldn't be so surprised by this person from another world."
"But I heard that it was someone who had dealings with Uncle Yu who mentioned that Uncle Yu was slightly inferior to this otherworldly being."
"Our sect has never been inferior to others; how could a dog's eyes know what beauty is!"
......
The group gradually became more and more heated in their discussion, and their voices grew louder and louder.
Ji Mingran squatted in the corner, listening to the gossip with great interest, his gaze drawn to the jade pendant that rippled with dark green arcs.
The jade pendant swung back and forth until it stopped in front of Ji Mingran.
The casual conversation abruptly ended.
Ji Mingran withdrew his gaze, looked up and surveyed the crowd blocking his way, and said, "Everyone, you're blocking the way."
The boys and girls, whose chatter had stopped along with their steps, also looked bewildered, not understanding why they had suddenly stopped walking.
Everyone looked at the leader.
The man surrounded by the crowd had an arrogant and aloof expression. He hadn't said a word the whole way, but his eyes were now fixed on Ji Mingran's face, completely ignoring the curious glances from his fellow disciples.
After a long pause, he uttered a few words in a stiff tone: "So you really came."
Upon hearing this, the fellow disciples immediately turned their curious gazes toward Ji Mingran.
Ji Mingran looked completely bewildered and blurted out, "Huh? Who? Who are you?"
The man raised his chin and did not respond, seemingly certain that she would recognize him.
"..." This time, Ji Mingran was no longer as casual in his speech as before.
After all, the bearded young man she had completely forgotten had barely left when another person arrived. Judging from his attitude, could he be another customer she had forgotten?
Ji Mingran couldn't help but have doubts.
Why are the people who have been visiting this store all these years so unlucky, with one or two of them becoming regular customers?
In any case, Mr. Jiang's guests should not be neglected.
She had no choice but to resort to her old trick, greeting him with a vague yet polite smile: "Ah, so you're a distinguished guest."
However, polite words were completely ineffective. The arrogant man saw through Ji Mingran's deception at a glance. After looking at him suspiciously for a while, the man was sure that Ji Mingran did not recognize him. His face turned ashen, and he said stiffly, "It is me, Meng Yingyang."
Ji Mingran blinked, and the smile on his face gradually rose into an awkward yet polite arc, revealing his bewilderment without any attempt to hide it.
Oh dear, she still couldn't remember any of the distinguished guests' names; she couldn't recall them at all.
Meng Yingyang gritted his teeth and squeezed out four words: "Cousin Wang Mao."
Ji Mingran paused, his gaze sweeping over the frost-colored robe and the dark green jade pendant again, and he suddenly realized.
Oh, it's him!
The person who attacked her eight years ago.
No wonder I couldn't remember.
It was already dark, and she was focused on escaping and fighting back, so Meng Yingyang's appearance was very blurry in her mind.
All she remembered was the expensive-looking dress and the jade pendant.
Later, Wang Mao got along well with her. He not only stopped bothering her, but also occasionally brought her rice, flour, and snacks, so she no longer worried about food.
Oh dear! She forgot to say goodbye to Wang Mao.
Ji Mingran's mind wandered from reminiscing about his past with Wang Mao to lamenting that he had completely forgotten about Wang Mao recently, before finally returning to his original state.
If it were Wang Mao himself, she would say a few words.
But the person in front of her was only related to Wang Mao by marriage, and could hardly be considered an old friend reunited with her. At most, they were strangers who had met before.
Now is the crucial moment when the Heavenly Gate is about to open, and she has no time to deal with unimportant people.
Ji Mingran responded hastily, "Ah, so it's you."
Seeing that Ji Mingran remembered him, Meng Yingyang's expression softened a little, but his brows furrowed immediately: "You haven't made any progress in the past eight years. It's really disappointing."
Ji Mingran didn't care what he thought. She was focused on finding a way out of the crowd. Looking around, she casually said, "Oh, thank you for your concern." When the crowd saw her eyes wandering as if she was looking for something, they subconsciously took a few steps back and looked around.
This just happens to leave a gap.
Ji Mingran's eyes lit up, and she instantly hopped into a gap in the crowd. "Excuse me, please make way." The others, bewildered, quickly moved aside. As she pushed through the crowd, she suddenly remembered something, turned around without looking back, and waved her hand, saying, "Say goodbye to Wang Mao for me." With that, she slipped away from the still-undispersed crowd like a fish in water.
Her movements were fluid and swift; Meng Yingyang didn't even have time to call out to her before he was left standing there, completely ignored.
The group of fellow disciples behind him suddenly became noisy.
Who is that?
"This is the first time I've ever seen someone who doesn't respect their senior brother."
"These past few days, Senior Brother Meng has been loitering around the city gate. Is he waiting for her?"
"Really? He's so ordinary-looking. Senior brother probably just exchanged a few polite words with someone he knows."
"Come on, I think he just doesn't want to exchange pleasantries with his senior brother."
"Shut up, don't talk nonsense!"
“Hey, look, why is she walking with a slight limp?”
"It seems...it seems like he's lame?!"
"Yes! She's lame! She carries a stick on her back."
Meng Yingyang was taken aback by Ji Mingran's casual abandonment. His body froze, as if rooted to the spot. Hearing his fellow disciples' whispers, he immediately turned to look. He saw that although Ji Mingran's steps were light, his figure swayed slightly from side to side, as if walking on a rough road. His face paled, and he muttered, "How could this be..."
He hurried forward, about to call out to Ji Mingran to ask for clarification.
However, before he had taken two steps, a spacious black wooden carriage came to a steady stop in front of Ji Mingran.
Four tall, fine horses stood quietly at rest, behind which a black wooden carriage with intricate patterns exuded an air of luxury. Two maids sat gracefully in front of the carriage. As the carriage came to a stop, the two maids alighted and bowed to greet the young lady, saying, "Miss has been playing outside for quite some time; it's time for you to go home."
Ji Mingran was taken aback, his gaze sweeping towards the wooden window of the carriage. As if sensing something, a small corner of the curtain was lifted, revealing slender, long, slender fingers gripping it. The layers of curtains fell away in an instant, and the scene inside the carriage vanished.
Ji Mingran boarded the carriage without saying a word.
Meng Yingyang stopped in his tracks. He recognized the person inside the car. Even in that brief moment, just from the tiny glimpse of facial features peeking through the gap, he could tell that the car's owner was an extraordinary person.
The deposed prince, Yu Tianxing.
Meng Yingyang frowned deeply. He wasn't entirely unaware of his sect's involvement in the internal power struggles within the royal court. Unlike his Uncle-Master Yu, whose limited talent led him to focus solely on immediate wealth and power, he had no interest in getting involved in matters concerning the fate of the small world, neither then nor now.
As for her... even now, she is still entangled with the people of Tianyun.
Does physical disability mean that one's Daoist heart is also abandoned?
A strange emotion surged within me.
"That's truly absurd."
Meng Yingyang lowered his eyes, suppressing the turmoil in his heart. He turned back, resumed his usual demeanor, ignored his fellow disciples who were eager to find out more, and led everyone back to the gathering place.
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