29. The Pride of Heaven (Part 1)
"Nonsense."
Lou Tinglan pursed her lips, her brows furrowed, and she replied loudly, "Naturally, it's for the rules of the Discipline Hall." Her tone was somewhat incredulous at Lou Yi's question.
He was too frank, and Lou Yi couldn't quite figure out his thoughts, so he lost his arrogance.
Upon hearing these words, Ran Qinghe lowered her eyes and looked down, the light in her eyes dimming like a candle flame extinguished by the wind. But in that instant, the corners of her mouth skillfully curved upwards into a perfectly timed arc.
She sneered, "So this is the head of the Discipline Hall. It's one thing to fabricate hall rules at will, but to try and smear me is quite another. The head of the hall has gone too far."
"I haven't even formed a contract yet. Does the Hall Master intend to ruin my path to cultivation with just one sentence?"
Seeing that Ran Qinghe was trying her best to distance herself from Lou Tinglan, Lou Yi finally breathed a barely perceptible sigh of relief.
He conveniently offered himself a way out: "Alright, the specifics of this matter still need to be discussed further." He waved his hand, signaling his disciple to take Ran Qinghe away first.
Lou Tinglan pressed on relentlessly, refusing to back down. He lifted his robes and knelt heavily on the ground, saying, "As the chief disciple of the Discipline Hall, it is my duty to uphold the rules of the hall. If the hall master is wrong, I should promptly dissuade him."
"But since I have failed to dissuade you now, I beg the Hall Master to punish me."
Lou Yi was furious. He really hadn't expected that Lou Tinglan, who was usually so composed and polite, would suddenly become like this. Could it all be because of Ran Qinghe?
He suddenly remembered that in the mortal realm, the scene recorded by Tang Zhongfeiyan only showed the scene before Lou Tinglan met Lou Shuang, and there was no trace of the scene after that. Could it be that Lou Tinglan heard some crazy talk during that time?
Lou Tinglan did not raise his voice, and said without any change in expression, "If the hall master still refuses to release the person, this disciple can only take the blame on his behalf."
He had gone to such lengths for her. She clearly heard a "crack" in her heart, as if some kind of solid shell had suddenly split open.
Lou Yi was caught in a dilemma. If he didn't release Ran Qinghe, he would not only damage his position as the head of the hall, but also lose his trust. However, if he let Ran Qinghe leave, he would have no way to explain it to Qing Xiao.
He said ruthlessly, "Fine, Ran Qinghe still has two years and nine months left in her sentence at the Tower of Babel. If you want to take the blame for her, then go and serve your sentence at the Tower of Babel."
Lou Tinglan remained unfazed and agreed without hesitation.
Then he added, "I broke through to the Nascent Soul stage some time ago. Please have someone send me down to the sixth level of the Tower of Babel."
Lou Yi felt that something was wrong. Lou Tinglan had only broken through to the late stage of Golden Core when she came out of seclusion some time ago, but in such a short period of time, she had directly broken through to Nascent Soul.
Although Lou Yi had doubts, the formation of the Nascent Soul stage was a joyous occasion, so he softened his initially explosive tone: "When did this happen?"
Ran Qinghe also wanted to ask this question.
In the lower realm, Lou Tinglan kept a close eye on her, almost seizing every opportunity to observe her. How could she not know that this person had broken through to the Nascent Soul stage without making a sound? Could it be that she had forcibly broken through by taking a Breakthrough Pill?
Lou Tinglan replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Perhaps those in the Mirror of Past Lives in the Lower Realm have experienced past events, and their state of mind is different, which is why they are able to break through the realm."
Lou Tinglan's words seemed to have a hidden meaning. She suddenly remembered Lou Shuang's words before she died. Lou Yi, in order to secure his position as the hall master, had imprisoned all those who opposed him in the Tower of Babel, and so on.
Although Lou Tinglan outwardly told her that Lou Yi was not that kind of person, inwardly, did Lou Shuang's words plant another thorn in his heart?
Was he planning to take this opportunity to enter the Tower of Babel and find out what was going on?
Ran Qinghe suddenly felt an indescribable sense of stagnation lingering in her heart. It turned out that he was not only arguing for her, but also for his own purposes.
The feeling is hard to describe; it's like biting into a hawthorn ball, initially finding it delicious with its sweet and sour taste, only to end up with a pit that wasn't completely removed.
Actually, this is good; she doesn't want to owe others too much. To her, owing someone is a burden, and she's more used to relying on herself. The kindness of others is like a soft shackle, and she can't let herself get caught up in it.
Her gaze drifted almost imperceptibly over his long, strong fingers. His fingertips unconsciously rubbed the hilt of the Tranquil Sword. So, even he had moments of nervousness.
Lou Yi suppressed his anger and said, "You have just broken through to the next realm and your realm is not yet stable. The matter of the Tower of Heaven Prison should be put on hold for now. As for Ran Qinghe's matter, it should also be put aside for now and discussed later."
Having said that, he turned and left without waiting for Lou Tinglan's reply. This was the maximum concession he could make.
For now, Lou Yi hasn't restricted her freedom, which is already a good ending for her.
Therefore, both morally and logically, she should express her gratitude.
However, before she could even say thank you, she suddenly remembered what Ye Buchen had told her: "So be it, so be it. You and he are ultimately not a good match. He's a blockhead who doesn't understand romance, and you're the kind of person who wants to sever all ties with others, afraid of owing him any favors."
Looking back now, Ye Buchen's words were truly insightful.
If she and he were to become too entangled, it would only cause more trouble. Wouldn't it be better if they were to remain clearly separated, like they are now?
As she turned to leave, Lou Tinglan called out to her again, "Ran Qinghe."
He rarely called her name so calmly. Most of the time, he was either distant and polite to Fellow Daoist Ran, or occasionally he was angrily and forcefully called her name.
She didn't turn around, her tone indifferent: "What's wrong?"
Lou Tinglan stood up: "I haven't written a letter of recommendation for you yet regarding the selection of disciples for Yunya Academy in a month. Come with me."
She responded sullenly, feeling that the two of them were involved again. She was extremely agitated, as if a kitten was running around in her heart, rolling a ball of yarn. The ball of yarn was originally orderly, but suddenly another kitten forced its way in, and the two rolled together, making the orderly ball of yarn more and more chaotic.
Now that the two have lost their opposing stance, even walking side by side seems strange, very strange, Ran Qinghe thought to herself.
She would have preferred the tense atmosphere between them to be like their first meeting, so she would know how to react. But when they walked together calmly, even the wind seemed a little awkward.
Lou Tinglan lives in the same place as Lou Yunya, the former master of the front hall—Luoxue Peak, which is the second highest peak after the main hall of the Discipline Hall.
No one questioned his presence here, after all, as the chief disciple of the Discipline Hall, he was the undisputed successor to the position of Discipline Hall Master.
However, Snowfall Peak is indeed quite far from the main hall.
Throughout the journey, the eyes of many disciples in the hall kept falling on her, making her feel like she was being pricked by thorns. Even disciples who nodded and greeted Lou Tinglan with "Hello, Senior Brother" would hesitate and call her "Hello, Senior Sister" instead.
Ran Qinghe outwardly nodded in greeting with him while maintaining a straight face, but in reality, she was already lost in thought.
Despite its name, Snowfall Peak is actually perpetually spring-like. The two of them walked from the main hall in the center of the temple to the summit, which was practically traversing the entire sect.
Contrary to Ran Qinghe's imagination, Luoxue Peak was devoid of the pavilions and towers, shrouded in mist and ethereal beauty she had envisioned. Instead, there were simple and elegant thatched huts nestled against the cliff face.
Pushing open the door, one finds only the east and west side rooms besides the main hall. The east side room seems to have been uninhabited for a long time, while the west side room still feels somewhat alive, appearing to be Lou Tinglan's bedroom.
Lou Tinglan led her into the inner room of the main hall, deftly ground the ink, spread out a scroll of bamboo slips, and began to transcribe the letter of recommendation.
Finally, he took out a cinnabar red seal, stamped it with the seal, carefully rolled it up, and handed it to her.
She took it, but didn't pull it out.
Ran Qinghe: ?
Lou Tinglan held the scroll, but didn't look at her. Instead, she stared at a tiny mole on the tip of her finger, paused, and asked:
Where do you plan to stay during this month leading up to the academy's disciple selection?
Ran Qinghe assumed that he was asking because of Lou Yi, so she handed him a spirit leaf and said, "Don't worry, I'm tired of chasing and running from you guys. If Hall Master Lou changes his mind one day and wants to lock me up in the Tower of Babel again, you can use this spirit leaf to send me a message, and I can come back."
Ran Qinghe seemed indifferent to where she was, after all, apart from the Valley of Mortals, she had nowhere else to go in the vast world.
If she gets bored inside the tower, she escapes again to absorb some of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
What troubled her was that Lou Tinglan's inquiry wasn't out of a sense of duty. He placed the letter in her hand and continued to press her for answers:
"You don't want your master to know that you left Qingxiao, so you won't be returning to Mortal Valley. Where are you planning to go?"
Ran Qinghe didn't care much. Before receiving the letter of recommendation, she did want to secretly blast a few more spiritual veins in Qingxiao. But since she had decided to participate in the academy selection, she planned to stay quiet for a while to avoid any complications. However, she hadn't decided where to go yet, so she simply shook her head honestly and said, "I haven't decided yet."
Lou Tinglan said gently, "Then you can stay here."
His seemingly random words struck her like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, leaving her feeling numb.
She thought she was hallucinating and repeated, "Stay...here?" Was that what she meant? How could he so casually offer such an invitation?
Lou Tinglan gave a soft "hmm": "Although the Discipline Hall has many rules and restrictions, the abundant spiritual energy of Falling Snow Peak is indeed suitable for cultivation, and it will greatly benefit your realm improvement. There are many empty courtyards on the peak, you can choose any place to stay..."
She abruptly lowered her head, her eyelashes trembling in panic: "...Oh, in that case, thank you." Without even glancing at him, she turned and hurried away.
Her desperate attempt to disappear on the spot caught his eye. He was slightly taken aback at first, then realized that he had almost forgotten that she always treated him like a plague. Now, his abrupt suggestion was probably somewhat inappropriate.
On the desk, the pen on the pen holder swayed slightly. Lou Tinglan composed herself before addressing the person behind the screen, "Senior Brother."
Behind the screen, first a corner of a light blue robe fluttered, then a figure emerged, gracefully approaching with a folding fan, and said with a grin:
"Oh dear, did I interrupt your date? Just pretend you didn't see me."
Lou Tinglan's eyes flickered slightly: "Nonsense."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
