Although Ye Huaiyao was still inside and had yet to escape danger, this could at least be considered good news. The leopard in its beast form was, after all, somewhat easier to deal with than in its humanoid form.
Someone could not help saying, “Isn’t this Ye Huaiyao the severely injured immortal friend from the Chensu Sect? To have forced the leopard back into its original form single-handedly despite having no spiritual power, his skills must truly be extraordinary!”
Yan Jin happened to hear this, and found it unbearably grating. He deliberately glanced at Cheng Yuan and said in a deliberately barbed tone, “None of us can see how he actually did it. Whether Young Hero Ye is genuinely formidable or merely looks the part remains to be seen. Still, if you ask me, his injuries were caused by Brother Cheng. Since you’re fellow disciples, showing a little mercy… would only be natural, wouldn’t it?”
Ever since Ye Huaiyao had awakened, Cheng Yuan had felt that he was slipping further and further beyond his control. At present, he was both puzzled by where Ye Huaiyao had acquired such abilities and worried about their current predicament. He was already irritated when he heard Yan Jin continuing to make these sarcastic remarks.
Unable to tolerate it any longer, he said without the slightest courtesy, “Is that so? Just now, I saw Young Master Yan struggling even to deal with a single leopard, and it took two others joining forces to barely subdue it. Could it be that you and the leopard are fellow disciples too, and you were holding back out of consideration for that?”
Yan Jin’s haughty manner was already enough to make people dislike him, and Cheng Yuan’s remark was genuinely amusing. Someone nearby immediately burst out laughing, and Yan Jin’s expression changed abruptly.
He had always looked down upon second-rate sects. Even the Sect Master of Chensu Sect had to treat him with courtesy, yet Cheng Yuan dared to speak to him like this?
And in front of Ji Lanying, no less!
A murderous glint flashed through Yan Jin’s eyes, and he immediately wanted to make a move. Cheng Yuan wore a faint cold smile, appearing careless, but was secretly on guard as well.
Just as the confrontation between the two was about to erupt, a sudden cry of alarm came from nearby.
Someone shouted, “Young Master Ji has fallen in!”
Yan Jin’s thoughts had always been occupied by Ji Lanying alone. The moment he heard this, his expression changed drastically, and he immediately turned around. He only had time to catch a glimpse of Ji Lanying’s robes flashing through a gap in the dense mass of Soul-Devouring Grass before they disappeared from sight.
He hurriedly lunged forward to pull him out, but he was too late. He roared furiously, “What happened?”
“Just now, the leopard’s tail lashed out a little way from the grass,” explained the person who had first seen Ji Lanying fall into the encirclement. “Young Master Ji reached out to pull it, which startled the Soul-Devouring Grass. He was accidentally dragged inside instead.”
Yan Jin was frantic with worry, yet could not get in himself, and was almost beside himself with rage. Cheng Yuan, by contrast, looked somewhat more pleased.
—He was taking pleasure in the misfortune.
Ye Huaiyao could not get out anyway, so having another person trapped inside would only make things more interesting. It was fine. After all, who had told Ji Lanying to stick his hands where they did not belong?
Cheng Yuan drawled, “Young Master Ji comes from a prestigious family and has exceptional swordsmanship. Even if he has fallen into the encirclement, I imagine there is no need to worry about him. Let us simply wait for Young Master Yuan to arrive with the Lang Bird and burn away this entire patch of Soul-Devouring Grass.”
As he spoke, however, his gaze did not rest on Yan Jin. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and noticed a small, thin figure squeezing out from the crowd in the distance. There was something vaguely familiar about him.
Cheng Yuan had an excellent memory. After thinking for a moment, he remembered that this child seemed to be the servant boy who carried water and chopped wood at the foot of Chensu Sect Mountain. He immediately called out, “Stop!”
The child was none other than A-Nan. Once he stopped, he remained perfectly calm, watching Cheng Yuan stride towards him.
The child was sallow and thin, but upon closer inspection, he was rather handsome. His chin was slightly pointed, and the corners of his eyes turned upwards. His handsome features carried a hint of cold melancholy, accompanied by an inherently unruly, fierce air. It could hardly be called a favourable appearance.
His eyes, however, were dark and bright, extraordinarily beautiful. At first glance, there was even something about them that seemed to hold affection despite his lack of a smile.
For some reason, Cheng Yuan disliked the boy’s appearance. He grabbed him by the arm and roughly hauled A-Nan over, asking, “How did you sneak in? What are you doing here?”
A-Nan stumbled from the shove, yet there was not the slightest trace of panic in his expression. He steadied himself and said, “I followed the seniors in. I came to find Young Master Ye.”
Although the barrier outside had been opened, demonic energy was still surging throughout the Ghost Wind Forest. He had secretly followed behind them and had somehow remained completely unharmed. It was difficult to say whether this was bizarre or simply a matter of extraordinary luck.
Cheng Yuan was half convinced, but what concerned him more was the “Young Master Ye” mentioned by A-Nan. “You’re looking for Ye Huaiyao?”
A-Nan replied, “Yes. I heard the seniors talking just now. I’m an ordinary person and have no spiritual power, so I can go inside and help.”
Cheng Yuan sneered. “What use would you be inside? Are you going in there to get yourself killed?”
Although he said this, a thought stirred faintly in his mind. This child was of little use, but he could at least carry some magical artefacts and talismans in and out. Even if it did not work, the worst consequence would simply be his death. It could hardly be considered a serious matter…
While they were discussing matters outside, Ye Huaiyao, upon seeing Ji Lanying inside, almost had the urge to hammer him into the ground.
He had just managed, with a clever application of force, to take advantage of the leopard’s momentary carelessness after it had reverted to its beast form and knock it out of the encirclement formed by the Soul-Devouring Grass.
If he succeeded, Ye Huaiyao would temporarily be free of the leopard’s threat. Since he himself had no spiritual power, he would also soon be able to find a way out of the encirclement.
Yet at this critical moment, Ji Lanying had to come along and make matters worse. Not only had he failed to get the leopard out, he had brought himself inside as well, rendering all of Ye Huaiyao’s efforts futile.
He almost felt as though he had returned to the fear he used to experience when reading novels in class, whenever he was at the mercy of Big Brother Ji. Back then, whenever he saw the protagonist repeatedly following the pattern of “getting into trouble, being rescued, getting into trouble again, being rescued again”, he had countless times wanted to roar at him:
“Can’t you just sit still and do absolutely nothing for once?!”
And now, it was exactly the same.
But Ye Huaiyao was no longer an outsider watching from beyond the pages. He was now one of the characters within the book, and he had no time to complain about any of this. The leopard that had returned was glaring menacingly at him, ready to attack at any moment.
Huaijiang seemed to sense his mood and could not resist adding his two cents. “Some people are simply born as the children of destiny. As the saying goes, misfortune is what fortune leans upon. No matter how much danger they encounter, they can ultimately turn peril into safety and misfortune into blessing. That is the injustice of the world.”
The old mirror’s words immediately reminded Ye Huaiyao of a particular plot point from the book.
Around the middle of the novel, there was an episode in which the old patriarch of the Ji family, who had never liked Ji Lanying, was ambushed and seriously wounded, leaving him bedridden.
Ji Lanying went through untold hardships to obtain a spiritual medicine for him and restore his damaged meridians. From then on, the old patriarch’s opinion of him changed, and his standing within the family rose another step.
Could it be…?
After falling into the encirclement, Ji Lanying immediately saw the leopard’s entire form clearly.
He had once obtained a copy of the Secret Records of Divine Beasts by chance. Upon seeing the strange markings on the leopard’s body, he was astonished and blurted out, “This is the Leopard King! Its heart blood is a miraculous medicine for treating internal injuries!”
Ye Huaiyao: “…”
Sure enough, every time the protagonist got himself into trouble, some unexpected opportunity would be waiting for him afterwards.
But this was no longer a novel. Good things should be shared among those who encountered them, and first come, first served was only fair.
Ye Huaiyao simply smiled and raised a hand with effortless elegance. “Indeed. If Young Master Ji wants it, I would not presume to take what belongs to you. Please.”
Ji Lanying had always been warm-hearted, which was also why he had been able to make so many good friends.
When the leopard’s tail had lashed out earlier, he had not given it much thought and had instinctively wanted to help. Instead, he had ended up dragging himself into the mess.
That alone was nothing. It was merely an accident that could happen to anyone. Yet at that moment, when Ji Lanying saw Ye Huaiyao’s handsome and refined face, he felt another wave of suffocation in his chest.
He had always known that his appearance was one of his greatest advantages, and he was skilled at making use of that advantage to achieve all sorts of purposes.
It could be said that this was not merely a matter of appearance. It was one of his greatest weapons for making his way through the world. Ever since he was a child, people had surrounded him, praised him and adored him, largely because of his “extraordinary beauty, jade-like bearing, and an air that made people feel as though they were bathing in a spring breeze, forgetting their troubles the moment they saw him”.
But that day, he had been publicly criticised by a renowned painter in front of everyone and condemned as “nothing but a pretty face, not even a fraction of Lord Yunqi, yet presumptuous enough to dream of competing with the bright moon”.
After that incident, Ji Lanying’s state of mind changed. He was no longer as proud and self-confident as before. Had it been anyone else, perhaps it would not have mattered. But the other person was the Illustrious Sage. Even his most devoted admirers had to admit that there was no one who could reach this man’s heights.
That man’s reputation and bearing were like a great, heavy mountain carried upon Ji Lanying’s back, making it difficult for him to breathe.
Fortunately, he was dead. Yet now Ji Lanying had encountered a face like this once more!
Thankfully, apart from that face, there was not a single other aspect of Ye Huaiyao that could compare with him. Ji Lanying thought that otherwise, he truly did not know what he would have done.
Knowing that the other man had no cultivation, and hearing Ye Huaiyao say this, Ji Lanying felt that he ought to take responsibility for the main assault. He said, “Very well, I’ll deal with it. Young Hero Ye, you can support me from the side.”
Ye Huaiyao smiled. “Thank you, Young Master Ji. Although my abilities are meagre, I will certainly do my best.”
Ji Lanying was delighted. He felt that, apart from that face of his, this man was genuinely likeable in every respect. But after only three moves, he realised that he had spoken far too soon.
He simply could not use spiritual power. The moment he did, the Soul-Devouring Grass nearby would lash towards him with claws and fangs. Yet without spiritual power, his swordsmanship was not fast enough, nor refined enough. He did not even possess enough strength to defend himself, and soon fell into complete disarray.
Ye Huaiyao had anticipated this from the beginning. He had never expected Ji Lanying to display any truly exquisite swordsmanship. Instead, he intended to use the man’s struggle with the leopard to buy himself a little time and search for an opening.
The agile leopard let out a roar, drove off with its hind legs and sprang into the air. In his panic, Ji Lanying dropped into a roll across the ground and narrowly avoided it.
The opportunity was here!
Ye Huaiyao neither dodged nor retreated. He swept his longsword levelly across, this time determined to take the injury if necessary and finish off the leopard once and for all.
The leopard’s forepaw was just about to land on his shoulder, while Ye Huaiyao’s sword was about to pierce the Leopard King’s body. Ji Lanying could not help widening his eyes.
The grass behind him rustled with a loud “swish, swish”, and a small, thin figure came charging out, throwing himself in front of Ye Huaiyao as though he meant to shield him from the leopard’s attack.
A spray of blood, seemingly from nowhere, burst into the air.
Even Ye Huaiyao was startled. He instinctively caught hold of the person, while at the same time forcing his sword forwards with all his remaining strength.
The two of them stumbled backwards several steps and fell to the ground, while the leopard crashed heavily onto the ground, lying motionless.
Ye Huaiyao had no time to concern himself with it. When he looked up and saw that the person who had suddenly appeared was none other than A-Nan, he actually wondered for a moment whether he was seeing things.
Amid the confusion just now, A-Nan had been shielding him with all his might, becoming drenched in blood. Ye Huaiyao did not know where the blood had come from. He pulled him aside and helped him sit up, asking, “How did you get here… No, wait, are you hurt? Let me have a look.”
A-Nan wiped the blood from his face with his sleeve and gave Ye Huaiyao a somewhat bashful smile. “I’m not hurt. It’s the leopard’s blood.”
Even so, Ye Huaiyao could see four deep claw marks across the back of his hand. That blow should originally have landed on Ye Huaiyao’s shoulder, but A-Nan had taken it for him.
Ye Huaiyao pressed a handkerchief against the wound, then stood up to examine the Leopard King. He found Yan Lin’s longsword thrust diagonally into its chest, while another dagger had been driven into its abdomen from below, buried right up to the hilt.
He asked A-Nan, “Was it you who stabbed it with that dagger?”
A-Nan nodded. He had insisted on coming inside to find Ye Huaiyao, and Cheng Yuan and the others, having neither the need nor the inclination to stop him, had given him sharp weapons and talismans to carry inside for Ye Huaiyao and Ji Lanying to use.
But A-Nan had eyes for Ye Huaiyao alone. He had happened to enter just as the leopard was pouncing towards him. Seeing the scene, he had no idea where the courage had come from, but he immediately threw himself forwards without a second thought.
The spray of blood just now had come from the dagger piercing the leopard’s body.
Once he had confirmed that the Leopard King was completely dead, Ye Huaiyao’s expression shifted, and his emotions became rather complicated.
Throughout his life, he had wielded immense power, saving countless lives, and it was not as though he had never received help from others. Yet he had never imagined that, after falling into such circumstances, there would be a child who would rush in without a thought for his own safety and stand in front of him.
And that embrace just now had felt strangely familiar…
Ye Huaiyao asked, “You mean everyone else is outside?”
Hearing that his tone was not quite as relaxed and carefree as usual, A-Nan was afraid that Ye Huaiyao was unhappy at having been left alone inside. He hurriedly said, “Yes. Don’t be unhappy… The people outside are worried about you too. Now that I’m here with you, those plants won’t bother me. I’ll find a way to get you out! I… I definitely can get you out!”
His little face was filthy, covered in dirt and blood, with some bruising still visible from the earlier fight. He looked up at Ye Huaiyao, his eyes the only thing that remained dark and bright, filled with longing and fervour, as though they were glowing.
Despite how urgent his voice was, A-Nan’s hands still did not dare touch so much as a corner of Ye Huaiyao’s clothes. Even after all the fighting, those clothes were hardly clean either.
Huaijiang saw how dishevelled the child was, yet how determined he was to put on the appearance of a hero, and found it extremely amusing. He burst into loud laughter.
Ye Huaiyao smiled as well. Yet compared with Huaijiang’s laughter, his own smile was one of relaxed brows and softened eyes, like a spring breeze brushing across the face. Simply looking at it was enough to make one feel a deep sense of ease and happiness.
He pinched A-Nan’s cheek and said, “That’s right. You helped me enormously. How impressive. At such a young age, you deserve half the credit for killing this Leopard King.”
He only touched him lightly before letting go. The sensation lasted no more than the passing of a falling blossom, yet it seemed to leave an imprint upon A-Nan’s heart.
A-Nan looked up, only to see that Ye Huaiyao had already walked over to the side. He gave the leopard’s head a kick with his boot and said half-jokingly, “This is valuable stuff. We’d better keep a close eye on our spoils, shouldn’t we?”
He had no idea what these so-called “spoils” might be useful for, but to him, anything Ye Huaiyao said was as good as an imperial decree. He immediately gave a firm, “Mm.”
Ji Lanying was still holding his largely useless longsword, standing somewhat awkwardly to one side. The two of them chatted away as though he were not even there.
He had lived all these years and had rarely received such cold treatment. He was just about to say, “You two…” in an attempt to draw their attention, when a bird’s cry suddenly came from outside.
The cry was clear and soaring, piercing straight into the heavens and stirring the soul. He recognised it at once, immediately forgetting everything else, and exclaimed happily, “It’s a Lang Bird! Brother Yuan is here!”
Ye Huaiyao paused slightly, then turned his head and asked, “Yuan Xian?”
Author’s Note:
The Illustrious Sage’s new and old flames, his open admirers and secret admirers, all gathered together in one place. Come on, Little Ye!
