Stepping into his study, Xiaoyu saw a tall stack of letters piled on his desk. The lowest envelopes had already yellowed slightly with age, and a sudden soreness pricked his eyes.
He picked up a letter and looked at the cover. It was from Wei Yuan. He picked up another; it was still from Wei Yuan.
Just like that, through all the years Xiaoyu had spent in secluded cultivation, Wei Yuan had written one letter after another, never minding that he had never received a single reply.
Xiaoyu caressed the envelopes with fingers as fair and lustrous as jade, a smile touching the corners of his lips as he murmured, "...I wonder how my Yong'an City has developed by now."
The maid responsible for tidying the study let out a light laugh. "Young Master, all these years you were in seclusion, this person kept writing to you! If I didn't know he was a man, I would've thought you'd stolen another young lady's soul!"
"Nonsense. He is my fellow sect junior brother."
The maid curled her lip. "Hmph, who's ever seen sect brothers write this many letters? You two aren't normal!"
Just as Xiaoyu was about to offer a rebuttal, an elegant voice sounded from outside the study: "Worthy Nephew, achieving Star Lord Shaoyang is truly a cause for great celebration!"
A short-bearded man in green robes stepped into the study. Xiaoyu rose to pay his respects, greeting him as Third Uncle.
The man smiled and said, "It seems that within ten years, you'll have surpassed me. Haha, your Third Uncle was once hailed as the greatest talent of his generation, but compared to the greatest talent of the entire Xiao family across all time, there is simply no contest. In the days ahead, the great responsibility of revitalizing our Xiao family will rest upon your shoulders."
"Third Uncle flatters me. In those days, you offered much guidance, and I hold it close to my heart." Xiaoyu remained modest and courteous.
The man continued, "The Immortal Ancestor has decided to hold a Grand Ceremony of the Immortal Manifestation specially for you. We have invited neighboring noble families and sects; in particular, Shangguan Qianmo of the Sword Palace will also attend to celebrate the advent of Star Lord Shaoyang. Your grandfather is still in seclusion, so I will preside over this ceremony. It has been set for seven days from now at noon. What do you think?"
"I will follow all of the family's arrangements."
The man nodded in satisfaction, then glanced at the letters on the desk. "This Wei Yuan truly cares about you."
Xiaoyu smiled faintly. "He is, after all, my junior brother. We went through years of life and death together, so our bond is different."
After Third Uncle took his leave, Xiaoyu seated himself properly behind his desk. He instructed his maid to light a brazier of incense reserved exclusively for the Great Tang imperial family, brought out a letter opener made from ten-thousand-year arctic woolly mammoth ivory, and fetched a crouching tiger paperweight, carved by a master craftsman over ten years from a base of raw blood-veined mutton-fat white jade. He arranged everything neatly upon the desk.
With all preparations complete, Xiaoyu reverently picked up the earliest letter and opened it. Sitting upright, he read it carefully in the afternoon sunlight.
He had only read a few sentences when the smile vanished from his face.
After reading several more, Xiaoyu's face had turned completely livid. He bit down hard on his lower lip, and with a sharp snap, the ivory letter opener shattered into several pieces!
"Is he even human?! Is he human?!" Countless curses squeezed out between Xiaoyu's handsome lips.
He could not fathom how Wei Yuan had managed to write letters so persistently, yet without a single word of missing Xiaoyu. Every single line was boasting about himself!
Boasting about himself was one thing, but at the end, he never forgot to throw in a few passive-aggressive barbs at Xiaoyu, expertly tearing him down while elevating himself.
Xiaoyu grabbed the most recent letter and tore it open in one rip, but in his fury he used too much force and accidentally ripped the paper in two. He pieced the two halves together, only to see that the very first sentence read: *Worthy Younger Brother Xiaoyu—*
Xiaoyu grabbed the earlier letters. Sure enough, the earliest ones began with *My Elder Brother Xiaoyu*, and now it had become *Worthy Younger Brother*? Who gave him the nerve?! Even if Xiaoyu were to agree to it, Star Lord Shaoyang never would!
Xiaoyu barely suppressed his boiling rage and read further.
"...The immortals played chess, and this humble brother was but a chess piece. I won by half a move, yet failed to completely annihilate the adversary, which left me with great regret. Later, on a certain day of cultivation, I intended to advance my progress another step, but who could have foreseen an immortal launching a cross-realm sneak attack! This humble brother fought a bloody battle to the death and was fortunate enough to prevail by half a move, sending that immortal fleeing wounded—"
Xiaoyu covered his face with his hand. What an outrageous boaster! Truly an outrageous boaster!
To brag for several years without tiring of it—did Wei Yuan think Xiaoyu was an idiot, or just that easy to bully?
Ever since manifesting Star Lord Shaoyang, Xiaoyu's temper had grown considerably fiercer. That so-called gentle disposition of Star Lord Shaoyang was only gentle when compared to the Great Sun or Yangming.
Without a second word, Xiaoyu threw open his sword vault, snatched down the treasure longsword the family had forged specially for his Dharma Idol realm, and took nothing else as he vaulted directly into the air from the courtyard.
Below, his personal maid noticed something amiss and flew up after him—she possessed a Dharma Idol cultivation herself. She cried out in alarm, "Young Master, where are you going?"
Xiaoyu said, "I'm taking a long journey."
"What about the Grand Ceremony of the Immortal Manifestation?!"
"...It's cancelled!!"
His voice echoed in the air as a blazing streak of fire surged into the distance at astonishing speed. Though the maid was also at the Dharma Idol realm, her speed fell far short of Xiaoyu's, and within an instant, his figure was nowhere to be seen.
Numerous high-ranking cultivators in the ancestral grounds were stirred. One divine sense after another swept over the scorching remnants left in the sky, none of them understanding what had transpired. Judging by the trajectory, however, he had headed west.
***
Wei Yuan spread out a large sheet of paper, calmed his mind and gathered his breath, and dipped his brush until it was thoroughly saturated with ink. Only then did he lift his wrist and set brush to paper, writing four large characters:
*Building a Cart Behind Closed Doors.*
The strokes possessed sharp brilliance without being overly flaunted, pulling back three parts where vigor burst forth, already carrying a touch of genuine awkward simplicity. It was a crowning masterpiece in Wei Yuan's life. Gazing at these four characters, Wei Yuan was secretly admiring his own work when he suddenly felt the study grow substantially hotter, as if scorched under the blazing midday sun of midsummer.
Immediately after, a melodious voice laced with the sound of grinding teeth rang in his ear: "Are you implying that I've been building a cart behind closed doors?!"
Wei Yuan looked up, both surprised and delighted. "Junior Brother Xiaoyu?! It really is you, you're finally back! This is wonderful! With no word from you all this time, this elder brother was terribly worried."
Xiaoyu's delicate brows shot up, eyes spitting fire. This bastard called him 'Junior Brother' so smoothly now, so as if it were only natural?
He squeezed several words through the gaps of his teeth: "I have just emerged from seclusion, and thought only of hurrying here to ask Senior Brother for a pointer or two!"
Xiaoyu bit down especially hard on the words *Senior Brother*.
Wei Yuan looked Xiaoyu up and down and remarked, "You've achieved your dharma idol too? Hmm, among our cohort, you're not considered slow. I wouldn't call it giving pointers, but sharing some insights with you is no problem at all."
Xiaoyu could no longer endure it. He was someone poised to take over the Immortal Ancestor's mantle, and Star Lord Shaoyang was exceedingly proud by nature. How could he tolerate Wei Yuan's snide passive-aggression again and again?!
Star Lord Shaoyang manifested at once. With a sweep of wide sleeves, a vast wash of sunlight gathered around Wei Yuan, and both figures materialized in the sky above the immortal city. Drawing his sword, Xiaoyu shouted, "My dharma idol has only just formed, and my cultivation is shallow. I ask Senior Brother to give me proper guidance!"
It was as though an extra blazing sun had appeared above the immortal city. Such an enormous disturbance naturally drew everyone's attention. Over a dozen divine senses reached out at once, and someone gasped in astonishment, "What kind of dharma idol is that? It looks formidable!"
Another voice agreed: "Ordinary sword-bearing immortals are common, but once they have a proper name and hold an immortal title, they become terrifyingly potent! This sword-bearing immortal is clearly out of the ordinary, though I wonder what office he holds."
Catching the onlookers' chatter, Xiaoyu finally felt his mood improve slightly, thinking to himself that some people here at least had discerning eyes.
It was hardly surprising that they failed to recognize Star Lord Shaoyang. The Star Lord's station was simply too lofty, rarely ever manifesting in the mortal world. Even within the Xiao family, it was only recorded in ancient texts; no one had ever truly cultivated it before.
Those dozen or so divine senses were entirely unfamiliar; Xiaoyu did not recognize a single one. He had not anticipated that in just a few short years, Qingming would produce so many unfamiliar Dharma Idols.
With an expression of utter disbelief, Wei Yuan looked at Xiaoyu and asked, "Do you really want to spar with me?"
"What's with that look—what else?!" Xiaoyu was so incensed that he blurted out his true thoughts, no longer intending to waste words with Wei Yuan as he leveled his sword. A few more sentences, and he felt his dao heart might crumble from sheer rage.
Wei Yuan put on an earnest expression, adopting the air of a well-meaning counselor. "Is that really necessary? You've only just broken through, and your dao heart isn't stable yet. If you end up with some lingering hidden injury—"
Xiaoyu grew angry, furious, then completely ballistic: "...None of your concern!"
At this moment, across Qingming, auras powerful or bizarre began to surface. The various cultivators of the Palace of Grand Beginning had originally been in quiet cultivation or seclusion all over the domain, but they were now startled by Xiaoyu's aura that blazed like the high sun and emerged from seclusion to see.
Xu Yi, Cui Yu, and two other Dharma Idol cultivators from the original sixteen young masters and ladies had not been in seclusion and arrived the quickest.
Cui Yu clearly possessed a peculiar aura, prompting Xiaoyu to take a second look and offer a greeting.
Seeing Xiaoyu out of the blue, Cui Yu was initially overjoyed. But taking in the scene before him, he asked in shock, "Junior Brother, what are you doing? You can't possibly be thinking of sparring with Wei Yuan, can you?!"
Xiaoyu asked coldly, "Is there any reason I shouldn't?"
Cui Yu kindly advised, "We haven't seen each other in so long; we ought to sit down and catch up first. Why go looking for trouble like this?"
Had it not been for their past friendship, Xiaoyu would have barked 'Shut your mouth' right into his face.
By then, Xu Henshui, Sun Yu, Yu Zhizhuo, Perfected Chuhe, and the others had also rushed over. They were all figures of the senior generation who had been in Qingming for a long time; one look at the situation, and they understood exactly what was happening.
Every one of them adopted a calm, knowing posture, none speaking a word, their eyes simply shining brightly as they watched in quiet amusement.
A moment later, Bao Yun, Ji Liuli, Feng Tingyu, and the rest arrived as well. Their eyes were fixed intently upon Star Lord Shaoyang in the sky, gazes burning with intense interest.
Star Lord Shaoyang clearly sensed a profound, surging torrent of sheer malice. His expression tightened and he went on guard, shedding his initial ease.
Deep in the medicine garden, the rooster woke up too.
Finally, Zhang Sheng appeared quietly, standing at the outer perimeter. Her presence was faint and obscure, offering virtually no aura at all; had Wei Yuan not bowed to her, many would not have noticed her arrival.
Xiaoyu respected Zhang Sheng as well, so he offered a bow. Zhang Sheng nodded, serenely accepting his courtesy, and then glanced toward Star Lord Shaoyang.
Star Lord Shaoyang instantly felt as though facing a mortal enemy.
Xiaoyu could not fathom why Star Lord Shaoyang was reacting this way. However, no matter how short-tempered he was, he could now sense that the atmosphere was decidedly strange. Why did all these people look as if they had gathered solely to watch a show?
Moreover, he suddenly realized that apart from Zhang Sheng, whom he could not see through, the familiar faces around him had all attained the Dharma Idol realm—even those former playboys like Xu Yi had produced three Dharma Idols. Compared to them, his own progress was genuinely slow!
Still, whether fast or slow mattered little. With Star Lord Shaoyang by his side, even a century in seclusion would have been well worth it. Only Zhang Sheng remained unfathomable; the moment Xiaoyu's divine sense drew near, it was deflected back by her naturally emanating sword qi.
Zhang Sheng glared at Wei Yuan and said, "Know when to stop. Don't be too heavy-handed."
Wei Yuan said respectfully, "Master, rest assured, I certainly won't hurt Junior Brother."
No matter how good Xiaoyu's temper might have been, he could not bear this. He asked coldly, "Can we begin?"
"Wait a moment!" Wei Yuan pointed at Star Lord Shaoyang. "In our spar, are entities with inherent spirituality like this permitted? Can anything contained within one's dharma idol be summoned and used?"
"Naturally!"
Wei Yuan grinned broadly. "Then don't blame your elder brother for lacking decency and bullying the smaller."
With a broad wave of his sleeve, three Scenery Command mirage demons manifested, surrounding Xiaoyu on all sides.
Xiaoyu froze in shock!
Star Lord Shaoyang's face set in grim resolve, preparing to fight to the bitter end just to preserve some shred of dignity.
Chapter 815