"So after all that, what exactly are you trying to say?"
Footsteps suddenly ceased within the deep corridor. Xu Yuan turned to look back at Feng Xianru, who had been tagging along closely behind him.
He felt there was definitely something wrong in the head of this collateral-branch prodigy.
The moment they emerged from the secret ancestral hall, they had found the boy waiting right at the entrance.
He hadn't made a move or argued; he had simply followed behind them obediently as they walked out.
Xu Yuan had assumed the kid had been humbled by that slap earlier and this behavior was his way of conceding. Yet halfway out, the boy had abruptly started droning like a bitter, resentful wife, rambling about his bizarre mental journey and the story of how Feng Jiuxuan kicked him off a cliff.
He muttered and rambled the whole way.
Having patiently listened through it, Xu Yuan now roughly understood why this collateral prodigy revered his maternal uncle so deeply.
Feng Xianru was indeed a genius. Breaking through to Soul Condensation at the age of ten, his innate aptitude and bone structure alone placed him on the same level as Ran Qingmo and the others. However, comprehending Dao charm did not rely on innate aptitude alone; if Feng Xianru's childhood disposition had solidified, he would most likely have remained stuck at the fourth rank for the rest of his life, unable to advance an inch.
He had needed a major upheaval to reshape his weak character.
And while Feng Jiuxuan's methods had been somewhat overly harsh, he had undeniably given Feng Xianru that opportunity.
Once the full truth came to light, his former resentment turned into gratitude and guilt.
But the question was: why was this kid telling him all this?
Did he want Xu Yuan to help him meet his idol?
Under Xu Yuan's gaze, Feng Xianru lifted his head slightly to meet his eyes, continuing to mutter in an even voice:
"Eldest Young Master, although I nearly died that time and deeply resented the family head for kicking me off the cliff without rhyme or reason, if not for that kick, I now..."
"Stop."
Xu Yuan glanced at the clothes the other wore.
"I can already tell that much from your Chaofeng profound runic robe. Get to the point."
Exposed right to his face, Feng Xianru tugged awkwardly at the corner of his robe, but quickly composed his expression. He suddenly offered a solemn bow and said in a grave voice:
"Regarding Feng Fangming, I did nothing wrong."
"..."
Well, after going all the way around in circles, they were right back to square one.
With an inward sigh, Xu Yuan brushed off his robe helplessly, resumed walking forward, and asked casually:
"Couldn't you just talk things through with that girl? Have you seen how terrified of you she is?"
Feng Xianru replied without hesitation:
"Eldest Young Master, judge by results, not by actions—this is what the Family Head taught me—"
"You want to copy him?"
"The Family Head has always been the model in my heart."
"Then do you know that your model can only go to sleep hugging a sword every night?"
"..." Feng Xianru fell silent.
"You're using his methods on the girl you fancy?"
Xu Yuan cast an indifferent glance at the dumbfounded youth, raised a finger to tap his own temple, and uttered four words with a chuckle:
"Are you brain-damaged?"
"..." Feng Xianru.
Paying no further heed to the youth frozen in place, Xu Yuan strode straight toward the cave's exit.
Walking out of the passageway, Xu Yuan saw the girl sitting curled up by a newly lit campfire, spacing out.
Hearing the footsteps of the trio emerging, the girl hastily stood up, brushed the dust off her clothes, and craned her neck to peek. Seeing no sign of Feng Xianru, she let out an audible sigh of relief and asked in a small voice:
"Eldest Young Master, you're out. Um... where is Feng Xianru?"
"He's dead."
"..."
At those two words, Feng Fangming's eyes went wide and round, her advancing footsteps halting in their tracks.
"...Huh?"
Seeing her reaction, Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow.
"The person threatening you has been dealt with. You don't seem very happy about it?"
Snapping back to her senses, Feng Fangming lowered her eyes, looking about the ground in flustered confusion.
"E-even if he bullied me, that shouldn't be a capital offense, right?"
Although she really disliked that guy, it only amounted to wanting to give him a beating to vent her anger...
"Heh."
Xu Yuan walked past the girl, casually patting her little head, and led Ran Qingmo and the other woman to sit by the campfire. He resumed tinkering with the leftover azure-scaled serpent meat:
"I was joking. He should be out in a moment."
As if to prove Xu Yuan's words, a white-clad youth came limping out of the cave just as he finished speaking.
Without the support of the Feng bloodline, the wide-open passageway gradually sealed shut along with a shift in qi dynamic.
In the flickering firelight, Feng Fangming locked eyes with the youth for an instant before immediately ducking behind Xu Yuan, peeking out with only her head to cautiously observe him.
Feng Xianru gave a soft hmph and turned his gaze away with a frosty face.
Yet he couldn't bring himself to leave either. Finding a large boulder about seventy or eighty feet away from the fire, he leaped up, sat down, and closed his eyes to rest.
Only, his "resting with eyes closed" involved keeping his eyes slit slightly open, darting glances over at Xu Yuan and Feng Fangming from time to time.
Seeing this, Xu Yuan nearly burst out laughing.
Still, to maintain his elder brother's public image, he held back and refrained from teasing him out loud.
Amid the clinking of spice bottles and jars, the silence around Xu Yuan lasted for about half a quarter of an hour before being broken by a voice transmission.
It was from Feng Xianru.
Xu Yuan thought the boy wanted him to play mediator, but all he heard was:
"Eldest Young Master, could this ancestral hall be lent to Fangming for a while longer?"
According to clan rules, collateral members entering the Feng family's secret ancestral hall was a grave crime.
Feng Xianru entering had the tacit permission of his uncle, so naturally it wasn't an issue, but if the girl Feng Fangming were discovered by the clan higher-ups, she would likely be punished.
Hearing this, Xu Yuan did not even turn his head, asking back via transmission despite knowing the answer:
"Oh? Why?"
Feng Xianru's voice lacked confidence, tinged with a plea:
"Young Master, you must have seen her constitution. Only by breaking through those Nine Illusory Lanterns and entering the memorial hall to undergo the ancestral trial does she stand a chance of surviving..."
Xu Yuan cast the kid a glance, placed the marinated meat skewers on the grill, and casually replied via transmission:
"It's not out of the question, but I don't feel like listening to voice transmissions."
"..." Silence fell.
Seeing this, Xu Yuan was in no hurry. He deftly flipped the skewers over the flames, waiting for the other side to compromise.
He had only come to this ancestral hall to retrieve a medallion, yet he ended up having to deal with the romantic mind games of these teenage prodigies.
Hard to keep a straight face.
Still, all in all, the outcome was quite satisfactory.
At the very least, it confirmed that this genius youth of the Feng family's collateral branch could be put to use by him—even if his brain didn't seem to work quite right.
Before long, Feng Xianru's voice rang out abruptly, shattering the surrounding silence and making the timid girl sitting beside Xu Yuan shudder:
"Eldest Young Master, back then the Family Head instructed me to break the illusion array in this cave, but the process is tedious and might delay my cultivation. May I leave the task to this fool to complete?"
"..."
Xu Yuan's face instantly darkened.
Dammit, can't you just talk like a normal human being? Do you really have to act like Posturing King Unit 03?
Chapter 571