Chapter 72
Unfortunately, it also carried the possibility of attracting the Court's attention, and that was the last thing he wanted. The Court was troublesome. Dealing with them now would only slow down his plans.
After a moment, Wuming pushed himself upright and sat cross-legged on the bed. His loose black robe draped around him casually as he reached for an ancient manual containing the mantras of the Xuan Clan.
He began reading.
The moment the words left his lips, the atmosphere inside the room shifted.
The air grew heavier.
Colder.
A thin black mist slowly emerged around him, spreading through the room like silent water. It flowed across the floor, crawled over the furniture, and wrapped around his body.
His silver-white hair gradually darkened.
Strand by strand.
Until it became completely pitch black.
The transformation continued as ancient characters formed faintly across his skin before gathering toward his forehead. There, a dark mark slowly began appearing, as though something hidden beneath the surface was awakening.
Beside him, the Crimson Heir suddenly appeared, rubbing its eyes lazily.
"You're cultivating at this time?" it complained. "Why? I was taking a nap."
It floated around the room while examining the growing fog.
The crimson mist and black mist mixed together strangely.
The little creature yawned.
"I was guarding you, you know."
Wuming ignored it completely and continued reciting the mantras.
The qi surrounding him became increasingly violent.
The black mist thickened.
The room seemed larger than before, distorted by the dense spiritual energy gathering within it.
Then Wuming's eyes shifted slightly.
Someone was approaching.
The Crimson Heir immediately froze.
"Wuming," it whispered nervously. "Someone's coming. Should I leave or hide?"
Wuming said nothing.
Instead, a ring on his finger flashed briefly. The room's spiritual tide changed instantly. The Crimson Heir suddenly screamed.
"Wait! What should i do?!"
It stared at its own hands in shock.
"I'M NOT A DEMON!"
The little creature looked down at itself in horror.
"I look like a pet! Your pet! If someone sees me, we both are doomed!!" He yelled, telling lies as if they would become reality.
Before it could complain further, the door opened. A powerful presence entered the room. The Crimson Heir immediately hid behind Wuming. The newcomer was not an elder.
It was Katsuro.
Wuming's father.
He wore a dark brown hanfu embroidered with golden dragon patterns across the shoulders. Despite entering quietly, his presence filled the room naturally.
The Crimson Heir peeked from behind Wuming.
"It seems he changed my dimension..." it muttered suspiciously.
Then it blinked.
"Wait."
It looked at its own body again.
"Did he turn me from a ghost into a real creature?"
Katsuro ignored the strange little being entirely and calmly sat beside Wuming.
His gaze swept across the room.
The open curtains.
The black mist.
The scattered manuals.
Ancient records regarding demonic cultivation.
Histories.
Mantras.
Forbidden notes.
Everything lay carelessly across the table as if their owner had never bothered hiding them.
Katsuro's eyes lingered on the documents for a moment before shifting back toward his son, who continued cultivating as though nothing unusual was happening at all.
The little demon floated in the air with his arms crossed and groaned, "What a drag. Now I can't even do anything."
He suddenly turned toward Wuming and yelled, "At least can I go to Wei Zhi?" Wuming slowly opened his eyes and looked at the floating creature. His gaze shifted toward the window. "Go from there." The little demon immediately brightened, spun happily in the air, and shot out through the window like a streak of crimson light.
The moment he arrived outside, his eyes landed on the battlefield. Weiyang and Kai stood facing each other, both covered in blood from head to toe. Cuts and bruises covered their bodies. Kai was in worse condition, while blood trickled down the side of Weiyang's head from a heavy spear strike he had taken earlier.
Weiyang tightened his grip around his spear and suddenly lunged forward. "Wind Rustle Formation, Third Form!" Wind exploded around him. The currents wrapped around both his body and spear, acting as offense and defense simultaneously. The surrounding grass bent violently as the gusts howled around him.
Kai raised his spear to block, but Weiyang's strike crashed into it with overwhelming force. The impact shook Kai's entire body. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he was thrown backward and slammed into the ground. Before he could recover, Weiyang spun his spear and rushed forward, aiming directly for Kai's heart.
"Enough!"
A hand suddenly caught the spear mid-thrust.
Elder Jiu stood between them.
His expression was dark as he said, "Boy, this is a friendly spar, not a death match."
Weiyang's eyes narrowed immediately.
"Oh, is that so?" he asked coldly. "Then why didn't you stop Kai when he rushed Wuming with a hidden poisoned knife? Why didn't you stop Ming when he was trying to kill him? Why was it only a friendly spar now?"
The entire courtyard fell silent.
Elder Jiu found himself unable to answer.
Weiyang's anger only grew.
"They could've killed my best friend," he said. "And you did nothing. So how about you go back to your seat, old man?"
"BOY!"
Elder Jiu's voice exploded across the courtyard.
Yet Weiyang didn't flinch.
His sharp eyes stared directly back at him. Slowly, his pupils began stretching vertically like those of a serpent. The sight made Elder Jiu's expression stiffen.
For a moment, he couldn't help but think, How does Elder Gu keep collecting these monsters? Every one of them fights like they're trying to kill someone.
He clenched his jaw.
Not to mention Elder Gu himself is one of the Empire's High Demon Venerables. What rotten luck.
"Are you being disrespectful toward an elder?" Elder Jiu asked coldly.
Weiyang snorted.
"Whether you're an elder or not doesn't concern me."
He pointed his spear toward the ground.
"Wuming, Wei Zhi, and Master Gu are the only people I care about."
Then his eyes sharpened further.
"As for respect..."
A grin appeared on his face.
"Earn it."
Elder Jiu's face darkened.
Meanwhile Elder Gu merely smiled.
"He's talking like Wuming."
His gaze shifted toward Wei Zhi.
She immediately understood.
Without a word, she disappeared from her position and reappeared directly behind Elder Jiu. Before he could react, she grabbed the back of his hanfu.
"With all due respect."
Then she teleported again.
A second later Elder Jiu found himself sitting back in his chair.
Wei Zhi returned to her place silently as though nothing had happened.
Elder Gu chuckled.
"I already told you. You won't be able to stop him."
His smile slowly disappeared.
"And if you try using your cultivation..."
His eyes turned cold.
"I'll have to step in."
Elder Jiu's expression twisted.
"How could you, Elder Gu—"
Before he could finish, Elder Gu looked at him.
One glance.
That was enough.
The meaning behind those eyes was obvious.
Friendly spar?
Elder Gu spoke calmly.
"My student is right. You didn't interfere when Wuming was being targeted. Therefore you don't get to interfere now either."
Elder Jiu clenched his fist so hard the armrest cracked beneath his hand.
Damn you, Elder Gu.
And damn you too, Xuan Yin Wuming.
If that boy hadn't manipulated Ming, none of this would've happened.
He had exposed Ming, embarrassed his disciples, taken Wei Zhi away from the battlefield, and now Kai was getting beaten half to death by that violent beast called Weiyang.
And Ning's match hadn't even started yet.
Elder Jiu rubbed his forehead.
For some reason he felt both admiration and irritation whenever he thought about Wuming.
What an infuriating boy.
Damn you, Wuming.
Wei Zhi continued watching the battle while Wuming's words lingered in the back of her mind. If what Wuming said was true, then everything should have made sense. Yet for some reason she still felt something was wrong. It wasn't a feeling she could explain. It simply lingered there like an itch she couldn't scratch. Eventually she sighed inwardly and pushed the thought away. There was no point dwelling on it now. Her attention returned to the battlefield where Kai was slowly losing ground with every passing second.
"At this rate Kai is going to lose control of his qi completely," she said while observing the fight carefully. "Weiyang is striking all of his qi points. He can barely control his left hand anymore." Elder Gu glanced toward the battlefield and nodded. "Yes. The same hand he used to poison Wuming." There wasn't the slightest sympathy in his voice. Wei Zhi looked at him from the corner of her eye. "Are you enjoying this?" The old man smiled shamelessly. "Watching Wuming and Weiyang fight has always been exciting. What can I say?"
Her gaze shifted back to Weiyang. Wind continued swirling around him violently as he pressed Kai back again and again. "I thought the Wind Formation only had eight forms at maximum. How does he know all ten?" Elder Gu looked at her with interest. "Since you noticed it, tell me how." Wei Zhi folded her arms. "Because some forms happen without him even announcing them. They simply occur naturally. That only happens when you've mastered a form completely. Weiyang has already mastered all eight basic forms. The remaining two are the only ones he still announces aloud."
Her eyes narrowed further as she continued observing him. "Using a Zhen for this long should be exhausting. His muscles are injured. He's bleeding heavily. Blood loss should make him dizzy and weaken him. Yet none of those things seem to slow him down. It's almost as if he's drawing energy from somewhere else." Elder Gu smiled slightly. "Yes. He is." Wei Zhi raised an eyebrow. Elder Gu's gaze remained fixed on Weiyang. "Faith. Friendship. Loyalty. Those things have power too. A true Renshou avenges the honor of his comrades without hesitation. That's exactly what he's doing. This is his Renshou way." He then glanced at her. "Though if you want to stop him, I won't stop you."
Wei Zhi blinked before laughing lightly. "Oh? Why would I stop him?" Nearby, Elder Jiu remained completely absorbed in the battle. Even he looked astonished by Weiyang's seemingly endless stamina. Wei Zhi watched Kai barely manage another block before speaking again. "But don't you think he's at a disadvantage for not using strategy?" Elder Gu looked genuinely amused. "Do you think everyone uses strategy during a spar?" Wei Zhi answered immediately. "Of course. Everyone should have a backup plan. And another backup plan for when the first one fails."
"Is that so?" Elder Gu asked. Then he looked directly at her. "Tell me. Have you ever seen Weiyang use strategy?" The question caught her completely off guard. She thought about every fight she had ever seen him participate in. Every training session. Every battle. Every argument. Then she slowly replied, "...No. Never." Elder Gu simply stared at her. "Exactly." The realization hit her immediately. He didn't ignore strategy. He genuinely didn't use it.
"But how can he be a Renshou?" she asked in disbelief. Elder Gu looked toward Weiyang, who was still relentlessly overwhelming Kai. "Because the boy hates using his brain. He thinks it's a waste of time." Elder Gu rubbed his forehead as though recalling an old headache. "His exact words were: why should I think when I can just defeat them?" Wei Zhi stared at him for several seconds. "That's not how he should think. You should change that mindset." Elder Gu sighed. "I tried." "And?" "He refused." Wei Zhi frowned immediately. "Stubborn my foot."
She pointed toward Weiyang. "Just wait and watch how I make him use those brain cells." Elder Gu burst out laughing. "And what if you fail?" Wei Zhi immediately placed her index finger beneath her chin and closed her eyes dramatically as though considering the greatest gamble of her life. "If I fail, I'll do any task you assign me once." Elder Gu nodded. "And if you win?" Her eyes opened immediately. "Then you let me enter your library."
End of 72