Chapter 137: The Unknown Lady & Family

Chapter 137: The Unknown Lady & Family

I walked absentmindedly out of the library, my body moving on autopilot until a familiar presence brought me back to reality. Speedy was sleeping on the grass beside the large gate leading outside the Sect.

Sensing my presence, he opened his eyes and looked at me. His eyes were a bright green, almost like his shell.

“Did you miss me, little guy?” I asked, spreading my arms wide.

He stood up, slowly approached me, and rubbed his head against my chest. I rubbed his head and scratched his chin. But Speedy quickly got over his feelings, laying his head down and softly snoring.

“This artifact is yours, right?” Ye An’s voice came from behind a tree. She wore her usual inner disciple blue robes; her deep blue eyes had gained a silver lining around them and seemed to radiate coldness. She held the carpet artifact the governor had gifted me in her hands.

She looked the same as always, except for the increased silver bangs in her hair. When we first met, only a few strands in her bangs were silver. Now, the whole front part of her hair was silver.

There was an array that prevented people from sensing clearly, likely a method to stop any attackers from figuring out how many guards were in place. I had sensed someone else here.

I walked closer to her and put a hand on the carpet. Her cold fingers brushed against mine slightly. I covered the artifact with Qi, and once it was taken over by my presence, I easily stuffed it into my storage ring.

Ye An had a knowing smirk as if privy to a joke only she knew. “I heard some interesting rumors-”

“No,” I answered before she could finish her sentence.

“You didn’t even listen to what I had to say first,” she said, the smile slipping off her face.

“Well, the answer is still no,” I said, turning my back on her and walking up to Speedy. I felt her cold gaze on me. Despite hiding it quite well, she didn’t seem happy with my answer.

Song Song had many problems, some of which I wanted to fix. She may even change for the better. Or at least, I could direct her murderous energy toward people who deserved it.

As for Ye An? Whatever problems she had, I didn’t care about them. She had tried to kill me. That wasn’t something I would forget easily.

Also, whatever she was about to say probably had something to do with Song Song. She likely wanted me to betray her. But no matter how things played out, I would never betray someone who had saved my life many times for someone who had tried to take it.

“You are walking into a dead end with Song Song. No one will support a murderous psychopath. She could end up killing you next, just like she did with some of her previous supporters,” Ye An warned.

“Oh, you’re worried about Song Song?” I asked with mock surprise.

Ye An frowned, her face scrunching as if she had swallowed a lemon. Even as a joke, she never toyed with the idea of actually helping Song Song.

“No,” she stated resolutely.

“Then, Song Song and her supporters are not your problem,” I said.

Her face returned to normal as she regained her composure.

"I want to repay the debt of you sparing my life," she stated.

"You already saved me," I refuted. "You know, recently, when the assassins almost killed me."

"That is where we disagree," she smiled. "You could have probably held on until Song Song broke through."

I almost believed her. Ye An's expressions were immaculate, and she was a good actress. Her reasons sounded plausible, as some people had a weird sense of honor. Of course, said "honor" had nothing to do with Ye An.

"Don't worry," I responded to her smile with one of my own. "It doesn't matter how you look at it. You have repaid the debt in my eyes."

There was no debt to begin with. If I could have had it my way, she would have been killed back then when Song Song absolutely destroyed her. But Ye An must have a powerful background... This was just baseless speculation based on what I knew from my first life.

"If you are going to be selfish and only think about your feelings, then I will also be selfish and think only about my feelings and not take your opinion into account," Ye An said.

Before I could retort, some people walked in on us. There were five familiar faces: three inner disciples and two outer disciples.

It was Liu Qian, Liu Bo, Liu Heng, Liu Lia, and Liu Hong. They immediately grew tense when they met my gaze and glanced at Ye An.

What? Why were they all here and together like this? Oh, right. Song Song said something about my cousins looking for me. They must have heard the news I was in the Outer Sect.

I tried to keep a smile from appearing on my face. With my cousins around, there was no need to worry about Ye An having an edge in this conversation.

Sometimes, there were lucky coincidences in life. This was one of them. With them around, Ye An no longer had the overwhelming advantage if a fight were to break out.

"Yo! Liu Feng, we just returned from the front lines and have been looking everywhere for you!" Liu Bo, the cheery inner disciple, waved at me. He acted like he didn't understand what was happening, but the sharp look in his eyes and the bubbling Qi made it clear that he was ready for a fight.

Liu Qian was the Liu Clan Leader's daughter, but taking such heavy responsibility on her shoulders at such a young age would just cause undue stress. If I had learned one thing this last year, it was that I shouldn't worry about things I had no control over.

"Also, whatever you and Ye An have going on, keep it under wraps," she added.

"What we have is nothing. I would kill her if I ever got the chance," I responded.

"I guessed it was something like that," Liu Qian nodded. "Ye An is kind of like Song Song in that she seems very single-minded. But as I said before, rumors don't care about facts."

She glossed over the fact that I had confessed I wanted to kill someone. But it wasn't that strange here. Would I even be considered a cultivator if I didn't have one or two mortal enemies?

"Is it that bad?" I inquired.

She was making such a big deal about it. While I didn't have my fingers on the pulse of the Sect's rumor mill, it wasn't like many cared about the relationship between Song Song and me. There were many more exciting things to talk about, like how Song Song was indiscriminately killing people.

My cousins shifted around. While Liu Qian seemed worried, Liu Bo smiled from ear to ear and teased our twin cousins. On the other hand, Liu Heng was glaring at the smiling Liu Bo as if reprimanding him with his gaze.

Even Song Song's enemies would concentrate more on spreading rumors about her cruelty rather than something inconsequential as a possible relationship between us. Anyone with half a brain could tell that it was just made-up nonsense.

"Not necessarily," Liu Qian shrugged. "There are more important things to gossip about. Most don't believe someone like you, who is always known to be reading books can somehow get... along with Song Song in such an intimate way. But you should still keep an eye on things, and don’t give rumors a reason to form. This alliance is quite important for the Liu Clan."

"But Song Song is more important, right?" I inquired. This question came out of nowhere so I could get a read on them.

What was the Liu Clan's stance on Song Song? Did they consider me compromised and no longer tell me anything crucial, or did they think I was still working for Liu Clan's benefit?

“Of course, Song Song is a powerful potential ally. But that is only in the far future. Your fiancée’s clan, however, will help us immediately,” Liu Qian said, and there seemed to be no deceit in her voice. “Especially now that the clan has already publicized that we have found an Earth Grade Technique.”

While in the Blazing Sun Sect, as long as someone was an Inner Disciple, there was a good chance they had an Earth Grade Technique. But outside the Sect, even a local powerhouse like the Liu Clan would have difficulty getting their hands on something like that.

Still, meeting my fiancée... For some reason, I felt kind of nervous. Was this the original Liu Feng side of me acting up? Also, a tournament with Hu Jin around... The Blazing Sun Sect was weakened quite a bit during the last beast wave. Would it be one of those moments where the rival Sects took advantage of this whole ordeal and tried to destroy the Blazing Sun Sect while it was down?

I was joking with Liu Qian before when I said I would be on a mission outside the Sect during that time. But perhaps that wasn’t such a bad idea.

The sun set in the distance, covering the sky crimson. My thoughts were going a thousand miles a minute, trying to think of every outcome. My head felt like a balloon about to burst.

But I calmed down as soon as my heart began beating faster. I was no longer just some guy who would panic about anything and everything that even remotely had the potential for danger.

This was an issue way above my level. Perhaps I was wrong about this theory altogether. I should look at the positive things in life, like how I would see many high-level techniques used in the tournament!

I still had the Song Clan voucher that Song Song had given me, and there were likely many other secrets hidden in that library. Things had settled down enough where I could relax and read.

As for what would happen in the future? Who cared? I only had to worry about reading books. The Sect Elders and the Sect Leader had to worry about things beyond my level.

“Anyway, you must have had a hard time until now. Sorry we weren’t around,” Liu Qian apologized. After all that grinding my gears, she had a worried gaze as she looked me in the eyes. “We should go to a nice restaurant in the Inner Sect, my treat.”

“Lady Qian, can we also come there?” asked Liu Long, the feminine-looking twin.

“Of course, you’re coming along!” Liu Bo put his arms around the necks of the twins. “We must prepare a party for Liu Feng becoming an Inner Disciple. Perhaps a bit of a late party since so many things happened, but this is a party-worthy achievement!”

Serious as ever, Liu Hong explained in more detail, “Liu Feng is now one of the reputed Qi Gathering Cultivators of the Liu Clan. He is now one of the powerhouses of the Liu Clan.”

“Usually, my father would host a party personally. But we can’t do that due to our circumstances,” Liu Qian bowed her head slightly toward me. “Sorry. I hope you’re okay with only us being there.”

“Why’re you acting so stiff?” I smiled. “Don’t worry about it. We are family, after all.”

Family... I never thought I would feel this way. Perhaps Liu Feng’s original memories affected me, but I did care about these people.

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End of Book 2