CH 24.1

Who is this person?

Shen Liuxiang also wanted to know, so he asked.

The young man’s expression stiffened, and the ecstatic look on his face receded like a tide. He tightened his grip on Shen Liuxiang’s hand.

“I am Ning Runxin… We met in the Demon Realm, and you said… You said you would come to the Sword Sect to find me! But you never came, I’ve been looking for you for so long, how could you not remember me.”

Shen Liurang’s hand was being squeezed painfully, and he pursed his lips in silence.

He tried to recall any information about Ning Runxin from the novel, as he was not a major character and only had a few brief mentions.

Ning Runxin was a brilliant genius of the Sword Sect in the past but later fell and remained stuck at the Golden Core stage for life.

“You probably got the wrong person,” Shen Liuxiang tried to pull his hand back, but it was held even tighter.

Ning Runxin ignored him, and couldn’t control his behavior. “You’re hurting him,” Zhou Xuanlan’s eyes turned cold, and he pushed Ning Runxin’s white fingers apart one by one, “Let him go.”

Ning Runxin ignored the pain he was causing and fixed his gaze on him.

“I didn’t get the wrong person. Why are you pretending not to know me?”

Shen Liuxiang felt that there might be something wrong with the person in front of him. To make him face reality, he said, “My face is pretty ordinary. If you go out and look around, you’ll find seven or eight other people who look just like me. You must have mistaken me for someone else. My name is Shen Liu Liu. The person you’re looking for can’t be me.”

Ning Runxin paused, his expression complicated. “Do you think I wouldn’t recognize you just by adding a different character to your name… Shen Liu.”

Shen Liu Liu was dumbfounded.

Could it be that the original owner of this body really had a relationship with this person, used a disguise technique, and had interactions with him under the name Shen Liu?

He tried to sort out his thoughts.

At this moment, he felt some movement in his hand.

Shen Liuxiang lowered his head and saw that his hand, which was being squeezed white, was being gently kneaded by Zhou Xuanlan in his palm.

Shen Liuxiang was moved to tears.

His disciple was really the best.

“Who is he?” Ning Runxin’s gaze finally shifted away from Shen Liuxiang and fell on the young man next to him, asking with a hint of familiarity.

Zhou Xuanlan replied coldly, “None of your business.”

Crack!

Shen Liuxiang heard the sound of ice cracking, and when he looked down, he realized that it wasn’t an illusion. The ground, with Ning Runxin at the center, had frozen into transparent ice spreading around.

In a blink of an eye, the ice was about to touch Zhou Xuanlan’s black boots. Shen Liuxiang reached out and pulled him back a few steps.

Seeing this, the chill around Ning Runxin grew even stronger.

“No,” a robed cultivator appeared beside Ning Runxin, waving his sleeve to disperse the ice on the ground.

He turned to Shen Liuxiang and said, “Sorry, my junior brother sometimes makes mistakes when he’s unwell.”

The person was none other than the Sword Sect’s Sect Master, Lan Xiaosheng.

Ning Runxin glanced at him sideways, his frosty face full of coldness. “Don’t meddle in this. I didn’t make a mistake this time.”

Lan Xiaosheng responded, “After so many years, he couldn’t possibly look exactly the same.”

Ning Runxin frowned. “Perhaps he changed his appearance and figure.”

After saying this he tried to get closer to Shen Liuxiang.

Shen Liuxiang quickly took a step back.

Seeing this, Ning Runxin was taken aback, halted his steps, and a pained expression appeared on his face.

He let go of Shen Liurang’s hand and stood still for a while before smiling at Shen Liuxiang with a wry smile. “You must be avoiding me because my cultivation is too low. It’s okay, I’ll come back to see you when my cultivation is higher. As long as you don’t leave without saying goodbye again.”

After saying that, Ning Runxin slowly moved away from Shen Liuxiang’s sight.

The elders of the Sword Sect reacted and hurriedly followed after him. “Senior Uncle Ning, where are you going? Don’t wander around! Nobody can bear the consequences if the Patriarch blames us!”

Once the involved party left, only one person remained where everyone’s gaze gathered.

On one side, Shen Liuxiang endured the remarks from the Sword Sect disciples, “Damn it! The person our Senior Uncle has been longing for is him? Not only is he plain-looking, but he also rejected our Senior Uncle? He’s given him face!”

On the other side, the disciples of Qingling Sect looked unyielding, “The outer sect has got talent! It seems he’s not only getting close to the Sword Sect’s Senior Uncle but also rejected him, and he seems to have a new love.”

Other disciples from different sects were equally curious, and the gossip fire was already burning fiercely.

That night, rumors about Shen Liuxiang spread throughout every corner of the Sword Sect.

“Our Senior Uncle’s long-awaited person has been found. I witnessed it myself. What does he look like? Hmm… I can’t remember.”

“What’s so special about him? He’s acting all high and mighty, relying on our Senior Uncle’s favor, toying with him, and then rejecting him. He even seems to have found someone new.”

“Why does he look down on our Senior Uncle? Even if our Senior Uncle is stuck at the Golden Core stage, his appearance, background, and cultivation are all tens of thousands of times better than his, Shen Liu Liu. He actually had the nerve to reject our Senior Uncle, truly ungrateful!”

“The reputation of the Qingling Sect is going to be ruined by this disciple, but I heard he’s just an outer sect disciple.”

“Poor Senior Uncle, deeply affectionate and loves wrongly. How can he be so blind? He could have picked up anyone on the roadside, and they would be better than that person!”

In just one night, the name “Shen Liu Liu” became synonymous with a scumbag.

Shen Liuxiang lay in bed, thinking about the Sword Sect disciple who brought him tea, pretending to poison it. He couldn’t help but wrap himself tighter in the blanket.

The snow in June was so cold.

Maybe it was due to his conflicts with the Sword Sect. When he pursued Ye Bingran, he was scorned by every Sword Sect disciple for being shameless. When he stopped pursuing Ye Bingran, he was reviled as a scumbag by them.

Sighing with sadness, Shen Liurang took out several novels and flipped through them, preparing to sleep.

Suddenly, the outside became as bright as day, and someone shouted excitedly with a loud voice.

“Senior Uncle Ning has made a breakthrough!!!”

In an instant, the entire Sword Sect was in a commotion. The sound of drums and gongs filled the air, comparable to the day when the Patriarch broke through to the Nascent Soul stage.

“Woo woo woo, it’s been about ten years, and Senior Uncle has finally advanced from the Golden Core stage to the Nascent Soul stage.”

“Is it because of that Shen Liu Liu during the day? Our Senior Uncle was heartbroken and finally let go of his feelings.”

“I won’t say anymore. I’m going to light incense for Shen Liu Liu now.”

Shen Liurang went outside, and the courtyard was full of Qingling Sect disciples. They were all standing in the yard, looking at the unusual phenomenon in the sky and discussing it.

When they saw him, Ling Jinye waved at him and mouthed, “They all say it’s because of you.”

Shen Liuxiang: “…”

Unfortunately, the original host’s memories only left behind a few fragments, and there was no mention of Ning Runxin in the original story. He really had no idea about any interaction between the two.

Shen Liurang shook his head helplessly, looking around, and noticed that Zhou Xuanlan’s room was tightly closed.

He wanted to check on him and see why he was sleeping so deeply.

The night sky brightened again.

Shen Liuxiang heard a series of gasps and screams that pierced through the sky above the Sword Sect.

“Ah ah ah ah! Senior Uncle Ning has broken through again!!”

Accumulating strength over time.

These four words, along with the term “natural-born genius,” emerged in everyone’s hearts.

Countless Sword Sect disciples celebrated for him, and waves of cheers and jubilation resounded endlessly. Shen Liuxiang stood there and rubbed his ears.

At this moment, the door of Zhou Xuanlan’s room suddenly opened.

Half of Zhou Xuanlan’s face was hidden in the darkness. After locking his gaze onto Shen Liuxiang, he stepped out.

Shen Liuxiang noticed that the spiritual energy surrounding Zhou Xuanlan was different. Whether it was in concentration or speed of operation, it had reached a new level.

“You broke through?” Shen Liurang widened his eyes.

The noise around them was too loud, and Zhou Xuanlan couldn’t hear clearly. He leaned in, lowering his body, and asked, “What did Master say?”

Shen Liuxiang repeated his question.

Zhou Xuanlan’s pitch-black eyes showed a hint of a smile, and he pointed to his forehead. “Kiss me, and I’ll tell you.”

Shen Liuxiang turned and left.

At this rate he would have to kiss him ten times a day; his lips would get sore.

Zhou Xuanlan hurriedly held him back. “Master, don’t be angry. Your disciple has indeed broken through to the Golden Core stage.”

Golden Core stage…

Shen Liuxiang chewed on these words between his teeth, and his expression slightly stiffened.

He remembered that Zhou Xuanlan entered this stage in the original story, he lost all his cultivation and experienced countless trials and tribulations, with his beliefs being repeatedly devastated, eventually falling into boundless darkness.

It was at that time that Su Baiche established an irreplaceable position in his heart, an unshakable position that no one else could touch.

Zhou Xuanlan hesitated. “Master, are you upset?”

Interrupted from his thoughts, Shen Liuxiang raised his eyes and curved his lips, revealing a brilliant smile. “Of course, I’m happy for you.”

The entire Sword Sect continued to celebrate Ning Runxin’s breakthrough with joyous cheers.

Shen Liuxiang pulled Zhou Xuanlan back to his room, opened the Star Flower bag, and fumbled inside for a while before taking out a navy blue box.

Zhou Xuanlan remembered that it was the one Shen Liuxiang took away from the Lingxiao Hall after the disciples’ grand competition.

Shen Liurang handed it to him. “This is for you, a congratulatory gift.”

Zhou Xuanlan didn’t take it. “Master, you said it was for me, so you should keep it.”

“Rest assured, I already took out the spiritual pill inside and sold it,” Shen Liurang blinked.

The room had no lights on, and the light was dim, making his eyes appear even clearer and brighter, so good-looking that Zhou Xuanlan couldn’t look away.

Shen Liurang’s eyelashes trembled, and he urged, “Quickly, open it.”

Zhou Xuanlan agreed.

His well-defined fingers unfastened the clasp.

As the navy blue box slowly opened, a spirit fruit came into Zhou Xuanlan’s sight, emitting a soft and luminous glow, with thin red threads tightly entwined around it within the box.

“Saintly Ming Fruit…” Zhou Xuanlan’s throat went dry, “As a newly promoted Golden Core cultivator, I don’t need the Saintly Fruit. Master, you should keep it.”

The Saintly Ming Fruit was the most potent spiritual fruit for cultivators below the Nascent Soul stage. It was the first treasure to aid a cultivator in breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage from the Golden Core stage.

It was a rare sight, a priceless treasure.

Zhou Xuanlan knew that the Saintly Ming Fruit was in Shen Liuxiang’s hands, but he had never thought that Shen Liuxiang would give it to him.

“If you don’t need it, treat it as a snack. However…” Shen Liuxiang paused, speaking ambiguously, “It’s better to keep it for now. If you encounter any issues with your spiritual energy in the future and find it disappearing, try using it to see if it has any effect. Even if it doesn’t, it won’t harm you in any way.”

Zhou Xuanlan tightened his grip on the box and softly said, “Disciple understands. Thank you, Master.”

Shen Liuxiang yawned, “Alright, I’m going to bed. You can go out first.”

So Zhou Xuanlan asked, “Can I sleep with Master?”

Shen Liuxiang ruthlessly threw him out of the room, slammed the door shut, and turned to drink his tea. But he found Zhou Xuanlan was still standing at the doorway.

“Master.”

“No.” Shen Liuxiang was decisive.

Zhou Xuanlan raised his hand and pointed to his forehead. “Master forgot this before going to bed.”

Shen Liurang was momentarily speechless; he was indeed persistent.

He opened the door, and since nobody noticed, he lightly tapped Zhou Xuanlan’s forehead before shooing him away, saying, “Alright, go away now.”