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Chapter Text

When you are a kid, you wish for multiple things, maybe riches, or food, sometimes even a home, Shen Jiu knew well all of that, his early memories were the voice of a woman asking for forgiveness, the cold of the streets, and the fact he had been abandoned. Maybe his mother was a woman of a brothel who decided he would be better out of that world, maybe his parents just didn’t want him, or maybe there was a good explanation for why he ended up in the streets as a kid, he couldn't really say.

Yet it was fine, since he had his brother, he learned how to live stealing and begging, but he was still alive, and even if he was young, he knew that dead he could not eat tanghulu, even if it was the old ones people didn’t buy and were tossed aside, if he was dead, he could not cry and make his Qi-ge comfort him, and if he was dead, he could not look at the sky and be in awe of how little he was in such a big world under such a beautiful blue sky. 

Yet, as mature and rational a kid could be, he was still a kid, so he always dreamed of someone helping him and his Qi-ge get out of the streets, of having a family, of growing up and living peacefully in a small cottage, cultivating vegetables and maybe having some animals. All dreams come to an end though, and those were crushed the day that, because of a stupid kid and his Qi-ge’s big heart, he ended up being sold to a noble.

The Qiu manor was a nightmare he was not ready to go into, too young, and too rebellious, and unfortunately, too pretty for his own good. So catching the eye of the young master, was something that would happen eventually, he was kicked and punched and cut in so many places, so many times, yet no one would even lift a hand to help, the men in that house all enjoyed of the suffering of the slaves, and even followed the example of their young master and forced themselves on the women.

When Qi-ge eventually came to rescue him, he was unfortunately imprisoned and could not get out, not to mention, his legs were in too much pain for him to run away. So they made a promise, he would wait, and the other would surely save him, Shen Jiu unfortunately never learned that promises could be broken even if they came from those you trust the most. He waited and waited, always with sincere trust and hope.

Be it a kid, an adult, or whoever was in such a situation, they would always call for a miracle, something to get them out of the situation they were in, or to simply help with it, the first time Shen Jiu discovered his blessing, he didn’t quite realize he had one, it was just after a really rough beating, he was bleeding, and one of the men left a basin with water for him to clean himself, since the young lady would return from her visit to her aunt the next day and he had to be presentable and well enough to recieve her. He had clean the blood in his hand in the water, he had stared at his reflect in the water for some minutes, disassociating from his reality, when he noticed his reflection started to change, and when he was before, he could see now images, specifically, the young lady returning and giving him a fan, he could also see the burning rage hiding behind the eyes of Qiu Jianluo after seeing his precious younger sister giving a slave a gift. 

He thought he was hallucinating, that finally he had injured his head and all this was the result of that, so he ignored it for fear of being discarded by the Qiu’s for being insane, and so he continued with his life, until the next day, when, after going out to welcome his young lady, she gifted him the same fan he had seen in the moving images on the water, and received the same gaze filled with rage from Qiu Jianluo. He decided to try again the day after, he filled a bucket with water and stared at it for a while, yet nothing happened, it was then that he remembered his hands with blood, so, he made a small cut in his finger and let his blood fall into the water, a moment later, he saw the faint glowing of his eyes before the moving images appeared, this time showing him spending time with the young lady, walking by the camelia garden, where the girl fell down. The imagen then changed to show himself on the floor being whipped. 

That same day, the vision became true.

When you have a blessing while you are in hell itself, you of course will cling to it as a safe rope, something to get out of punishment and to save yourself from different situations. So Shen Jiu, although could not control it and sometimes saw useless things related to other people, or that actually got to happen even a month after, he still used that blessing whenever he could, it was that way that he saw the Qiu manor in flames, and how he saw himself suffering from what seemed to be a Qi deviation, bleeding from his mouth, ears and nose as a man laughed in the back, that was the first time he could actually hear what was happening. As the man left him to his own luck and laughed, going back to the camp and the fire a few meters away.

—Shen Jiu, such a stupid kid, seeing a hopefull idiot ruin his own cultivation— he let out another laugh —It’s always delightfull. 

So when going to the market a few weeks later and seeing the man there, Shen Jiu ignored him completely even when he tried to talk to him, giving as an excuse that he was accompanying his fiancee and young lady. 

Honestly, even with his blessing, Shen Jiu never expected for Qiu Jianluo to free him from his status as a slave and engage him with the young lady. But he did understand it was a way to chain him down to that awful place once and for all, yet, when he heard the reason behind, and how the young master and even the old head of the family planned his death so they could bed the young miss, Shen Jiu tried to walk away, but they heard him, and soon he was forcefully dragged inside the office.

—A-Jiu is also really pretty, maybe instead of killing you, why don’t you become a good doll for me to use in a different way?

Feeling his hands on his body, trying to take his clothes off and touching in such private places, something inside Shen Jiu snapped, and the next thing he knew, he was using the ornamental sword he had always seen in the office to kill the old lord Qiu and stab Qiu Jianluo multiple times, then he vaguely remembered a woman coming inside the room, the same woman that always helped him recover after beatings.

—Get everyone out, women and children, I’ll take care of the men.

Then, he was outside, seeing the flames consume the Qiu manor. Shen Jiu didn’t have anywhere to go, he had waited for years and Qi-ge had never come back, not even in his visions, so he decided to try his luck in a cultivation sect. 

Shen Jiu had nothing apart from the little he could get from the ashes of the Qiu manor, he sold most of it and bought the essentials, clothes and food that could last for a while, nothing more as he could get robbed in his way, he was fourteen, an easy prey to slavers and bandits, he did not have time to recover from the Qi deviation that caused the death of Qiu Jianluo and his father, but he had to defend himself, more than once he had to use his Qi to manipulate leaves and escape from danger.

That way, he walked for three months until he got to the city at the feet of the Cang Qiong mountain sect. Unfortunately for him, he discovered he got here too late, as he didn’t have the age to participate in the entrance exam. What was a life as a cultivator if he could not be beside his Qi-ge anyways? His brother was probably dead, if not, why hadn’t he come back for him? There was no way Yue Qi had forgot about him or broke their promise, Shen Jiu knew that, and so he stopped his journey on a small village, where he started to work as an apprentice of an apothecary, as he was the only young man able to read and write in the town.

He found himself stopping from seeing his visions, since there was no point in it anymore. He had a normal peaceful life, not the one he wanted, but it was much better than being an abused slave, and the old man owner of the store was nice and never screamed or did any harm to him, so Shen Jiu decided that it was better to stay.

That was at least, until one fatidical day where his peaceful life crumbled down once more.

—Shen Jiu, Can you help me with this?

The teenager stopped grinding the herbs on the mortar to look at the old man, he put everything aside and came closer. 

—What is it Mr. Tang?

—I need some yellow moth grass for the medicine for Mrs. Liang pain medicine, her old bones are everyday more against her work.

—Mrs. Lian is stubborn, but, yellow moth grass, I think we are out of that Mr. Tang, I’ll go collect some from the forest after I finish with the medicine for little Xiu’er cold. 

—Mm, I’ll finish that, can you go now?

—If you insist, I’ll go to the back to get everything I need.

—Alright, but be carefull, there had been enough with the two boys of the Gu Family disappearing. 

—Yes, I’ll be back quickly.

It was an usual routine for he past months, as he was younger, he would collect the herbs while Mr. Tang stayed in the store, it wasn’t much, since there were only fifteen families in the town, but someone that could make medicine was valuable, and as long as he kept learning he would live good. So as always, he picked the sickle and the basket before going out and walking. 

Later he thought, maybe if he had kept looking at the visions, he would have been prepared, maybe if he would have acted in a different way, or maybe he would have chosen not to go out that day. Who knows? Shen Jiu didn’t know the future awaiting him and all the complications of it, even with his blessing, he would not have been able to know, at least, not at this point in time. 

So ignorant of it, he went out and made his way up the mountain. He didn’t expect for a demon to actually be the cause of the two desaparitions, still, he defended himself the best he could with his little Qi and the sickle, expecting that to be his last day, until a sword appeared out of nowhere and ended the lesser demon in one go taking his head.

Shen Jiu breathed with difficulty, feeling the pain in his ribs due to the attack of the demon that he couldn’t evade, fortunately it was just superficial pain an nothing was broke, he turned around to thank the cultivator, probably someone from the sect the mayor of the town had asked for help. He froze immediately. 

—Qi-ge?

The other was no better than him, his face pale as if he was seeing an apparition. —Xiao Jiu.

—Xiao Jiu~

The voice of that monster ringed in the back of his head, he had to convince himself for a moment that the man in question was dead, his body burned to ashes.

—Why?— he could not help but ask, the other understood his question, as his face changed to show his guilt.

—Xiao Jiu, I… I’m sorry.

He gritted his teeth. —Don’t call me that!!

Forgetting about why he went up the mountain, Shen Jiu ran back to the town ignoring the screams coming from behind him, calling his name. Until he was back at the store, only being able to explain to Mr. Tang that there was a demon on the mountain, he only came back from his shock when his injury was already being treated.

Just a couple of hours later Yue Qi appeared looking for him, of course Shen Jiu only asked him the same question that wasn’t answered once more, yet, Mr. Tang, after hearing that Yue Qi, now apparently Yue Qingyuan, was Shen Jiu’s brother and part of a sect, insisted that he should follow him back instead of wasting himself away in a small town.

—A-Jiu, you are a lonesome child that has many problems and demons of the mind, go and learn cultivation, you are intelligent, more than I was at your age, I can’t even teach you anything more anyways, I’m old, and my son wrote me a letter a while ago that he will come for me so I can live my last years with his family in a big city without having to work, I was going to leave the store to you, but this is much better than that. Do you really want to stay here instead of becoming an immortal, something much better than the starving and dirty child I found on the mountain looking for herbs to eat?

He did want to, become something better, to fulfill that past dream of his, and also, he wanted an answer from Yue Qi, as to why he hadn’t come back for him too, so he decided to take Mr. Tang’s advice, and follow the other to his sect, not before going to the back and filling a basin with water, hesitantly, he made a small cut on his hand and let his flood fall into the water, he stared at it before the usual faint glow of his eyes showed as a vision appeared for him. 

—Shen Jiu?

—Yes, he seemed like your type of person, Shimei.

A woman, a beautiful one, with black like ink hair and pale skin, wearing lavish robes of white and green, her hair decorated with silver ornaments, she opened a fan. 

—He does, I like those eyes, he will do good in my Qing Jing peak.

He saw himself, standing there in clean clothes, another unknown woman at his side, and Yue Qingyuan at the other.

—How’s his potential?

The unknown woman answered. —He has potential, his spiritual veins are a little damaged, he must have suffered a Qi deviation at some point and didn’t receive treatment, he probably also strained them using Qi after it, he won’t reach his whole original potential, but he can get close to it.

The first woman smiled. —Then, welcome to my Qing Jing peak, kid, from today onwards, I’m your shizun. 

Once again he was able to see his face in the water, his heart racing, not only because of the conversation that would occur in the future, but by the fact that what the vision showed him was something related to what he was worried about. Could there be a possibility that there was a way to control it? He decided it was something to explore later, he now had finally made a decision. 

Cang Qiong mountain range was huge, as he had already seen in the past, going up was knew though, what Shen Jiu did not expect, was for Yue Qingyuan to left him in what seemed to be his room in the sect and go out to talk with the sect leader, who apparently was his shizun.

He waited there for what seemed to be hours before Yue Qingyuan and a man came for him, then he was moved to Qian Cao for a check up, he stayed the night there after Tang Mingxia, the peak lord of Qian Cao, saw the state of his spiritual veins and started the treatment immediately, the next day the sect leader came to see him along with the woman of the vision, and everything happened the same way he had seen.

Xu Mingyu was a serious and cunning woman that seeked perfection, and Shen Jiu was a student ready to give his everything to become someone that had control over his life, the same control he was robbed from during his life as a slave and that just recently had regained shortly thanks to Mr. Tang, but this was different, he would also become someone with a name, someone of his own, not just a number, a scholar, a master of the arts, he wanted to succeed and surpass others, he wanted to become an immortal, the next Qing Jing peak lord. 

He started to use his blessing again, it was easier to learn when he could see pieces of the future, people playing instruments, painting, reciting poetry, explanations of his clases, he even learned that, if he added his Qi to the blood to see the vision, he could see further into the future, this way he discovered what his life in the sect was going to be.

A scum. That’s what people would call him in the future, a lecherous scumbag, someone that tried to murder one of his martial siblings, someone people hated because of his attitude. Shen Jiu felt that once again, he had made the wrong choice with his life, but he was not someone who would simply run away, so he decided to memorize everything to change the future, to change his reputation. He could live with the name he would receive in the future, he could even live with the hate of others, but, he was not someone that would simply conform with such a life, he was greedy, and like his Shizun, wanted to go for the best results, if he was going to be the second in command, he at least needed a working relationship with his martial sibling.

Qing Jing wasn’t really nice though, as the rumors started by the other disciples he was competing with got out eventually and his name started to be tainted, still, he was sure he could change things, so he endured everything.

It was in one of his visions, that he saw himself with someone he had not seen in ages, they were in a brothel, and, even though Shen Jiu had been depriving himself of sleep all to not let the rumor of him frequenting brothels to exist, he still found himself looking in the towns at the feet of Cang Qiong for that person, until he did found her, the girl he had once called his sixth sister, Li Liu. 

She had just disappeared one day when they were still street rats, and now he discovered she was sold to a brothel, finding finally someone comforting, it was bound to happen that someone from Qing Jing saw him going inside the brothel one of the times he went to see his sister and to sleep after weeks of not being able to rest more than two hours everyday, he could not sleep more than that, not in a place surrounded by males, males that didn’t like him and tried to harm him everyday. 

He found out there were things he could not change after all, like the fact he was finally named as Shen Qingqiu, and even when he tried to be more approachable and less sarcastic, his martial siblings still didn’t like him, although, their hate for him was less than in his visions. There was also the fact, that his sister was bought by a noble when he was out on a mission, trying to get the money to buy her contract, he waited for her return, as he knew it would happen, but he was not ready for her to die in his arms after she gave birth, leaving behind only her daughter, that the madame of the brothel ended up raising as Shen Qingqiu promised to bring her to the sect when she was old enough, always paying for all her things even if he could not be there with her.

Then the mission happened, the one where he saved the brute, maybe not from dying, but from a serious injury at least, yet, he was accused of trying to murder the other. Yes, there were some things that could not be changed, and the thought infuriated him. Why then would he have to apologize or explain his actions? Liu Qingge jumped to suppositions, so Shen Jiu didn’t explain anything and even threatened Shang Qinghua so he would not tell anyone, if they did not trust him from the start, he would not explain himself. Why? If they would not believe him anyways?

He would be Shen Qingqiu, the peak lord of the Qing Jing peak, the second in command, even if they didn’t like him, he would do what he had to do for the sect, to fulfill the expectations of his Shizun, who had chosen him and to show the world of what he was capable of, and to stay in Qing Jing, a place so clean and beautiful that could easily hide the filth of a slave.

So even though everyone thought of him as a treacherous bastard, Shen Jiu kept working hard, to polish his swordsmanship, the arts, his knowledge, and even his blessing. He was a scholar, someone drawn to knowledge, so it was understandable that he would try to investigate his blessing and find how it worked exactly. After he received his name and became the head disciple, who would be also given money for personal expenses, he started a sort of diary, writing all his knowledge about the visions, and the contents of the ones he had seen, even the ones from the past, brief mentions of the ones he had at the Qiu manor, and detailed ones of those he had after entering the sect.

There were, of course, principal components to his powers, one, he needed a liquid, it could be anything as he had done the experiments, tea, wine or water, as long as it could show his reflection. The second one, was his blood, even just a drop, the third one, was that he had to be looking at his reflection, he knew the blessing was actually related to his eyes, the power was there, the power to see the future. 

Then he found out that, if his blood was enhanced with spiritual energy, he could see further into the future, not only that, the stronger his cultivation was, he could control it better, to the point that by the time he was about to become a peak lord, for the first time, he could see and alternative outcome of a vision. 

He was simply curious, as he watched in the water a scene where Yue Qingyuan was trying to give him a flute made of a precious white jade that could easily feed a whole town for a year. It was the usual thing, him getting angry and telling the other not to waste money on unnecessary and unwanted gifts, as he saw the rest of his martial siblings scowl and reproach him for not accepting the ‘nice and thoughtful gift’, he simply had the thought, if not for the sake of Yue Qingyuan, to avoid having the others screaming at him. 

“What if I just accept it?” 

It was at that moment that the vision changed, instead of the scene of before, it showed him receiving the flute, he was so surprised by the discovery that he could not help trying again. What if he ignored Yue Qingyuan? or what if he destroyed the gift? Maybe throw it away? Or mocking the other?

At every thought, the vision would change, yet, not everything could be so easy, he had his answers, but his Qi was used every time, and his head would hurt after. A price for the blessing, it was not that bad, considering he had access to the future and everytime he was able to control it better.  

He did wonder why he was given such a blessing. Maybe after all his suffering, the heavens decided to give him something to evade a bad future, he could probably use it for a lot of things, business, to steal, but also, it was useful for the path he had taken, being able to know the outcome of a mission and prepare for it, or for an accident, surely Shen Jiu could have used it to help other people, but when everyone pushes you away, you lost the desire of even trying.

So Shen Jiu never told a soul, keeping his investigation a secret and using his blessing for his own good, that way, he finally became a peak lord after the last generation ascended. From a dirty, small and weak slave, he had climbed all he way to the top, the Xiu Ya sword, Shen Qingqiu, the strategist and second in command of Cang Qiong and peak lord of the Qing Jing peak. Who else could even brag of something like that? He had even started late and his cultivation had been damaged, yet he still made it.

For that reason, when he woke up the day after the ascension ceremony and saw that all the senior disciples from his generation had decided to abandon the sect as they didn’t accept him as a peak lord, and only the young ones that hadn’t been for enough time had stayed, Shen Jiu didn’t even bat an eye, he had seen that outcome in his visions and he didn’t care. He was where he was supposed to be, he had worked hard and didn’t care about others opinions.

He taught the few disciples in the peak, selected some more in the next sect selection, then he brought his sister’s daughter to the sect, as well as other childs from the streets. Shen Qingqiu, he did his best to be the Qing Jing peak lord, even if he had a rocky relationship with his martial sibling, even if the world only knew to talk bad behind his back.

Until he had a new vision, from years into the future, he saw the world destroying itself. Red skies and waters, monsters everywhere and people dying of hunger or at the hands of demons. The human and demon realm had fused completely, and at the top of the world, a demon lord being a tyrant, doing everything he wanted, destroying anything or anyone in his way, stealing women and forcing them into his huge harem, even… his little Yingying. Cang Qiong was no more, Yue Qingyuan was no more, Qing Jing… his haven, destroyed to ashes. 

As his cultivation was much better than before, Shen Jiu quickly used his blessing to see the reasons behind the end of the world, what was his surprise when he saw himself being the cause.

Luo Binghe, a half demon and, apparently, his future disciple, someone he tortured and slashed at because it reminded him of his abuser, he saw himself being the monster Qiu Jianluo was, even if the child could not respect personal space, even if he lacked a spine and could not talk and defend himself, Shen Jiu, was horriffied of his own image in the visions, of how his actions marked that child the same way he was marked years ago, how, even when he showed compasion for once for the half demon during that immortal aliance, giving him the chance to survive, during all those years, Shen Jiu had been a monster .

He wanted to throw up, he ended up as nothing more than a human stick, his limbs removed, his eye plucked out, and his tongue cut, he even was the cause of Cang Qiong’s destruction, of the end of the world, so he deserved it, he deserved every torture, having his limbs removed, to be left aside by his own daughter, to be hated. 

Despair was the only word to describe how Shen Jiu felt knowing this. He could not stop, cutting himself until the water of the basin was completely red, seeing vision after vision for alternative possibilities, of what the world could become, yet in every one of the ends he saw the world was destroyed, or he had to be given to suffer for everyone to live peacefully. Cut after cut, vision after vision, his head barely able to process what he was seeing due to the headache, his Qi depleting, until he fainted.

He was not blessed, the heavens had not taken pity on him, this was punishment for what his actions would cause, the burden of knowing, the burden of carrying millions of lifes on his back, the world itself, all would be his fault, and he had to do something about it. 

When Shen Jiu woke up, he cried, not even bothering to change his bloody clothes or take care of the cuts, they were now a reminder, the knowledge becoming a heart demon that made all of those scars to stay there in his skin.

But if something has never changed in his life, it was his will to live. Shen Jiu, now Shen Qingqiu, would not accept heavens rage so easily, what he saw had not yet happened, it could be changed, there must be a way and he would find it, instead of waiting, starting right now, Shen Jiu decided to start with the changes.

A slave was selfish, and he did not want to die, and even if it was for him, he could not ignore all the lives that would be lost because of his actions, and if he himself had to change for it, so be it. 

Better make it worth it at the end.

Chapter Text

Cang Qiong was lately in a peaceful state, as the usual fight between the peak lords had almost disappeared. Nobody knew why, but suddenly the peak lord of Qing Jing peak had started to focus on the training of his disciples and to ignore every attempt of his martial siblings trying to berate him. Although some found it strange that he started to simply act cold and ignore the others unless necessary to engage in conversation, others were happy as the arrogant and hateful Shen Qingqiu they all knew was behaving somewhat better.

Shen Jiu on his side, was too preoccupied with his own problems to even try to have a fight. After his vision of the decadence of the world, he decided that, as he was the cause of it, it was better to distance himself from others and make sure his disciples were strong cultivators. The day after he passed out from exhaustion and blood loss, he could not go out, spending around two days inside his home until he finally went out.

His disciples, every single face, he could not help but look at them and remember their deaths. All of their gruesome deaths, even his female disciples, the older ones rejected that demon, one decided to end her own life, the other fought for the sect and was killed by demons, Yingying… a pretty object in a sea of thousands like her.

He could not let the girl he considered as his daughter to face a future similar to that of her mother. Just something to pleasure a man, caged like a bird because of his own actions, because he pampered and protected her ingenuity. Ning Yingying needed the tools and the guide to become a woman that would know her worth and not to follow a man like that, she deserved that respect, and even if he had to pop that bubble she had been living in.  

So Shen Qingqiu decided that not only did he have to change others, he had to change himself. Why bother to fight others? Why try to speak to them and make them understand if no one wanted to hear? So the option he took was to cut any effort on it, no fighting, no retorting back even if they were insulting him on his face, he had other things to use his energy at, like his disciples.

Ning Yingying was barely starting with her cultivation, so he started to teach his disciples almost all classes, using as an excuse his favoritism to the girl. He tried to be partial with everyone, but still, after a couple of months, he had to take his female disciples apart. 

—I’ll teach you all, to dance with fans.

The three girls exchanged a look. They knew that the use of fans was a method of cultivation just like using a sword, more appropriate for spiritual cultivators, although they didn’t know their Shizun had learned to fight like that. 

—Shizun, Dance?— Zhang Huimei asked in a skeptical voice.

—Why? Are you not content with dancing?— Shen Jiu raised an eyebrow. 

—Well, I much prefer to defend myself with a sword instead of dancing around like one of those, fairy beauties from Xian Shu peak, the perfect ladies, all beauty and flowers and everything that’s nice cause everything they do is so pretty. 

—Disciple Zhang, that’s just a stereotype, I saw one stab a demon in the eye with a branch because she was disarmed a moment before, but I do appreciate your effort on being sarcastic.

—Still Shizun, dance?

—Yes, is a requirement— he opened his fan —To wield a fan as a weapon, you must use soft and quick movements, show grace and beauty, the fan is an extension of you, no, you are an extension of the fan that helps it reach its potential, your job is to use it adequately, and to do so, yes, you must dance first, it might also help you to do your sword movements more elegantly. 

The girl sulked as she just accepted her fate, Yingying was extremely excited as she was practically vibrating in her own body for the desire of move as pretty as her Shizun, on the other side, his older student, Qian Lifen, was patiently waiting, she was almost a senior that would soon enter seclusion, she would had already if not for Shen Jiu stopping her from it with the excuse of teaching her this.

Shen Jiu did plan on making Ning Yingying more strong and quick witted, but his other students deserve to live as well, Zhang Huimei would fight for the sect until her last breath, and Qian Lifen, known as an immortal beauty, would just smile and cut her own neck to avoid joining Luo Binghe’s harem, not before berating Yingying for being on that demon’s side. 

Shen Jiu could not let his students suffer like that, so first, he would teach the females to use fans on the excuse of dance classes, they would have a second weapon, more noticeable, to use in emergencies, later he could give them daggers or teach them how to use their hair ornaments as hidden weapons as well as part of their clothes, or to carry poison in a simple necklace. 

For now, dance it is. So he took two hours everyday to teach them the move sequences as a dance to help their bodies move more elegantly and quickly. It was better for Yingying this was as she was still young and this kind of thing was interesting and entertaining for her.

For the male disciples, well, more laps around the peak and archery training, although the female disciples also participated in this.

He also decided to never touch again the whipp, sure, it was the usual punishment, and he himself saw his Shizun use it in more than one occasion, but after seeing himself in his vision, he could not wield it, not when he feared he would become like the him of that possible reality, someone so like the man that had made his life hell in the past.

Still, he had many things to do, so after a few months of teaching the new program, he took Ning Yingying aside. The girl was young and innocent, but that innocence would be her doom, so even if it pained Shen Jiu, he had to teach her from a young age, he would not just have a figure of comfort on the girl, he would make her the next Qing Jing peak lord, call it favoritism, but he would not change his opinion on the matter, she was still too young to be head disciple, but in the future when taking the place, she would be ready for it.

A knock on the door told him the girl was there.

—Come in. 

Yingying entered with a huge smile on her face. —Baba!

—I have told you multiple times not to call me that. 

—In front of other people, but we are alone now!— she sat down beside him, as Shen Jiu sighed and put aside the documents he was reviewing. 

—Yingying, I want you to read these books— he stood up and went to grab two books from the shelf, then he sat down again and handed the books to the girl, who already had a displeased face.

—Do I have to?— she asked after seeing the contents, common etiquette and social rules, and math. 

—Yingying, Do you know who was your mother?

She shook her head. —Nainai never spoke about her, Baba doesn’t like to be asked— she replied in a small voice,

—Correctly speaking, I’m your uncle and godfather, your mother was my sister.

—Eh?

—She lived in the streets as a child, just like me, but she was sold to the brothel, I found her years later when I became a disciple here, and often visited— He gave the girl a cold stare —I’m telling you this now, so you know where you come from, and to not trust people easily, not all you believe to be true is true, and so, I have to warn you, that what I have said and what we will discuss cannot be known by others. Do you understand?

The young girl was stunned for a moment, before she slowly nodded. Shen Jiu took that as a sign to continue. 

—Her name was Li Liu, she was exactly like you in appearance, she was pretty as a forest fairy and was optimist over all, intelligent and brave, but she was stuck in a brothel having to work with her body to not starve. Do you know why I am telling you this?

—...No Shizun…

—When your mother was bought, I lost the last family I had that I could trust, and when she came back, she was already pregnant with you, I had barely days with her before she gave birth and died after naming you, Ning as in peaceful, Yingying as in infant, she wanted you to be a happy child with a life far from what she had, and I was ready to give you that, but things have change.

—Change?

—I realize an entirely peaceful life is impossible, there will always be problems and challenges, and so, for you to have the life your mother wanted, I decided you need to be prepared, you have the opportunity to be a cultivator, you are free and can learn whatever you want, use that freedom to become a woman than your mother would be proud of, a woman you will be proud of, that can walk confidently and fight the world as necessary. 

Yingying took the books and hugged them, her eyes shaking. What did she want to become? Until now she had only been living her life, taking for granted that if she needed something her Baba would provide, that if she had a problem she could ask Shen Qingqiu to solve it. She had freedom and people to protect her and shelter her from everything, while her mother had to fight for everything all her life and could not win anything in the end.

What kind of person was her mother? Would she have liked how Ning Yingying was right now? Would she be happy or disappointed? Maybe if she was confident and strong like Zhang-shijie, or elegant and proud like Qian-shijie, they were known for those traits. What was Ning Yingying known for? The favorite of the Qing Jing peak lord, the overly happy and immature girl that could do anything and never be punished for it. She wanted to be what her mother could not, she wanted to be herself and follow the steps of her Baba, to be elegant and knowledgeable, to be his family and could tell others in the future, and to show them that she was capable.

—Shizun…

The man looked at her. —Yes?

—How… what characters… did her name have? 

He smiled and patted her head before graving paper and a brush, with perfect and beautiful calligraphy he wrote it for her to read, just the two characters in the whole paper.

—Li Liu, Li as in beautiful, and Liu as in six.

She graved the paper, her eyes shining, then she smiled. —Thank you shizun! I’ll save it forever! And the books, I’ll make sure to read them!

—That’s good, now, about the essay you submitted— he saw how the girl averted her eyes and sighed —If you don’t understand, ask Zhang Huimei, for now, I want to see if you are meditating correctly, take position and start as I work.

—Ugh…

.

.

.

Shen Qingqiu walked slowly, making his way towards An Ding. The first part of his plan, was to rectify his attitude and the methodology used to teach his disciples, the second part, was to secure allies and have hidden cards under his sleeve. He had seen multiple scenarios, as well as multiple possibilities, and he had seen something interesting that didn’t change much, it was almost an unchangeable fact, and that was Shang Qinghua’s future.

A traitor, Shen Qingqiu had his suspicions about it for some time. The only survivor to a demon attack that killed senior disciples of An Ding, it was weird, one could have consider it luck, but Shen Jiu knew well when someone was acting, and Shang Qinghua was a liar that hid his discomfort and that sometimes had too much luck in missions finding demonic plants or merchants who sell those kinds of products, all the result of luck? Luck was not something to consider, life was a series of probabilities that would or would not occur depending on the person's actions.

He had his suspicions, but now he was sure, he had seen it after all, that Shang Qinghua worked for a demon, the one that would serve Luo Binghe in the future and that would be Shang Qinghua’s demise. The heir to the north and the next king, Mobei-jun.

So now Shen Qingqiu needed to play well his cards, it would be stupid to subestimate Shang Qinghua, as much as he seemed like an idiot, he was in fact a very cunning person since in the visions he was never discovered until the destruction of Cang Qiong, unfortunately for him, Luo Binghe decided he didn’t need a former peak lord in his troops and convinced Mobei-jun of him being a traitor. 

—A traitor will always be a traitor, always looking for their own benefit. Mobei, you are intelligent, if you search a little, you will find what I’m talking about.

Those were Luo Binghe’s words. Of course it’s easy to falsify documents or place incorrect information in the correct places. The king of the north was enraged and killed his right hand and most old and loyal asset because of senseless rumors. 

“Shang Qinghua, he might have actually developed some kind of feelings for the demon to show such an expression when accused of being a traitor and realizing Mobei-jun didn’t believe him” Shen Qingqiu thought as he finally arrived at An Ding.

What kind of feeling? He could guess but at the same time he might be wrong, loyalty born of personal feelings, Shen Jiu could understand, after all the reason he was loyal to the sect towards to the end in his visions was the same as now, someone that could not even trust him and that would always take someone else's side. Him and Qinghua were not that different after all.

—Ah, Shen-shibo.

An An Ding disciple, a senior for his clothes, bowed at him with an indifferent face, Shen Jiu nodded at him as a response. 

—I’m here to talk with your Shizun, I did send a letter informing of my arrival. 

—Yes, Shizun sent me to welcome you, please follow me.

The logistic peak was as lively as always, with disciples running from one side to another, carrying the materials needed in different buildings as well as the documents, he could even see some senior disciples arguing with disciples of other peaks. Understandably, they were worked to exhaustion and the benefits from it was the ungratefulness of the others. How difficult could it be to do some papers? How difficult was it to just get more materials or order everything to reconstruct a building if it was made of wood?

Well, Shen Jiu didn’t trust his hall masters for anything more than the classes that needed to be imparted on the inner and outer disciples. Every material needed a formal solicitud, which meant paperwork, the money, the quantity and quality, every single factor determined the right person to contact and to buy the products from, not to mention that even something as simple as buying food for the kitchens and feeding the disciples required a lot of paperwork and things to have into consideration.

In short, even Shen Qingqiu admitted that the treatment given to the An Ding disciples and peak lord was lacking in consideration.

As they finally made it to Shang Qinghua’s office, the disciple knocked three times and then took a step back from the door, after a few seconds they could hear a voice from inside. 

—Come in.

The disciple opened the door and went in. —Shizun, it's me, I have brought Shen-shibo as ordered.

The man, who was sitting in front of a desk with five different piles of papers around, pinched the bridge of his nose before looking up, dark bags under his eyes as he squinted at the light coming from outside. 

—Is it already the time? 

—Yes, I have also brought the finances of Qian Cao and a solicitud form Mu-shishu for a mission to be processed and handed over to Xian Shu peak, preferably for tomorrow. 

The man nodded and stood up. —Leave the first in the third pile and the second in the fifth pile from right to left, after that go make tea.

The young man nodded and did as told after leaving for the tea. Shang Qinghua gave Shen Qingqiu a skeptical look before making his way towards the only empty table in the place. 

—Shixiong, please take a seat.

—Thank you, Shidi. 

—May I know the reason why Shixiong came to see me instead of sending a note about it?— he smiled, as if he wasn’t clearly reproching the other for interrupting him when he was busy. 

—It’s actually an interesting topic, I think Shidi will find it as interesting as I did.

—Really?

—Yes, but tell me, Shidi, what do you think about the divination arts?

The other raised an eyebrow. —The divination arts?

—Yes, such as the methods to know another person’s destiny or possible future.

The other kept looking at him as if Shen Jiu was suddenly finding it in himself to joke or become crazy. —I find it risible and stupid, if such thing existed, wouldn’t it be easy to fool the heavens and take an easy way to fortunes and succes? I don’t believe in what ifs but in what my hands can grasp and get on their own.

Shen Jiu nodded. —I can understand that, only the things you can achieve on your own are the ones with value, Shang-shidi, we do share that one mindset. 

—Only that? Then does Shen-shixiong believe in the divination arts?

—Not really, but I do believe in the ability to see and be able to change the future, at least, I do want to believe in the second.

—You want to believe? So Shen-shixiong does believe in the ability to see the future.

—Yes, like the fact that your disciple will now knock and come in with ginseng tea and pear cakes.

As Shang Qinghua was about to respond, they heard a knock on the door, the An Ding peak lord looked weirdly at Shen Jiu before answering. 

—Come in.

The same disciple from before opened the door and went in with a tray in which he had a tea set and some pastries. He put them on the table, made a reverence and went out. Shen Jiu looked at the other, who simply frowned and poured tea for his guest. The Qing Jing peak lord lifted his cup to his lips and tasted it, not perfect but still a good job brewing it.

—Ginseng tea for fatigue and stress as well as muscle pain, it's a good tea, may I ask for some to take back? 

Shang Qinghua was still busy to hear him completely though, as he was analyzing the tea and the pastries, that, as stated before by his Shixiong, were in fact pear cakes.

—How?— he said in disbelief. 

—Shang Qinghua, you are one of the people I would never trust my life or my secrets to, you are cunning and hide much under that business smile of yours, not to mention that you are a traitor working for demons.

At his words the other stood up and took his sword out, Shen Jiu followed suit doing the same, both looking fiercely at the other. Shang Qinghua was almost baring his teeth, like a cornered little beast that was looking for a way out. Shen Jiu just kept his glare as he continued talking.

—If you run through the window, the door or use the secret space under the floor connecting to your leisure house I will follow you and if you try to call for Mobei-jun I am ready to activate a talisman for emergencies and call the other peak lords.

The shorter man, who was desperately thinking, heard all his options be listed and bit his lip, then he spoke.

—What do you want? Are you just going to tell everyone?

—I would be a fool to do so, Shang-shidi, you and I know well that, even if I had proof of your treason, no one will believe me.

The other laughed. —Like Zhangmen-shixiong won't believe or do whatever you tell him.

—He won't, out of all the peak lords, Yue Qingyuan is the one that believes in me the least, I could say or show him anything, and he won't believe my word about your treason until he sees you with the demons by himself. 

Shang Qinghua was quite surprised by his words, especially after Shen Qingqiu put his sword down. 

—Would Shang-shidi mind taking a seat to talk? I am here not to expose you, but to have you as an ally, or more like a business partner. 

The An Ding peak lord, although skeptical, put his sword down too and sat down, seeing his Shixiong drink more tea. 

—What business are we talking about? 

—Here's the thing, I know that you are working for the next king of the north, but I have no proofs of that, I can help you to raise in ranks and to get information about possible outcomes of the power fight in the demon realm, how to serve Mobei the best, in exchange, I require you to convince him of letting Cang Qiong aside, to not meddle with our affairs or risk our disciples well being, we can even use the opportunity to exchange materials and rare medicines that would benefit both sides.

Shang Qinghua thought about it in silence, his brows furrowed, he took a bite of one of the cakes and looked at his Shixiong. Some crumbs on his cheek, yet he ignored them as he swallowed and asked.

—How could you know all that? 

—The same way I knew your escape routes, your treason and that your disciple would bring this type of snacks.

—Is Shixiong saying that he fell into the divination arts and it's able to accurately predict the future?

—I do not predict, I see it, Shang Qinghua, I will not explain my powers to you, but this is something I was able to do since I was a kid, I am now more talented in using it, but my gift is very real, or don't you ever asked yourself how I manage to become head disciple and peak lord so smoothly? 

He did question that. Shen Qingqiu made it look so easy, while Shang Qinghua had to trick, kill and sabotage his martial siblings to cling to the seat on the top, the competition is always fierce and one couldn't even eat without the fear of it being poisoned, the peak lord encouraged the competition, only the best of the best could get the position after all, mediocrity was not an option. So all this time Shen Qingqiu had a secret trick hidden which he used to outsmart and beat the others. It was not fair, but what could he do? He simply was not chosen by the heavens for such a gift.

—Then… — he finally spoke after a while —The reason Shixiong came to talk to me, is because of these predictions or whatever they are? Because you could use the fact that you knew I work for demons even though you have no proof? 

—As Shidi has said, I do not have proof, but I am certain of it, my power never fails, and trust me in the fact I have tested it multiple times, so, for the reason I have nothing to accuse you I instead offer a deal. 

—But why? 

Shen Jiu looked down at his reflection on his cup. How much was necessary to be known? How much should he tell? He did think about it before, but now doubted he should left such private information out of Shang Qinghua's knowledge. 

—We are similar, Shang-shidi.

—Like hell we are— the other muttered.

—We are in one thing, I saw both of our deaths.

The other suddenly became quiet, his reluctance disappearing as he stared at his Shixiong with surprise. 

—My death? 

—Yes, people like us, work hard to achieve what we want no matter the way, and unfortunately stick and give our loyalty to those that don't appreciate it, I saw that for me and you, although my death is related completely to my own actions, yours is related to exterior forces.

—What do you mean by exterior forces? 

—There will be a future emperor in the demon realm, a descendant of heavenly demons, he will not be too fond of you, I saw him convincing Mobei-Jun, his second in command and most close ally, that you were a spy, he faked evidence and placed it strategically, your demon believed it and killed you in a fit of rage.

The other was pale, although showed no fear, the information had clearly affected him. Suddenly that unknown feeling in the face of the other turned into rage as he let his hand fall on the table.

—That bastard!! After years of servitude he really believed another instead of me?! I have been working at his side for so long and showed my loyalty and still! I understand he might have doubts but I fucking killed and did everything he asked for!! At least a little doubt at the accusations would have been better than anything!! 

Shen Qingqiu opened his fan to hide his amusement behind it. This was actually the first time he saw Shang Qinghua stop his act as amiable yet cautious and a little cowardly rat, this was much close to what he liked in people.

—So shidi believes me?

—Not yet!! But just the thought of it makes me want to strangle some sense into that frozen brain of his!! 

—Mm, I also feel that urge with some stupid people. 

The other took a deep breath and then looked at his Shixiong with a dark expression. 

—How can you prove you can actually see the future.

—I don't know if others can see it and it would be stupid to reveal my most treasured secret card, the very fact that I even mentioned it to you is already too much, but, ask anything, and I'll send a note with the answers, it has to be something that'll happen un the future, as I am unable to look at the past, I know as I have tried.

The other nodded. —Then, I'll think a question, if you answer correctly, I'll believe you and I'll be on board for negotiations, Shixiong. 

—I expected as much, then I'll take my leave, and remember that if you try to run away, I will know where to find you.

He stood up and walked to the door, not minding the lack of courtesy as his Shidi stayed sitting, muttering to himself as Shen Jiu went out.

Later that same day letter from An Ding was put in front of Shen Qingqiu, asking in which of the three locations listed Mobei-jun would find the desired treasure he was looking for. Shen Jiu looked at it with calm and after finishing his tea, he stood up and went to the side room, where a basin with water was already waiting for him, he took the dagger at the side and cut his skin, letting the blood fall, his Qi with it, then he waited to see the answers.

Finally he cured the cut and went back to his office, starting to write all the possibilities down. He called for his current head disciple, Lan Bohai, and made him deliver the letter.

He continued with his usual life, teaching his students, directing Ning Yingying's studies and doing the usual work as a peak lord. A week later Shang Qinghua himself came to visit him, Shen Jiu smiled and let him in, offering tea and the bland cookies the cooks decided to bully him with. 

—So?— he asked calmly as he drank his tea.

—Shen-shixiong, tell me more about that business deal. 

Chapter Text

Shen Qingqiu stared at the door, he really didn't like sect meetings, but it was an 'important part of his work' or so people say, even his Shizun hated such useless meetings. Sure, it was to inform of any problem and to update the others in the state of their peaks as well as to keep a kind of record about it, the meeting was more like for the An Ding peak lord to update his information and to accept direct criticism and requests. 

So, Shen Qingqiu hates the peak lord meetings, because in this generation, it became an occasion to scream at his face and for Yue Qingyuan to try gifting him any expensive and honestly ugly thing he had found that month. And it's not like things have changed since he got an ally, Shang Qinghua and him have ignored each other completely for the past four years and only have their reunions at the brothel, where the madame and the girls will never let a word get out. 

But hate it or not, he still went inside. That day all the others were present except for the peak lord of the Ku Qing peak who was in seclusion, Shen Jiu for once was fashionably late or so the angry faces of his fellow peak lords were telling him. He ignored everyone and went to his seat.

—The great Shen Qingqiu finally decided to bless us with his presence— Li Qingyu said with obvious sarcasm.

"You could have blessed me with your absence honestly" he thought, sitting down and opening his fan to cover his face.

—There was an important matter at my peak, Shimei.

—What could have been so important to be this late?— the woman continued. 

"I didn't want to come" and although it was true, there was actually a problem at his peak.

—Zhang Huimei captured a hundred needle rat and found it fun to bring it to the peak and was running loose on the female dormitories, which reminds me— he looked at Shang Qinghua —I might have solicited a few reparations and textiles, since they're needed in short time, I will cover half the expenses as long as Shang-shidi is quick to assist us.

Shang Qinghua immediately smiled and nodded. —I'll make sure a disciple goes to see the damage and to do the math about the money required and inform Shixiong, tomorrow we will be working hard on it.

He nodded and then gave Li Qingyu a glare, daring her to comment further. Thankfully Qi Qingqi had had enough.

—Can we simply start? I have important stuff to do! 

"As if reading cut sleeve literature and very explicit romantic novels is considered important stuff" Shen Jiu took a sip of his tea as the others started to talk. How Qiong Ding has nothing knew to say except for the reunion Zhangmen-shixiong had with a small sect under the protection of Cang Qiong because of a drought and so they required assistance, apart from that, only Bai Zhan asking for the rebuilding of their eating hall because it was destroyed by 'accident' and Qian Cao soliciting for others to teach their students to not fuck up in missions and to not try to kill each other on a daily basis just because there are doctors on the sect that could stop them from dying, but in much more nicer words. 

—Liu-shidi, the reconstruction will have to wait, we are busy enough.

Shang Qinghua said for the third time as he was making the math of how much the construction would affect the sect's finances. 

—But you will do Shen Qingqiu's petition right away and it's just some rooms!!! 

Shen Jiu raised his eyebrows. 

—That's because Shen-shixiong is paying half of the materials, my students need to buy and bring them to the sect all the way up the mountain and also do the work of construction.

—It's just carrying some materials! 

Seeing how Shang Qinghua was about to blow up and start screaming and probably start thinking of poisoning their valuable war god, Shen Qingqiu fanned himself as he spoke.

—Liu-shidi is right— at his words everyone looked at him as if he had grown a second head Shang Qinghua on the other side was confused for his interruption —It's just some materials, I do have disciples that require a punishment, and since this is light exercise it will help them build some strength, why don't I send them to you Shang-shidi? Since apparently Bai Zhan disciples are too weak to help with the reconstruction of their own facilities.

Shang Qinghua's eyes lighted up, understanding what the other was saying. 

—Shen-shixiong's idea is much appreciated, it would be too much for Bai Zhan, so Qing Jing disciples are welcomed.

—Yes, since apparently Bai Zhan disciples can't even learn to behave and follow orders.

Liu Qingge was as red as Hongzao, and as much as Shen Qingqiu was enjoying this, he still had to make his point, so he ignored the brute and turned to see Yue Qingyuan. 

—In fact, Zhangmen-shixiong, as an strategist, my job is to make plans to help the sect, I am not in charge of logistic but even a child could see we are spending much more money than we should considering the money we produce, Bai Zhan destroys buildings as they please, Xian Shu buys clothes every season, dubious literature and live a very expensive life, Li-shimei and her disciples buy artifacts for study without giving any help to the finances on exchange for the money they use, disciples in general go to Qian Cao for treatment, medicine is used more quickly than it is replaced, and in this way we are planning on accepting more disciples in a month? 

Yue Qingyuan looked hesitant as he watched the others. Taking the opportunity, Mu Qingfang talked before the others started berating the Qing Jing peak lord. 

—Shen-shixiong does have a point, my disciples have to treat Bai Zhan disciples daily, as well as An Ding ones because they get hurt carrying construction materials or just by going around, other peaks also have accidents that are understandable like Shou Xun disciples being bit or harmed by new beasts, or Wan Jian disciples with cuts or burns due to their job as blacksmiths, but if there were more regulations it would give me time to actually train my disciples instead of having to let my hall master handle them.

Shang Qinghua took the word next. —That's also what I wanted to discuss, Zui Xian, Wan Jian and Zuo Fan peak do sell their products and are a big contribution to our finances, not to mention Qian Cao and their simple medicine that we can sell, but still the money we have goes almost completely to reparations, for stupid requests and to peaks with less demand of funds, I for one want an increase of the budget giving to An Ding.

—But that means a cut in the money to other peaks!!— Qi Qingqi complained. 

—The money would be better for Qian Cao if we are talking about necessities!— Gu Qingfai, the peak lord of the coocking cultivation peak said —They provide us with plants for our recipes! 

—Cut Qing Jing peak budget! They don't need it that much!! They don't even contribute money to the sect!!

Shen Jiu didn't quite get who said that, but his face darkened. He put his tea cup down, almost breaking it, at the noise the others went silent looking at him. 

—Qing Jing is the source of knowledge of the sect, with our books you know what herbs are poisonous or can be used as medicine, with our books you can learn to find and recognize artifacts, with our books you can fight curses, know how to slay down a beast or which materials are useful and for what, Qing Jing budget goes to extend our library for you all to use, not only for writing materials, it goes to knowledge, and for the necessary things to learn the arts, for my disciples to learn.

—The arts are unnecessary, those are just for prissy young master to boast their abilities, instead of learning to fight they learn stupid and unnecessary skills. 

Shen Jiu glared at Liu Qingge. —I did think you were a brainless brute but seeing you talk like that confirms my hypothesis. 

—Xiao Jiu…

—Quiet!— he gave Yue Qingyuan a warning glare before looking at Liu Qingge again —The arts are unnecessary, or so young master Liu says, if they are so unnecessary why do scholars learn them? Why do nobles like the ones in your family learn them? 

—That's-

—Because the arts are the source of expression of the human kind and something that helps to know about the past and learn from it, a painting is a painting until hundreds of years have passed and someone learns from it the techniques used in the past and the story these teach, a poem is just a poem until someone reads it and is able to share the feeling of the author, music is just music but it tells stories and connects with the person's emotions, the world is not just war Liu Qingge, not everyone lives like you and not everyone enjoys battle, people do dedicate their lives and skills for the arts and you calling them unnecessary and wasteful is an insult to every artist , writer and musician that there is, was or will be so sit down, shut your mouth and let me explain the solutions I had for the problems for the finances or you can go out before I kick you out myself!!! 

They all stayed silent and sat down. Shen Jiu took a deep breath before taking out the papers with the information and giving them to Yue Qingyuan. 

—Now that I have everyone's attention, Zhangmen-shixiong, although I can't force my students to sell their paintings in the name of the sect or their literary works, I am teaching them how to make their own Qiankun bags, I am planning on having those to be sold, and help a little with the finances.

—I…

Shen Qingqiu ignored him and continued. —Now, the other problems are a little more difficult but not unsolvable, I propose a basic and mandatory class for the disciples of all peaks about the most basic first aids to help ease Qian Cao's works, even how to prepare an easy ointment for cuts, about An Ding, my proposition about having disciples from other peaks help was not a joke, it helps build muscle, and I do think it would be a good way for Bai Zhan to contribute and train at the same time, also, a class to recognize medicinal herbs in emergencies while being outside the sect, if other peaks get involved and propose other ideas it would be good too, instead of pushing all the works into others.

Yue Qingyuan looked at him surprised, but recovered quickly. 

—That's… those are good ideas, but, can we really…?

Mu Qingfang cleared his throat. —I'm on board for the mandatory class, we teach that to the new and the outer disciples, as well as how to identify medicinal plants commonly used by the common people to make medicine for blood loss, cuts and others, to have a few seniors go impart those classes to other peaks, if it means to lessen our works at the long term, then I'm not opposed to it.

—And… — Shang Qinghua started —If we are released from the task or having to bring the heavy materials up the mountain and we are helped with the constructions, we would have more hands and time to use in the paperwork and have petitions and missions to be reviewed faster.

—Also, spending more money on Qian Cao for the next months to clean more terrain on the mountain and have more fields of medicinal plants by applying the same method of using the situation as physical training for the disciples that want to participate or in my case as a punishment for destroying property, we would be faster, promote teamwork, and make an investment for the future of the sect— Shen Jiu added.

—That's… actually a good idea— Qi Qingqi, miraculously, agreed to it —My disciples, some of them, took a liking to make perfume sachets that help with insects at the same time it perfumes the room, they're easy to make, what about selling those? We do produce silks and fabrics, but the majority of them are used to make disciple's clothes. It does give quite an income, but compared to the prize of the materials…

Wu Qingchen, the peak lord of the beast taming peak, actually raised his hand and said in a low voice. 

—I… I can ask the… the beasts on my peak, they can help with… the preparation of the soil for Qian Cao.

—We could set a system— Shang Qinghua muttered, although loud enough for the others to hear —Disciples who help with physical work, or on the making of medicine, or whatever each peak decided to produce, depending on the quantity and quality or their work they could be compensated with points or credits to exchange for a second weapon from the ones disciples of Wan Jian make, pills to improve their cultivation, or even technique manuals.

—That would be a good motivation as well as a help to the sect— Yue Qingyuan said, deep in thought —We could organize a system like that, but… — he looked at the others —For now, I want us to concentrate in the idea of the obligatory class of first aids and the expansion of Qian Cao, is that alright?

Liu Qingge frowned. —My disciples will help with that, as well as with the materials until Zhangmen-shixiong decides on a system.

Shen Qingqiu closed his fan and took a small sip of his cup. —Mine too, I can also help Mu-shidi decide which herbs are the best option to cultivate and where to find them too, I'm also working on an array that can manipulate the temperature of a room, if we make a closed field in caves or inside buildings, we can try mimic the space to the plants natural habitat. 

—We do have secluded caves with no use— Mu Qingfang commented —If Shen-shixiong's array works we could put it to use and experiment with it, I hope Shixiong doesn't mind if I go to his peak later to discuss about it.

—There is no problem, I do have to teach one class after the meeting, but I can let my hall masters handle that, Mu-shidi can come right after the meeting. 

—Then I'll be troubling you.

—I will request for Shang-shidi to stay and talk about the things mentioned in the meeting— Yue Qingyuan said —Later I will call for Shen-shidi and Mu-shidi so we can plan the mandatory classes of first aid. 

—Fine— Shen Jiu said satisfied.

Of course, he had made sure that the implementations of his ideas would turn out good, he saw it in his visions, although now there were more propositions added to the one’s he presented. It was going to be rough, but with the change, they could rise in power and have an advantage against Huan Hua palace, and if they changed the competitiveness of the disciples from trying to murder each other for the position of peak lord to what Shang Qinghua had propose, that would be nice too.

Shen Qingqiu had after all, avoided several attempts of poison in his food as well as the sabotage of his works. 

—Also— Yue Qingyuan looked at the others —Are you all planning on accepting disciples next month? 

Some of them nodded, others were indecisive, Shang Qinghua looked at the Qing Jing peak lord, clearly curious, the man after all, could tell if any of the kids was going to be a good cultivator. 

—What about you Shen-shixiong?

—I will see.

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—I really really want a new Shidi or Shimei.

Shen Jiu heard Yingying begging for the third time in half an hour. He wondered what was the reason they made kids dig holes on the ground. Sure, if they were not strong enough to do it at all there was no hope for those kids, but what were they supposed to look for? Shen Jiu previously had just chosen those that were meticulously digging, well he had only chosen two disciples this way, and he had known Ming Fan from before. Now, looking down and seeing Luo Binghe, the next emperor of the demon realm, desperately digging with no other thought as he was covered in dirt, he started to question the decision of having him as his disciple.

Honestly, Shen Jiu had thought about killing the child, but he had no knowledge of where he lived previously to his time on the sect, and after he joined as a disciple, killing him was a dangerous issue. He could let the boy go to Bai Zhan, but Liu Qingge's training was brutal, sometimes even worse than what the him of his visions did to the kid. In the end the best option was to keep the kid in his peak, that way he could control how he lived and make sure he would not end up hating the sect, not to mention that changing things too much from what he saw could make the future change too much which means he would have to over use his power to see more alternative outcomes. 

—That kid over there looks like a good one.

Someone commented, Shen Qingqiu was able to hear the conversation because of his improved hearing. 

—He would do good in Bai Zhan. Why don't you pick him Liu-shidi?

—If he wants to be at my peak he has to go there himself. 

The Qing Jing peak lord turned to Ning Yingying. —Pick one you like. 

Yingying watched the kids and finally smiled and pointed at Luo Binghe. 

—Him! He looks cute.

Shen Jiu frowned at her words. —Him? Are you sure?

At their conversation the others looked at them.

—Yes! His hair is curly and he looks like a sheep, can't I choose him? 

Qi Qingqi decided to interrupt. —Why are you taking that kid? He's more suited for Bai Zhan.

—How can you know Shimei? He actually looks more like a mixed cultivator, Qiong Ding methods would be better but he's capable of physical and spiritual cultivation, so he can learn on my peak. 

—Aren't you just stealing Liu-shixiong's disciple?— Li Qingyu said.

—Stealing? He said that the kid should go to his peak himself if he wanted to be at Bai Zhan, so the boy is still not his disciple— he turned to Ning Yingying —Go get him.

She beamed. —Yes Shizun! 

—Also, bring that girl over there— he pointed at a girl in dirty and worn out clothes that, unless you looked carefully, would think was a boy, she was the only one actually using a bit of spiritual energy to dig.

—I'll go right away! 

The girl got down off the platform they were in and made her way towards Luo Binghe, and then to the other girl. Shen Jiu was not planning on taking a second disciple today, but thinking about it better, it would be best for Ning Yingying to have another martial sibling to care for so she would not use all her time on Luo Binghe making Ming Fan and the others bully him.

The girl returned soon, followed by the other two, Shen Qingqiu made his way towards them, looking down at the kids, both of them clearly coming from similar situations, the girl apparently more young, the both of them were looking down, not daring to face him.

—Bring them to the peak to perform the ceremony, I want Ming Fan to prepare their clothes and a bath for them.

—Yes Shizun— Yingying nodded respectfully as she bowed, to show the others how to act.

Shen Jiu took his sword out and just flew over to his peak. Ignoring the attempts of Yue Qingyuan on gaining his attention, probably to scold him for taking Liu Qingge's disciple or something like that. Shen Jiu didn't care, he was busy enough. 

Once in his peak, he went into his home and started to rummage the shelves, making sure every manual was complete and it's information was correct, he would probably have to teach the half demon with a different manual from the rest, the techniques of the earth dragon should be ideal, as it was for spirit cultivators, yet required also from a good physique, the other girl, well, he would see later.

Ming Fan had already tidied up his home, so everything was in place, now he only had to worry about assigning the rooms, making sure the three uniforms were given to the new kids, and to not throw boiling tea over the head of the boy. He meditated, trying to think, trying to gain control of himself, truth be told, Shen Jiu was scared, scared of making a mistake and compromising his students and sect, scared of being the reason the world would come to its destruction, scared of becoming a monster like Qiu Jianluo. 

He knew what he was capable of, who else but him would understand the kind of hatred he had towards the world and its injustice, of how he always ends up lacking in a way or another, on how people were never kind to him and when they were, they had a reason behind, Li Liu was the exception, but she was gone, she had loved him the way he was, understanding his hatred, knowing how awful he was as a person, yet she still hugged him and called him Didi. 

Ruining a child's life just because he had the power to, taking his chances to become better, to make friends and enjoy, he did all that on his visions, all because Luo Binghe unfortunately had a similar nickname to the monster, just because Yingying treated him well, just because he had a mother that loved him, because he had all the things and opportunities he didn't. 

The filthy, greedy and scared slave deep inside of him had burned in jealousy, he wanted those things, at the same time, his hatred wanted to make the other suffer for daring to have a life better than his.

But, Li Liu would have been disappointed in him for that, wouldn't she? Always proud, always supportive, but still nagging every time she found out he did something wrong. If she knew he did something like that, she would lose her smile and show him that mortified expression due to his actions. Ning Yingying, she was much like her mother, but she would never say anything to him since he was her guardian.

Shen Jiu needed to change, to suppress that hatred, he had a mission, survive and change the future, and for that he had to keep control of himself and his emotions. If he could lock that filthy slave away and keep an act of an aloof immortal, he could do this, everything was for the future, for the world not to be destroyed, for Yingying to have a good life, for Yue Qingyuan to not die, for the sect, for his disciples, and for his life.

—Shizun!

The overly lively voice of Ning Yingying interrupted his meditation as she knocked on the door. 

—Come in.

She did, wearing a big smile. —Shizun, who should come first? I made sure they were clean, and taught them the basics of the ceremony and how to present themselves. Ming-shixiong is making sure they remember how to brew the tea right now.

Shen Qingqiu nodded. —Bring the girl first.

—Alright, right away.

The girl in question entered moments after, her hair was short, long enough to almost reach her shoulders but that was it, a light brown and her eyes were black. She was skinny, obviously coming from a very poor family or the streets. The girl bowed and saluted him.

—This lowly one presents her respects to the immortal master. 

He hummed. —Sit down, say your name and proceed with the ceremony.

She sat down. —My name is Mao Shi, I'm eleven.

Shen Jiu made a sign for her to proceed. She nodded and started to meticulously brew the tea, of course she made several mistakes, but for a first try it was good enough. He was presented with a cup of tea, he lifted it but didn't drink, instead he looked at the girl. 

—What is your reason to become a cultivator? 

The girl hesitated. —I wanted to become something, my family has several children, father would often beat us and mother never did a thing, I want to become stronger.

He nodded and finally took a sip of the drink, it was bland and a bit bitter, as it was expected. Shen Jiu then poured the now warm tea over her head.

—Tolerable, but unacceptable— the girl looked at him with slight panic in her eyes, but Shen Jiu just continued —I accept you as my disciple, and this is your first lesson, mediocrity is not an option in my Qing Jing peak, from how you move, to how you prepare the tea, we want to achieve perfection, embody all the values and lessons you receive to the point to change what you are and what you were, you are not just Mao Shi anymore, you are a disciple of Qing Jing, so act like one.

The girl looked at him in awe, her mouth slightly open, but she still nodded and bowed once again.

—Now come here.

The girl was confused, but still obeyed. Shen Qingqiu used a talisman to dry her clothes and hair, then as he was satisfied with his work, took the hand of the girl and put two fingers on her wrist. She was indeed very suited for Qing Jing's style. He let her go.

—Go out and wait with your Ning-shijie.

—Yes Shizun! 

Shen Jiu really needed to remember to take her to see Mu Qingfang for any old injury that could be an issue for her training, although he could do it himself. He smiled, remembering his own ceremony, his Shizun had not just poured the tea, she poured the whole contents of the tea pot over his head, she always said it was a way to make an evaluation of the character of the disciple, the way they reacted always helped into see how they were as a person.

Ming Fan soon enough came in to clean the tea pot and put everything back in place for the other kid to do the ceremony. He seemed a little dissatisfied, but Shen Qingqiu ignored it as he was preparing to show his most stoic face. 

—I'll tell the other to come in now, Shizun.

At his words, the man came back to reality and nodded in approbation. Luo Binghe looked the same as the vision, and Shen Qingqiu for a moment didn't know if this was reality or not. The boy acted and moved exactly as he had seen, no mistake, no change, so much it disturbed him. Was he not changing anything? Was everything going to happen in the same way? Will he act like in the vision? Were his efforts for nothing? The image of the demon, his torturer, started to appear in front of him, as if to tell him the future could not be changed.

Panic was starting to build up inside him, until the boy, as he staggered towards him with his head low and trying to take quick peeks of him, stumbled with his own feet and fell down. Then the hallucination broke.

Shen Jiu stared at the boy with slight surprise, as Luo Binghe tried to stand up once again, his face red for the humiliation he put himself in.

Yes, this was a boy, a kid, who still hadn't seen the monster his teacher could be, that had no hatred for him or the sect or any of his martial siblings, a clean canvas for Shen Jiu to paint carefully into a young man and cultivator, someone far from the tyrant. The man finally relaxed. 

As the other was panicking, Shen Jiu talked. —Present yourself.

—This… this lowly one p-presents his-

—Don't stutter, back straight, clear voice, start again.

—This lowly one presents his respects to the immortal master, this one name is Luo Binghe— he said, a little bit too fast, but good enough as he bowed.

—Sit down and proceed with the ceremony. 

The boy was clearly trembling, Shen Jiu breathed in and out, as he watched the atrocious display of a tea ceremony in front of him. The child was constantly trying to look at him and then looking down, just to mess up with the tea more and more. When the cup was finally presented to him, Shen Qingqiu found it difficult to move and take it, but still did it. 

—What is your reason to become a cultivator? 

Luo Binghe froze, his hands turning to fist quickly. —I wanted to become someone my mother would be proud of.

Shen Qingqiu found it in himself to nod and take a sip of the tea, just to want to vomit it immediately. Too bitter, it was awful, but still, he simply swallowed it, he made the tea swirl a little to cool it down and then poured it over the head of the kid, who froze, his face pale. 

—Bad, and unacceptable— he put the tea cup down and cleaned his lips as he saw the boy tremble —I will accept you as my disciple, and this is your first lesson.

The man stood up and opened his fan to hide his face as he could not help himself to show an expression of disgust due to the tea, Luo Binghe raised his head to look at him, tears in his eyes.

—Mediocrity or complete failure is not an option in my Qing Jing peak, the way you move, or the way you prepare tea, your purpose is to achieve perfection and embody all the values and lessons you receive to the point of changing what you are and what you were, you are not simply Luo Binghe, you are a disciple of Qing Jing, so act like one and stop crying over a simple thing.

He put the same type of talisman he used on Mao Shi in the boy's head, with maybe a little bit too much of strength as the boy let out a faint sound to reflect his pain as he covered his head with his hands, just to realize he was now dry.

Now Shen Jiu was supposed to see his condition and check his cultivation, but he could not dare to touch the boy again, not trusting himself, so he simply frowned and went to sit once again. 

—Go out and tell your Ning-shijie and Ming-shixiong to come in. 

Luo Binghe nodded repeatedly and made his way out almost running, forgetting to take off the talisman. 

Soon after Ning Yingying and Ming Fan came in. Shen Jiu stood up and went to them. 

—I still have to decide on the manual for the two of them, for now, Ming Fan, get Luo Binghe into the dormitories and make sure he has everything for the classes, and ask him if he knows how to read and write, if he doesn't, send him to hall master Guo.

—Yes Shizun.

—Ying'er, make sure to put Mao Shi in the dormitories and explain everything to her respecting the female disciples, also, see that she has everything she needs, the same as Luo Binghe, if she doesn't know how to read or write, send her to hall master Guo. 

—Yes Shizun!

—Now go, you can come clean later, I'll be in my office. 

He saw the two go out, and waited until he could not hear them outside to quickly go to his room and take a candy to easy the bitter taste in his mouth, his stomach was also upset because of the tea, and although he usually refrained from eating, he still went and ate one of the fruits Yue Qingyuan had gifted him the day prior. 

Now he only needed to make sure everything was going well in his peak and that Luo Binghe was not being bullied more than the usual and everything would be fine, he also had to remember to prohibit the boy from making tea in the future unless one of the hall masters approved of his skills.

Chapter Text

—Ah!! Jiu-ge you are here!!

Shen Jiu looked up the stairs, to the second floor of the brothel, where a girl was beaming at him.

—Lei Minghua.

—Come here Gege!

The girl made him signs to go to the second floor, soon enough two identical faces appeared behind her.

—Jiu-ge come here! 

—Hua-didi is waiting already. 

—Come teach him a lesson he hasn't let us win against him in a game of Wei Qi for the past hour! 

The Lei triplets all pouted as he was going up the stairs. Shen Jiu just smiled fondly. They were very talented artists, but they were awful at Wei Qi and still liked to gamble, although they were experts in cheating in other games.

He heard them complain as they guided him to the usual room. The moment he entered, he saw Shang Qinghua reviewing some documents, his left eye dark from an obvious punch. Shen Qingqiu slightly frowned but went to sit as the triplets cleaned the game and went out of the room quickly, as they knew they had to talk about confidential information. 

—I'm glad you are finally here, Jiu-ge— the other said with a tone of mockery. 

Shen Jiu's eyebrow twitched. —Hope you didn't wait much, Shang-shidi— he replied in a low menacing tone. 

The other trembled slightly as he grimaced. —Heavens, don't call me that ever again, it literally gave me chills. 

—Then don't call me that way either. 

—But it's much more funny to see your expression when I call you that.

He rolled his eyes. —And what happened to your face? You usually look bad but not at this point. 

—What else? Mobei, just because I was working with other demons and beating them up for a minor issue, I guess he wanted to show dominance or some shit like demons do.

—Poor you.

—I don't really care, demons beat each other all the time, besides, it's not like I haven't been beaten worse, Shizun always found me lacking and every mistaked could not go without a proper punishment. 

The previous An Ding peak lord was honestly brutal from all Shen Jiu had heard, he was thankful of his Shizun for being more understandable even though she wanted perfection too. He did have high pain tolerance, but he didn't want to put it to use. Shang Qinghua was like him in that aspect, except the ice demon beats him constantly without telling the reason.

—So?— Shen Jiu asked as he sat down.

—There was another failed poisoning attempt, as you said, that son of a bitch, anyways, my liege decapitated the idiot of the white bath tribe, now we are using the opportunity to subjugate them, but as you said, they did have some weird caves in their territory and it was full of Blue frozen moss, we made a trade agreement, we would let them live and keep half their territory if they gave the part of their territory with the caves to us and swear allegiance.

—I see, we can make pills and elixirs to fight the cold in missions with that, it also has healing properties, it is good that you got it.

—Yes, and what did you get? 

—Huan Hua is preparing for the next conference alliance. I heard from a very interesting source that they went to a village taken by demons and not only came back unscathed, apparently they returned quickly to their sect, little time after they told the villagers that their home was destroyed and to go away. What do you think about this? 

—That its suspicious as fuck. Have they come back to the village?

—Regularly, they even returned with a monster for the immortal alliance once.

—Mm, I'll put my men to it, where is the village?

—Next to the border, there had been quite a number of Huan Hua disciples visiting these days, here— he took out a map and handed it to the other —The village is marked there.

—This is almost on the border, very close and prone to be attacked, but at the same time, kind of protected and isolated because of the cliffs and mountains. 

—A nice place to make deals with demons. 

—This might be of interest to my liege too, if they are trading with demons, we can infiltrate some of ours to get proof of it. 

—I'll let you to do it. 

Shang Qinghua wrinkled his nose. —Why does it always have to be me? 

—I'm busy, remember I'm the one organizing half of the paperwork for the expansion of Qian Cao and the mandatory classes that will start in about two weeks, not to mention I have a pyromaniac, and a troublemaker on my peak. 

The other raised an eyebrow. —Did Mo Laquan set something on fire again? 

—Yes, himself, and Zhang Huimei helped him. 

—And what about your new students? You choose them for a reason, Am I right?

Shen Jiu frowned slightly. —Shang-shidi, I told you about my ability and I do help you with it, cause I have plans for the future, but let me tell you, sometimes it's better to not know too much.

—Why are you so mysterious about it? Is the future so bad? 

—It was for both of us. Don't you think it can be bad for others too? 

The An Ding peak lord went silent, thinking. After a moment he put the documents in his Qiankun pouch. —Alright, you are the strategist with the weird ability, I just want to make sure, I do have people I kind of care for after all. 

—Well, I am trying to protect our sect as much as your king and his position, if that works for you. 

—Yes it does— he stood up —I'll let you with your sisters now— he let out a laugh —You don't know how many times I have refrained from laughing at the others' faces for suggesting you sleep with the women here, you are practically the madame's child after all. 

—Well this is a second home.

—Yes, the lazy rich young master, rumors are so funny, and I thought my background was bad for coming from a family of wood sellers, but the one everyone thinks of as a young master because he moves and acts like one is in fact a street rat. 

—They never put an effort on finding the truth after all. 

—Yes, I did but grew bored, just a street rat, what's so wrong with it? I was sold to Shizun and no one batted an eye. Then you visit some brothels and somehow you are a pervert, like they don't come to these places. 

—My my, Shang-shidi, you almost sound as if you are defending me.

—Like hell I am— he frowned and crossed his arms over his chest —I'll get going, I have to bathe and take the smell of the incense off of me or my liege will punch me again and throw me to the frozen waters of the north. 

—Make sure to look into it soon.

Shang Qinghua stared at him. —If only the others knew if by just being civilized towards you you'll treat them the same. 

—Well they never liked me anyways, it’s better to be here with whores. Having actually intelligent human beings around is kind of nice.

The other let out a laugh and walked to the door. —I'll tell you any discoveries when I go to your peak in about a week for help to organize the system and the possible activities it will include as well as the prizes the disciples can try to get.

—Alright, tell the triplets to come if they are free. 

—Yeah sure, whatever. 

Shen Jiu saw the other go out. After one or two minutes, he stood up and took out his painting materials to continue the painting he was working on.

Truth to be told, Shen Qingqiu had made quite a fortune selling his paintings, although under a nickname, who wanted a painting made by scum after all? Part of it went to the brothel, to pay for the girls that helped him sleep, the other had just been accumulating over the years, but he thought it would be good to put some apart for Yingying's dowry in case she marries in the future. He really didn't want to know if that would happen so he never actually tried to look into that possible future.

Other than that, Shen Jiu didn't really have something to spend his money on, he started saving to buy his sister's contract after all, he could as well buy the triplets contracts, but if he was going to do that he might as well buy a house for them first. 

As if invoking them, the Lei triplets entered with wide smiles, a tea set and a bunch of sweets.

—Jiu-ge, What are you painting?— Lei Lihua asked as she put the sweets on the table.

—It's for Yingying, she's going to turn thirteen soon, I thought she might like it.

The sisters came and looked at the painting, they gasped. —It's Li-jiejie! 

—She has been asking more and more about her, for stories and such, I have told her she is just like her mother, but looking at a mirror it's not the same. 

—If she wants stories, we can share some, if you don't mind her knowing… you know.

—Don't worry, I told her her mother was a prostitute a long time ago, even if she remembers this place just as a house filled with aunts were her Nainai lived, being honest is the best in this situation. 

—Then we will write her letters!!

—Yes! 

—I'll go for paper and everything we need! 

—I bet Chi-jie will love to write to her too, she was the closest to Li-jiejie

They all started to do their own thing as Shen Jiu kept working on his painting, soon enough Chi Huo, other of the prostitutes, came into the room being dragged by Li Jinghua. They all sat down and started working while having a comfortable conversation. 

.

.

.

—I just don't understand. Why am I so useless? 

Mao Shi and Ning Yingying looked at Luo Binghe who seemed to be about to cry. He could not get the sword forms right, and the fact he was covered in bruises didn't help. 

—Well, you can keep trying, work harder, train more— Mao Shi tried to help.

—I-

—Too bad, Luo-shidi needs to replenish the water in the kitchens, and cut wood, he also has to clean the eating hall.

They turned to see Ming Fan looking at Luo Binghe with clear smugness and distaste. 

—Ming-shixiong, that's too much, you have to give everyone the same number of tasks.

—The others are already busy, Ning-shimei. Instead of wasting time here, why don't we go to study at the library for the report we have to submit in a week? 

The girl frowned. —I think Ming-shixiong should just do it on his own, and don't think I won't tell Shizun about you bullying Luo-shidi.

—I am the head disciple, don't you think Shizun knows?

Ning Yingying was taken aback. No, her Baba would not do that, why? He had no reason. Yet, she remembered how her Shizun had told Qi Qingqi that the kid needed more physical training, was this the training? Giving him more chores to compensate? But still it was too much.

She frowned and looked at Ming Fan, then she smiled. —Well, if it was what Shizun said then I guess he has his reasons for it, but still, I'll take the cleaning of the eating hall, so Luo-shidi can go and do his report with Mao-shimei.

—But Ning-shimei you-

—I’m sure Shizun will understand. Besides, he already gives me almost no tasks to do around the peak, I have plenty of free time, if I can help my juniors then I will do it.

Ming Fan turned red as he glared at Luo Binghe, who started to make himself smaller in his place. Mao Shi just put herself in between and gave Ming Fan a smile before gabbing Luo Binghe by the arm.

—Men— she said as she rolled her eyes and went away.

Mao Shi had learn fairly quickly that there were only four female disciples in the peak counting her, and that apparently her Shizun treated the women better and would rarely punish them, unless you were Zhang Huimei, she always had her ways to end up helping in An Ding as a punishment for something she did.

They had been in Qing Jing for only four months, and rumors were fast to go around. Mao Shi and Luo Binghe had heard of how Shen Qingqiu was supposedly a lecher that also treated his male disciples horribly, but all they saw was a teacher that simply treated his female disciples kindly, especially Ning Yingying, and for that reason they said Shizun was rising a child bride, but if only that people stopped to see the face Shen Qingqiu had around her disciple, filled with affection and calmness he usually would not show.

All the female disciples trusted their Shizun, Mao Shi was not an exception, she had seen men lusting over young girls, Shizun treated her with nothing more than respect and some fatherly love if she could say, she was not sure as her father never really liked her. As someone new, she tried to learn fast about everything, including rumors and relationships in the peak, Ning Yingying had actually helped her in that sense.

—Mao-shimei is intelligent, you’ll do good here, I’ll explain to you the relationships with the other peaks, and how to act, social etiquette is important, but don’t tell others, they still think I’m cute, clueless and ignorant of those things.

Mao Shi liked her Shijies, all of them were people to look after, her Shixiongs on the other side, Ming Fan was not that bad, he just had to control his jealousy, Mo Laquan had to stop setting things on fire while experimenting with his talismans and arrays, Lan Bohai was good, but too centered in his own investigation to pay attention to what Ming Fan and the outer disciples that follow him around did to others.

Although it was weird, Shizun treated everyone, except for the females, the same, yet Luo Binghe, he seemed to ignore him, he would look at him sometimes, but still maintained his distance, never approaching him in class to help with his studies. Mao Shi did mention it to her Ning-shimei, the other had given her a weird look and said.

—Well, Shizun did not choose Luo-shidi as his disciple, he did it because of me, you on the other hand were choose by him, still, I don’t think he dislikes Luo-shidi, but I do thinks he is waiting something from him, I cannot tell what.

Well, Mao Shi really thought Shizun was waiting for the other kid to speak for himself and ask for help, well, at least she had the urge to punch Luo Binghe in the ribs for not speaking up for himself. Did the kid really grow up in the streets? Men, always the babies of their mothers, in Mao Shi’s old village he would have been eaten alive.

They finally made it to the library, where they spent their time working until it became dark, both of them grimacing as they compared their calligraphy to the one on Mo Laquan’s work, who had come to do it beside them a few hours prior.

—Man, you both need more calligraphy classes. I can assure you both that for now, your work is passable, even good, but the calligraphy… Shizun will reduce points for it. 

The girl wrinkled her nose. —But passable is not enough, it has to be perfect. 

The older boy smiled. —Yes, I had forgotten that speech, Shizun always makes us go for perfection. Let me tell you, I really thought he was going to throw me off of the sect when he poured the tea over my head.

Luo Binghe looked at him, —He did that to you too Shixiong?

—Yes, to everyone, except Ning-shimei, but Qian Shijie was selected by the previous Qing Jing lord, she studied two years under her before they ascended and Shizun took over, she told us that the tea thing was something the previous lord did too, but that she even poured the whole teapot over the head of her diciples.

Mao Shi was as surprised as Luo Binghe. So it was like a tradition, the boy felt his face heat up remembering how he almost cried. They barely heard Mo Laquan ranting about how Lan Bohai had to reassure him it was a normal thing when he was new in the peak. After a few minutes they picked up their things and went to the eating hall, where most of the outer disciples were already eating, Ming Fan was there with his lackeys, and Ning Yingying was eating with her Shijies.

The two youngest went to sit together and ate while talking about tomorrow's classes. Luo Binghe was a bit reluctant, saying he had chores to do, but the girl insisted the classes were more important and that he should not fail to attend just because Ming Fan was clearly bullying him. As they went out of the eating hall, they had to go their separate ways to their dormitories.

—Until tomorrow.

—Make sure to go to the lessons, you moron.

Luo Binghe saw the girl go away, and made his way to the dormitories, as he was finally alone, he took a different path towards the woodshed, his head down, he was not able to tell Mao Shi or Ning Yingying that Ming Fan had throw him out of the dormitories, not when he said it was Shizun’s orders. How could he complain about something his Shizun ordered? There must be a reason, just like Ning-shijie said earlier about the chores. So he simply stayed there.

The woodshed was cold and he only slept over an old blanket, at least he had his two spare uniforms so his Shimei and Shijie had not found out about it yet. Surely soon enough he would find out the reason behind all this. 

He looked over in the direction of the bamboo hut, which was barely visible from there, but he could see the faint light from the office of his Shizun. He continued until he made it to the woodshed, where he immediately grabbed his manual and started to read it. He was dumb, surely, if not, Why hadn’t he be able to make any progress? He was scared for the day his Shizun finally decided to check on his progress and noticed he was useless, the day he would be made to leave the sect. 

But it was futile to hope he would be given a chance, no matter how much he reads the manual, he was not able to comprehend it, the others had a different one, Ming Fan had said his was different because of his physique, so Luo Binghe could not ask anyone else, but if he asked Shizun, he would realize he was stupid and useless. So he tried, even if he had to give up on his sleep or if he had to read under the moonlight as he had no candles, he would study.

He kept reading it trying to comprehend and do the exercises written in it, but he only felt a little warm in his body. That was not enough, he needed to learn to control his Qi, he had to become a proper cultivator, to make Shizun proud.

To be better, to be worthy of being a cultivator. He had to, no matter what, even if he didn’t comprehend and had to force it he-

The door opened abruptly. Luo Binghe jumped due to the surprise, it was around one in the morning, no one should be awake at this hour. Yet, the kid paled as he saw his Shizun glaring at him from the door, the fury in his face was clear and for a moment, Binghe did believe he was about to die, yet the man just went to him and took away the manual from his hands and started going through it quickly, his anger more and more visible.

—Who gave you this?— his voice was menacing, the boy could not bring himself to respond —Who gave you this?!!

—M-Ming-shixiong— he trembled as he answered.

—And who made you sleep here?

—This…

—Was it Ming Fan too?

He nodded. —Y-yes Shizun.

—How long have you had this?

—I… he gave it to me a week… a week after I joined the sect, Shizun.

Shen Qingqiu paled and grabbed the wrist of the kid to check his meridians, then quickly grabbed the kid by the back of his clothes and went out, took his sword out and stepped on it, flying the fastest he could to Qian Cao.

Luo Binghe tried to grab his Shizun’s clothes in fear of falling, not understanding what was going on, yet as he tried the man pulled him away quickly. Soon enough they landed in some garden. Shen Qingqiu still dragged him over to one of the buildings under the view of a few disciples of Qian Cao, they stopped in front of a door that the Qing Jing peak lord didn't even knock before opening and going inside.

—Shen-shixiong?— Mu Qingfang asked as he looked up from his documents with a tired expression. 

Shen Qingqiu just put the boy in front of the healer. —Check his meridians, quickly.

The doctor did, just for his face to darken. —What…? he was about to Qi deviate. 

Luo Binghe felt a soothing and cool energy running through his spiritual veins. That weird sensation of a mild fire in his body going away.

—How did this happen?— Mu Qingfang asked.

—Someone gave him a faulty manual.

The healer now looked quite angry. —To a new disciple? This could have crippled his cultivation.

—I know, Yingying told me the others were giving him too many chores, so I doubted that was the only thing. I went to look for him at the dormitories yet didn’t find him, apparently my head disciple thinks he has enough power to do whatever he wants.

The healer nodded. —This is a very serious issue, Ning-shizhi, it’s good she told you Shixiong, a kid with this potential, to have his cultivation crippled… 

—He will be able to recuperate well, right?— Shen Qingqiu asked.

—Yes, leave him with me tonight, I’ll have my head disciple treating him, come for him in the morning, I’ll have some medicine for your disciple to take through the week to stabilize his meridians, then he will be able to start his training again, of course, all physical work will be okay as long as he is not required to use his Qi.

Shen Jiu thought about it for a minute, looking behind the healer, to the desk filled with papers —No, I’ll wait here, Mu-shidi looks tired and was working before I came here, if I can help I will.

The healer was taken aback, but nodded. —Thanking Shixiong, I was working on the schedules for the mandatory classes, ah, but follow me, I will guide you to a room for your disciple to rest, some incense will help for now.

Luo Binghe was soon left alone in a room, wrapped in the blankets as he smelled the incense the Qian Cao peak lord had burned for him. Tears filled his eyes. He was not useless, he wasn’t going to be thrown out of the sect, Shizun didn’t hate him.

When Deng Tengfei, the head disciple of Qian Cao, came into the room, he found the patient sleeping soundly with tear marks on his cheeks. The young man simply looked at him before cleaning his face and burning more incience as well as leaving the medicine on the table next to the bed, with a note in case the boy woke up before he came again to check on him.

Shen Qingqiu on his side, was in Mu Qingfang’s office helping review the schedule the other had prepared. The healer would sometimes look at him.

For Qingfang it was new, for all the rumors he ignores, he still thought some of it was true, he had, after all, knew his martial siblings for a long time, Shen Qingqiu was usually cold and, even though he had stopped his fights with the other’s the last years, he still gave that unapproachable air, not to mention the man had no trust in Mu Qingfang as his doctor, not letting him touch more than his wrist and never allowing a complete check up.

Mu Qingfand really thought the other hated him for some reason, but the last months had let him know how wrong he was. Shen Qingqiu might not tolerate some of his martial siblings, but he did think about the well being of the sect and the disciples, and he did not abuse his own either. Him bringing his disciple in such a panic, was something the healer did not expect from the man, even less that his Shixiong would stay to help.

He looked at his Shixiong once more, to see he was almost finished with some changes, when he noticed the cut in his hand. 

—Shixiong, you are hurt. 

Shen Qingqiu looked at his hand. He was in a hurry after Yingying told him about the bullying and the little progress Luo Binghe was making due to being drowning on chores, so he just carelessly made a cut in his hand to see the truth behind everything, just to find out his head disciple had gave the boy a faulty manual and had send him to live in the woodshed, making him think it was all Shen Qingqiu’s orders. He was glad he had gone to look for the kid after seeing the visions. 

First he went to see if the kid was still in the dormitories, then he ran towards the woodshed immediately just to find him almost Qi deviating.

—I was careless— he just said. 

—Let me treat it for you. 

—There is no need, it’s just a simple thing— he took out the ointment he usually carried with him and applied it to the cut.

Mu Qingfang watched the ointment, and after the other finished using it he pointed at it. —Shixiong, can I see it?

Shen Jiu gave him a confused stare before handing it to the healer, who smelled it and smiled in approbation. 

—It’s a good ointment, quite effective. Where did Shixiong buy it? It’s a little different from the ones we make here.

—I made it— he said and retrieved the thing from his martial sibling’s hands.

—Eh? You Shixiong?

—Yes, is it that weird?

—No, but, I mean, why would you when you can have any here in Qian Cao?

Shen Jiu averted the other eyes, he could not say he made it himself so others didn’t know how often he had to replace it in the past because he needed to cut himself as the blood was necessary to use his ability.

—It was something simple, I’m used to making them as well as other simple medicine, so why would I bother you?

—Shixiong knows how to make medicine? Did you learn here?

—No— he pinched the bridge of his nose, the fatigue of him using his ability finally making its presence —Before my time in the sect, when I worked for… 

A knock on the door interrupted them, as they turned they saw the door being opened and Yue Qingyuan coming in. 

—Ah, Mu-shidi, I thought you were alone.

—Zhangmen-shixiong— both of them stood up and saluted the older man.

—A please, I just came here to see if there were any advances in the schedules?

—We were reviewing them, and Shen-shixiong had almost finished with some changes.

Shen Jiu looked over to the window, where he could see the sun already going up. —Mu-shidi, I’ll go see my disciple now. The rest is good, but you can ask the others about their personal opinions too. 

—Yes, thanking Shixiong for his help. 

Yue Qingyuan looked at them slightly confused yet focused on Shen Jiu.

—Shen-shidi, did something happen to one of your disciples?

—There is nothing to worry about, he is alright now, Mu-shidi took care of it, I have to prepare for today’s classes. 

—What is Shixiong going to do about his head disciple?

Shen Jiu’s expression darkened. —He will learn that taking a position of power for granted is but stupid thinking, I was planning on getting him out of the position, but now he also requires to be disciplined.

He left the room with no more words, walking towards Luo Binghe’s room, which was fortunately close. He saw Mu Qingfang’s disciple coming out.

—Shen-shibo— he bowed —Luo-shidi is awake and good, he can go now if you want to. 

He nodded. —Thank you, we will go now. 

—Understood, I left the medicine with Luo-shidi— he once again bowed and went away.

Shen Jiu watched him disappear behind a door and sighed. Ning Yingying was still a little young, but she will have to become head disciple, maybe waiting until she turned thirteen was better, for now, he needed to bring the halfling back to Qing Jing and make sure Ming Fan understood his wrongdoings.

Fighting destiny sure was difficult. 

Chapter Text

“My body has felt more worn out and cold lately” Shen Jiu thought as he watched his disciples train. “I just went to the brothel to sleep the other day, but after all this I might need to go again”

He sighed, seeing Yingying repeating the basics with grace, she was good, at least until she tried to do the third level forms, that's when her sword starts to lose strength and direction, he would have to correct that, at least she was still young and started to took her sword practice seriously although she still lacked patience for painting and calligraphy. His eyes then landed on Luo Binghe, who he had told to keep silent about the other night’s situation.

—Binghe, you are doing it wrong— Mao Shi said to his partner for the training.

—How?

—You have to do it like that— she signaled Ning Yingying —I’m following her since you can’t do shit.

—Mao Shi, language.

Both kids froze as they heard their Shizun behind.

—Shizun!— she finally reacted and turned around —I’m sorry, I won’t do it again!

—I hope so— he looked at Luo Binghe and frowned.

The boy looked down immediately, the man scoffed and gave his attention to the girl once again. 

—Mao Shi, go in position, I’ll correct you.

—Yes Shizun!

Luo Binghe watched as his Shizun patiently taught his Shimei, trying to follow from a distance. Why was it that his Shizun wouldn’t even look at him? He was also his disciple, Hadn’t he chosen him? Why then was he plainly ignoring him?

—Luo Binghe, keep all this a secret, especially if you want the one behind to pay for it, none of what happened this night, nothing happened at all. Do you understand?

He remembered the man's words. No, this was probably to keep things the same, he just had to wait, after everything was sorted out, surely after that Shizun would look at him!

Shen Jiu watched Ming Fan from the side, how he was guiding the outer disciples with coordinated moves. The boy wasn’t bad, he had a temper and was prone to jealousy, but Shen Jiu never thought it would be to the point of doing the things he himdrlf had done in an alternative timeline. He had underestimated Ming Fan, that kid, he needed to be disciplined and corrected right now or would have an horrendous end, probably taking others with him.

Maybe in another time, Shen Jiu wouldn’t have cared. It would be other people’s problem, he just had to make sure he was alive in the end and the others wouldn’t matter at all, but, he had grown as a person, and had accepted his role as a teacher, as much as he was responsible for the future to not turn into hell, he was accountable of the future of the young ones he had taken under him to learn. Ming Fan was one of his students, and so, Shen Jiu had to teach him properly.

Most of his inner disciples were not interested in being the next Qing Jing peak lord, all of them, compared to the outer disciples, were not from rich families, except for Ming Fan, Qian Lifen and other two senior disciples that were traveling to complete their thesis in the fields they were interested in. The kids he chose, were street rats or from poor or normal families, they just wanted to survive and live peacefully, and he had make sure his Qing Jing was molded to their necessities, what they wanted was knowledge and strength, but not a position of power like Shen Jiu did in his time, only the outer disciples and Ming Fan wanted that. 

So, unlucky him, Ming Fan had just lost his opportunity over jealousy, and what infuriated him the most was that he did all that because Yingying was acting like a proper Shijie to her Shidi, unlike in his vision where she had innocently and stupidly gave all her attention to Luo Binghe withouth considering that she was a woman in a society that unfortunately found her behaviour as problematic.

She did put the Halfling in a difficult position by treating him better than the others, to the point that even Mo Laquan went against Luo Binghe. Now, she was acting according to her position, yet just because she gave the minimum of attention to Luo Binghe and ignored him, Ming Fan went against Binghe, not realizing that his attitude was what made Yingying to not pay him attention.

He finished guiding Mao Shi, who was now repeating everything with a much better posture than before, Luo Binghe following her steps at the same level, showing a much better development now that he had closely followed Shen Jiu’s corrections even if they were not directed at him.

Shen Jiu still ignored him and nodded at his youngest disciple, the girl smiled proudly and continued. Then he turned to watch the others. 

—Yingying. 

The girl stopped after hearing her name. —Yes Shizun?

—Come here— then he looked to the other side —You too Ming Fan.

The two came over, Shen Jiu looked at them from above, reading their expressions. Both of them were nervous, although the young man was more than Ning Yingying.

—Both of you will fight, show your abilities.

Both went to take their positions and the others made space for their fight. Ming Fan was trying to talk to Yingying while she ignored him, and smiled at Mao Shi who was cheering for her along with Luo Binghe. 

—Ning-shimei, I’ll be careful not to harm you.

The girl frowned for a moment before pouting. —Please go easy on me~ 

Shen Jiu opened his fan to hide his smile at how obvious Yingying was acting, yet the other just nodded with a smile. Shen Jiu had been personally training his three female disciples for the past almost four years, he had stopped once he took in the two new students, but more than anything due to the increase in work for the reformations on the sect.

Yingying was strong and everyone thought she just took dance lessons, as the practice she did publicly was to literally dance, but there was much more than just that, like the control of her Qi and how to use it in her body to give it speed and strength. Surely if Zhang Huimei and Qian Lifen weren't on a mission, they would have enjoyed seeing this. 

Shen Jiu cleared his throat. —Start.

It wasn't until the second strike, that Ming Fan understood that he was at a disadvantage. Ning Yingying had immediately gone towards him as the battle started, and the boy was able to stop every single attack of hers, but he was not able to return them, he could only defend. Just then he started to take the fight as something serious and his performance got better, but even if he tried to attack, Yingying could easily evade.

The others watched in awe as Ning Yingying moved her body, she was practically dancing as she followed the basics and used every single part of her body to dodge and attack. Shen Jiu could say she lacked battle experience but had watched Ming Fan fight others enough times to know his style. Her movements were good, but she still lacked strength.

"She would do good with the phantom cat's technique" Shen Jiu thought to himself as he watched as, slowly yet inevitably, Ming Fan was starting to lose "She is not lacking in technique or the basics to teach the others, but I still have to put her to test with paperwork" 

Maybe hand her to An Ding for a few days? No, it was better for him to teach her since she distracted herself so easily trying to gossip with others or befriend people, although staying in An Ding for a few months as second punishment would be good for Ming Fan.

Finally after ten minutes, Ming Fan's sword fell to the ground, while Yingying's pointed to the boy's neck. 

—I won— the girl said, her breathing uneven, it was hard for her to even talk as she was trying to breathe and calm her beating heart, although a big smile of satisfaction adorned her face, a few hair strands falling to the sides of her head. 

—Ying'er. 

The girl looked to see her Baba looking more than proud of her, she beamed and went to him. 

—Shizun did you see?! I won! 

—I did see that— he patted her head —Now training is over, go and clean yourself before lunch, after you eat, I want you to come help with something at my house. 

—Yes Shizun!! 

He turned to see the others. —We are done for today, go clean yourselves, you all look like a bunch of animals, now go.

—Yes Shizun! 

The others immediately walked as fast as they could away from there, only Ning Yingying stayed, waiting for everyone to leave, then she looked at the man and pouted. 

—Baba, did I do good? 

Shen Jiu smiled and petted her head once again. —Of course you did, Ying'er is strong, I had no doubt she would win. 

She jumped and hugged him as she laughed. —Then I'll keep practicing to make you proud!

Finally she let go and ran in the direction the others had gone. Shen Qingqiu decided not to scold her for that since she was still tasting her first victory. He went back to his bamboo hut. Finally in his office he sat down and sighed as he rested his head on his hand, closing his eyes. 

He had shown that Yingying was stronger than Ming Fan and although she was younger her technique was better, others should not complain much after she is named head disciple and starts to lead the trainings. Now, he had to think about the best punishment for Ming Fan, he had got rid of the punishment whip, for fear of lashing out at his students like in the visions, so he had to look for a better way.

Just some laps around the peak wouldn’t do, he wanted the other to think about his own actions, although losing his position as head disciple would be a big hit to him, that still wasn’t enough.

Qi deviations were not a minor issue, he had suffered from them several times due to his heart demons and the hostility his martial siblings showed to him when he was just a disciple, it could ruin someone, not to mention the pain and even the probability of dying due to it.

“The best way would be for him to experience it, but that would be too much and I would certainly make Mu-shidi hate me once and for all” he suddenly opened his eyes and raised his head. 

—Mu-shidi?— he frowned as he thought about it.

The healer was the only other one, apart from the victim and the other head disciple, that knew the complete story, or at least what had happened and how in more detail. He was also the one that probably knew the most about Qi deviations, the repercussions of it and the danger these were.

—That could be a good punishment…— he said absentmindedly as he took paper and a brush and started to write down a note for his martial sibling asking if he was okay with his idea.

After that, he started to organize the paperwork, it was better to get Ming Fan out of his position soon enough, as he could not keep letting Luo Binghe to sleep on the woodshed just to make sure the older boy enjoyed his time while being oblivious of what was going to happen to him. It may be a little cruel, but Shen Jiu never said he was a good person.

—It’s good enough that I’m going to give him a lesson instead of whipping him until he could not walk and then make him go down and up the mountain…— there was a moment of silent of his own thought before he put his hand on his chin —No, actually, the last one is also a good punishment.

As he was daydreaming about all the posible tortures, ehem, punishments, he heard a knock on his door.

—Come in.

Soon enough Ning Yingying entered, with clean clothes and her hair perfectly combed once again.

—Baba, what did you need this little Yingying for?

—You have been studying the books I have given you, right?

—Of course, even if those are boring, I still learned everything I could. 

—Then sit here and help with these.

Without much explanation he gave her the papers that usually Ming Fan would do. The girl was reluctant, yet still started to work. Even if she stopped after an hour to start gossiping, she soon enough learned to work while talking, which was an achievement that even Shen Jiu found impressive. Ning Yingying really always found her ways to be able to keep talking despite the situation.

—And so, he was so mean Shizun! Luo-shidi is trying his best, he has a different manual so we can’t help him, but still, that Sun Peizhi is such a brute, he almost acts like a Bai Zhan disciple, he even poured water over our Shidi and got Mao-shimei wet too, but Ming-shixiong didn’t do anything about the insults until he saw they had also poured water over Mao Shi, although I have to say that Shimei might have punched Sun Peizhi on the stomach. 

Shen Qingqiu raised his head to look at the girl. —She did?

—Yes, when they tried to say they would accuse her to hall master Guo, she said they didn’t have any proof, since in the area she punched there would be no marks.

—Clever.

—I know! Mao-shimei has an impressive arm strength too so it must have hurt, Zhang-shijie has been teaching her to fight too, Qian-shijie will enter seclusion in a few weeks and has been busy with missions, but she did tell our shimei that if someone ever tries to do anything to her, she should just retaliate and if they try to say something about it, to fake cry and come to you, since they must have deserve whatever she had done to them in the first place.

—That’s true, Mao Shi comes from a difficult family, so she knows when to defend herself.

—Yes, she did tell us about it— the girl sighed and, as she finished the page she was in, changed it for the next one —But not all people can have a Baba like mine.

Shen Jiu sighed and pointed at the documents. Yingying just giggled and continued with her work. The man stared out of the window, it was already becoming dark, it was better for Ning Yingying to go back soon.

—By the way, Baba, tomorrow is my birthday, are you going to give me anything?

—If I told you, would it be a surprise? 

—But I don’t want a surprise, I just want my gift. 

—Since when are you so greedy?

—Since I’m your daughter! I want a lot of things, and one of them is my gift!

—Can’t you wait until tomorrow?

—But, will you have time tomorrow?

That was actually a good argument, he could not call her everyday because of the rumors, so this was the only opportunity as later he would be busy with the change of head disciple, placing Luo Binghe in the dormitories, asking Mu Qingfang for his help and implementing the punishment he had thought for Ming Fan.

This was actually a good opportunity, so he stood up, hearing the happy squeals of his daughter. Shen Jiu took a box from the shelves and returned handing it to her. 

—This is not my gift, but one made by several people. 

—Eh?— Curious, she opened the box to see a good quantity of letters inside as well as a pouch of dried flowers and a hair ornament. 

—I told you your mother worked on a brothel, your aunts were excited to hear you have been asking about her, so they wrote several letters for you with stories of you mother, they also send her favorite flowers and the hair ornament I once gifted her, they had saved it for a long time and thought you would like it.

She picked it up, it was a simple jade pin with flowers on the end, it was really something Shen Qingqiu would buy, very different from the expensive and lavish ones the courtesans had to use to show their beauty. 

—Your mother was the closest to four girls, the Lei sisters, they are triplets, and Chi Huo, they were like sisters, and so they were excited to share what they know with you, but due to the fact they still work at the brothel, they don’t dare to send you letters or try to meet with you.

—So they…— she put everything inside and hugged the box with a smile. 

Shen Jiu really had to find a suitable house soon before buying the contract of those four, that way Yingying would be able to talk to them personally. He would end up using most of his money but not all, buying popular courtesans was difficult after all.

—This is from me— he took out the carefully rolled up painting and gave it to her.

Yingying took it and opened it, at first thinking it was a portrait of her, until she saw the beauty mark under the lips and the black eyes instead of brown, and the fact she looked older. 

—I… is this!! Is this a portrait of my mother?!

—Yes, I could always paint her from memory, not to mention you both are almost identical.

—Baba…— she stared at the painting in awe, before tears started to fall from her eyes, then she put the portrait on the table and jumped to hug the man —Thank you!

Shen Jiu saw her thanking him repeatedly in between sobs and could not do anything but caress her back to help her calm down, by the time she was done, her eyes were swollen and red and still she had the energy to complain about not being able to tell the others because Shen Qingqiu didn’t want others to know she was his daughter.

Truth to be told, Ning Yingying understood the reason, that he didn’t want others to badmouth her as an illegitimate child, and the fact her mother worked on the brothel didn’t help much. 

“You’ll see Shizun, I’ll become better and shut them all up showing them how well Baba raised me!!” she thought as she finally made her way towards the dormitories. Not expecting the surprises for the next day. 

.

.

.

—Ming Fan. 

The named one smiled and went to his Shizun’s call, the others present looked at them. Was it cruel to do this after a music lesson where almost half the disciples were present? It probably was, but this was not just about a disciple trying to sabotage another, it was a disciple trying to get them all killed by purposely targeting the possible future tyrant and emperor of the two realms, even if the boy didn’t know what his actions could’ve caused.

Shen Qingqiu looked him directly on the face before looking away. —Ying’er.

She was confused about being called, but still went forward, the others preoccupied with what was going on and dying to gossip about the possible reason for whatever that was happening.

—From today onwards, Ning Yingying will be the new head disciple. She will announce any changes on the schedules and activities and will direct the training and make sure everyone acts in the correct ways, you can contact me through her and ask her for help.

He then glared at Ming Fan, who was pale as he could not understand the reason behind this change. 

—Do you all understand?

—Yes Shizun!!— they all said. 

Without looking away from the young man he continued. —Yingying, make sure to leave Luo Binghe in the dormitories and that he has a room.

The girl, who was looking between him and Ming Fan, suddenly understood what was going on and frowned. 

—Yes Shizun, this Yingying will make sure to do that.

—Ming Fan, follow me.

The walk towards the bamboo hut was silent, and Shen Jiu didn’t even bother to look behind, he simply walked making a view for anyone who could see, like an executioner guiding the culprit to be hanged.

If he had to be honest, Shen Qingqiu opted first for a public sentence and then the silent walk to make his talk to be taken seriously and for the boy to understand. He really wasn’t good with these things, the only punishments he knew were the ones that monster had used on him, and the ones his Shizun used. He had taken the second as an example.

Xu Mingzhu was not a soft woman, she would use physical punishments most of the time, but one of her favorites was public humiliation. She would fight the disciple who made the mistake herself and show all their shortcomings throughout the battle for everyone to see, of course, apart from beating them until they broke one or two bones and had to recover for at least a few days.

Of course Shen Jiu would not do that, even if it was similar to how things were done at Bai Zhan, the others would use that to blame him of mistreating or even torturing his disciples, not to mention his Shizun had as a second weapon a whipp, reason she liked to do that kind of punishments.

Once they got to the bamboo hut, Shen Qingqiu made the boy sit down as he searched through the shelves. When he found what he was looking for, he let the object fall in front of Ming Fan, who was looking at the floor as he kneeled. 

—Mind to tell me what this is?

—This… Shizun I-

—Answer, how did this trash end up in my peak?

The boy didn't take his eyes from the manual in front of him.

—I… this disciple made it. 

—Quite the effort for something like this. Where is the manual I told you to give Luo Binghe?

—It 's in my room.

—Why did you give him a fake manual?

—....

—I can understand if you kick him out of the dormitories, even in my time those arrogant men did that to those they felt like a menace, but, compared to giving him a faulty manual, Do you understand the gravity of what you did?

—It was… I only wanted to slow down his progress.

—To slow down his progres…— He glared at the boy and walked towards him, trying to breath and to not lose control —What you did was not just simple bullying!!

Ming Fan flinched at the sudden raise of his voice, but Shen Jiu continued. 

—This could be taken as an attempted murder!! You almost caused a young, new disciple to suffer from a Qi deviation!! What would you have done if I didn’t find that boy with the manual on hand? What if he crippled his cultivation or died due to a Qi deviation? The other peak lords and especially Mu Qingfang would have investigated and would have found out you were behind it!!

Tears started to fall down the boy’s cheeks. —I didn’t want that, I just… I was jealous and wanted to… 

—It doesn’t matter what you wanted, what matters is that you didn’t think about consequences, not only did you bully him, kick him out of the dormitories, but you even used my name to justify your wrongdoings, Ming Fan, you understand that I can't have a head disciple I don’t trust next to me, if you already act as if you are the next peak lord, what can I expect but for me to go and be a victim in the future?

—No!! I would never!! I would never try to harm Shizun, you took me to the sect when my family ignored me and gave me a place to stay. I would never do anything against you. I owe you my life!!

—You have to understand, trust can be easily broken, and I do not trust you to have any power in my peak. From now on you won’t have that chance again, you almost provoqued a tragedy.

Ming Fan could not know how his action almost caused the destruction of the sect. Shen Jiu could accept that he was the direct reason in his vision, he would be the responsible one, but to let a child with that burden was too much. Ming Fan almost made the halfling hate the sect and for him to come to destroy it in the future, the deaths of his martial sibling and multiple people.

—I… I am sorry, Shizun, Shifu… I’m sorry. 

He quickly put his forehead on the floor as he cried. Shen Qingqiu tried to quiet down the impulse of hitting, of using physical force to make the boy understand, strongly grasping his fan, he finally breathed and sighed.

—I might forgive you in the future Ming Fan, but that won't give you back the chance you have lost, for now, you will be apologizing to Luo Binghe, then you’ll go to Qian Cao. 

The boy lifted his head confused. —Qian Cao?

—Your Mu-shishu was the one that treated Luo Binghe and stopped his Qi deviation, your punishment now will be going to him and make an extended written report of the causes of Qi deviations, the treatments, and the possible outcomes, the symptoms and how the patient suffers through it, your Mu-shishu allowed for you to use their library and he will review your report, if he doesn't like it, or ask something to be added you will do it, you won’t come back to Qing Jing until he approves of your report and allows you to.

—I…— he stood up and bowed —I understand Shizun, I accept my punishment and will complete it.  

—Go, you will apologize to the one you have harmed, you’ll return the manual you hid to me and tomorrow morning I want you already on Qian Cao. 

He saw the boy nodding before he walked towards the door. 

—Ming Fan— he called, seeing him stop and turn to see him, eyes red for the tears but the determination clear on his face —Jealousy is a human feeling, but you have to learn to not act influenced by it or anger— he said remembering how himself had ruined everything on the visions for that same reason —Learn to control your emotions and actions, people say immortals should let go of mortal affairs including such ugly feelings, but we are humans much before we are immortals or even cultivators, you can’t get rid of your feelings, but learn to control them. 

—Yes, thanking Shizun for his wisdom.

As the boy was turning once again, Shen Jiu added. —And forget about Ying’er, if you try anything with her I will skin you alive.

Ming Fan gulped and nodded before finally going out. Shen Jiu waited for a moment before sitting down as he rubbed his temple. 

The next day, Ming Fan was already gone, and although everyone was curious to what had happened, Luo Binghe kept silent, all day he was in a state similar to dreaming, not believing things had really changed as his Shizun had said.

“Shizun didn’t lie, he really took care of things” 

But, Binghe felt that he had to thank him on some way, so, by the second day, he tried asking Ning Yingying what were their Shizun’s favorite foods. 

—Favorite foods?— she thought about it for a moment, they were resting after a class, Mao Shi and Mo Laquan next to them trying to decipher a weird array in a book —Well, he doesn’t have favorites, but he also often skips meals unless I bring them to him and ask him to eat. Why?

—I want to thank him… for helping me. 

—Then you can try, he might accept food, but I wouldn't be sure of that.

—The only thing I know how to do is to cook, so I have to try with that. 

—I wish you luck, then.

That’s how Shen Qingqiu found himself being stalked for the next three days, and having Luo Binghe getting too close during classes. As if having Ming Fan out of the picture had made him believe he could even dare to try touching Shen Jiu! Still, as he was the adult, the peak lord managed to keep his anger and disgust out of the way for more time than he thought he could.

At least until his patience came to an end and found himself turning around in one of the gardens of Qing Jing, to see Luo Binghe badly hiding behind some bushes. 

—What does disciple Luo think he is doing?— He asked, almos gritting his teeth.

After being discovered, the boy came out, holding a box used to transport food in his hands, he timidly came closer. 

—Shizun, I… I just wanted to thank Shizun for everything, so I made a meal for Shizun to eat, and if you like it, this disciple then can cook for Shizun everytime he wants me too!

Shen Qingqiu felt a headache coming. And as he saw the boy’s hand coming closer, he finally snapped, hitting the offending hand away and glaring at the kid.

—That 's enough!

—S-shizun…

—Luo Binghe, I did not do that because it was you, I did what I did because it was my job and duty as a teacher, I do not need your thanks or attempts of playing family with me, I am not your father, and have no responsibility to give you affection or hold your hand to help you through your problems like an attentive parent, I am your teacher. 

Luo Binghe looked at him with big surprised eyes that soon enough filled with tears, but Shen Jiu still didn’t stop.

—I’ll be honest, I hate people like you to the core. 

At his words the boy paled and started to tremble.

—You cry at every problem, you ignore the social norms and try to touch others too much, even if its with no ulterior motives, you lack character and whine to others and decide to suffer in silence instead of asking those you should for help or defending yourself from those that try to harm you, all that, I hate it. 

—I…

—But, I’m your Shizun— Binghe slowly looked up —My responsibility is to guide you and make you a better version of yourself, you have potential, and so I will teach you, if you ask I’ll answer, If you can’t do something I’ll guide you so you can do it, I can't give you what you want, that family you are looking for, but I will teach and guide you to the best of my abilities as a teacher. 

Not what Binghe wanted, he longed for the feeling of being cared for and loved, but this was not a place one could play family and ask for whatever they wanted, this was a sect.

—However, if you fail to change those things, the ones I hate, you won’t be able to stay in my Qing Jing peak, for scholars and cultivators must show pride and confidence on themselves, If you can’t grow to be someone worthy of the titles you are trying to become in here, then you can go, but, you still have time, you have your martial siblings, rely on them and ask me when you don’t understand something, work on yourself while you are here and can do that. I will teach you as long as you are my disciple.

Luo Binghe saw him go, and he let the tears fall silently. I can’t give you what you want, look for it in your martial siblings now that you can do it freely, was basically what the other had said to him. To become someone proud and confident, that would face his enemies and problems by himself and ask for help if necessary, to become worthy of Qing Jing. 

He stood there watching the man go, and even after he wasn't able to see him anymore, then he dried his face and tears with determination. 

—To achieve perfection… I am not just Luo Binghe, I am a disciple of Qing Jing.

Chapter Text

Mu Qingfang felt like he was about to die, the work in front of him had made him skip sleeping for the past three days. He was grateful, of course, for Shen Qingqiu to propose the plan for the new medicinal fields that were about to be completed along with the new buildings for the storage of the herbs. 

Of course, the fact that all this was for a better sect, didn't change the fact he was drowning in work. Mu Qingfang really wanted some vacations. 

A knock on the door made him pinch the bridge of his nose in desperation. —Yes? 

—Shizun— the voice of Deng Tengfei was heard —Luo-shidi has come for a checkup. 

Hearing that, Mu Qingfang stood up. He could have left everything to his head disciple, but he wanted to make sure the kid was alright, especially since he was so young and was a case he had taken from the start. Going out, he followed his head disciple to a waiting room where the kid in question was sitting with two other Qing Jing disciples. The three, upon noticing him, stood up and saluted. 

—Mu-shishu. 

—Luo-shizhi, I’m glad you came, although I expected you to come alone. 

The boy’s face reddened in embarrassment. —I… unfortunately I didn’t know how to get here, last time Shizun brought me here in his sword and took me back the same way. Ning-shijie said she would accompany me since she also wanted to show the way to Mao-shimei.

The healer looked at the other two, he recognized Ning Yingying, since she was the girl everyone made such a big deal because of the rumor of her being raised to be a bride by Shen Qingqiu. 

—This Ning Yingying asks for Mu-shishu to forgive me, I wanted to show our two youngest how to get to Qian Cao and how things worked. 

—It’s alright, since we usually don’t see Qing Jing disciples here. 

The girl smiled. —Yes, Shizun has medicine on the peak and knows how to treat the basic wounds, so we usually receive treatment in Qing Jing unless it is a more urgent problem that requires help from specialized healers.

—Your Shizun knows medicine?

—Yes? He knows the basics at least, he has a lot of knowledge on flora, and I have seen him making medicine.

He had also implied that he helped his sister to give birth in what he had told Yingying before, and she was sure that some of the medicine he made was for the girls in the brothel. Of course she could not say that, her Baba didn’t like anyone talking behind his back even about these things and she would not give any more information, but this little bit was okay, if it was for the Qian Cao peak lord to like her Shizun a little more. So she just added a warm and innocent smile.

—Still, we barely get hurt at all, just because of the training so it is alright, Mu-shishu doesn’t have to worry. 

—Yes, I’m glad no one is required to come here if things are like that. 

—The only one that gets hurt is Mo-shixiong— Mao Shi commented. 

Ning Yingying gave an awkward laugh. —Well, that’s his own fault though, but he is lucky Shizun knows how to treat burns— she then looked at the man —But we will not take more of Mu-shishu's time, I’ll show Mao-shimei around if Shishu is not against the idea. 

—It’s alright, you can, I’ll take Luo-shizhi with me now. 

He saw the two girls go before looking at the boy, who was silently standing there while looking around. The boy was skinny, he had notice that the last time, but not as much as when he got to the sect, if Mu Qingfang had to be honest, he was surprised that Shen Qingqiu had choose a kid that obviously wasn't a young master, the same with the other girl, usually the Qing Jing peak lord would not choose many children in the selection, he just went out on missions and came back with kids that had potential like they were cats he found and decided to keep, but all just assumed they were from good families. 

"Qing Jing has always stood up because they just accepted disciples from noble families compared to other peaks" the healer thought "But… are Shixiong's inner disciples really all young masters?" 

The last time he had seen Shen Qingqiu take a disciple in the selection, it was that boy Ming Fan, who's family, although not a very well known noble house, were rich and it kind of showed on the kid’s clothes. The rest of the disciples all had to take the test to become outer disciples in Qing Jing but none of them had even a chance to become head disciple.

"Now that I think of it. Who's the new head disciple?" 

—Mu-shishu? 

Coming back from his thoughts, the healer looked at the kid who was just nervously standing there.

—Ah, sorry Luo-shizhi, follow me. 

They went out of the waiting room and walked past some hallways and gardens, until they entered a room. The man made the kid sit down on the bed as he prepared some medicines, then went to check the state of his meridians. 

—You have made good progress, they are almost healed, your Shizun did stop you before the Qi deviation started completely, so it was to be expected, yet that doesn't change the fact it's good news.

He went and brought what he had made before, a dark green liquid that smelled like grass in Luo Binghe's opinion. 

—Drink this, then I want you to use your Qi to see how your spiritual veins react to it. 

The kid grimaced, but he had eaten more disgusting things in the past so he gobbled it up in one go and then resisted the urge to throw up.

—Good job, now, please your wrist, and try to introduce your Qi in this— he gave the kid a little orb. 

Luo Binghe took it with his free hand and did as told, concentrated as he was he ignored the healer's satisfied expression. 

—That's good, you are completely fine, you can start meditating and working on your manual, the real one of course— he retrieved the orb with a smile.

—Thank you Mu-shishu, I'll tell Shizun so he gives me my new manual. 

—He hasn't yet?

—He said he didn't trust me to not practice while recuperating. 

—I see, well, you can go, do you remember how to get to the entrance? 

—Yes! If not, I'll just ask someone. 

—Good— the healer started to clean everything up.

Luo Binghe seemed hesitant, swaying from side to side, before asking. 

—Uh, excuse me, Mu-shishu…

—Yes?— he turned to see the kid. 

—I was wondering… Where is Ming-shixiong?

The man was taken aback by the question, he thought the boy must not want to talk to his bully and the one who almost crippled his cultivation. He frowned thinking of the reasons behind such a question. 

—Why does Luo-shizhi asks? 

—I need to talk to him. 

The healers tried to look for something in the face of the boy, but after some seconds, he simply sighed. 

—He is in the library, you can ask any disciple where it is, either way, it is next to the main building so it's easy to find, just go out and go all straight to the left until you get to the gardens, you'll see it then.

—Thanking Mu-shishu! I'll go now. 

Binghe did not lose time and went out of the room, walking in the direction the Qian Cao peak lord had told him. He saw several disciples from the peak running from one side to another as well as disciples from other peaks, especially from Bai Zhan and An Ding. He tried to minimize his presence the best he could as he walked, seriously thanking the heavens he did not end up being a Qian Cao disciple himself.

Finally reaching the gardens, he saw a big building next to the one he had just come out from, some people going in and out, the name written in big words on a wooden board over the door. At the entrance a senior disciple made him write his name down in a book before letting him in.

As he was going in, the boy looked around in wonder, the place was different from the Qing Jing library, where all one could see were books and tables and people reading or working in silence. 

Disciples talking and comparing books and treatments, others with piles of books around and tired eyes working on their investigations, a number of people were carrying books and returning them to their places, there were also big paintings of anatomy, plants and how to collect them in a wall filled with other more visual works that some clearly new and young disciples were staring at. It was obviously not a quiet place, new to what Luo Binghe was accustomed to. 

As he looked around, he started to search for the person he was there for in the first place. It took quite some time, but he ended up finding Ming Fan in a remote table almost at the back of the library, surrounded by books and working on what seemed to be a drawing of the position of the spiritual veins in the human body. He waited for a bit, until he saw the other put the brush aside and look at his work. 

—Ming-shixiong.

The other went still for a moment before looking at him, he had dark bags under his eyes, and the always perfect image he gave to make sure to be up to the standards the Qing Jing peak lord had was almost gone. 

—Luo-shidi— he said slowly —What are you doing here? Come to mock me?

Luo Binghe bit his tongue, cause he had actually thought about it once, maybe twice, well, a couple of times, but no, that was not the reason he had come looking for the one that almost caused his cultivation to be ruined. He gave the other an almost cold glare, he was not really used to stand up for himself, but he had to change. 

—No, Shixiong, I’m here because I wanted to talk to you.

—You are already talking— he rolled his eyes yet sat down with a tired expression —So spit it out, what do you want? 

—Ming Fan, I think we both know we don’t like each other, but I wanted to leave things clear. Shixiong, I don’t like Ning-shijie. 

The other, taken by surprise, opened his mouth in surprise. —Uh?

—Well I like her, but as a friend, she’s more like a sister? I know Shixiong likes her as everyone can notice, but I don’t like her in that way.

—Everyone?!

—The thing is, I won’t forgive Shixiong for what he did, but I also don’t want to keep an ongoing fight with you over it.

—Wait, what do you mean by everyone?

The younger one looked at the other. —I mean everyone? Is fairly easy to notice.

—What? Does Ning-shimei also know?

—Well of course, she looks like she doesn’t get a lot of things but Ning-shijie is really good at reading people. I thought you knew and understood she rejected you and because of that you hated me so much and tried so hard for her to notice you.

—Fucking… are you for real?

—Yes…?

The other hid his face in his hands and made a sound really close to that of a dying beast. Luo Binghe just looked away as his Shixiong tried to suffer in a low voice as he was in a library. After one or two minutes of this, Ming Fan finally took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. 

Binghe ended up sitting on the other side of the table, resting his head in his hand as he watched his Shixiong suffer and gave a peek to what the other had been working on the past four days. Ming Fan raised his head to catch Luo Binghe looking at the pile of papers that were his investigation. 

—Those are all about Qi deviations.

His comment made the boy flinch. —Ah, sorry for looking at them. 

—Luo Binghe, just say what you came here for.

—Shixiong, you were kind of Shizun’s favorite right?

—No, that's Ning-shimei. 

—But I mean from the male disciples. 

—You could say that…— he arrogantly smiled.

—Then, you know how one should act.

The other gave him a weird look. —Do you perhaps want to be head disciple?

—No, Ning-shijie can do that, the truth is, Shizun said he hates me.

—What?

—Shixiong, he said he hates people like me, cause I don’t have what makes a scholar or a cultivator, but Shizun liked Shixiong, so even with how things are right now, you have what he was referring to, I want to know, to become a proud Qing Jing disciple, to know what is proper and what isn’t, not only become strong but to become a scholar, someone… my mother would be proud of and that can represent Qing Jing. 

Ming Fan stared at him with a wary expression before looking down, thinking. Wasn’t this an opportunity and a challenge? Learn to control your emotions, and think before you act. Remembering Shizun's words. He had been reflecting on them the past days, especially as he worked non-stop on the assignment his Mu-shishu had given him. Was it worthy to start a fight? To hate for something the other person really had no say in? After all, if Ning Yingying liked Luo Binghe what could Ming Fan do? Mistreating the other would not change the girl's heart.

There was no point in fighting and he had put the life of other person and his position and current life in danger for jealousy, leaving that behind and understand that his actions were childish and immature, what he had to do know, is learn to accept his fault and the things he could not control, Luo Binghe had not the fault, he was just a Shidi looking up to his Shijie, just like Mao Shi. He was the culprit and the one in the wrong. 

—Luo-shidi, I really don’t like you, you cry too much, you expect someone to help you and if not you only take everything without complaining, you don’t fight at all, it’s frustrating, all the inner disciples are kids from the streets or from poor families, except for the seniors, they come from lifes similar to yours, but they stand by themselves and defend themselves, you are just a pushover and a crybaby.

The boy was red, a little out of embarrassment, anger and because he knew that was true. But, he always had his mother to shield him, to comfort him and smile to him, after she died, he was desperate to have the same back, he joined a sect waiting to find something similar in his Shizun, but now he understood he could not force what he wanted from him, Shizun was not his mother, he was just a teacher.

—I really don’t like you, but, Shizun said that as a cultivator, I have to learn to control myself, separate feelings from duty, and I am your Shixiong, so I guess I can help you, as long as you change for the better and don’t stick too much to Ning-shimei, it could be bad for her image you know?

—Ah, I… I didn’t know. 

—Men and women are different, people expect them to not interact too much, or touch too much, or even stand too close from each other unless they are siblings. 

Luo Binghe went completely red thinking of how many times he had done those things as he ignored that. 

—With men it is different, but you have to think of the person too. For example, Shizun hates people touching him unless it’s Ning-shimei or any of the shijies, although even with them he maintains a distance.

The boy recalled the fly to Qian Cao the night Shizun found him almost Qi deviating, how he was panicking because his Shizun was holding him in the air and at a distance of himself and Binghe tried to hold to him, the way he was forced to let go, and how it was the same on the way back, how Shizun tried to stay at a distance from him during clases, and how he had slapped his hand with force when Luo Binghe had tried to grab his clothes.

—You need to learn social etiquette, also, your hair is a mess, and a Qing Jing disciple must always look presentable.

—This one thanks Shixiong, for telling me all this. 

Ming Fan glared at him, but soon enough his face softened as guilt started to show. —No, it’s my duty as a Shixiong, and I owe Luo-shidi, since what I did to you was not a small matter.

The older boy turned to see his work on the table. 

—I understand Qi deviations are a really difficult and harmful thing to experience, I have been tasked to make an entire book about the most resumed information for everyone to understand, it’s a lot, but now I am able to understand the gravity of my actions, I even took a liking to medicine, although Mu-shishu is very exigent, but I am taking this seriously and will do a good job, to return to Qing Jing. 

—So… Shixiong is sorry?

The other glared at him but then almost pouted. —You could say that… 

—I see, but I won’t forgive you. 

—I know, if you had, I would've punched your face, you never defend yourself, it would be ridiculous if you just forgave someone who literally almost caused you to have a Qi deviation.

—Yeah… but, will Shixiong still teach me?

—If you ask I’ll answer, that's what a Shixiong does, although, it would be better for you to ask Lan-shixiong, but he is always busy. 

—I’ll just ask you, then, I will let you work. 

—Go back to Qing Jing and read some books on social etiquette for the sect and noble people, that will help as a start.

—Ah, yes. 

He saw Ming Fan go back to work, after a moment watching him, he decided to go back and start with his own studies. He had a lot to learn apart from the things related to his cultivation after all.

.

.

.

—Well I heard something interesting. 

The peak lords turned to see Qi Qingqi, who was smiling towards Shen Qingqiu, although her smile did not help to mask her disgust. 

Shen Jiu's expression soured slowly, knowing what was about to come. The meeting had been too peaceful until now, instead of talking about the important reforms and how finally everything in Qian Cao was ready, of course they would choose to come at him with something. 

—What did Qi-shimei hear that was so interesting? More interesting than even the schedules for the mandatory classes of first aids?

—Well, someone told me Shixiong changed his head disciple out of nowhere, and put that Ning Yingying girl in the position, Shixiong, isn't that too much favoritism? 

Shen Jiu raised an eyebrow. —How does it matter to Shimei who I select as a head disciple? Didn't our own Shizun's change their head disciple even without a reason and because of favoritism? Why am I being questioned then? 

—Well, our Shizun's were not lusting on their disciples— Li Qingyu said.

—Funny how you say that when it's not true at all. 

—Then why did Shixiong select her as a head disciple? Why no other? Why even remove the previous one?

Shang Qinghua put his papers down, slightly glaring at the woman. It was well known that out of everyone, Li Qingyu was the one that hated Shen Qingqiu the most. But he was not supposed to interfere, he and Shen Qingqiu, they had no relationship outside of being martial siblings that talked once every few months in front of others. 

—Why is it even Li-shimei's business?

Mu Qingfang was nervous, not knowing if he should interfere, he knew the truth, the real reason why Shen Qingqiu had changed his head disciple, but there was also the fact that his Shixiong had maintained the reason a secret to protect his disciple from public opinion from even most of his students, the reason why Ming Fan was being punished in Qian Cao had been said to be him just plainly bullying his Shidi and that Shen Qingqiu had chosen a completely random topic for him to work in before handing the matter to Mu Qingfang to decide whether his work was good enough. 

"To protect his student like this, even if he gets insulted" he recalled the girl, Yingying, how she was so innocently commenting on matters Shen Qingqiu usually wouldn't tell others, and how she treated everyone nicely, he didn't know if the girl had it in her to be head disciple, but she seemed to be alright with it, taking care of her Shidi and Shimei, and how she trusted her Shizun without a doubt.

Li Qingyu laughed. —Of course it's my business when it involves our sect's reputation, or if it puts in danger a female disciple. 

Shen Jiu showed a rather calm expression as he closed his left hand and fanned himself with the right one. The grip of his fist strong enough to make it hurt and probably cut his skin.

—Well, since it doesn't involve anything like Li-shime is implying, it should not concern you at all. 

—How can we know that?— Wei Qingwei suddenly joined —Why did Shixiong change his previous head disciple? I had seen the boy, he was polite and worked well.

—He made a mistake, enough for me to take action and have to take him from the position.

—What could he have done?— Gu Qingfai asked. 

—That's something I can't tell, to protect my disciples, but, Why am I being questioned by matters of my peak?

—If we are not going to discuss what we were talking about, can we go back to the budgets for the next two months?— Shang Qinghua said in a quiet yet noticeable voice.

—Or to the schedules we were reviewing?— Mu Qingfang added.

—We also haven't come to an agreement about the items the disciples can claim in the new system— the An Ding peak lord added.

—Why are you both suddenly trying to change the topic?— Li Qingyu said angry —Don't tell me you are on his side? He's scum! A lecherous bastard!! 

Shen Qingqiu breathed slowly trying to calm down, he hadn't done anything wrong and he would not give any explanation. He simply controlled, although with difficulty, his emotions, and as he was calm once more, he simply smiled behind his fan towards the woman. 

—Or so you say, Li-shimei has no proof of it, or does she? While I'm trying to improve the sect and help things, the only thing you do is try to bring me down. Are you jealous or it's simply that you cannot accept not being paid attention? 

—Shen Qingqiu!!— she stood up angry, her face red. 

—Li-shimei, did I touch too close to the truth? This is a work meeting, not a trial to try and punish me for baseless rumors. If you say I'm a lecher, why would I even target my student if I supposedly go to brothels all the time? I chose Ning Yingying because she is intelligent and strong, Ming Fan unfortunately did something he shouldn't have done, and that's it, you all really like to talk about rumors and question me when you don't even investigate one bit about it. 

—How could we investigate? You practically isolated Qing Jing from the rest, we barely see your disciples— Qi Qingqi said. 

—Well, they have more important things to do than go around doing nothing Qi-Shimei. They study and have multiple classes apart from their free investigations and projects. Qing Jing is the peak of scholars and we are always busy learning. 

As he was talking, Shen Qingqiu suddenly noticed Liu Qingge, who was looking down, the man practically biting his tongue to not join, he had refrain from making comments since Shen Qingqiu gave him the speech a few months ago, but this was kind of different, he slightly tilted his head in curiosity, hiding his face behind his fan as Li Qingyu screamed in the back as she always did, he wasn't interested, then he noticed how pale the War god looked. 

—Mu-shidi— he called. 

—Shen Qingqiu I'm talking to you!!

They both ignored the woman as the healer looked at him. —Yes? 

—I believe you should check on Liu Qingge, didn't he go on a mission to hunt down a Horned winged purple lizard? I believe those have a slow acting poison and he looks rather pale. 

Before Liu Qingge could even say anything, Mu Qingfang was already next to the man checking him.

—I am fine— the Bai Zhan peak lord said.

—Yes, fine, you are clearly poisoned Liu-shixiong— Mu Qingfang said —This could leave remains of the poison if not treated well and could cause your meridians to stress themselves, you are coming with me. 

They all saw the War god being taken away like a scolded puppy, and before the fight would continue, Shen Qingqiu stood up.

—Well, I have already talked with Shang-shidi about what Qing Jing can offer for the possible rewards for the new system so I believe I'm not needed anymore. I'll take my leave since I seem to be a factor of distraction. 

He did hear some people calling for him but Shen Jiu just didn't care not when just now he noticed something. "Did I ever see Liu Qingge fighting against the demons in my visions?"

How could he not realize it before, he had been busy after seeing his disciples die and the sect being burned, he just investigated the cause and didn't ever notice that Liu Qingge never appeared in any of his visions of the future. How could that be? He was the War god, one of the major assets of Cang Qiong mountain, he would have fight with all he got and- 

As he was flying toward his peak, he suddenly froze in mid air. Liu Mingyan, that Brute's sister, was in the demon's harem. Why? Someone so much like Liu Qingge, that always fought for righteousness, so strong and that valued honor. Why would someone like her even side with the demon if he was going to destroy Cang Qiong? Unless… 

"Unless they had something in common, unless she wanted something only the demon could give her, and that wouldn't happen with Liu Qingge around, as he wouldn't ever accept it"

He continued, this time faster, until he got to his peak. Shen Jiu was pale as he ran towards the side room, to the usual basin filled with water and didn't doubt a second making a big cut on his hand, letting his blood fall.

He closed his eyes for a moment, concentrating and letting his Qi flow as he thought of what he wanted to see, the reason why Liu Qingge was not during the destruction of Cang Qiong, and why his sister was on the side of the demon.

He opened his eyes, that glowed in the reflection, and soon enough images could be seen appearing, of what looked like a trial. 

—You… did you really kill my brother?

The words made his heart almost stop as he saw Liu Mingyan glaring with hatred towards the man that was being judged, who was no other than him. 

Next to her, Luo Binghe put an arm around her waist as if trying to comfort her and give her strength. 

Shen Qingqiu in the vision was looking down as he was being restrained by immortal binding cables, no emotion in his face as he raised his head to look at her. He opened his mouth. 

—I did, I killed him. 

—You monster!!! 

The people in the room all started to swear at him, all of them with similar expressions of disgust and hatred. Liu Mingyan looked down as she bit her lip, trying to contain her tears.

—Why? 

This time though, Shen Jiu kept quiet. The girl turned around to be hugged by Luo Binghe as she cried. 

The image started to fade away slowly, just to show Shen Qingqiu's shocked expression to the truth. 

"No…. I would never kill him, no matter what, I don't hate him, he is annoying, but I would never do that to any of my martial siblings, I would never do anything that could harm the sect" 

—I wouldn't…— he shook his head as he took a few steps back, still in shock —I would never… but.

But he did. He himself had said so in the vision, except.

—Why….? 

He regained a little composure and went back to the water, cutting himself again and ignoring the slightly burning sensation in his body. He let the blood fall once again, this time much more than before, and thought about the question. Why had he killed Liu Qingge? 

—Liu Qingge? 

His own voice was heard as the vision started to show itself. A cave first, then him standing at the entrance of that one space, his face serious, then, the Bai Zhan peak lord appeared, he was kneeling in the ground, his chest almost bare due to his torn clothes, his hair loose. The man was breathing with difficulty. 

Shen Qingqiu suddenly understood the situation. 

—A Qi deviation… how? 

Yet, as he was starting to turn around and probably go for help, Liu Qingge suddenly raised his head and glared at him, letting a scream out of his chest and barging towards the Qing Jing peak lord.

—You brute!!! 

Shen Jiu dodged quite a couple of times and had to even take Xiu Ya out as Liu Qingge grabbed Cheng Luan to attack him. His movements lacked the usual coordination and strength, but that was enough to bring Shen Jiu to a tight position. When he finally managed to disarm the war god, in a moment of carelessness, Liu Qingge got to him and pushed him to the ground. 

—Let me go!! 

Yet the other did not hear, trying to subdue him as he pinned him down and tried to get to his neck. 

The panic was obvious in Shen Qingqiu's face, his breathing becoming more and more erratic, probably thoughts of Qiu Jianluo laughing at him as he did the same to him in the past, the desperation building up as he fought back, until he lost reason and started to fight back erratically and desperately, going through his own Qi deviation. 

Liu Qingge seemed taken aback by this as he was suddenly sent flying through the cave, yet soon enough he grabbed his sword again and barged, pointing Cheng Luan directly to Shen Qingqiu's heart. 

The scholar though, did the same, and maybe due to his actions, his desperate behavior and scared expression, that image managed to bring little light to Liu Qingge's eyes, who realized what he was doing and at the last moment moved his sword, stabbing the other on the shoulder instead of the heart, just to then cough blood as his own heart did get pierced. 

Shen Qingqiu stood there as the war god fell to the ground, and just after seeing his motionless body in the ground, reason came back to him. 

—Liu Qingge? 

His voice was hoarse and it broke a little. Panic started to build up once again as the scholar let his sword go and quickly kneeled next to Liu Qingge and tried to pass his spiritual energy, and to find some kind of pulse. 

—No…no no no no no… No!! 

Yet the body was still, the eyes open and dull. 

—Liu Qingge!! Liu-shidi!!! Please… no please, wake up!!! 

Tears started to fall from his eyes. 

—No please…— this time his voice came out weak and desperate —No… you can't… I can't… Qingge… I didn't want to…

Shen Qingqiu drew away from the basin, covering his mouth, then ran out of the room and out of the house to the back forest, falling to his knees and throwing up. He had killed him, no, he almost killed him now too, if he hadn't notice, if he didn't realize the abnormality on his visions and the absence of Liu Qingge in them, he would have never knew of this, he wouldn't have know of his Qi deviation and would have probably end up killing him in the same way as the vision.

—Why… Why can't I ever rest from this?

His throat hurt from the bile, his tongue had that awful bitter yet acid taste, his eyes tearing up. 

What did he ever do? What was his life supposed to be tragedy after tragedy? Why did he have to suffer an awful death? And why did he have to involve everyone and everything he cared for? 

He grabbed his left arm with his nails and started to make pressure as he ran them through his arm, leaving red marks in his skin, then he did it again and again until blood started to come out, trying to erase the guilt, trying to distract himself from the anxiety and anger in himself. After a few minutes in which his arm was almost completely red because of the scratches and the blood in it, Shen Qingqiu finally stopped and looked up to the sky. 

—I… I have to do something about it.

He had to, to pay for whatever he had done, to free others from his own punishment. He had to save Liu Qingge. 

Chapter Text

—I'm really tempted to make you fall from that horse. 

Luo Binghe heard Ming Fan's words but just rolled his eyes. —As if you would do that with Shizun present. 

The older teen just huffed and looked to the front. They were going to the first mission for some of them, their task was to investigate the murders of several women in Shuang Hu city and find the culprit. 

After two years in the sect, Shen Jiu decided it was time for Luo Binghe and Mao Shi to prove themselves along with Ning Yingying. With the four of them, another six outer disciples had come for the mission, since Mo Laquan, Zhang Huimei and Lan Bohai had gone on their own mission to solve a problem of demons in a small village.

—I like seeing Shidi and Shixiong getting along— Ning Yingying suddenly joined them, making her horse slow down to match the speed with their horses. 

—We are not— they said in unison.

Mao Shi laughed as she copied her Shijie and rode next to them. —Binghe, what do you think we will find in Shuang Hu city? 

—I don't know, a Yao? Maybe a demon. 

The girl nodded. —What about you Shixiong? 

—We need to go there and see the different factors and clues to be able to tell.

—Boring, and you Shijie? 

Ning Yingying thought about it for a moment. —Shizun let me see the report, and considering how the culprit works…— she smiled innocently —I wouldn't know! As Ming-shixiong said, we have to investigate. 

Shen Qingqiu heard their conversation from the inside of the carriage, as he grinded some herbs. Ning Yingying, that child still liked to play around, but he had no problem with it, as he knew Yingying was clever and just liked to pretend. Maybe she had taken one or two bad habits from him in the time she had been head disciple, but now she was a fifteen year old girl that knew what she was doing. 

—Ah! Shizun, what do you think it is?

He looked to the door of the carriage, the legs of the horse visible from under the curtain.

—Ying'er, this is for all of you to learn, asking me would be against the rules.

—Buuu, I was just asking, Shizun could be a little more helpful. 

He stopped what he was doing and raised an eyebrow, knowing well the girl was pouting.

—If Ying'er wants some helpful advice, then I can only say, that maybe if you didn't skip the morning run the day's I am not in the peak, you would have more strong kicks and speed and would improve faster.

He continued, adding the liquid extract of a Spirit snatching fluorescent fungus to it, making a paste.

—Aaah!!! Who told Shizun?!— the girl glared at the other disciples.

—Don't blame them, it was one of the hall masters. 

—Ugh…— there was a little silence in which the girl was probably swearing in her head, before she asked —Anyways, what is Shizun doing? 

—Disciple Ning should be more concerned with watching the other disciples, if Luo Binghe and Ming Fan try to murder one another once again I will deduct some of your points, since you are responsible for them. 

—Ah, men, they always ruin everything… except for you Shizun, Shizun's the best!

—Ning-shijie really doesn't fear anything— Mao Shi said to Luo Binghe and Ming Fan in a low voice, they both nodded to her words.

Shen Qingqiu finished making the pills as he heard his disciples bickering in the background. This time the outer disciples had joined in the topic of who was right about the weaknesses of the Iron embervine.

"With this is enough for now" he thought as he put the pills in a box. After an hour he spent meditation, Ning Yingying's happy voice brought him back to senses. 

—I can see the city!!

Shen Qingqiu sighed as he stopped his meditation and prepared to enter the city. Getting to Old master's Chen residence was easy, they sent the carriage with the driver and were received by the servants, who were clearly scared because of the situation, at least the females. He made sure that Yingying and Mao Shi were at his side all the time as they were guided to see the client. 

The moment they entered, Shen Jiu had to stop himself from covering his nose because of the strong incense and perfumes in the room, much more irritating than the ones of the brothels. Then he had to stop himself to show his disgust as he saw a fat old man with a girl no older than thirteen in his lap. 

—Oh! Master Shen, I'm glad that you came, we have been scared to death because of the deaths, you don't know how much I have been affected, two of my concubines are dead and I do fear my young Die'er will be next. 

The girl just smiled and covered half her face with her sleeve. 

—Master Cheng doesn't have to fear, we as Cang Qiong cultivators will take care of it in no time.

—I hope so, I have spent so much money, and I don't want to lose Die'er. 

—My lord~ 

Shen Jiu frowned as he saw the man literally groping the young girl. He felt deeply disgusted with the scene, until the man finally took his eyes from the girl, although his hands stayed in her waist, and looked at their group, his eyes landing on the two girls. 

Rage filled his chest as he quickly put himself in front of Ning Yingying and, fortunately, Ming Fan and Luo Binghe did the same to cover Mao Shi, who had the same age as the young concubine. 

—We will then start to investigate now, we don't want more victims to appear. 

—Yes, Hei Changpu, take them to their rooms so they can rest a bit from their travel. 

A servant that had been waiting outside the room quickly came in and bowed. 

—Yes sir— he then turned to the cultivators —Please follow me. 

Their rooms were all next to each other, which calmed Shen Jiu a little, but was good to have the kids close. After everyone had rested for a while, they reunited in one of the gardens, where Shen Qingqiu divided them in groups, then he gave everyone a resume of the information for the case and let them read it, after that, he asked for their opinions. 

—So it takes the skin from the body, but doesn't eat the rest nor the skin? What is the reason to do that? There is no point at all!— Wu Guoting said exasperatedly.

—There must be a reason, it only attacks women, but, the two previous victims were seventeen and twenty one, they were young women, the previous seven had similar ages, between thirteen and twenty three— Ma Longwei added. 

—So then the culprit has enough reason to select their victims, age is a factor that matters, and the gender, but why take the skin to then leave it behind along with the body? Why take one but then leave it?— Ming Fan said.

Mao Shi was re-reading the paper. —Two concubines, three regular citizens, and four prostitutes.

Shen Qingqiu watched his students as they talked, then paused as he saw Ning Yingying's expression. 

—Disciple Ning, something to add? 

Ning Yingying raised her eyes from the paper as the others looked at her, she had a serious expression as she frowned. 

—Age, gender and appearance, and time,  the first victim was a prostitute, her skin and body was left behind as well as the money, then another one from the same brothel, the third and fourth were from different establishments, but… prostitutes are known for their beauty, that's what they use to their favor, the fifth victim was a young woman soon to be wed, the sixth was a a young girl from a family of scholars, the seventh was a servant from a house close to master Cheng's residence, so, from the red district, the locations where the bodies were found became closer and closer to the rich area of the city, and every death occurred without fault every seven days.

Luo Binghe frowned yet catched the idea. —Then, the culprit first targeted vulnerable women that people would not care much of their deaths yet were beautiful, but, why get closer and closer to this side of the city? How did it not get discovered?

—We are lacking information.

—But who do we ask for information?— Mao Shi questioned, a little confused.

—The servants of the house?— Sun Peizhi proposed.

—No, they would not have much to say, the deaths of the concubines are the most detailed ones, and although those were the most recent, it could be that the culprit is hiding as a servant, it could lead to false information— Ming Fan quickly took the idea the other had said down. 

—Then we just need to ask those that probably were not asked and that are probably not currently the targets of the culprit— Ning Yingying said with a smile.

—Who would those be?— Wu Guoting looked at her confused. 

The girl smiled with a little mischief. —The prostitutes. 

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.

—We don't serve kids— the woman said, giving Shen Qingqiu an accusatory glare, as they stood in front of the last brothel, since the other two had not welcomed them.

Ning Yingying quickly took a step forward. —You have misunderstood, we are disciples from Cang Qiong mountain, in charge of investigating the murders that had been going on in Shuang Hu city, we have come to ask a few questions.

The woman was a little taken aback, she looked at Shen Jiu, who opened his fan to hide his smile. 

—It's as she said, they are learning and leading the investigation, I am just supervising. 

—I see…— the woman looked at the others, the teenagers were all uncomfortable for coming to a brothel, while Ning Yingying kept smiling and Mao Shi didn't care at all —Come in then, we will answer the best we can. 

Since it was still early, the place was closed and had no customers inside, the woman led them to some of the tables and let them sit as she went for some of the girls that had more contact with the two dead girls. 

Soon enough there were two girls and the madame present along with the first woman. 

—We heard you will ask about the murders?— the youngest, Xiao Ai, said. 

Ming Fan let go of his awkwardness and cleared his throat. —Yes, the first two victims worked here didn't they? 

The other girl, Xu Jia, nodded. —Yes, the first one was Cha Hua, she went out one night and we could not find her, she usually liked to go walk around the city to promote herself, since she had to feed her brothers, she went out one day around two in the afternoon and then didn't return, me, Xiao Ai and Lu Mu went out to look, Lu Mu was the one that found her. 

—Who is Lu Mu?— Ning Yingying asked as she wrote everything down. 

They all exchanged glances, Xiao Ai answered. —Lu Mu was the second victim. 

—Did you notice anything strange with any of the victims the days before?— Yingying continued.

Shen Jiu looked at her, the girl probably already had an idea of what they were going against yet wanted to be completely sure.

—Well…— Xu Jia thought for a moment —Cha Hua did act weird, a week before she came back from her walk and was suddenly more energetic than before, she was a bit timid, that's why she did not interact much with the clients and couldn't get attention by making conversation, so the walks were to get clients without having to talk much to them, but, she suddenly became more talkative and open, she also used a lot of perfume out of nowhere, then she just… well, you know, disappeared. 

—Then Lu Mu found her…— Yingying stopped writing, his face serious —And Lu Mu? Was there anything different? 

—No, maybe the fact she recovered too quickly from Cha Hua's death, they were really close, but she stayed almost the same, she was really popular in the brothel, one of the most expensive girls, ah, she did start using more jewelry compared to what she liked, and the perfume, she started to use more perfume just like Cha Hua, then she went out saying she wanted to buy more rouge, but then she was found…

—I understand, but I have a question.

Xiao Ai nodded. —What question?

—Was there probably a body found around a week or some days prior to Cha Hua's death?

They all thought for a moment, before the woman that had talked with them in the entrance, Tu Fangsu, suddenly remembered something. 

—Yes… I… I served one of the guards in charge of the security in the city around that time, I remember they mentioned that they found the body of a man in the small pig Farm to the south of the city, very close to the red district, they thought it must have been a drunkard that managed to enter inside the pig pen and passed out, pigs eat everything from meat to bones so, by the time they found him he was already half eaten, they could not identify the body.

Some of the students, mainly the outer disciples, were pale because of the information, questioning themself if they should eat pork again or not after having heard that. 

Ning Yingying nodded and smiled. —Thanks for the information, don't worry, when we get to the culprit and everything is safe, we will send a note so you can rest peacefully. 

The women let go of some of their tension and smiled.

—I'm really thankful— the madame said —Usually when things like this happened the first to die are the ones in this line of work, but people don't deem us as important and so don't report anything until someone from a rich family dies, only then they send for help, cultivators usually don't care for us either, I'm glad you all are good and honorable to even think of asking us, we are usually the ones with more information, alcohol always loosens up the tongues after all.

Shen Jiu stood up. —There is no reason to thank us yet, wait until we get rid of whoever is doing this, for now we need to go and ask about the other girls in the center of the city.

They said their goodbyes and headed out of the establishment, the disciples not caring where they were anymore and just talking about the case. Once in the center of the city, they all looked around at the different stores and food stalls, so they made groups to go asking around.

—Luo Binghe, Ming Fan and Wu Guoting will make another group.

The three made a face that clearly showed how much they didn't want to be together, but they didn't dare to contradict their Shizun.

—Ning Yingying and Mao Shi will come with me since the targets are women, I will not risk them, now go, I want the four groups back at the entrance of Master Cheng's residence in an hour, no delays.

The groups answered affirmatively and then scattered around the market and the big streets, Shen Qingqiu followed his female students closely.

Luo Binghe watched his Shizun go and then looked at his two companions. Ming Fan was reading his notes while Wu Guoting was absentmindedly looking around, it was the last one who broke the silence. 

—So, who should we ask?

Ming Fan put his writings away in his Qiankun pouch and looked around.  —Old ladies. 

—Old ladies?— the other two asked, confused.

—They always know what is going on. In my city, if something happens, they are always the first to know about it. They have a lot of time in their hands and know a lot of people since the majority had lived in the same city their whole life. 

—I never expected Shixiong to be this intelligent— Luo Binghe said, just to be hit in the head by the other. 

—And how will we ask?— Wu Guoting looked around, all the old ladies he could see were, working, or talking with other women. 

—That's easy, Luo-shidi will approach them first. 

—Why me?— he asked as he covered his head with his arms, to not be hit again.

—Because you are annoyingly appealing to the eyes of women, you look like a sheep and are shorter than us.

—And what does that have to do with it? 

—He's saying you look more like a kid and they'll hear you because you are cute— Wu Guoting translated. 

—I am not cute! 

—Luo-shidi, between you and Mao Shi, who is younger than you, you are cuter— the other said.

—That is not true!

—Yeah, say that after you grow another ten centimeters— the teen laughed at his face. Ming Fan and he were both sixteen after all, while Binghe was fourteen. 

—Stop fooling around and go— Ming Fan grabbed Luo Binghe by the shoulders and pushed him towards a group of old ladies at the other side of the street.

Him and Guoting followed suit as the women watched the boy go red and stutter a quick salute and presentation. 

—I'm sorry f-for disturbing your talk, I… I am Luo Binghe from C-cang Qiong mountain, my Shixiongs and I wanted to ask about the murders, Shizun gave us as a task to… to collect information. 

He could hear his Shixiongs trying not to laugh at him. The women on the other side, looked at him with smiles.

—Oh my, so young yet investigating such a gruesome incident. 

—He will be an immortal cultivator in the future, he might be young but he has to learn.

—Yes, but, will it really be okay to talk about that? 

The women started to talk between them, making Luo Binghe give a panicked glare to the other two. Ming Fan rolled his eyes and came forward with a smile. 

—You have not to worry ladies, my Shidi is the youngest so we are letting him get accustomed to it. We have studied other cases as well as beast and demons, we are only gathering information for now, so we can catch the culprit without a problem knowing what we are going against. 

The women all looked at him then smiled. 

—Ah well if it is like that, we might know a little, one of the victims was the daughter of the seamstress, such a young and beautiful girl, she would go everyday to visit her fiance at the market, the poor man was the only apprentice of the carpenter, not extremely wealthy but did had enough to buy a house for him and his fiance to live.

Another lady nodded. —Yes, although the days before she died she started to put on more makeup and perfume. We all thought she was nervous because of the wedding, I saw her happily walking around.

The third woman added. —Yes I saw her two, my sister in law was one of the last to talk to her as she was still selling noodles until late that day, she saw Hu Qiaohui going to the market saying she had to buy some rock sugar for her fiance's dinner, she never returned and then her body was found.

Ming Fan wrote everything down. —I understand, how was the state of the body? 

—It was… weird, the body was fresh, but the skin was already rotting away. Even though it had just been a couple of hours from her disappearance to the moment the body was found, I think it was a merchant who found it. It was in one of the side alleys. 

—Was there any blood around the body?— Luo Binghe asked. 

The ladies thought about it for a moment before one of them seemed to realize something. 

—Not much, but it wasn't as if someone had cleaned it, I was there when the guards came for the body, the alley was clean of any blood, there was just this smell of rotting flesh, and the blood on the body, it was as if the skin had been taken cleanly as if it was just clothes.

The three teenagers exchanged a glance, Ming Fan then looked at the women. —Well, is there anything else you can remember that was strange? 

—Nothing, it's such a shame though, the fiance of the poor girl killed himself after he found out.

—Yes— other of the women said —The other girl, she was not from this area, although we could see her from time to time, her family had money and her father was a scholar, she would come to buy paper, I heard she was found dead in her own house, then the family moved from the city since they had another daughter, not much was known about that, just that the servants were fired and had to look for employment in other places.

—I see, thank you, we will keep asking around— Ming Fan said as he bowed slightly and took the other two with him.

—What now?— Wu Guoting asked. 

—We are clearly dealing with a demon— the teen said, then he sighed —Ning Yingying probably already realized what kind is considering the questions she made to the brothel ladies.

—A demon? What kind?— Binghe asked.

—If you haven't realized yet then you need to study more, c'mon, let's go around the market asking the vendors, they usually wake up early and might have been there when the body was found.

They did as said, yet most of the answers repeated, they did not find anything new no matter how much they asked, finally they ended resting next to some stalls.

—Mister Fu, Can I have three chicken skewers? 

Luo Binghe turned to see the girl in the food stall next to where they were resting.

—Look, she looks a lot like Mao-shimei. 

The other two looked and nodded, Wu Guoting took a bite of the dry meat he had bought. —She is even wearing green, although her hair is a bit longer.

Ming Fan stared at the sky, it was already getting dark, he stood up. —We should head back or Shizun will punish us.

As they stood up, suddenly screams were heard around the market. They searched for the source of danger and found a black cloud of demonic energy going in their direction. The three took out their swords, when Luo Binghe realized the demon wasn't targeting them but the girl that had froze in front of the stall and forgot to run as she was still holding the food she had bought. 

—Careful!!— the boy jumped in front of the girl and raised his sword trying to defend himself as Wu Guoting, who was the closer to him and the girl, ran to cover her with his body.

—Luo Binghe!!

Ming Fan saw the demonic energy surrounding the other and taking Binghe instead of the girl. Immediately he jumped and held his hand to try catch the other who was trying to free himself, failing. 

—Guoting go for Shizun!! 

Ming Fan followed the demon who was trying to get away. Wu Guoting looked around panicked just to see the cloud of demonic energy turn around and take his Shixiong as well before going away.

—Sir!! Please take care of this girl!!— he screamed to the stall vendor who came back to his senses and nodded, taking the girl and hiding with her behind the stall.

The teen then quickly made his way back to Old master Cheng's residence.

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.

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—Ugh…

Ming Fan opened his eyes slowly, his head hurting and the world spinning. He was still trying to figure out what had happened when something next to him moved. Trying to move to see what it was, he finally noticed that he was tied up to a pillar in what seemed to be an empty hall.

—Where is this…?

Feeling movement from his left again, he turned his head to see Luo Binghe tied next to him, finally waking up.

—Luo Binghe, hey!— he moved his leg to hit the other and finally woke him up.

—What… what the hell? Shixiong? 

—Did the sleeping princess finally wake up? 

—What princess?! Where are we? 

—Don't remember? The demon took you away. 

The boy took a moment to think before remembering. —Right, but the girl is alright?

—She's not here so I assume she is, Wu Guoting was with her.

They went silent for a moment before Ming Fan tried to see what they were tied up with.

—Shit, immortal binding cables. 

—What? Where do they even get these things from?— Luo Binghe complained as he tried to loosen the cables in his wrist.

—Don't make too much noise, you'll make the demon appear. 

The boy stopped moving around. —Well, we are trapped here, but… Shizun will come for us right? 

—Of course he will, he's Shizun, I know he'll come.

Silence filled the room once again.

—Hey, I didn't think Shixiong would jump to save me.

—That's my duty as your Shixiong, ah, couldn't the demon just take you and leave me behind?

—And here I was thinking Shixiong had a heart.

—You really learned to talk back didn't you? I curse the me of the past for helping you.

—You still care don't you? 

—I would punch your face if it weren't for the fact I'm tied up.

—Try to turn around a little and I can try losing up yours 

He nodded and did as told, soon enough he felt the hands of the other tugging at the cables. Ming Fan ignored it to look around, it was then that he saw a figure appear from the darkness.

—Seems like Cang Qiong mountain has fallen low, to send such inexperienced cultivators for such a mission.

The demon's face was covered in veils, and its voice was coarse, it made a shiver run through the bodies of the boys, panic building up as they were not able to free themselves and defend from the demon.

—Now as I have you two as bait, soon enough your Shizun will come for you and will fall into my illusion array!! How wonderful to capture the great Shen Qingqiu and show how he isn't much more than a joke, just like his disciples. 

—As if Shizun would fall for something like that, especially since we are at lord Cheng's residence— Ming Fan said.

The demon stopped walking. —You! How do you know?! 

—Are you really asking? The pillars are made of the same material of the ones of the hall where Master Cheng received us, the wood used on the floor is an expensive one and their architecture in general is the same as the rest of the mansion, this is just probably an abandoned area.

—Ha, clever boy aren't you? But I bet you can't tell who I am.

—It's not that difficult to be honest, you are Die'er.

—How did you know?!!— she ripped the veils letting her face be seen.

—Is that really a question? You are the same height and you still smell like that stupid perfume!— Luo Binghe said as he worked on untying the binding immortal cables. 

—That, after realizing what you were, is not difficult to tell, you made it quite easy to tell to be honest. 

—Easy? I bet you could not tell how my amazing plan worked!

—Amazing?— Luo Binghe said as she was stupid —I didn’t realize before but it’s clear that you are a skinner demon. What plan? That's how one of you would just act!

—Of course not, this one is quite intelligent, I searched for helpless women, first, I came into the city as a merchant, then took the body of that prostitute Cha Hua, while I got rid of the previous one feeding it to the pigs, then I just looked for another women that had similar bodies, and when not, I would just damage the sking to it would not be noticeable, I moved around fooling everyone, acting as those women was easy, now I can make my way into a sect.

—As if you could, you won’t be able to kill Shizun no matter how hard you try.

—Hm, then I'll just have to kill one of you and take the place of the other to fool that Shizun of yours, then I'll infiltrate Cang Qiong easily. 

—Yeah, Shizun probably already knows that you are a skinner demon and won't fall for that, if we noticed you were one before you captured us.

—Shixiong , what are you doing? You want us to get killed?— Luo Binghe said in a low voice. 

—You just keep untying those— he replied in a similar manner.

—So you really are Intelligent, to have figured it out before, I guess Qing Jing disciples are there for a reason, but, still, I prefer to take the chance, who of you two wants to be my new skin?

—Don't you just target women? 

—Yes, but the skin of a cultivator will take more time to rot away, it's a better disguise. Also, I don't discriminate if the skin and appearance is good, like your little Shidi right there.

Both tensed as the demon pointed to Luo Binghe.

—I noticed right after taking him away, his skin is soft and tender and his looks are to my liking, I will enjoy taking his skin and wearing it to fool others~ 

As the demon was approaching, Ming Fan felt the cables finally losing up. In a quick move he freed his hands and, feeling his Qi circulating normally once again, he used the opportunity to kick the demon in the stomach and send her flying a few meters until she managed to get to her feet again, furious.

Ming Fan didn't lose time and immediately turned around to untie Luo Binghe, as he managed to do it he felt the sharp nails of the demon dug into his skin. He let out a scream before he was sent flying against a pillar. 

—Ming Fan!! 

—I'm done with useless games!! I'll just kill you both!! 

Luo Binghe dodged the attack of the demon and ran towards Ming Fan, grabbing a piece of wood from the floor to defend himself as his sword was not in sight. The older teen groaned from the floor, covering the wound on his shoulder as he looked up at Luo Binghe, who was terrified yet still stood there to protect them both.

As the demon attacked once again, the door opened and a sword flew over to them, cutting the hand of the demon. Both teens recognized the shining of Xiu Ya, and immediately looked to the door.

Shen Qingqiu came in with an expression of cold anger, ready to kill. He called his sword back and didn't stop walking until he was in front of his student.

—You!! How did you manage to break through my illusion array?!!— the demon said in anger. 

—That thing? My Shizun made worst ones— he said before attacking and cutting the arm of the demon, that tried to attack with her other one as she screamed non stop.

Unfortunately, the peak lord just used his sword as a feint to then smack the demon in the abdomen with his palm, immediately this one got covered in flames.

—Aaaaahh!!!!!!!

The skinner screamed in pain as she was burned alive under the cold glare of the immortal, who just gave her the final blow by piercing her heart with his sword. 

Luo Binghe felt the strength in his legs go as he fell to the ground, Ming Fan supporting him with the little strength he had left. They watched their Shizun turn around and walk in their direction, leaving the corpse of the demon to burn to ashes. 

—Shizun— Binghe said as he felt tears in the corner of his eyes, he hadn't realized until now just how scared he was.

—Are you injured? 

The boy shook his head. —No, but, Ming-shixiong is!! 

At his words Shen Jiu got closer and kneeled to see the wound, he quickly took out the pills he had been making on his way from the sect to Shuang Hu city and made the boy eat one.

—These ones make your body heal faster by absorbing more spiritual energy, concentrate on circulating your Qi.

Ming Fan did as told and sat in a meditation position. Shen Qingqiu meanwhile cleaned the wound and bandaged it, when the two boys were good enough to return, they made their way back to the others.

Shen Jiu refused to stay the night in the mansión and took his disciples to an Inn. The next day they made their way back to the sect, not before sending messengers to inform the citizens that the demon had been caught and dealt with. Since Ming Fan could not ride his horse due to his injury, Shen Qingqiu let him ride on the carriage with him.

Chapter Text

Mu Qingfang contained his disgust as he saw the nasty wound on Ming Fan's shoulder, making Shen Qingqiu frown. 

—This is quite… the deep wound, and quite a clean cut, what made it? 

—A skinner demon.

—Right….— the healer proceeded to go for some herbs and start preparing the medicine —At least it's not infected. Did Shixiong clean the wound?

—Yes, I made sure to clean it before bandaging it. I also gave him a pill to accelerate his recuperation, but it mostly stopped the pain and accelerates the reconstruction of the damaged muscles, that's why I brought him here with Mu-shidi.

The healer hummed as he returned and put a paste over the wound making Ming Fan let out a groan of pain.

—You have to endure it, skinner demons have a slight poison that stops the bleeding and helps them take the skin of their victims, you see they have sharp claws, you are lucky it's just this and the demon didn't take your arm.

Ming Fan shivered. —Heavens no, I really like my arm. 

The healer laughed. —Shixiong, but why didn't you treat him? Didn't you have knowledge on medicine?

—Just a little, not enough for this.

—Mm— he finished placing the medicine in the wound —This should do for now, your disciple will have to rest here for one or two days to see his progress, of course, even after he can go he will have to rest and avoid using that arm.

Shen Qingqiu looked at his disciple, who was lost in thought as he stared at his right arm, frowning slightly. This would mean Ming Fan could not do the trainings, chores or even the written work as well as music classes for as long as he had to rest, probably a week.

—Ming-shizhi should now stay here and relax, I will probably send my head disciple to look after you later.

Ming Fan finally came back from his thoughts. —It's not necessary Shishu, he probably has important things to do, I'll just wait for any of your disciples. 

—Don't worry about it, since Shen-shixiong brought you here personally I can only treat you well.

Shen Qingqiu raised an eyebrow. —Isn't this favoritism? 

—Your disciples almost never come for injuries, and you only accompany them if you are worried about them, so I have to show that they will be well attended. 

Shen Jiu decided to just ignore that. —Ming Fan, I will let you attend classes when you are permitted to go back, but I'll put someone at your side to make sure you don't use your right arm.

—Yes Shizun. 

The man hummed and then turned towards the healer. —Mu-shidi, I also have a private matter to discuss with you.

—Let's go to my office to not get disturbed.

—Alright— he gave his student a last look before going out accompanied by the healer.

—Shizun!

They both were surprised to see Luo Binghe outside waiting for them, the boy tried to maintain his head up although unconsciously he would look down momentarily. 

—Disciple Luo.

—I… how is Ming-shixiong's injury?

—He's good, is disciple Luo worried? 

—Well, no… just a little, he got injured protecting me after all.

Mu Qingfang was surprised to hear that, last time he had the two boys on his peak, one had unintentionally almost provoked the other to have a Qi deviation and now that same boy had saved the other. He looked over to Shen Qingqiu, who didn't seem to find it so strange. 

—Your Shixiong is alright, he has to stay here a few days before going back— the man thought about it for a moment —If disciple Luo wants to peste- I mean, make him company, I could ask you to keep an eye on him when he goes back so he doesn't use his affected arm until his mandatory rest is over.

Luo Binghe raised an eyebrow. —He can't use his right arm? 

—Not for now, but when he goes back he will be able to use it for simple things like dressing up or eating, he just can't join the trainings, or write too much, or do activities that require him to move his arm too much— Mu Qingfang clarified.

Luo Binghe looked down, failing to hide his clearly mischievous smile, making Mu Qingfang wonder what was the boy planning. At his side, Shen Qingqiu just sighed. 

—Just make sure not to stress him too much, you know he is an overachiever that can't stay more than twenty minutes without working, if something happens I know it will be your doing.

The boy seemed to rethink his plans before nodding. —This disciple will help Ming-shixiong so Shizun doesn't have to worry.

—Alright, you can make him company or go back and finish your report about the mission. 

—I'll just do it here.

The two saw Binghe go inside the room, and heard a clear sound of dissatisfaction before the door closed, probably from Ming Fan. 

—I didn't expect for them to become like this, I thought…

Shen Qingqiu looked at his martial sibling. —You thought I would encourage them to keep fighting? 

—No, that's not… I didn't meant that Shixiong. 

—Is alright, everyone knows that I know how to hold a grudge— he then started walking towards the Qian Cao peak lord's office —But my disciples learn for themselves, Ming Fan asked for forgiveness and saw his wrongdoings, Luo Binghe accepted the apology but didn't forgive him, they have worked on tolerate each other the past two years, and eventually learned to leave that grudge as a simple way of just insulting each other in a way they don't really mean it.

The healer followed him, listening with attention. —I see…

—Besides, grudges are only good to maintain when the part in the wrong doesn't accept to see his wrongs and won't even apologize or give at least an excuse— he said in a low voice that made Mu Qingfang thank he had never really angered the man.

Eventually they made it to the office, where the healer made tea before they sat down to speak.

—So, what was that Shixiong needed to discuss with this one? 

—I need… Mu-shidi's help.

Mu Qingfang made sure to control his expression, although he could not deny that this was new and made him feel extremely happy, as Shen Qingqiu had never asked for help. Maybe the man was starting to trust him? 

—Whatever Shixiong needs.

—I am in need of a few medicinal plants that I was hoping Shidi could prepare for me— he said as he took a paper from his sleeve and handed it over.

Taking the paper, the healer read it quickly, just to frown. —All this… are to make medicine for Qi deviations.

—That 's right.

He frowned even more. —Is Shixiong having difficulties? Have you perhaps suffered a Qi deviation without telling me? May I have your wrist? 

Quickly taking a step back, Shen Jiu shook his head. —No, they are not for me.

The other clearly didn't believe him. —Shixiong, I won't tell the others. 

—I'm saying, that this are not for me, I'm planning on refining them to make medicine in case of any potential accident, I thought about it when the situation with Luo Binghe happened, but we were busy with the expansion of Qian Cao and the paperwork for the first aids classes as well as the making of the new reward system, now I'm thinking about it again.

Mu Qingfang was still not giving in, but he had heard before that his Shixiong new how to make medicine, maybe this was actually just out of concern for his disciples, not to mention, the herbs on the list, although difficult to obtain, were mostly just to make medicine to keep the Qi stable, something that would only help at the start of a Qi deviation and make time for it to be treated, although there could be other effects if combined with specific plants.

—Is… Shixiong going to make the medicine himself? 

—Since I know how, well, yes.

—Right, previously Shixiong mentioned he learned about medicine before joining the sect, in his work. 

Shen Qingqiu tensed a moment, as he quickly searched in his memory until he remembered, cursing that the healer hadn't forgotten yet.

—Yes, it seems like I did say that.

—Seeing that your medicine was quite effective, and that you seem sure you can make medicine for Qi deviations, but Shixiong insists that his knowledge is not much, can I ask why? Shixiong learned working… But where? To say that…

Shen Jiu sighed. He really wasn't hiding who he was, he didn't actually care anymore, as he learned to not care of others opinions after learning about the future of the world, the only thing that mattered to him was his life, the life of others, that things wouldn't end up as in his visions, and his… disciples. All the rumors about him were quite wrong, because no one actually asked him, he never said he was a young master, others simply assumed, he hated liars, and so never said anything that wasn't true, unless he were acting. If others had asked him, he would have said that it wasn't true. 

But, lying by omission it was still lying, he just let them talk because being a lazy young master was better than being a filthy slave. And he cared a lot about his image at that time, well, he still cared, just not as much as before. 

He looked at Mu Qingfang. —I was an apprentice of an apothecary, I learned everything he had to teach, but he only knew how to treat common people, cultivators are different, I can make medicine if I have the recipe, but I cannot heal when I don't have the knowledge or practice. 

The healer was clearly taken aback. —I see…

—It is so unbelievable to hear? 

—Well, no, I… we all just assumed Shixiong didn't have to work before coming to the sect.

—Why wouldn't I? Everyone has to work in this life, Mu-shidi probably had to work before coming to the sect, as well as many of our martial siblings, although I can tell Qi Qingqi and Liu Qingge may be the exception, unless you count excessive training as working for Liu Qingge. 

—Ah, yes, I was just surprised, after all Shixiong never mentioned it and I only got to know you had knowledge on medicine two years ago.

—Well Mu-shidi never asked, no one did, after all I'm just a lazy young master— he averted the other's eyes —It's easy to ignore everything else about a person when others talk about them all the time. 

The healer looked down, ashamed, because it was true, no one really wanted to try knowing Shen Qingqiu because of the rumors around him. Was he even a lazy young master? Clearly he wasn't lazy at all, he had seen the man work nonstop for hours, and apparently he was learning to be an apothecary before joining the sect, as an apprentice, which is not something a rich young master would need to do.

—Will Shidi then help me with the herbs?

—What? I… yes, of course Shixiong. 

—Then I will be waiting for them— he simply said as he stood up and walked to the entrance. 

—Wait, Shixiong! I- 

—Mu-shidi doesn't really have to try, no one is interested in getting to know me and I'm pretty much the same way with other people, and it's not like it matters, we are just people doing our jobs. 

The healer watched the door close, Shen Qingqiu gone and him alone in the room. 

—But we are supposed to be a martial family, I… no, have we even tried to be one to him? 

.

.

.

—What are you two doing?

Ning Yingying stood there with a frown and her hands on her waist. Luo Binghe and Mao Shi froze in their place behind the bushes, just to slowly turn around to face the girl.

—Shijie….

—So? 

They looked at each other before a sound made each of them grab one arm of their Shijie and made her hide with them.

—What are you doing?!

—Shhh!!! 

They pointed over to a few meters over the other side of the bushes, where a figure could be seen. Ning Yingying, curious, did the same, just to see Ming Fan standing there as if waiting for someone.

—What is he doing?— Yingying asked in a low voice. 

—That's what we are figuring out— Luo Binghe answered. 

—Since he got back from Qian Cao three days ago he's always accompanied by Wu Guoting or Sun Peizhi, and Binghe of course but he insists it's only to make a little fun of him— Mao Shi said.

—It is for that reason, I started to make my calligraphy work in front of him and he really looked like he wanted to punch me, I was doing it wrong on purpose of course. 

—Yeah whatever— the girl rolled her eyes —The point is, he ditched the other two and came here and we want to know why.

—I see— Yingying made herself comfortable —He does seem like he's waiting for someone…. Do you think he has a girlfriend? 

—Whaaaat?

—No way.

—Ming-shixiong is too ugly for that— the boy laughed.

—He's not ugly, he just focuses on his studies instead of his appearance, and also he's going through puberty, he will grow more and look less like a grown kid.

—You are speaking as if you were a grown woman who has seen that before— Mao Shi raised an eyebrow. 

—Well I saw Lan-shixiong go through it, anyways, he could have a girlfriend, Ming-shixiong has a good face, he's just silly looking sometimes.

—Like when he's fighting with Binghe, or can’t get a sword move right, or who is that? 

At the youngest worlds, the other two looked over to see a good looking young man, his brown hair braided and falling on his shoulder, his clothes in the colors of Qian Cao.

—Oh, that's Deng-shixiong, he's the head disciple of Qian Cao— Luo Binghe answered.

—I think I'm in love— Mao Shi said with an exaggerated voice as she put her hand over her chest. 

—Well he is handsome, but…

—But? You really are saying but?— Mao Shi looked at her Shijie as if she had said something outrageous. 

—Well, Meimei, I spend time daily with Shizun and he is way more pretty.

—Okay that's a fair point. 

Luo Binghe narrowed his eyes as he looked at the two that were calmly talking. —What are they saying? 

—Do you think it is a secret date? Maybe a prohibited love between peaks!— Ning Yingying started to fantasize. 

—No! He can't be Shixiong's boyfriend, I can't have already lost my first love!— she screamed in a low voice.

—They are not boyfriends— Binghe said in an exasperated voice, before looking over again —They aren't right? 

—I wouldn't know, Didn't Shixiong like Ning-shijie?

Ning Yingying grimaced. —Please no.

—Shh, he's giving him something. 

They saw Deng Tengfei take out a box and give it to the boy, who opened it while the other talked, probably explaining something. The three just watched until the Qian Cao disciple stopped talking and made a sign as a goodbye before taking out his sword and flying back to his peak, Ming Fan watched him go before making his way back to wherever he was going.

—Maybe Deng-shixiong was just giving him the medicine?— Luo Binghe said.

—But why bring it himself? Normally Ming-shixiong would have gone for it, his arm is the one that can't be used, not his legs— Ning Yingying commented. 

—Shijie— Mao Shi tugged on the other girl's sleeve to make her look at her —Do you think I have a possibility with Deng-shixiong?

—Shimei… well…

—Xiao Shi, you're thirteen — Luo Binghe said without mercy —He's nineteen, if he even looked at you in that way Shizun would castrate him. Didn't you see how he looked at the old master Cheng? Sure he was a gross old man, but he kinda gave the same look when he heard one of Shang-shishu's disciples that was in his twenties was engaged with a fourteen year old.

Ning Yingying nodded. —Shizun disapproves of those relationships unless the younger part is at least sixteen, maybe seventeen, he always says perverts are everywhere and only when you are mature enough you should start a relationship, although I don't know if the message is for me or everyone. 

—Well I can always remember his face— Mao Shi said as she feigned crying. 

—So we will never know why they reunited so mysteriously here— Luo Binghe said.

—I go for the boyfriend theory— Ning Yingying said happily. 

—I go for the one about the medicine— Mao Shi fought back. 

—Whatever it was we won't know— Luo Binghe started to stand up.

—Ah that reminds me, you two— Ning Yingying smiled ominously —Didn't you have chores to do? 

The two young ones exchanged a look, almost sweating. —We will go now Ning-shijie!! 

Ming Fan on his side, made his way towards the bamboo hut like any other day he would be assigned to brew tea for his Shizun, like it or not, he was one of the best in that, although his mission was different this time. As he finally got to his destination, he knocked on the door and waited until his Shizun opened and let him in.

—How was is? 

Ming Fan sat down after his Shizun and put the box on the table. —Deng-shixiong said Mu-shishu found all the herbs Shizun solicited.

Shen Qingqiu took the box and opened it, as his disciple had said, everything was just like he asked for.

The teen watched as his Shizun nodded to himself and closed the box.

—May this one ask why it was me who had to receive the box instead of Ning-shimei? 

The man hummed. —Ning Yingying would have asked what these were, unlike you. She is good as a head disciple, but doesn't know when to stop talking when she is with me and she might have worried unnecessarily.

—I understand.

—Disciple Ming can go now, make sure to not overuse your right arm.

—Yes Shizun, I'll take my leave now. 

Seeing the teen go away, Shen Qingqiu stood up and went to the side room, this time opening the drawers of one of the furnishings and taking out the necessary to make medicine. He had been thinking for a while about going to the Ling Xi caves, he felt he was close to advancing on his cultivation  and obviously that would be a good reason to go into seclusion in the caves, which would have serve as a way to make him run into Liu Qingge having a Qi deviations. 

Of course Shen Jiu was not stupid, he could see the future but that didn't mean that because he knew something would happen it would not happen at all, things would continue as they were meant to, in the future he would have had a reason to be in the Ling Xi caves at the same time as Liu Qingge, and since he was usually busy with the paperwork, his plans with Shang Qinghua and teaching his disciples, the only reason for him to be at said place and time for what he saw in the vision to occur, would be him entering seclusion to advance in his cultivation. 

The time was getting closer and he had to make preparations, as long as he had the medicine ready, he would have to ask permission to enter seclusion, from then on, it was all on him to change the future.

"I can do this… I can change things, even if it costs much, I have to change the future"

Making medicine was not such a difficult task, at least not when you already had the required expert control of your Qi and knew how to do almost all the procedures required in it, how to process the herbs, the quantity and the way you mixed everything together. 

Shen Qingqiu didn't even bother to think about sleeping or eating, he spent the next few days without going out, just channeling all his concentration into making everything he needed, by the fourth day he finally had pills to stabilize Qi, as well as tea. He had even made a more potent medicine to control the after effects of the Qi deviation to make sure Liu Qingge would not suffer in his cultivation. 

Of course on the last years Shen Jiu had been studying non stop how to stop Qi deviations or how to treat them, since he had the basic knowledge on medicine, he could keep studying most things without the problem of not understanding certain procedures, he had learned almost all of what a normal healer would know in about a year, but even after he had bought books about medicine he had only the theory of course, which was not enough. 

Now at least he had the knowledge and medicine to help, but putting everything in practice was a different story, he just hoped he would not mess things up. 

—I have to make arrangements. 

Shen Qingqiu closed his eyes, it must be the lack of sleep for the past two weeks, but he was starting to see a little blurry. His body was also cold, more cold than usual, he was used to never really be comfortable since his bones had always hurt during winter and in a normal basis due to the injuries he did not manage to heal properly in the past, and for the same reason, since his body was shorter and skinnier of what it was supposed to due to him starving as a kid, he was always cold.

Was it because of anxiety or stress? He suddenly felt heavy, much like when he was in the streets dying of hunger and cold.

There was no way he could work like that, so Shen Jiu made his way to the bathroom and prepared the water. He undressed and then stepped inside the bathtub, feeling the warm sink into his bones and erasing that uncomfortable sensation on his body.

He let out a sigh as he looked at his hands over the water, then his arms, filled with scars, he closed his eyes and let his arms fall again. The water splattered. He wondered, would he ever get rid of those heart demons? When he managed to change the future perhaps? But what about the other ones? What about the filthy little slave? 

His hand unconsciously touched over the side of his stomach, where the burning from the iron with the Qiu slave mark looked as if it was only yesterday it had finally stopped hurting. 

How nice would it be to get rid of a body like this? Every little surface marked, except for his face, because that bastard not only wanted to hide his mistreatment of Qiu Haitiang, that monster also liked to see his untouched face contorted in pain every time he hurted him. 

Somehow he knew, that it would be impossible to make all those scars dissapear, he would always be a slave, and so that mark will always be there. The ones in his back from the whip, in his legs and stomach made with knives. There was a reason he preferred to just be punched and kicked, since it would hardly leave a mark, well, only four a couple of days or weeks. 

So he wondered sometimes, how it would be to have a different body, to be someone normal, someone that didn't go through that and had no such hatred to himself and everything around. 

He opened his eyes once again, and looked at his hands, the hands of a musician and a painter, slim and long fingers that he always thought looked just like bones. He traced them with his other hand until he got to his wrist. Staring blankly at his veins that stood up with their blue color against his white pale skin. He pressed slightly over them with his nail, feeling little to no pain, then he scratched over, seeing the faint lines forming and turning red.

"How does it feel?" He scratched again, with more force, feeling the sting of pain, then stopped himself, letting his body relax and his head fall back over the edge of the bathtub. Useless thoughts were not needed now. 

After a few minutes he stood up and dried himself before getting dressed and going to his office. He had to organize everything so the hall masters could take care of the peak in his absence. The night went quickly as he worked, and the next day he made his way to Qian Cao.

It was a surprise to not find Mu Qingfang in his office, and after asking one of the man's disciples, he made his way towards the new fields at the south of the peak. He ended up finding the peak lord scolding a young disciple for not taking care of the herbs properly. 

—Your seniors did instruct you to only water the fairy droplets during the night! Look at this now we have lost a full batch of them!!

—I'm sorry Shizun!! I mistook them for the purple dainty bells…

—Since that's the case, you will have to write an essay on how to distinguish one from the other and the proper ways to care for each one.

—Uh…. But Shizun! 

—Go now before I make you remove all the dead fairy droplets and tend the soil to plant more. 

The disciple quickly started to run, passing next to Shen Qingqiu and in the direction of the main buildings of the peak. 

—Ah, Shen-shixiong, you visit more and more lately. 

—Mu-shidi, I'm afraid I have to pester you once again.

—It's not a bother to have Shen-shixiong here asking for things, I'm your healer, if Shixiong needs something from me I will always try to help. 

—Mm, I need your written permission to enter the Ling Xi caves. 

The healer frowned. —The Ling Xi caves? Is Shixiong sure…?

—Yes, I feel like I'm close to making significant progress.

Mu Qingfang was slightly taken aback, since usually Shen Qingqiu would never come to him to ask for permission, he would just berate Yue Qingyuan until he let him. 

—I… I will need for Shixiong to let me check the state of your spiritual veins. 

Shen Qingqiu extended his arm, letting his wrist to be held by the healer, suppressing the urge to flinch or take his arm back.

—I see Shixiong is fine— noticing the discomfort of the other he let go —If Shixiong would accompany me to my office…

The other nodded and started following the healer. When they got to the office, they kept quiet as Mu Qingfang wrote the permission. Once he was ready, he looked at Shen Jiu. 

—Shen-shixiong, I…— he coughed —Along with Shang-shixiong I created this.

He took a pair of talismans and put them on the table. 

—And these are? 

—These talismans, once burned, will make the ones I have react, letting me know the coordinates of the burned one. We designed it as a way of emergency contact. If Shixiong has any problem, he can burn one and I will know where you are. We gave it to the others already, only Shen-shixiong was left.

Shen Qingqiu looked at the talismans and took one to analyze it, it was fairly complicated, clearly something Shang Qinghua would make to then rub in his face saying it was as easy to make as stealing candy.

—I can see these are well made and complicated, it also has no mistakes, ah, but don't tell that to Shang-shidi. 

The Qian Cao peak lord smiled. —I'll make sure to remember that.

Taking one of the talismans, Shen Jiu put it in the safety of the inside of his sleeves. —Then I'll go now.

Mu Qingfang saw him go, happy that the man had trusted him enough to take the talisman. It was good to make progress, to learn he was gaining the trust of the one that would always push everyone away.

Chapter Text

Shen Qingqiu hadn't been in the Ling Xi caves a lot of times, just twice when he was a disciple, so coming here wasn't a new experience but still was a weird one, he never liked this place, he felt suffocated by the labyrinth kind of paths to the never ending caves inside. He never dared to go too far in this place, the only dark place he could slightly relax at was his abode. 

—It 's cold… 

He sighed and kept walking until he found a cave with a pool of clear water. It wasn't that he needed it, but water had become a sort of comfort for him, since he was able to use it to see the future.

It was a good cave and so he made himself comfortable to meditate, not before placing some arrays for protection just in case. He was not gonna give up his spot so easily even if the cold was a bit overwhelming, he managed to clear his mind from any thoughts and get into a deep state of meditation. 

Unfortunately for him, that calmness didn't last enough. Might it be the heavens against him, after about a few weeks or a month or two, he didn’t know, of meditation, there was a perturbation in the Qi around, accompanied by the sound of someone wheezing painfully. 

Shen Jiu opened his eyes, slight panic and fear in them. He took out the medicine he had prepared and the talisman Mu Qingfang had given him and he quickly made his way towards the sounds. He found the cave where these came from.

A figure was there breathing painfully as he kneeled giving him his back, his white robes had been partially torn and were covered with blood in some spots, a sword was forgotten on the ground. Shen Qingqiu took out some pills at once and put them in his mouth, then he prepared to burn the talisman. 

The moment he set it aflame, the man that had been just fighting to breathe turned around to look at him, and Shen Qingqiu froze, the image of the vision coming back to him and that nauseating feeling making his way too.

He quickly cracked the two pills in his mouth, as he knew this could be too much for him, and the mere sight of Liu Qingge and the memory of his vision were already making fluctuations on his meridians.

—Gaahh!! 

Shen Jiu dodged the palm that had gone in his direction and watched Liu Qingge again. The man was completely out of it, his hair loose and falling over his face. He looked over to where Cheng Luan was, forgotten on the caves floor. He needed to get to it before Liu Qingge, once the sword was out of the equation, he could freely try to placate the brute.

He dodged another attack as he jumped forward and grabbed the swordsman and sent it flying to the other side of the cave at the same time he attacked Liu Qingge back with his fan to distract him. Then they started to fight trying to overpower the other, Shen Qingqiu clearly being the one in disadvantage here, yet doing his best to dodge and not harm his Shidi as he tried to hold him down somehow. 

—Liu Qingge snap out of it, you brute!! 

He was hit on the chest and sent flying until he hit the walls of the cave, and as he was trying to stand up again the war god got to him and pushed him down putting a hand over his neck. 

Shen Qingqiu felt the need for air, panic running through him feeling another body over his, luckily or unfortunately, he forgot about it as his attacker took a sharp stone from somewhere and stabbed him in the shoulder with it, making him scream. 

His head was spinning, yet the pain brought his consciousness back, he was being hit with the sharp edge of the rock on his arm now, once, twice. Shen Qingqiu managed to gather enough strength to punch Liu Qingge in the ribs and then without giving him rest, he kicked him in between his legs. 

Call it a shallow move but he was able to breathe again, feeling his left arm simply hanging from his shoulder due to the pain of moving it. Taking the opportunity, and maybe due to a bit of repressed anger, he kicked the other again making him turn away. 

Quickly, he sat over the back of the War god and pushed him back, putting his hand over the other's back and taking a deep breath before starting to use his Qi to force Liu Qingge's erratic spiritual energy the correct way, correcting as well the slightly crooked spiritual veins and smoothing them.

—You better stop pestering me after I saved your ass you stupid brute…

He mumbled, the other simply growled, trying to get himself free, but Shen Qingqiu simply used more strength to keep him in place. After what seemed like an hour of him concentrating on stopping the brute's Qi deviation, Liu Qingge finally stopped fighting as his Qi started to follow Shen Jiu's without much fight. 

It was then thought, that Shen Qingqiu was kicked from the back suddenly and ended up rolling over the ground until hitting the cave wall once again. His vision became blurry as he tried to look up, just to see Yue Qingyuan standing next to Liu Qingge while Mu Qingfang hurriedly ran towards the unconscious man to check his state.  

It was like a pail of cold water had been poured over him as he saw those two concerned about the war god, while he, who could now barely use his arm and that felt his everything slightly burning, was just kicked aside, seen as a threat.

He really wanted to laugh, but when he did, he only coughed blood, everything was just unfair, he put himself in danger in order to not kill Liu Qingge, he was more injured than him, yet this was the way the others treated him.

Life was just simply unfair to him. Yue Qingyuan, Qi-ge really had the nerve to hit him, he had never done that before, not even in the possible scenarios he saw through his visions. Now Shen Jiu really felt like crying, but he just channeled his anger to move and stand up.

Mu Qingfang on his side was busy checking on Liu Qingge. He was visiting Yue Qingyuan for a routine check up when one of his talismans started to heat up in his chest, he had quickly taken it out just to realize the help was needed in the Ling Xi caves, currently only two people were inside. 

He had given one of the talismans to all of his martial siblings, so fearing it could be Shen Qingqiu or Liu Qingge, he simply took his things and made his way over to the caves, followed by Yue Qingyuan. 

Finding them was not difficult but was quite the task, due to the several caves in there, Yue Qingyuan ended up following the sounds of battle and got first to the place, when Mu Qingfang went in, all he saw was Yue Qingyuan standing in front of an unconscious Liu Qingge and a Shen Qingqiu that had already been thrown away by force.

He feared the worst and ran towards Liu Qingge. Shen Qingqiu had changed a lot in the past years, but he himself had said he would never simply let go of grudges, and in the past the man had already tried to kill Liu Qingge once.

So the healer started to check on his martial sibling, seeing that he only had some wounds on him, his Qi on the other side, was already calming down, he started to push his own inside the other's spiritual veins, fixing them, just to then feel the soothing yet quite fierce Qi of Shen Qingqiu guiding Liu Qingge's in the appropriate direction. He immediately paled. 

—Mu-shidi? Is he alright? Is there something wrong?

The healer looked down at the unconscious man.

—He is alright, his Qi is already circulating the right way… Shen-shixiong's Qi already covered his spiritual veins to protect them and subdue the Qi deviation.

Yue Qingyuan took a moment to process his words, just to then realize that Shen Qingqiu was in fact helping. Both of them turned to see the man standing up at the other side of the cave, his clothes bloody, his arm bleeding profusely, and his stare cold, more than they had ever seen before.

—Shen-shixiong, let me check your injuries. 

He walked towards the man, but Shen Qingqiu just started to walk, moving only due to his willpower and anger, he ignored the healer and walked past him, and out the cave, making his way towards the one he had been meditating before.

Mu Qingfang froze when Shen Qingqiu didn't even look at him, understanding that he had just ruined the trust he had managed to build with the single glare the Qing Jing peak lord had given him.

—Xiao Jiu!! 

Yue Qingyuan ran after the man. Mu Qingfang saw this and doubted if he should go, he still had to treat Liu Qingge. 

—Don't call me that!!! 

Shen Qingqiu's voice spread like a roar of rage throughout the caves, much more filled with hatred that the healer had ever heard from him.

—Xiao Jiu, I… it was an accident, let Mu-shidi tend your wounds!!

—An accident… Yue Qingyuan, was it an accident that you clearly thought I'm so treacherous and bad that I would try to harm Liu Qingge? Don't come at me with such a word as accident, you clearly knew what you were doing, or maybe not, you never think before acting when it comes to me right? Always assuming the worst. 

—Xiao-

—Do not call me that!!!! I'm not Xiao Jiu!! He's long dead!! Why can't you at least do such a simple thing as calling me by my name?! That's not my name!! Even if I hate the one I have now, it is much better than that filthy one!!

—Shen-shidi… be mad, scream at me all you want, just… just let Mu-shidi treat you.

—No!! Leave me alone, I can handle it myself!! 

—Shen-shidi!! 

Mu Qingfang, preoccupied this could end in another of his martial siblings Qi deviating, quickly put in Liu Qingge's mouth a pill and followed the other two, just to see Shen Qingqiu entering one of the caves and activating an array that quickly created a barrier in the entrance.

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.

Shen Jiu really didn't know how much time he spent just sitting on the rock bed, not even meditating, he just heard Yue Qingyuan's pleadings for who knows how many hours or minutes before everything went quiet again, he faintly recalls Mu Qingfang's voice trying to say something, but he had no energy to listen.

Now he was alone, cold and in pain. He could not help but look at the pool of clear water with unfocused eyes before standing up and going to it. 

How deep was it? Was it cold? Could he stop the pain with it? Even his throat hurt due to him being choked and how he screamed after that. He stood in front of the water and started to go inside, until the water was to the level of his knees, then he turned around and let himself fall backwards. 

All sounds seemed to disappear, the cold more stronger than ever, placating the fire in his body and the burning pain in his shoulder and arm. He closed his eyes, letting himself sink. 

It was good, to feel the air go out of his lungs in a way he controlled and not someone else, the dizziness it brought, the cold numbing his body and mind. Only when he felt his back touch the bottom did he open his eyes. His hair floating around, and trails of his fresh blood going up.

He wondered for a second. What if he just went to sleep here? What if he just… died? If he was the cause of everything, then wouldn't everyone be happier without him? Could he just disappear? As he thought that, suddenly a pitched scream broke the silence as a scene formed in front of him. 

—Mao Shi!! Please wake up!! Shimei!!

Ning Yingying was crying and holding the unmoving corpse of her Shimei, bloodied and cold.

—Xiao Shi…

Then Luo Binghe appeared on the scene, pale and letting go of his sword as he ran towards the two. Screams could be heard around, Ming Fan appeared soon enough, his sword in hand, intercepting an attack from a demon towards Luo Binghe. 

—Luo Binghe!! Take your sword!! The demons have not gone away yet!! 

—But Shixiong… Shimei… Shimei is…

Ming Fan closed his eyes with a painful expression before opening them again and pushing Binghe behind him to then stab a demon without mercy.

—Shizun… wouldn't want to see us like this, so take your sword and fight!! Are you not a Qing Jing disciple?!

The boy finally reacted and, although it still hurt him, he ignored Ning Yingying's cries and took his sword to protect her.

The girl just hugged Mao Shi's cold corpse. —No more… I already lost Baba… I don't…

She let go of the body and took her sword and a fan out, ready to fight even though tears were still falling from her eyes and her body was shaking.

—I'm… I'm a Qing Jing disciple as well…

Shen Qingqiu broke through the surface and breathed once again, feeling the air fill his lungs, his head was spinning nonstop. With the little strength he had, Shen Jiu managed to crawl over to the edge and get out of the water before collapsing on the floor. He could not die, not when he still had so many things to change.

“A demon invasion?” is the only thing he could think as he coughed the water that had made its way into his lungs. That was not possible, Shang Qinghua got Mobei-jun’s word that he would not attack Cang Qiong, the demon could be a cold bastard but he kept his word. 

—I…— he coughed once again. 

He was too weak right now, it was impossible to see another vision and try to figure it out, he was even about to pass out. Feeling so weak was sickening, if not for the fact that the array was still on and the entrance was blocked he would not be able to blackout so easily.

The next time he woke up, he felt disorientated. It took him a couple of minutes to be able to move normally, just for him to get to his things and start treating his wounds. Due to the high concentrations of spiritual energy in the caves, the water of the pool had actually work to keep his wounds from getting an infection, yet it would take time for him to recover, the best course of action would be if he went to Qian Cao, yet he could not bring himself to even consider it.

No matter what had happened, no matter if Shen Qingqiu had worked hard to change, that he had become somewhat close to Mu Qingfang, if Liu Qingge had died, would the healer still point his finger in his direction and tell everyone he was responsible?

He laughed. —Why do I even try? No one here ever liked me anyways, I tried to approach him because he was always neutral, but…

Apparently appearing neutral and actually being neutral were two different things. Mu Qingfang clearly believed the rumors, clearly believed he was scum, maybe he even believed that he was in fact a lecher going after his disciples.

His disciples. Be it now or his visions, they were the only ones to stay at his side, except of course for Yingying, he honestly could not blame her, Shen Qingqiu had been a monster to Luo Binghe, he was not a good person, never said or thought he was, and Yingying was innocently learning from him that if someone gets in your way you should just take them off the way. Surviving over everything, that girl did manage to be the first wife after all, she was innocent but at the same time had learned from Shen Jiu how to put feelings aside to get what she wanted.

Now he had changed her way of thinking, as she was as ambitious as him in the end. He could not trust his martial siblings, but he did trust his disciples, they didn’t know the truth, they didn’t know what Shen Jiu was capable of, of how he could easily ruin any of them, they trusted him, and so he also wanted to give back that trust, and for that reason, he had to do something about the demon invasion.

He took a few days to recover while meditating before using his gift once again. He saw how he would be present during the demon invasion, how since he was the only one there it would be his obligation to protect everyone, meaning that if he had really drowned, the disciples would have to fight on their own. 

“Mm? This…” he heard steps approaching, and decided to put down the barrier. A minute after a figure appeared, hesitant. 

—Ah, Shen-shibo, I ask for forgiveness for interrupting your meditation— Deng Tengfei approached him and bowed.

—Deng-shizhi.

—My Shizun, he said there was a commotion here a few days ago, he said probably Shen-shibo would not be really happy to see him, so I came instead, these are medicines for Shen-shibo to use— he showed a basket to him —Shizun doesn’t expect of Shibo to use them, but he send me anyways.

Shen Qingqiu usually would feel the need to scream, to lash out at whoever the one that had broken his trust sent, but he was tired. What was the point of getting angry if others would then blame him for everything? And this young man was not at fault for whatever Mu Qingfang had done or thought. 

—This one understands and thanks Deng-shizhi, you can leave the medicine there and go. 

—I understand, please excuse me. 

The young man left the basket on the floor and went away. Shen Jiu stood up and went to look at the contents, suddenly realizing as he was walking back to the rock bed, that if he had actually died, Deng Tengfei would have been the unfortunate soul to find out, since the barrier would have stopped working without him.

Like it or not, Shen Jiu had not died, and now although he didn’t want to, he still used the medicine since he had to be in at least in decent shape for the invasion.

—Now… — after he finally finished treating his wounds, he got closer to the water, not as clear as before thanks to him, he cut his finger and watched the drop of blood making contact with the water before dispersing. 

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The moment Shen Qingqiu made his way out of the Ling Xi caves and down the path to the center of Qiong Ding, he saw the smoke and heard the screams approaching. He quickly took his sword and hurried over to the voices, just to find Ning Yingying and Mao Shi running in his direction, followed by demons.

Xiu Ya showed his shine as it made its way towards the demons, decapitating the four of them in a quick move, their bodies falling to the ground. The two girls watched this and then turned around, their worried expressions turned to happiness the moment they saw him.

—Shizun!!!

He called Xiu Ya back. —What 's going on?

—I… we were in Qiong Ding acompannying Zhang-shijie to give the report of her mission when suddenly demons appeared out of nowhere and started to attack, they broke the rainbow bridges— Ning Yingying answered.

—Binghe and Ming-shixiong stayed back to let us come for you Shizun, they are still fighting!— Mao Shi said quite scared. 

Shen Jiu could not help stare at the girl for a moment, internally thanking the heavens that she was still as alive and energetic as always.

—Mm, follow me. 

They made their way down quickly, soon enough hearing fighting once again. 

—Down!

Ming Fan, who was back to back with Luo Binghe, the moment he heard the voice, grabbed Luo Binghe by the back of his clothes and pulled him down as he himself did the same. Shen Jiu used his fan to manipulate the leaves around and attack the demon making them back away to then use his sword to take them down. 

—Where is the sect leader?— he asked his disciples, 

—Yue-shibo went out of the sect, apparently to a meeting at Huan Hua palace— Ning Yingying answered.

Shen Jiu clicked his tongue before he continued to the center of the conflict, killing every demon he found on his way. By the time they made it to the front of Qiong Ding’s audience hall, they had saved and reunited quite a number of disciples. Shen Jiu had taken two seniors away and sent one to go look for Liu Qingge and the other to inform Yue Qingyuan what was going on.

Standing on the front of the group of around one hundred demons outside of the audience hall, was a young girl that Shen Jiu recognized as one of the most important future wifes of Luo Binghe. Her clothes were too revealing, her hair combed into tiny braids, her face accentuated by strong makeup. Sha Hualing of the Sha clan, a pureblood demon that would be quite merciless and strong, she was also the demon saint.

Shen Jiu knew from Shang Qinghua that Mobei-jun had quite a good relationship with the girl, as the rat had said, they were like a tired old brother and a hyperactive younger sister, meaning, that she should not be here at all, Mobei would not fail to his words, and he also would not put her in danger like this.

“Not my problem right now though” between the ice block's little sister, and his disciples and sect, he would not doubt a moment if it was necessary to kill her.

The demoness in question smiled as she walked forward, the little bells on the bracelets on her wrists and ankles jingling as she moved, her feet bare. Shen Qingqiu analyzed the situation, and decided that proceeding as he had seen in his vision was the safest option.

Zhang Huimei, who appeared out of nowhere from behind Shen Jiu, angrily yelled. —My Shifu is already here! Let’s see if you are arrogant again you damn bitc-!!

Shen Qingqiu covered her mouth with a sigh, as he watched the different disciples that had gathered here coming to his side and slowly surrounding the intruders. Sha Hualing clearly noticed she was in a disadvantage here, and so simply smiled and sweetened her voice to talk.

—My… this is such a misunderstanding, my purpose wasn’t for things to end like this! Our only purpose was to compete and compare skills with the talents of Cang Qiong Mountain, me and my family simply had curiosity and so wanted to exchange pointers, just friendly competition.

Shen Jiu didn’t even try to hide his cold expresion, making the girl's smile stiffen. —Exchanging pointers, you say? While the sect leader is coincidentally not in the sect, and after breaking the rainbow bridges that connect Qiong Ding with the other peaks you try to give as an excuse that this is merely for friendly competition? Not to mention the disciples that you have hurt with this so-called… What did you say? Exchange of pointers?

The girl nervously bit her lip and frowned, just to then make an afflicted expresion and rest her cheek on her palm. —This elder must be the well known Xiu Ya sword, Ling’er really is sorry, I have failed to control my subordinates. If this one has offended you, then she humbly asks for elder Xiu Ya to show his generous heart and forgive this young one. 

Shen Qingqiu’s expression didn’t change at all, not moved by her little act. He had seen Ning Yingying pull that card too many times already, not to mention that her intentions were clear as water.

—Since the young miss is young, this one understands— the girl’s smile widened, yet it slowly faded away by the man’s next words —So she can learn from the experience then, let’s have some friendly spars to exchange pointers. 

—That…— seeing the disciples getting ready to take their swords she let out a slightly nervous laugh as she played with her hair —Since it’s what elder Xiu Ya proposed, then may I suggest three friendly spars? We will choose representatives who will fight for each side, then we will go away. What does the elder think?

Knowing this was the best way to buy time before Liu Qingge appeared, Shen Jiu opened his fan to hide the smile on his face. —So be it, three matches, just as the young miss wants. 

She smiled. —Then who will be first?

Shen Qingqiu walked forwards. —This master of course— he closed his Fan on his hand with a quick move as he glared at the demons.

Sha Hualing tensed, yet tried to fake her confidence as she looked around. —If it is like that, elder Du Bi always had the wish to battle the esteemed Xiu Ya sword. 

A demon walked forward, holding a ghost head saber in his only hand. He was sturdy and big. The people started to whisper as they saw the opponent had only one arm, angry as they thought they were trying to ridiculise Shen Qingqiu with a weaker opponent.

—Oh my, but isn’t this quite… advantageous for elder Xiu Ya? It won’t be an honest win for him if he happens to win, since elder Du Bi only has one arm.

—What do you suggest then?

—What about… cutting one of your arms?

The Qing Jing peak lord let out a laugh. —I thought it would be a better idea. 

The girl grimaced. —But wouldn't it be cheating if elder Xiu Ya fought like this? 

Shen Jiu raised his chin. —What is so dishonorable? Not for having just one arm means elder Du Bi is less stronger than other warriors, is he? A disability is not a weakness if the one with it still fights with pride and holds the victory of past battles. 

Quite a number of disciples that only knew Shen Qingiu because of the rumors, were taken aback by his words. The expression in Sha Hualing’s face soured.

—Still, this one thinks it’s a little unfair.

—Then, to placate your worries, I will simply refrain from using my sword and one of my hands. Is that enough?

—Of course it is, Ling’er accepts this arrangement, then, let's start!!

Shen Jiu took his sword and put it in Ning Yingying hands, she, Mao Shi and Zhang Huimei looked at him with worry. 

—My disciples might want to watch carefully, especially disciple Mao, since I will start training you for this technique after everything ends.

He finally walked to the center of the circle, where elder Du Bi was already waiting, Shen Jiu took out his fan and put his other hand behind his back. There were people already angry yelling it was an unfair duel, but Sha Hualing didn’t care as she simply started the battle.

Elder Du Bi took his ghost head knife and barged in Shen Qingqiu’s direction. The Qing Jing peak lord simply dodged with a simple spin and stared as the demon’s blade fell on the spot he was before. Honestly speaking, this was way more easier than sparring against the brute, this demon was slower and his attacks, although powerful, had no balance, he was simply using his strength plus gravity to fight.

The demon kept attacking, and Shen Qingqiu made use of the basic moves of Qing Jing to show his disciples how to use them in battle even without the sword, from time to time he would check that they were actually looking, and he was satisfied to see them paying attention. 

He didn’t attack whatsoever, simply dodging and letting the demon tire himself up, which made him more and more angry as he kept failing. 

—Gaaahh!! Attack you coward cultivator!!!

Shen Jiu frowned, but then a rare smile appeared in his face, taking the breath away from multiple disciples as he finally used his only available hand to move the fan, soon enough the leaves of the nearby trees came to him dancing around as a protection before going against the demon elder, who tried to defend himself as well as attacking Shen Qingqiu.

The Qing Jing disciples watched in wonder as their Shizun moved around almost as if he was dancing, dodging and redirecting the leaves with his every move to attack. Zhang Huimei swallowed as she finally understood the magnitude of attack the technique his shizun wanted to teach them all this time had, and she ended up even more surprised alongside Ning Yingying and Mao Shi when their Shizun brought the fan down, almost touching the ground, to then raise it. A strong wind was produced and, incapable of doing anything, elder Du Bi ended up being thrown into the air to then fall on his face when reaching the ground. 

As the demon didn’t move again after the fall, many thought he had died, yet soon they noticed he was still breathing.

There was a moment of silence before the disciples all cheered Shen Jiu's victory. The Qing Jing lord simply looked at Sha Hualing with a smug smile. Showing his fan.

—So?— he saw the girl gritting her teeth —Who's next?

Chapter Text

—Who 's next?

Sha Hualing clenched her fists  yet managed to smile anyways as she saw her own men dragging the unconscious elder Du Bi out of the battle ring. 

—Is elder Xiu Ya planning on fighting all three matches?

He simply closed his fan. —Why not?

—Wouldn't it be a little unfair? This is a learning experience, letting more people be part of it would be better wouldn't it? 

—Is that so?

—Yes, as my family's representative, I will go for the second match. Elder Xiu Ya can choose any of his sect's disciples.

Shen Qingqiu frowned and looked around. This was a demon saint, he could not let anyone just fight her, even if he could see Zhang Huimei ready to throw hands with the demon girl, he couldn't let her go, maybe if Qian Lifen was here, but she was in seclusion in one of the caves of Qing Jing. 

He made sure to give a glare to Zhang Huimei before asking. —You all have heard, does someone here wants to take responsibility and fight? 

Unexpectedly for him, or maybe not, someone immediately raised her hand and walked over, he looked at her coming from the group of Xian Shu disciples, a veil covering half her face.

"Liu Mingyan, so she really showed up" he had seen her in his visions, but there was a small probability of her not getting to this match on time for stopping to help save other disciples around, reason why Shen Jiu had been helping others on his way here.

If Liu Mingyan didn't appear, he would have to regrettably send Zhang Huimei, who would have lost with an injury in her leg.

—This disciple asks for Shen-shibo to let her participate.

Shen Qingqiu narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at the young woman. She was a Liu after all, she had received training from a young age and no matter how much Qi Qingqi pampered her disciples, Liu Mingyan was Liu Qingge's sister, they were no joke, even if he knew she would lose, she would not get injured.

—This master approves, but be careful.

Liu Mingyan looked at him for a moment before nodding. —This disciple understands.

Shen Qingqiu made his way towards his disciples, Zhang Huimei pouting as she was denied the battle. The man raised an eyebrow at her, asking what was the problem with her and the demon girl. 

Mo Laquan, who apparently was there two, got closer and answered in a low voice. 

—The demon girl called her ugly and weak. 

—I am not— the girl said, crossing her arms over her chest. 

And she wasn't, if Qian Lifen was an immortal beauty, and Ning Yingying was a fairy like one, Zhang Huimei was the type of strong beauty, she had the kind of figure many people liked, and her face although it had strong features, it was balanced. Shen Jiu sighed and patted her head.

—You are not, so instead of pouting, take your training more seriously. 

Her eyes sparkled when she felt her Shizun's hand on her head, and even more with his words. She nodded and smiled at him.

—Yes Shizun! 

He paid attention to the battle once again, and as expected, Liu Mingyan was defeated, falling to the ground. Knowing what would happen, Shen Qingqiu was already walking towards her and stood in front, blocking the view the moment her veil fell. 

He avoided looking at her as he waited for her to put on her veil and stand up. Once she did, Liu Mingyan just bowed.

—This disciple has lost and disgraced the sect by it. I request Shibo to punish me.

—There is no need, you stand for your sect when needed, just make sure to polish your techniques and strength so next time you are more prepared. 

—Thanking Shibo for his advice. 

Liu Mingyan made her way back to the disciples, this time standing next to the Qing Jing female disciples, who smiled at her. Meanwhile, Sha Hualing was radiant due to her victory, she smiled and let out a little laugh before talking to Shen Qingqiu. 

—Since this was my victory, the third match will decide the winner! Elder Shen must choose carefully this time— she looked at her men —Who wants to fight now?

From the group of demons, one stood up, at least twice the size of elder Du Bi, he made his way towards the center of the circle, his armor full with thorns, and in his hand, an iron sledgehammer.

—I must warn all of you first, the spikes on the armor of elder Tian Chui are covered in my family's poison. It might have no effect on demons, but for humans…— she smiled smugly —There will be no cure.

There were immediately yells from the disciples about the unfairness of it. Although none of them made Sha Hualing even a bit ashamed, she simply shrugged at their complaints. 

—I did not hide that fact. Isn't that already enough fairness? I could have simply ignored to mention it. But if you don't want to participate, you can just cede the trial, we won't laugh at you, after all, it's natural to want to live.

The demons did laugh though, making the disciples turn red from anger, Sha Hualing simply stared at Shen Jiu. 

—So? Elder Shen, what will it be? 

Shen Qingqiu closed his eyes and then turned around, his eyes landing on Luo Binghe. The boy was a halfling, a descendant of heavenly demons, even if his seal maintained his powers dormant, his blood still had the capacity of protecting him even if it didn't have the usual properties. 

—Luo Binghe, you go.

The boy paled. —What? 

—But… Shizun— Ning Yingying looked at him with clear fear.

He simply frowned. —I said go. 

Swallowing, Luo Binghe nodded nervously and walked forward, his little frame looking even smaller in front of the giant he had to fight.

"It's alright, I know he will win" and if not, Shen Jiu could not help but think that maybe if the boy died here, it would be better for everyone.

He knew it was cruel to think like that, the boy hadn't done anything wrong yet, except getting on his nerves, but maybe that way everyone could live peacefully in the future. No tyrant, no unification of the realms, no destruction of the sect and… no Qi-ge dying. 

Sha Hualing plainly laughed along with the other demons. —Is elder Shen being serious? 

Binghe was already nervous, but hearing the laughs and how his opponent was looking at him as if he was a joke, he could not help but want to cry.

—Stand properly, you idiot!! Shizun chose you for a reason!! 

Looking towards the voice, the boy saw a very angry Ming Fan, Mao Shi was beside him, giving him the thumbs up and some signs he knew well to interpret as she threatening him to not be a coward or she would kick his ass after the fight.

He gulped, but nodded and stood properly, with his back straight and with the fear gone of his face, only determination in it. Ming Fan was right, Shizun would only send him if he trusted him to win, he had doubted his Shizun before only for the man to prove him wrong, so he would just show everyone that there was indeed a reason for him to fight.

“I will not disappoint Shizun!!”

His martial siblings, although they were giving him strength, on the inside they were afraid. The demon elder was clearly much older and had more experience, about a few hundred more than Luo Binghe who was only a junior. 

Elder Tian Chui laughed with the other demons. —This little boy believes he can win against me? If you yield now you might have a chance to survive. 

“Win or not, live or die, even if one of those will completely taint my reputation, it will be an absolute win anyways, if not for me, for the others and the world” he was tired after all, the only reason he had come out alive of the Ling Xi caves, was to protect his disciples.

Luo Binghe took a deep breath, glancing a last time towards his Shizun. Then the battle started. Elder Tian Chui attacked immediately, bringing his hammer down as the boy jumped to the side dodging. Luo Binghe concentrated on his breathing as he mentally went through all the training movements and his manual. The earth dragon technique was not exactly a manual that teaches fighting techniques, but how to meditate and control Qi, it was designed for those with large pools of spiritual energy, but that at the same time had favorable conditions to work their body. From breathing techniques to help the body gain agility and to develop muscle, to how one could strengthen their body using their Qi.

By maintaining his breathing constant and enhancing his speed with his Qi, Luo Binghe managed to dodge all the attacks the demon elder tried against him while following the sword training foot works like his Shizun had done before, although much more clumsy, yet it was enough to keep himself out of danger while looking for a way to turn the fight in his favor.

The armor elder Tian Chui wore covered all his body except for his head and fists, so in order to maintain himself safe, he could not attack recklessly, yet Luo Binghe didn’t want to yield at all, he kept dodging and trying to find an opportunity to attack. The fight became more and more long, while all the expectators from Cang Qiong became more and more nervous, Shen Qingqiu though, maintained a neutral face as he watched, which made the other Qing Jing disciples as well as Luo Binghe really believe he had a chance, that their Shizun believed Binghe could win the match.

How to defeat an enemy that you could not touch? The only way Binghe could think about, was how his Shizun had defeated elder Du Bi, but he could not use a fan to send his enemy flying away, all he could do was dodge and use his sword to push the demon away. 

“Flying?” He thought about the techniques in his manual, and how Lan-shixiong as well as Zhang-shijie had taught him and Mao Shi about fighting moves for when they were disarmed. Seeing the demon was getting tired after trying for so long to hit him with the hammer, the boy suddenly had an idea.

—Stop running around you little rat!!

—If you want!

Luo Binghe barged at a high speed towards the demon, seeing the sudden attack, the other started to swing his hammer to then raise it over his head, ready to attack. The boy kept running straight with determination, the moment elder Tian Chui’s weapon started to descend, Luo Binghe jumped, just to dodge the hammer and fell directly to it, quickly, he gathered his Qi in his palm and attacked the hammer, impulsing himself in the air, making a pirouette before landing a kick in the back of the demons head with all his strength and using his Qi to fortify his leg.

The elder fell to his knees with a grunt, and before he could think about standing up, Luo Binghe’s sword was pointing to his neck. The place was completely quiet as the winner tried to recover, breathing with difficulty and his body trembling due to him going to his limits. Then Mao Shi screamed excitedly and everyone followed with cheerings.

Luo Binghe turned around to see his Shizun walking towards him, his expression still neutral, but much more relaxed than before. Sha Hualing saw this as she bit her thumb, yet still made her way towards them while talking. 

—This Ling’er admits that the Cang Qiong sect human’s are as talented as she expected, so much that a young hero comes from here. This one really admires elder Shen for raising such a disciple.

Shen Qingqiu raised his chin slightly as he also pushed Binghe aside to go with his friends. —Since the young miss has admitted that it’s our win, then I suggest you and your family make their way out of our sect, since we are not in condition to entertain guests anymore than this.

Sha Hualing’s smile became sour as she was told to leave so directly. Anger soon enough painted her face as she looked at the elder that was just standing, she simply went and slapped him. 

—You are useless!! To lose to such a young disciple under elder Shen in such a manner, you are simply a disgrace to all demons!!! 

—This one sees his incompetence, this one asks for the saint to punish him for it!!

—Young miss— Shen Qingqiu called —If you are going to discipline your subordinates, do it after you leave, my Cang Qiong sect, and the Qiong Ding peak are not places for you to show your superiority over those under you. 

—This Ling’er is sorry, I was just disappointed after comparing my subordinate to the talent elder Xiu Ya has as a disciple— she then looked towards the elder —To lose to a disciple, that elder Du Bi lost is a given since he went against elder Shen, but you… 

She narrowed her eyes before turning around towards the rest of the demons.

—Trash… you can see on your own the answer.

Seeing that the demons were finally preparing to go away, Shen Jiu turned to see his disciples, who were still congratulating Luo Binghe for his victory. The boy, feeling that someone was staring, looked around, and after seeing his Shizun he smiled and walked towards him. 

—Shizun!!

“Maybe I should reward Luo Binghe for this” he thought as he started to move towards him, but at that moment, elder Tian Chui, who had been lost in thought, devastated by his loss, lunged forwards towards Luo Binghe with his hammer. The boy was taken off guard, and due to the exhaustion from the fight, he could not move fast enough. 

That way was better. If Luo Binghe died he would be free, if Luo Binghe died he would not have to care about the future as there would be no possible tyrant, all would be solved. So he only had to let the boy die.

So why? Why had his body moved on his own, getting to the boy in no time, hugging him to protect him as he used his fan to send the demon away? Why had he even felt enough anger to summon his sword and decapitate the demon, killing him once and for all? He stared at the body in the ground, that fire he had been repressing coming out in such a normal way, not wanting to hurt others just because, but with a solid reason, that his disciple had almost ended up hurt. 

—Sha Hualing!— he called with anger —Is this how you train your subordinates?!

The girl was now clearly scared, she knew that she was at a disadvantage here, her men were less than the cultivators present, and even if the majority were younger disciples, just Shen Qingqiu could take a third of them alone for what she had seen from his battle.

—Ling’er apologizes!! That subordinate deserved to be killed by elder Shen’s hand, this Sha Hualing doesn’t want for a fight!

Shen Qingqiu let go of his disciple and pushed him back as he saw the demons standing ready to fight if necessary. Holding his sword, he didn’t know what to do, he had only used one hand on the match due to his left arm still being injured, some of his muscles had been damaged and he needed time to recover, even right now it hurted as he had dragged Luo Binghe with it to safety. 

The demon girl was starting to panic as she saw his own subordinates misunderstanding the situation and doing the worst thing possible. And then suddenly, one of the demons attacked a nearby cultivator that had taken his sword out for precaution, then the fight started.

Shen Qingqiu had no option but to take his fan with his left hand and spin to produce a strong swirl of air, sending the first line of demons back, separating them from the people of Cang Qiong, everyone stared in awe as the Qing Jing peak lord then summoned the leaves as before and used them to attack the demons who started to retreat, yet as stubborn as some where, the more stronger ones barged against him, but as they tried to attack, a figure fell from the air in front of Shen Qingqiu and cut the arms of some in a single move, to then glare at the others.

Liu Qingge, the War god and peak lord of Bai Zhan had appeared and with him, the rest of disciples joined the fight as the demons tried to run away. 

Shen Jiu felt quite relieved and tired after seeing Liu Qingge alive and well, but he soon ignored him and took the rest of the disciples towards the rainbow bridge connecting with Qian Cao, finding the array of that side. 

—Qing Jing disciples and those with a large quantity of Qi, help by sharing it to repair the bridge. The one connecting Qiong Ding with Qian Cao is the priority!!

They followed their Shizun, as well as some other disciples, and started to repair the bridge, which after a few minutes was once again standing, then he looked around. 

—Ning Yingying, Liu Mingyan!— both girls approached him —Reunite all the people that are hurt, those in more severe need of medical attention will be immediately send to Qian Cao, those who are not hurt will help, the older ones will stay and protect the others in case any demon scapes from Liu Qingge and comes back, Ming Fan, you will go and notify Qian Cao of the situation so they can prepare for the injured, I will go towards An Ding to ask for help for the rest of the bridges. 

—Yes Shizun!!!— Ning Yingying and Ming Fan answered. 

—As Shen-shibo says!— Liu Mingyan said.

.

.

.

—Shang Qinghua!!! 

The door of the office opened with a Bam! The peak lord that had been called raised his head from his documents, his face pale and the dark bags under his eyes bigger than ever, he truly looked awful. 

—Shen Qingqiu?— he asked, slightly disoriented, no, he definitely didn't fall asleep while working.

The Qing Jing peak lord closed the door and slammed a silencing talisman on it. —There was a fucking demon invasion on Qiong Ding!! 

Shang Qinghua looked at him, processing his words, after what seemed like a minute, he finally reacted, his eyes opened in surprise and soon enough he was standing up and going through his furniture taking the appropriated documents and items before walking towards the door.

—How did that happen?! 

—I don't know, but Sha Hualing of the Sha clan appeared out of nowhere with a couple of hundreds of demons to attack the sect, I barely had time to stop them until Liu Qingge appeared!

—Sha Hualing?— Shang Qinghua stopped —But what is she doing here? My liege promised to not do anything to the sect, and Sha Hualing has not gone to the north for the past year.

—Well I don't know how, but somehow they managed to not only come here with a little army, but the day the Sect leader was not present, and no one was supposed to interfere, not to mention they came through the barriers.

Shang Qinghua frowned, yet walked to the door and opened it. —We have a rat, and I don't like other rats on my territory, only An Ding people should know how the barriers work aside from the peak lords, and none of the others are betraying the sect any time soon. 

They walked out, some disciples that had already noticed the situation running in their direction. 

—Zhehan Yan, take every senior in the peak and take them to restore the bridge— he said to the one in the front, the same disciple that Shen Qingqiu had seen before, while giving him some kind of artifact that Shen Qingqiu recognized as something to help replenishing Qi.

—Yes Shizun!!— he immediately took two of the disciples with him, and sent a third to go for the others.

—Xiong Susu, form groups with the juniors and send each one to different parts to check the damages. I want an estimate of the money that will be required for it, also, send a group to Qian Cao to help. 

Shang Qinghua gave the girl in question the pile of papers he had taken from his office, then turned around to look at Shen Qingqiu.

—Shixiong let's go, we have to look for the rat— he said as he made his way to his leisure house.

When they got there, the An Ding peak lord started to walk around mumbling as Shen Jiu closed the door. 

—It has to be one of the hall masters, from all the people who know, apart from me only they should know, but there are seven of them. How can we know which one it is?

—First of all, I want you to think one thing. 

The smaller man stopped and looked at him. —What?

—Where did Zhangmen-shixiong went to?

Shang Qinghua frowned before realization came to him. —Huan Hua palace. 

Shen Qingqiu hummed and sat down. —Does Shidi have tea?

—You really want tea right now?

—Yes, since Liu Qingge took care of the demons and I trust my disciples to take care of the situation, and yours to do the rest, I figured I could rest a bit, so I could tell you I saw an interesting vision.

Shang Qinghua wrinkled his nose, yet went to look for the tea. Shen Qingqiu took the moment to take out a pill and eat it, trying to ease the pain in his arm, he closed his eyes and made sure to control his expression to then open them again. His body was getting heavy, be it maybe the over use of Qi, or maybe his injuries, but he was dizzy, a sensation like this, he hadn’t felt it since he was sick as a kid, but he could not show weakness, not even to Shang Qinghua, so he had to remain strong.

By the time the An Ding peak lord came back with the tea, Shen Jiu was already back to normal and waiting for him. After the tea was served, Shen Qingqiu took his tea cup and drinked. 

—So, Shixiong, you are saying Huan Hua has something to do with this?

—Yes, I could not use my ability too much due to reasons, but you can thank me already Shidi, since I saw something interesting. 

Shang Qinghua raised his eyebrows as he put down his cup of tea. —What did Shixiong see?

Sheng Qingqiu opened his fan to cover his smile. The other man could not help but think the image in front of him was that of a villain ready to condemn someone to death.

—Shidi, Does the name Jin Lisha ring a bell?

At his words, Shang Qinghua froze. —What… Shijie?

—Golden sweet, a really good name, I do know her, she was very liked by a lot of people wasn’t she? The previous An Ding peak lord was planning on making her the An Ding peak lord at the time if I’m not wrong, but then you came and showed better skills, she simply gave away her place when noticing you didn't discriminate when taking your rivals down, known as a sweet girl and good at what she does, she stayed as a hall master and never stepped out of place, the most known yet at the same time forgotten.

—Are you sure it’s her?

—I saw you and I pointing our swords at her for colliding with the demons, but I’m sure there is more to it. 

—More?

—Doesn’t she have a very rare color of eyes? I remember people talking about her being the daughter of a prostitute because her mother was not married when she got pregnant, it was a group of disciples from her same city that spreaded the rumors.

—What does that have to do with all this?

—One of the elders of Huan Hua has the same color of eyes and hair as her, I can tell, I wanted to punch him in the last immortal alliance because he was looking inappropriately at one of my Shijies, they also have similar noses, but regardless of that, I’m sure she is the culprit we are after, but you could investigate about her just in case, if we can prove a connection of this incident to Huan Hua palace, that would be the ideal.

—That is a good method, but we can't just let her run around freely, she could be notifying Huan Hua palace of everything that happens here.

—Well it is fairly easy to point at her as the culprit. 

—How?

—Just ask Wu Qingcheng. 

—Eh? What is he going to do? He barely talks unless it is with the beasts.

—Exactly, he can ask the spiritual beast to ask the ones in the mountain if they have seen anything, Cang Qiong has a high concentration of spiritual energy and many spiritual beast live freely on the unused parts of the peaks, to let the demons pass the barrier, there must have been a fluctuation on the spiritual energy on the area since it powers the several arrays that form the barrier.

—I see, and since beasts usually have a territory, they would not move from the area, they may have seen someone as well.

—If that’s not enough, investigate what Jin Lisha has been doing today, you can't break such a complicated array with simply an artifact, she must have been absent some time before the invasion, and I recommend you send people to see the area and guard it so she can’t go and erase any evidence. 

—Then we will let her go around for now as we investigate and close any way out without alerting her. 

—Exactly, right now she must be with the other hall masters repairing the bridges, which will take some time, I already sent people to tell Zhangmen-shixiong about the invasion, you should keep her busy until he comes back, then propose to guard the fissure in the array with Qiong Ding experts before things calm down and he convoques an emergency meeting, then we just have to propose to use the help of Wu-shidi.

The An Ding peak lord nodded. —I will also contact my liege about this, so he can investigate who was the person that convinced Sha Hualing of all this. 

—I will let Shidi take care of it then. 

Shang Qinghua gave him an ugly look. —Why is it always me who does everything?

—Because the others hate me and find all of my movements questionables. 

The other clicked his tongue. —And what will Shixiong do now?

—I have to check my disciples and repair the rainbow bridge towards Qing Jing.

—Ugh, alright, then go already. I have too many things to do to keep seeing your face.

Shen Qingqiu laughed and stood up. —I’ll take my leave then. 

Going out, doing as he had said, he returned to Qiong Ding and helped with the bridges to then make sure his disciples were not harmed. The damages were not big, but that didn’t mean there weren't any, although Qiong Ding was the most affected, by the end of the day they could return to Qing Jing without any major incidents. 

—Shizun really was great today!!— Ning Yingying said with a smile.

His disciples had accompanied him all the way to his abode, at least the three females, talking non-stop about his fight with elder Du Bi. 

—That’s enough, you three should go and sleep, tomorrow will be busy. 

Zhang Huimei pouted. —Alright, and I promise I will take the dance classes seriously now!!

Mao Shi nodded. —I can’t wait to learn too!!

The man smiled, making them three smile in return. —Now go, it is late already. 

—Yes Shizun!!

The man saw them go, their figures more similar to color shapes as they went away. Shen Jiu could not ignore it anymore, he went inside and covered his eyes with his hand as he closed the door behind him. 

It was not good to keep attributing things as simple dizziness or fatigue forever. 

He took two steps before his legs finally gave in and he started to cough. Blood splattering on his clothes and the floor. If he thought about it more reasonably, it was to be expected, such a blessing as being able to see the future could not simply come as free. He had noticed it in the Ling Xi caves, but did not dare to investigate as he was already preoccupied with the invasion.

—Pathetic as always— he managed to say as he slowly used his Qi to see the stage of his body. 

His organs, they had been deteriorating slowly all this time, that he didn’t notice until then, and his eyes, he wanted to think it was just his imagination all this time, but his sight had become worst, not as serious as not being able to discern faces at quite a distance, but compared with the heightened vision of a cultivator, he was more close to that of a normal human.

Laughing, he stood up with difficulty, trying to get to his room so he could try to at least blackout in his bed.

Really, he could never have anything without a prize.

Chapter Text

—We have a traitor— Yue Qingyuan said almost desperately as he covered his face with his hands. 

—Yeah, we already guessed as much Zhangmen-shixiong— Shang Qinghua said without his usual politeness and little nervousness.

The other looked at the An Ding peak lord but dare not to say anything about his rude comment as they saw the state he was in, his hair in disarray and with a tired expression as he was still completing forms for the reparations and for the materials, the tip of his fingers black from the ink.

Yue Qingyuan grimaced seeing the state of his Shidi to then continue. —Shang-shidi already made me send people to guard the area where the demons made his way in, we are not allowing people to go out yet but we won't have a good excuse for that as time keeps going, we need solutions. 

—Only a peak lord could have done that, I say we use a truth serum— Ye Qingshan, from Ku Xing peak said.

—Is everyone here? That's a violation of privacy and not to mention that truth serums are only used on criminals— Shen Qingqiu commented as he himself helped with some of the documents Shang Qinghua had brought, since at the words of the little rat, only Shen Jiu had the ability to not fuck it up.

Li Qingyu clicked her tongue. —Why? Is Shixiong hiding something? 

—For a matter of fact, I am— he replied easily —My job is to be at day with information of everything and everyone, and I also have my own secrets, I don't trust any of you to conduct such a violation of my privacy, everyone has secrets after all— he squinted at one of the papers in his hands and handed it over to Shang Qinghua —Shidi this is a mission report. 

The An Ding peak lord looked over. —Damn it! I told them to separate this correctly!— he took it and put it aside, going back to what he was doing. 

—Are you sure you are not the traitor, Shixiong?— Li Qingyu said with clear disgust.

—Let me tell you Shimei, that if I had ever wanted the sect to fall, I would have been much more subtle than this, you wouldn't have noticed, fortunately I don't, that's a shame though as Shimei clearly wants to kick me out of the sect. 

—Shen-shidi… that's-

Shen Jiu glared at him, making Yue Qingyuan look down with guilt. The others immediately realized something was wrong, more than usual. Shen Qingqiu would normally glare at their sect leader, but he would always accompany it with insults, screams or sarcastic remarks, this was more like a silent rage, much more dangerous that the usual.

Liu Qingge didn't even dare think about insulting the Qing Jing peak lord, not when he seemed more… at edge than usual. Not to mention, he didn't know how to approach the scholar now.

After all, the scum, the traitorous bastard, had actually saved his life. He did not have much information about it since when he woke up he was already on Qian Cao peak, but he recalled Shen Qingqiu's voice, screaming at him, the other forcing him to the floor and starting to placate his turbulent Qi. 

—You better stop pestering me after I saved your ass you stupid brute…

He also recalled him saying that with a more quiet and tired voice. More shamefully, he also remembered flashes of him hitting the other with a rock like a true brainless brute. He had a hard time to actually acknowledge that he owed Shen Qingqiu his life, and as it was still weird to him to view that man as someone that actually saved him. Liu Qingge didn't dare to comment anything as the others started to scream at each other and especially at the Qing Jing peak lord, who was blatantly ignoring them as he continued helping Shang Qinghua with the paperwork. 

—But how will we find the culprit!!! 

Shang Qinghua looked more and more annoyed as they screamed. Finally he hit the table with his palm open, and Liu Qingge could swear he heard the table breaking.

—Wu-shidi!! 

The named one jumped in his seat and looked at the now scary man.

—Y-yes Shixiong?

—Please ask your beasts to help by asking the ones on the are where the broken array is, we can start with that, then investigate the people that could have been, I will make sure to investigate my hall masters, but it could be someone from other peaks, you all should take in your own hands to look if someone from your peaks is suspicious. 

The Shou Xun peak lord was struck by the realization that he could actually do that and just nodded.

—Then the rest it's mere investigation and the reinforcement of the barrier— Shen Qingqiu declared as he finished the last paper.

—Great, I'm sure you all want to keep talking and discussing but as you can see, I have things to do— Shang Qinghua said as he retrieved the papers Shen Jiu had finished and stood up.

—Shang-shidi, the meeting hasn't finished— Yue Qingyuan said with the usual menacing smile.

—That's too bad, I have been working nonstop for a week, and the only five minutes of sleep I had, were interrupted by Shen-shixiong announcing there was a demon invasion, and since then I had been working in everything needed for the reparations, the reinforcement of the barrier, the restock of the supplies on Qian Cao, and I have two overworked disciples that have been running around the peak as well as another couple of dozens of others that cannot work without them or me in the peak so, for me this is done.

He walked to the door and went out without even looking back. Shen Jiu watched from behind his fan with amusement, a tired Shang Qinghua didn't care for anything but finishing work, he had never seen him disrespect Yue Qingyuan as much as today.

After they saw the An Ding peak lord go, the others exchanged glances before finally Wei Qingwei faked a cough and drew their attention. 

—How can we know it's not one of us? 

Shen Qingqiu sighed in exasperation. —Because is stupid to think that, none of us would benefit of it, and you could discard Shang-shidi since he would not purposefully put himself in such a situation, the others simply wouldn't. 

—Well, I don't trust you Shen-shixiong— Li Qingyu said.

—But Shen Qingqiu couldn't be the traitor— Liu Qingge commented, gaining the stares of the others —What? He literally saved the disciples and fought against the demons.

Qi Qingqi nodded. —Mingyan was there, she saw the matches and how Shen-shixiong protected not only his disciples but all the others that were present in Qiong Ding that day, not to mention that he was the one that moved faster to fix everything. 

—We should probably just do what Shang-shixiong said— Mu Qingfang suddenly said —It would be better to put our energy into finding the culprit. 

Yue Qingyuan sighed. —Yes, you all are dismissed, if any of you finds something, report to me immediately. 

The peak lords nodded and started to get up, Shen Qingqiu made his way towards the door without waiting more, he had things to investigate after all, yet he was called before he could even get to the door.

—Shen-shixiong.

At Mu Qingfang's voice, he stopped, the air around him getting colder, the others noticed only for his posture and reaffirmed it when he turned around to look at the healer with a cold expressionless face. 

—Does Mu-shidi need something from me?

The other seemed to hesitate, but still answered with determination. —Yes, Shixiong should let this one tend to your injuries, I know Shixiong can handle it, but I'll be more at ease if I could make sure you have no problems.

—This one is alright, I have no injuries that require Mu-shidi's attention, this master is perfectly fine.

After saying that, he simply went away. The peak lords still present could not help to look at the healer, who had quite the guilty expression on his face as he watched the door.

—What was that?— Qi Qingqi asked.

Mu Qingfang looked down. —I might have committed a mistake and lost the trust Shixiong had put in me. 

—His trust?— Gu Qingfai raised an eyebrow. 

—It must have been something big, Shen-shixiong has been more calm lately, he barely screams or fights as he did in the past— Ye Qingshan commented.

—I was trying to get to know him better, but my biased thoughts about the rumors ended up with me angering him.

—Know him better? Why would you even try? He's scum— Li Qingyu rolled her eyes —What would he tell you? About how pampered he is or what brothel is better?

Getting slightly angry for her comments, the healer could not help but glare at her. Shen Qingqiu was quite different from the rumors and they would know if they tried to know him.

—I disagree, he's a good teacher that cares for his disciples. I actually learned a few things about him since he rarely discloses information about him, but I do know he knows how to prepare medicine and treat common wounds, he even prepares the medicine for his peak as he worries about his disciples. 

Yue Qingyuan looked at him surprised. —He still makes medicine? 

—Still?— Qi Qingqi, as the curious and gossip lover that she was, could not help but be interested in it.

The sect leader grimaced, not knowing if to tell or not. The others quickly made hypotheses in their heads.

—Is his family one of healers?— Wei Qingwei asked.

—I don't know any Shen family dedicated to medicine— Gu Qingfai mumbled. 

—He was the apprentice of an apothecary. 

When he said that, Mu Qingfang hadn't thought it much, he was just angry that the others didn't know, that they were calling lazy at someone that had learned at such a young age enough to be able to make medicine as well as treat patients, they were disrespecting the efforts Shen Qingqiu must have done, but after saying it, he regretted it, his Shixiong was someone that didn't like sharing information about himself and he had just disregarded his wishes.

—That cannot be, he's a young master— Wei Qingwei laughed. 

The healer could not help but retort. —Did he ever say he was one? Or did anyone ever ask him? 

The others remained silent, Liu Qingge thinking back to every conversation or interaction with his Shixiong. Had he ever admitted to being a young master or made mention of anything about his family? He could not recall, because he never did, always just remaining silent and angry at the remarks.

—Ah, I will not discuss this with all of you anymore, If you don't want to believe then is up to you, I at least am busy enough trying to redeem my bad behavior towards him, even if he doesn't forgive me in the end, I'll treat his as a martial sibling and with the respect that entails. 

They saw the man giving Yue Qingyuan a slight glare before going out. Liu Qingge was as confused as the others, but by the words that the healer had said, he could not help but follow him. When he had woken up in Qian Cao, the first thing he remembered about his Qi deviation was the feeling of his insides burning, then he remembered the voice of Shen Qingqiu. Mu Qingfang had told him that the Qing Jing peak lord had actually been the one to save him, but seeing the situation right now, he was sure that something else had happened. 

He followed the healer up to his peak, and into his office, the other didn't even bother to stop him, knowing that if something got into Liu Qingge's mind, it was stuck there until the man got over it and got all his answers. 

—Liu-shixiong, what do you want this time? Are you here for a check up? 

Liu Qingge closed the door of the office and sat down like an unusual well behaved kid, then scowled at his Shidi. 

—What happened in the Ling Xi caves?

—I told you, you Qi deviated, Shen-shixiong made use of the talismans to call me, then help you get over the most dangerous part by guiding your Qi, I have to admit his control is impressive, for him to not only do that but protect your spiritual veins and correct them at the same time, that requires a lot of control. 

—Yes, you told me that, but what was that about his injuries? Did I…? Did I injure him badly? What happened that he didn't receive treatment? 

The healer showed a tired and guilty expression. —The truth is… I was with Zhangmen-shixiong when the talisman I had reacted, I headed over to the Ling Xi caves with him, he entered the cave you were in first, and… he… we thought he was trying to kill you.

Liu Qingge could not help but be surprised. Well yeah, the man had tried to kill him once, but the rest of the time his death threats were more empty and in a sort of playful way,  if he could say. Well, he would have believed that Shen Qingqiu had tried to kill him if he didn't remember anything.

—Then…— the healer looked down —Zhangmen-shixiong kicked him away from you.

—Kicked him? Yue-shixiong kicked him? 

—Yes, When I went in Shen-shixiong had just hit the rock wall, I was more concerned about treating you that I didn't pay him much attention, just to realize he had in fact saved you, when I looked at him again it was too late, he was angry, more than I had ever seen him and with reason, he was badly injured from your fight. 

—Badly? I… what did I do to him?

—From what I could see from his appearance, you apparently tried to choke him and hit him repeatedly with a sharp object in his left arm. We later found a bloodied rock that might have been the weapon used.

—I…

—Liu-shixiong doesn't have to worry, Shen-shixiong would not blame you since you were not in a state people could think properly, you would have attacked anyone that had appeared, is just, that he immediately understood that Zhangmen-shixiong and I did believe he was trying to kill you, I lost the trust he had in my due to those stupid rumors. 

—.....

—He was finally opening up, now he's not even fighting with the others, no rage in his words— the healer mumbled —I'm really worried about his physical and mental state, but he won't let me get closer. 

—Mental state? 

Mu Qingfang looked at Liu Qingge and then frowned, thinking. —Liu-shixiong, I discovered we don't know a thing about him, I actually put some effort into know him and discovered that he isn't always angry or pushing everyone aside, he only does that… around us, particularly, and those who disrespect him first, you should see him around his disciples, there is no one they trust or look after more than him, they are the ones to always defend him and stay by his side, he even treats them when they are hurt, I think we all have misunderstood Shixiong. 

Liu Qingge grimaced. —I don’t really want to, he hasn’t made fun of me for failing like that in my cultivation, but he might bring it up any time soon, or ask me to repay him!

Mu Qingfang sighed, he did understand the other thinking that, even he knew little about Shen Qingqiu, but just remembering how he acted with the incident of the manual, how serious he was as he made his disciple learn that Qi deviations were not a game. The healer knew Shen Qingqiu would not do something like what Liu Qingge was saying.

—I don’t think he will, I bet that he would not even bring the topic unless you do.

—That 's absurd! He’s an annoying bastard that always makes fun of me!

Well, the healer could not say much about that, Shen Qingqiu did like to pester Liu Qingge and make him angry since they were disciples, although he could say why, the Bai Zhan Peak lord always reacted to his sarcasm, the fact that everyone thought they hated each other was because of the fact they insulted each other all the time and because of the time Shen Qingqiu tried to murder the other. 

“Eh?” Mu Qingfang suddenly remembered something. He had not been in that mission, but he recalled that time the other head disciple’s were berating Shen Qingqiu for it. That time he had just looked at the other with disappointment, but his Shixiong, he had stood there without saying anything, when he had finally had enough, he had just turned around. 

—Think whatever you want, I will not waste my time asking forgiveness for something I didn’t do.

Now, thinking how the Qing Jing peak lord constantly kept quiet about what everyone believed to be true but was actually not, when needing to defend himself, that golden tongue of his that was always ready to insult would remain silent.

—Liu-shixiong. Did you really see Shen-shixiong trying to kill you?

The other was taken aback by the question, but soon frowned. —Yes, we had just finished with the demons and when I turned he just had stopped his sword a few centimeters away from my neck!

—But…— Mu Qingfang remembered that they went against a type of demon that was inside a well, there were also ghost that disappeared after being cut, from all Shang Qinghua complained about it, sure, they had finished with the central power of those but, it could have been that one had survived after for enough time to attack. —Ah, I’m sorry Liu-shixiong, I just find it difficult to believe now that… that I actually took time to get to know him.

—You find it difficult to believe?

—Ah well… I don’t really know, Shixiong said that he didn’t, no matter what, he refused to accept he had done anything towards you that day, and he is not someone that would not admit it. Wasn’t Shang-shixiong with you two on that mission? Did he see anything?

—I… I don’t know, he was unconscious.

Or he was at least until they defeated the ghosts and he suddenly was alright and trying to meddle between them. He also recalled how the small man had tried to tell him something just to be cut by Shen Qingqiu, who screamed that he didn’t have to give excuses to anyone before taking Shang Qinghua with him. 

—Liu-shixiong can just ignore this one about that, it has been a long time after all, but I can assure you that Shen-shixiong would not make fun of you for something as serious as a Qi deviation, I even think that if you two give it a chance you could really begin to enjoy his company, Shen-shixiong is a really good conversation partner.

Liu Qingge made a face that Mu Qingfang could only get as a mix of disbelief and slight displeasure. The healer laughed. —I honestly think that out of all of us, Shen-shixiong tolerates you the most, after all he spars with you, which implies physical contact a lot of times and he hates people touching him.

After a small silence, the other finally said. —You think…?

Noticing something, the healer raised an eyebrow, but let it slide for now. Liu Qingge, even though he had claimed Shen Qingqiu had killed him and that he didn’t like the other since he was scum and a lazy young master, he would still look for the other for spars, he was harsh with his words but, the fact that he still seeked the other to spend time in a way or another. Mu Qingfang was not stupid, Shen Qingqiu was beautiful, and Liu Qingge always looked his way. 

“No, I'm not made to take care of those things, for now, I just want to know the truth” he cleared his throat. —Liu-shixiong, for now, I believe that, for the fact that Shen-shixiong saved your life, you should think things twice and investigate, and over all, try to get to know him and not just hear the rumors.

—How?

—Well, you can ask Shang Qinghua, he does have a neutral relationship with Shen-shixiong, and he might have answers about that mission years ago.

.

.

.

The door was kicked open suddenly. If not for the fact he was busy writing, Shang Qinghua might have made the effort to look up, but as things were right now, he simply continued as he spoke.

—Liu-shidi I'm busy and tired. If your disciples broke something, let them repair it themselves. 

—Shang Qinghua, what happened during the well mission when we were disciples?

The man stopped working now and looked up to the serious face of the war god. Then decided that putting the ink aside so it would not get in the documents should anything happen was the best course of action.

—What about that mission? It 's in the past.

—Tell me the truth, did Shen-shixiong really try to kill me? 

Moving slowly to rest his head on his hand, Shang Qinghua kept his eyes on the other, thinking carefully before putting on the usual nervous and silly smile of always.

—I don't know Shidi, this Shixiong had passed out at that moment. 

—But you were trying to say something that time, I remember. 

Qinghua pursed his lips. —Why is Shidi asking?

—I…— the other thought about it for a moment —Because Shen Qingqiu saved me recently and… I'm doubting that he tried to kill me last time.

If one were to analyze the situation, and considering that the relationship between Shang Qinghua and Shen Qingqiu was quite close despite treating each others as strangers on a daily basis, then for sure if the An Ding peak lord told the truth now it would help on his Shixiong's reputation. Unfortunately Shang Qinghua was greedy and saw quite the opportunity with the situation in front of him. 

—Well, I could recall something and tell Shidi, but…

—But?

—You know, information is valuable and I can't just give it away, especially since I was threatened not to say anything. I need compensation for the collateral damage that I will experience for sure after telling you.

The Bai Zhan peak lord frowned. —Collateral damage? 

—Well I promised Shen-shixiong not to tell anyone. 

—So there is something you know!!

Shang Qinghua put his most big and innocent eyes. —Well, it depends, I will know if Shidi gives me something to remember, usually I think gold does that work pretty easily. 

Shocked, the other man opened his mouth but knew to say nothing, this was the first time in his life someone was trying to use such a blatant way of taking money from him. The thing was, that Liu Qingge really wanted to know, especially after his conversation with Mu Qingfang, and impatient as he was, he simply took a bag out of his Qiankun pouch and threw it on the table.

Shang Qinghua took it and looked inside, then at the other man and raised an eyebrow, waiting. 

Red from anger, Liu Qingge went out of the place. The An Ding peak lord just stayed in his seat and started to count the gold in the bag until half an hour later the war god finally came back and put another five bags like the first in the table. Yet after seeing the reluctant expression of the other, ended adding two more.

—It's an honor to make deals with Liu-shidi. 

—Just speak— he said through gritted teeth. 

Shang Qinghua sighed. —Well there is not much to tell, there was a residual ghost going after your neck and Shen Qingqiu terminated it, it disappeared immediately after.

—What…?

—I decided to be a good person that time and tell you about it, but Shixiong was too angry, he took me aside and threatened me to tell one of my secrets if I ever said anything. 

—Why?! I been saying he tried to murder me all this time and everyone thinks the same!! Why would he let everyone think that?! 

Looking down, Shang Qinghua wrinkled his nose. He had got to know Shen Jiu more than any of his martial siblings, and he did understand the reason.

—You really want to know?

The other was surprised. —Yes? 

—Well, this is a secret of course, but I actually get along pretty well with Shixiong. I might be one of the people that knows him the most, and Shixiong is… well, he is complicated.

—How?

—For starters, he hates liars, he doesn't trust people because they can betray him. The reason why he was so angry at that time, was not only because you specifically simply accused him of that, but because he did the complete opposite and yet no one believed it.

Liu Qingge went silent, letting him continue. The An Ding peak lord found it quite fascinating to have the man behave so well just because of this.

—To be honest I think Shixiong really liked you as a person since you never lie and you follow your code of honor or something like that, he expected you to never really attack him from behind, guess you managed to do it anyway although in a different way by not believing him, Shen-shixiong that time threatened me not to tell anyone the truth, saying he doesn't have to explain the things he did, that why should he explain himself if the others didn't even believe him? 

—But… but his reputation…

—After the rumors of him going to brothels spread, I doubt he cared, he simply wanted to become peak lord, and I understand that, we are a little similar about the part of wanting to achieve what others would think we are not capable of.

—But then all this time I have been…

—Well, I don't think he hates you, or any of our martial siblings, for how arrogant he looks and how distant he maintains himself from others, he has quite the soft heart, like with his disciples or… well, that's something I cannot say or he will kill me for sure, the thing is, Liu-shidi, that is quite funny to see how you all think and treat Shen-shixiong when he is just trying to live his life and half the rumors about him are wrong.

Shang Qinghua then stopped and put a face of concern, thinking profusely.

—No, actually, just one is truth but half of it it's not, well, anyways, I already talked don't tell Shixiong I said anything else apart from him not trying to murder you, the rest, well, you should investigate it yourself. 

—How do I do that? 

—For starters, don't be an asshole and say sorry for what happened on the mission, you can try bribing him with sweets, and then, you can try looking for the Shen family— he said with a mysterious smile. 

Liu Qingge was unsure, yet nodded and started to make his way out when a disciple came in. The boy, a senior, bowed to him before walking towards his Shizun.

—Shizun, we found what you asked for— he said, giving the man some papers.

The An Ding peak lord smiled. —Nice, we can get the rats with this. 

At the door, the War god decided to ignore that and go away, he needed to ask Shen Qingqiu forgiveness for accusing him of trying to kill him all those years ago, then he could start investigating what Shang Qinghua told him. Maybe it was better to do the second while he did the first.

Chapter Text

—Liu-shijie is really strong, I can only admit defeat— Ning Yingying said as she stood up from the ground after being defeated in the spar. 

Liu Mingyan looked at the other and then to the younger girl who approached them to help her Shijie. It had been a week after the demon invasion, they had been talking and now Ning Yingying had finally challenged Liu Mingyan to a spar, and was completely defeated. 

—You are also pretty good, you just need more muscle so your attacks have more strength and control. 

—Ugh, Isn't it enough with the paperwork? Why is life so difficult? 

Mao Shi, who had helped her Shijie to stand up, hugged her arm with a smile. —But you get to spend a lot of time with Shizun! 

—Well yes, I should go soon now that I think about it.

Liu Mingyan looked at them. —You seem to like Shen-shibo a lot…

—Of course!! Shizun is the best!!— Ning Yingying said proudly —He makes the effort to teach almost every class, he also makes medicine for if we get hurt, and he taught us the female disciple where to stab any man that tries to get too close.

Mao Shi nodded. —He's a bit more harsh with the men, but they are stupid and don't do right half the things Shizun asks them to, except Ming-shixiong, he's pretty competent. 

—I see— the Xian Shu disciple was lost in thought. 

—Hey… is that Liu-shishu?— Ning Yingying asked suddenly.

The three looked in the direction of the bamboo hut, then exchanged a glance before heading over. When they got there, Liu Mingyang was surprised to see her brother hadn’t kicked down the door yet, he seemed hesitant instead to even approach it. The girls came closer, the older on the front, going straight to her brother. 

—Gege. 

Liu Qingge seemed surprised to hear her voice, and turned around to frown at her. —Mingyan, What are you doing here?

—I came to have a friendly spar with Ning-shimei, she’s the head disciple here in Qing Jing.

—Yes, I know that, there was quite a show when Qi Qingqi questioned Shen Qingqiu about it in a sect meeting.

—She did what?! Why?! Shizun didn’t tell me anything!— Ning Yingying came closer.

Liu Qingge raised an eyebrow. —Well it’s not like he didn’t do it due to favoritism. 

The girl rolled her eyes. —Isn’t that the point of the head disciple? You give the position to your favorite, which is usually the one competent enough to do the job and guide the others.

Mingyan smiled behind the veil. —I suppose it is. 

—Well yeah, none of my Shixiongs wanted the position, neither did my Shijies, and Shizun respects that, and all the ones that want it are men, and Shizun won’t let a spoiled man get the place, I actually didn’t expect it when it happened but I like being head disciple— suddenly remembering there was a peak lord present, the girl turned to him —Ah, sorry Liu-shishu, are you looking for Shizun?

The man nodded. —Yes.

—I'm sorry Liu-shishu, Shizun went out early after he supervised the morning run.

—He went out? 

—He said he needed to buy something at an auction and was in a hurry. He will come back tomorrow or maybe at night.

"Unless he goes see my aunties" she thought, yet left that thought go away. 

The war god frowned. —An auction? For what? 

—To buy something— she replied with a smile.

—Obviously— the man replied a little upset.

—Why did you come looking for Shen-shibo?— Liu Mingyan asked her brother.

—That…— the man glanced at the two Qing Jing disciples and closed his mouth.

—It's okay if it's something private, we won't ask Liu-shishu— Ning Yingying said as if nothing —But as you can see Shizun is not here. Oh! I also want to ask Liu-shishu to please not let Bai Zhan disciples come pester us. One of them broke the fan I was making as a personal project, it was not good enough to give it to Shizun but I still liked it.

Liu Qingge stared at the girl. —Do you Shen Qingqiu's disciples even have respect for other peak lords? 

—I only have respect for my Baba, women, and my martial family, except the people that badmouth Shizun, if they can go around running their mouths and saying things they don't even know about they don't deserve any respect.

Mao Shi looked at her Shijie. —You have a Baba? 

—Yes? Did I never mention it? 

—I thought you were like the others that don't have parents, well, except for me and Ming-shixiong. 

—Most of the inner disciples are in that situation, but I have my Baba and he's the best. Anyway, what were we talking about?

—That you have no respect to no one outside of Qing Jing, and that a disciple from Bai Zhan broke your fan.

—Ah, right, I liked that fan, I had just finished painting it, Shizun had even bought me that expensive paper after I begged for a week…

—Well, since Shen Qingqiu is not here I’ll come back later.

—Brother, I’ll go with you— Liu Mingyan looked at her brother, who just nodded.

—Then I’ll inform Shizun of your visit, Shishu, goodbye to you too Liu-shijie— Yingying bowed —Now I have to do the paperwork.

The three saw her go inside the bamboo hut. The peak lord looked confused.

—She is permitted inside Shen Qingqiu’s abode?

Mao Shi looked at him and nodded. —Yes Shishu, she is the only one allowed when Shizun is not in the peak, she cleans and does the paperwork, although sometimes Ming-shixiong is allowed to clean too.

Liu Qingge hummed and frowned before taking his sword out and stepping on it. —Mingyan, I need to talk with you, follow me— he said before extending his hand towards her, since she hadn’t picked up a sword yet.

The girl sighed as she saw her brother waiting for her, then nodded towards Mao Shi and followed him, making sure to stand properly in the sword. When they arrived at Bai Zhan, the areas around had been cleared from disciples since they had run away the moment they saw their Shizun approaching the peak. Her brother scoffed at the sight of his disciples running away and she knew deep down that Liu Qingge would beat the shit out of them when they were done with whatever her brother wanted from her.

They finally landed, and the peak lord sheathed his sword before making his way to his abode. The two went in, Liu Mingyan took the job of going for the barely used tea set she had gifted her brother a while ago, as well for the tea leaves that had not been touched at all, and prepared tea before sitting down and taking out some snacks she had in her Qiankun pouch.

After she settled down, she looked at her brother, who was lost in thought as he frowned. Mingyan simply sipped her tea and waited, until the other finally looked at her. 

—What does brother want to discuss?

—Mmm, Mingyan, what would you give someone as an apology?

She raised an eyebrow. —An apology? Perhaps to Shen-shibo?

Liu Qingge immediately went red. —I… maybe…

—What did brother do that he has to apologize?

—Well, I have to apologize and thank him— he took a moment, in which his sister waited patiently for the gossip —While I was in the Ling Xi caves I suffered a Qi deviation. 

—What? How? Your cultivation has always been stable… no, are you alright?

—Yes, Mu-shidi already took care of all that, not to mention… Shen Qingqiu was at the Ling Xi caves at the same time as me and he was the one that found me, he saved my life…

—He did?

—I remember hurting him, fighting with him, but I also remember him helping me. Mu-shidi also said that I survived just because of him, since he called for help and gave the proper treatment. 

—I understand.

She put her tea cup down, lost in her thoughts, she did not believe now all the rumors her Shizun and the people around Cang Qiong said about Shen Qingqiu. She got a new perspective of the man during the demon invasion, and even after by seeing how the man’s disciples were respectful and cheerful, that they really liked their Shizun and their peak, and the reason they didn’t go out was because they enjoyed being there and hated on people trashing their Shizun in their faces. 

Now there was another reason. Shen Qingqiu had saved her brother. How could the man be an envious and treacherous scum if he fought so honorably during the invasion and now also saved her brother? “He did try to kill brother before though?”

—So… you want to ask forgiveness for hurting him and also thank him for saving you?

—Not exactly, I do want to thank him for that reason, but when I was talking with Mu-shidi, he mentioned that he doubted Shen Qingqiu actually had a reason for trying to kill me in the pass, so I went to talk with Shang Qinghua, he was the only other one present during that mission. 

—And?

The man looked down and clenched his fists. —Shen Qingqiu saved me that time, he was not trying to murder me. 

To say she was surprised was not enough. —But why didn’t he say so?

—He… did say so at the beginning, but when I didn’t believe him, he just got angrier and when Shang Qinghua tried to intervene he threatened him to not say a word since… he didn’t have to give excuses or explain himself for something he hadn’t done. 

The girl nodded, Shen Qingqiu was a proud man after all, although she didn’t know him very well. So the man had saved her brother twice, and everyone had treated him like an outcast and a treacherous bastard all this time, her brother included. Who cared about shallow moves during spars? Only her brother, that was better than actually trying to murder a fellow head disciple.

—Well this is difficult, for one, brother you don’t know anything about social etiquette and the proper ways of choosing a gift fitted for the occasion. 

—That’s why I’m asking you. 

—But I don’t know what Shen-shibo likes. If you want the gift and apology to be well received, you have to know at least a bare minimum of what he likes.

Thinking about it for a moment, the man frowned. —He… likes fans. 

—That 's obvious. 

—He also likes sweets.

She raised a questioning brow. 

—I… saw him once, we were on a mission, he stopped to talk to a candy seller when he thought I wasn’t looking since I had already gone towards the inn, he bought a lot of candies and several sticks of tanghulu. 

Liu Mingyan hummed, deciding to ignore the part that she knew was her brother stalking the other —Then you can give him sweets, and maybe buy him a fan. Anything else?

—He likes books about medicine, he also likes to collect rare herbs and is interested in beasts, he likes things with green and blue, he also likes staring at cats but he never tries to pet them, he doesn’t like to get dirty and doesn’t eat food with much condiments, he also likes poetry and to look at art supplies. 

Putting her hands together as if praying, Liu Mingyan pressed them against her face and took a deep breath. How on earth had she not noticed that the weird obsession of his brother with asking Shen Qingqiu to spar, or to always look at whatever wrong thing he did, or get angry when the man went to the brothels, was not something else? Now it turned out her brother was a stalker that mistook his interest and slight jealousy for anger about the things the man did that were not honorable in his opinion.

She… she really had to write this!! A romance between a misunderstood man and one that could not understand his feelings but showed his appreciation by remembering the things the other liked and saving him from danger, of course she would have to change some things about her brother and Shen-shibo, and find a fitting setting and plot for two characters like that to fall in love and then go into a more deep and carnal relationship!

Using all her training and will power to maintain her face the same, she took a sip of her tea to relax and then looked at her brother.

—I will accompany you to choose something, I don’t think books of medicine will be a right option since we don’t know which ones he has already, sweets could be a side thing, now, latest books on poetry could be a reasonable option along with a fan and art supplies, no small accessories for now, we don’t want to scare him out before the appropriate time.

—Scare him out?

She ignored him. —I recommend to make a commission for a new fan, one resistant enough, you weren’t there but I’m sure you heard how he used a fan to fight against the demon elder, if he did that with a normal fan, maybe a little more sturdy that normal ones, I’m pretty sure he would like a war fan, I believe Wei-shibo doesn’t like him much or maybe Shen-shibo just didn’t ask for whatever reason.

—Wei-shixiong doesn’t like him, because he tried to… murder me with Xiu Ya, and because he uses shallow moves instead of relaying in his sword.

—There you have it, lucky you I know about literature and can find suitable books of poetry and maybe novels he might find enjoyable, just a few along with the fan, the candies… you can leave that as a second option for other occasions.

—Other occasions?

—Yes, he saved you and you have wronged him for a long time, he will surely not accept your apology, or if he does he might just do it so you leave him alone, to notice your sincerity, you must be constant and try to know him better so he knows you are serious.

Frowning, he nodded. —I see…

Liu Mingyan smiled as if she had not just fooled her brother into a courtship without him knowing.

—Ah, Mingyan, I also need your help with another thing. 

—Just tell me, I’ll do what I can. 

—When I was talking with Shang Qinghua, he said… that I should investigate the Shen family.

—The Shen family? To look for Shen-shibo’s family? Why?

—He said that there were a lot of things we didn't know about him and that most rumors were wrong, he simply told me to look into it. 

—Well, there aren’t that many, I can do it, ah… but what was Shen-shibo’s name before he became head disciple?

The man thought about it for a moment. —Jiu… I think, Zhangmen-shixiong has called him Xiao Jiu on some occasions.

—I’ll look into it with the help of our family, you just prepare the base of the fan with Wei-shibo, when it’s ready we will commission an artisan to paint it, I will also secure the books.

—Thank you. 

—As your sister I must help you, especially since you lack some common sense and only know how to fight.

She smiled happily, from now on she would have to help her brother carefully to ensure she had enough material to write.

.

.

.

—Took you long enough. 

Shen Jiu glared at the other, Shang Qinghua simply snickered. —Where you visiting your sisters once again?

—No, I was busy buying something.

—Shopping? That’s weird of you, usually you ask me to get you the things you want. 

—It’s for a personal investigation, anyways— he looked at the tied person on the floor —It’s a pleasure, Jin Lisha, I actually was expecting this, isn’t that funny?

—You… you both, why are you doing this?— the woman asked, tears in her eyes and giving a really pitiful sight. 

—That won’t help, we make sure that no one can hear a thing that happens in here or that can come close— Shang Qinghua smiled quite maliciously —These are the basic conditions for an interrogation. 

Both men took their swords out and pointed them towards the woman, who was sweating and looking around trying to find a way out of the situation she was in. She had been captured by some random people a few hours ago and when she woke up, she was already tied up and Shang Qinghua was simply standing at the door watching outside the window, ignoring her completely. 

—You gave me quite the trouble you know?— the An Ding peak lord said with a slight pout —I had so much paperwork to do, not even that, I had to ask my king a lot of things and he gave me quite the beating after I said I was investigating a woman that had a connection with Huan Hua palace— he sighed —Not only that, I had to get normal looking demons to kidnap you when you were trying to run away. Do you know how much I have slept? Like twenty minutes when I was at the brothel, really that incense does do its job. 

Shen Qingqiu rolled his eyes. —Stop complaining already, I have things to do and disciples to keep from killing themselves. 

—Right, sorry for keeping Shixiong away from his kids— he sighed —Anyways, Lisha, sorry for the bad treatment, we just want to know who you made a deal with to let the demons in, would you give us some names?

—I… I don’t know what Shixiong is talking about— she answered in a sweet and pitiful voice.

—Don’t act stupid, we found the letters hidden in your room— Shang Qinghua said, making the woman go pale —Neither you of you father put names in them, but it’s quite obvious honestly, you still were stupid enough to exchange information about your plans without a proper code, seriously who does that! Sometimes I feel that Shixiong and I are the only intelligent people in the world. 

—Jin Lisha, I must ask you to just say everything, I really don’t like hurting women.

—Shixiong !! I really have done nothing! Shang-shixiong… He’s making it up!— she pleaded to the Qing Jing peak lord with tears in her eyes. 

—Yes, those tears don’t work on me, my daughter is the only one that can pull that off, besides, I am the one that realized you were the culprit, there is no use in begging.

The expression of the woman changed completely to cold anger. —So you think you have me? No one will believe Shen-shixiong, and you can’t connect me with the demons or Huan Hua palace, in the letters there is no detailed information, you both clearly are stupid enough to not find anything!!

Shang Qinghua let out a laugh. —God! I can’t believe you just give yourself away like that!!

—What are you laughing at?!

The man looked at her with a grin. —You just confirmed you had letters in your room and there is actually a hidden code, at least now we know where to search, also that you have a connection to Huan Hua palace and some demon.

The An Ding peak lord moved his sword to the side and walked towards her, raising his feet and kicking her on the stomach, making her fall to the ground. His smile went away as he looked at her from above.

—Unlike Shen-shixiong, I don’t care if it's male or female, I’ll take whoever is in my way and crush them to sand, I’m not really fond of people, I was a little fond of you, since you are from my peak, but god did you give me troubles— he put his feet on her chest and made pressure, making her gasp for air —Should I cut finger after finger until you spill everything out?

—Please don’t make a mess of the place— Shen Qingqiu grimaced. 

—I would never do that to the cellar of your sister’s soon to be house Shixiong— he said with a reproachful voice —I’m just trying to make her talk, and I can clean after.

—I’ll be clear, Shimei— Shen Jiu got closer and put the tip of his sword against her neck —Wu Qingcheng soon will find proof that you were near the barrier during the time it was made to fail and was then broken, we will find the letters hidden under the floor in the section under your bed, Shang Qinghua already verified that no one saw you during that time either, and you are stupid enough to be carrying the artifact you used to broke the array.

He bent down and took the Qiankun pouch the woman was hiding in her clothes, then started to search through it until he took out a small cube with gems on it. 

—Oh? Isn’t that the relique from the north kingdom used in times of war?— Shang Qinghua took the cube in his hands and studied it —It is… they use it to break through enemy barriers for sneak attacks, tell me Shimei, how did this end up in your hands? 

—This was obviously the crazy uncle that your demon has— Shen Jiu said —Who else could take that away?

—I know, I just like the theatrics of asking, this is supposed to be an interrogation after all.

—I don’t have time for an interrogation, just prepare the truth serum and take her back to the sect. 

—You are no fun Shixiong.

—I’m a busy man. 

—Yeah I can see that— he sighed.

—Here— he gave the other a vial with a vibrant bluish gray liquid inside —This will make her forget up to one day before, do your questions and then go back to the sect, for tomorrow there must be progress and we will need her in the sect, say you found the letters a few hours prior to them finding out, and lie about having her locked, go to Zhangmen-shixiong’s office around three in the afternoon tomorrow to report her and you will get there while Wu-shidi is informing him of what he found.

—You are always leaving everything to me, Shixiong. 

He raised an eyebrow. —I thought it would be better to let you work and call that king of yours to help, he is able to teleport easily to Cang Qiong after all.

The smaller man smiled. —Well, he does come in handy for that, him and his stupid tall ass and ripped body, he could use those muscles for something else rather than punishing me. 

She Jiu made a face of disgust. —I’m not interested on whatever dark sexual fantasy you have, remember to do what I told you, I must go now.

—Have a nice flight Shixiong!— the other said happily from inside the cellar as Shen Jiu closed the door behind him.

Stepping on his sword, the man made his way back to his peak. He had managed to put his hands in some herbs he was planning on using to create medicine for his condition. Ideally, if he could stop using his powers, his organs would stop from deteriorating and he could control the damage and cure himself gradually till a point where he would not be completely recovered but at least good enough to live normally. Now in his situation, Shen Jiu could not afford to stop looking into the future as his life and the world depended on it.

For now the solution to his problem was to find herbs with effects to cure his organs, those would simply help to stop the deterioration, but it was better than nothing, for now he had also procure some medicine for the pain thanks to the madame of the brothel, the mission now was to process the herbs into an experimental medicine to stop coughing blood while researching for a complete medicine. 

Things would be better if he hadn’t end up so injured in the Ling Xi caves, between Liu Qingge and the final hit from Yue Qingyuan, his body was in a state that was difficult to even move, now he could not get rid of the headache, and had to still work to take care of it as well as to stop the deterioration of his eyesight too. 

By the time he managed to get to his peak, it was almost night, after all he had to make a four hour flight to the city with the auction before coming back to the house he had bought for his Jiejie and meimeis. It was a fortune he had already bought it and he had a separate amount of money to buy their contracts, now that he had to buy all kinds of herbs to develop a medicine, he would spend a lot of money on that.

Maybe in another time, he would have trusted Mu Qingfang to get the herbs for him, since these were not dangerous and were commonly used for the making of medicine, he could just say it was to improve his knowledge and make more diverse medicine for his disciples in case of emergencies in missions. That was not an option now though, so he had to do it all by himself. 

He could not trust others so easily again. To let others see him weak and pathetic, just like Qiu Jianluo wanted him to be, the only thought of that put him a the edge, putting more effort now than never in his appearance, not because it mattered, but because it had became an armor, a disguise to not only hide his ugliness, but to fool others of his real state.

He was not surprised to see light from the windows of his abode. And when he opened the door, it was not but moments before that Ning Yingying came out of the office and hugged him. She had grown now, she was almost sixteen and such a young lovely lady. 

Shen Jiu returned the hug with affection and then let her go.

—Baba, I thought you would go with the aunties and come back tomorrow. 

He shook his head softly. —No, I just had something to buy for an experiment, some materials and books from an auction.

—That's good, I finished almost everything, only the things you have to check are left.

—Then why are you still here?

She laughed nervously. —I was making my calligraphy work…

The man closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. —You were using my brushes weren't you.

—But yours are pretty and soft!

—Yes, because they are of high quality and I bought them with my money. Just make sure to clean them properly.

—Yes Baba~ 

The girl went inside the office again, Shen Jiu following close, then she sat down and finished the last strokes as Shen Qingqiu did the same and started his part of the paperwork. 

—Oh right, Liu-shibo came looking for you earlier, but he went away with Liu-shijie after he heard you were not here.

—The Lius? What were they doing here?

—Liu-shijie was sparing with me for pointers, she really does have strong arms, I think I have to train that more— she said flexing her arms —But I don't know what Liu-shibo wanted, he just asked for you and since you weren't here he went away. 

Shen Qingqiu hummed. "He must have come to say some honorable shit about him owing me a life debt or something, is better that I was not here" 

—If you want to train more, you should stop skipping the morning run. You do practice your dancing and therefore have much more strength in your legs, but it is still necessary. I will add something to train the arms though. Maybe weights? 

—I like that.

—Mm, and for those that need punishment I will make them write their wrongdoings one thousand times while doing handstands. 

Ning Yingying silently prayed for his martial siblings, since this was all her fault that Shizun got the idea. She was also relieved that she barely got into trouble.

When the girl had finally put everything in its place, Shen Jiu talked. —Tomorrow you are in charge of the morning run. I will be working. I don't want anyone disturbing me, also, make sure you write to An Ding, early, before afternoon, asking for three sets of weights. 

—Yes Baba!— she got closer and hugged him a last time before going to the door —Goodnight! Love you! 

He smiled as he saw her go out the room and heard the front door opening and closing. Then he took out a handkerchief and coughed in it, letting all the blood he had been repressing finally come out.

—I have to start working— he said as he stood up and went to the side room, where all his equipment was waiting to be used. 

It would be some long days of hard work to procure an experimental first medicine to stop the most evident symptoms. But he would do it, he had to after all.

Chapter Text

—Is this really ours?

—So spacious!! 

—A-Li look at this! The kitchen is huge as fuck!! 

—A-Ming watch your language!!

Shang Qinghua stared at the triplets running around the house checking everything, Chi Huo was at his side smiling fondly. This could be the first time in their lives they were walking freely, the first time they were actually living as normal people.

—This is almost a mansion, you shouldn't have prepared something like this— Chi Huo turned towards Shen Jiu, who was looking at them from the door.

—You are my sisters, and for the long wait it had to be worthy.

—We are only four women, how can we live in such a place? I fear bandits will try to…

—Nonsense, the place is guarded with arrays, talismans and artifacts— Shen Jiu said —If any man not registered in them tries to enter they will be attacked and we will receive an alert, and o if a woman tries, we will give you all something to activate the arrays for emergencies.

—Yes, you don't have to worry. I helped with that— Shang Qinghua added —And An Ding is the peak that knows most about arrays, for now only Shen-shixiong and I can come in.

—Anyone else and they are dead. 

The woman smiled. —Such preparations just for some whores, isn't it too much?

Shang Qinghua laughed. —What whores? I just see four free women whose brother bought a house for, of course I was the one that prepared the furniture.

—Hua-didi always works hard— the woman said as she petted his head.

The An Ding peak lord let her do it with a smile on his face, as if he were a puppy receiving affection. Which was totally not due to him not having experienced a loving family like ever.

—Shen-shixiong, can I be adopted into your family? I also want sisters, mine were wed before I was even four.

—No.

—Why?! You know I don't like women, It's not fair that only Shixiong gets pretty sisters to comb his hair, I only get punched by demons.

—That's Hua-gege's fault for working with demons— Lei Jinghua said as she approached them. 

—Yeah, but have you seen the demon? He's ripped and since he's an ice demon he uses this clothes that leave all his chest out to see, not to mention his face, is way more better to work for someone like that than Yue Qingyuan, sure Zhangmen-shixiong is good looking but he has no character, my liege is way better.

—Why don't you tell him that then?— Shen Jiu raised an eyebrow. 

—He punches me every day for no reason and you want me to tell him that? Besides, you know how satisfying it is to be in charge of demons that look down on you but they have no way of complaining? I actually have power and I'm paid better. 

—They pay you?

—Yes, my liege has given me some expensive artifacts and a lot of money, his uncle has offered more but I'm not stupid, Linguang-Jun will kill me after I do what he wants, also, you think I would work for free? Even if my liege was the most handsome man in the world I wouldn’t do shit for him if he didn’t pay me. 

—Qinghua, if you want you can come whenever you want, if your disciples or liege pester you too much we have two spare rooms in the house.

—Then don't mind if I do.

—Why are you even here?— Shen Jiu asked, exasperated. 

—I like your sisters, unlike some people, they are nice to me— he commented before walking to the pile of pillows in the corner next to the bookshelves —I went through all those problems for the sect and Zhangmen-shixiong simply said, thank you shidi, and then took away that woman Jin Lisha away, not to mention that two hour meeting.

The triplets, who had been roaming around, approached the An Ding peak lord and let themselves fall in the pillows around him, smiling and snuggling against each other.

—Those peak lords are wasting our Qinghua’s time!— Lei Meihua said.

—And A-Jiu’s time!— Lei Lihua added.

—You should just resign and come live with us! We will be a big family cultivating vegetables instead of spiritual cores, Huo-jie knows how to cook, we know how to sew and play instruments, Hua-gege can work for his demon freely and Jiu-ge will come with little Yingying and enjoy his time peacefully. 

—Ah, won’t the town’s people find it strange that we all siblings have different surnames?— Chi Huo asked as she also went and let herself fall into the pillows. 

Shang Qinghua gave Shen Jiu a smug smile as he was surrounded by the women. Back in the brothel, the girls all had a room filled with pillows where they would usually rest and spend time together with the other prostitutes, so he thought recreating a smaller version of that for them to relax was a good idea and he was right. 

Hearing the older sister's words, the man snickered. 

—We should all change our surnames to Shen, Shixiong, shall we share surname?

—Over my cold, death and unmoving body.

—That's such a harsh way of saying no.

—Well I would love to have A-Jiu's surname— Lei Jinghua said.

—Why would you want mine? Is so common, yours is more outstanding.

—We'll just say we are daughter's of different mothers and that we have their surnames because our father was a fucking asshole— Chi Huo commented —That way is easier.

—Yeah, Jiu-ge won't you join us?— Shang Qinghua asked with that infuriating voice of him making Shen Jiu glare at him.

—Call me that again and I will rip off your tongue.

—So cruel— he hugged Chi Huo —Jiejie, can we eat something nice? I'm hungry, and I made sure the kitchen was all stocked.

—Of course, Jiejie will make lots of food to celebrate that we have moved into a new house! Ah, of course I'll make sure A-Jiu can eat it— she petted Shang Qinghua's head and then stood up going to the kitchen.

The triplets rolled over and crushed the man under them as they giggled. Shen Jiu just went to the low table and sat down, preparing the tea. He should really bring Yingying soon, but he would need a good excuse to leave the sect with his student, just the two.

—Shixiong, I forgot to tell you, we confirmed that Linguang-Jun has an alliance with Huan Hua palace.

—You did?— he served himself some tea.

—Yeah, one of the demons we infiltrated saw the exchange, unfortunately we have no written proof and people won't only believe our words, so for now at least we know what we are going against. 

—I see.

—Also, as you requested I made sure to investigate about all the heavenly demons of this time, the only one spotted in the last fifteen years was Tianlang-Jun.

—I supposed as much, but he was sealed under the mountain, and he only had connections with Su Xiyan.

—Yes, that's the weird part, you said that the next demon emperor would be a halfling, but there are no more heavenly demons, and Su Xiyan was one of the most powerful cultivators of her generation. Why would she carry a demon's child? 

—I saw her quite a few times— Shen Jiu said as he remembered, the face of the woman and Luo Binghe were almost the same —She would not carry a child she wouldn't want, but for her to want the child, then that means all the excuses the old palace master gave were fake, Su Xiyan would not carry the child of a man she didn't love, and she would not love a demon that wanted to destroy the humans, she was a rational thinker and prioritized humans lives over everything.

—That's what I thought, the old palace master proclaimed that Tianlang-Jun was planning on conquering the human realm and that his head disciple had been the one to discover all that, but then she just disappears completely without a reason, then a child is born and appears years later, there's definitely something wrong with that.

—Yet we cannot investigate, knowing that old man, he must have killed all the people that had something to do with that, he was too obsessed with his disciple to let her go and elope with a demon, he surely did something to her. 

—But then he would have killed the baby, not Su Xiyan. 

Lei Jinghua stared at them and after a moment commented. —From what I know of demons, Jiu-ge has said that there are plants that only kill demons but are safe for humans, then, wouldn't that man use something similar? 

Lei Minghua nodded. —And if I loved a man and wanted to carry his child, I would choose my child over my life anytime. She could have escaped and maybe died at childbirth, or was assassinated, but if the child has grown up, then she had to do something to keep him alive.

—It's a pity that such an amazing woman could not see the disgusting old man's obsession— Lei Lihua added.

—You three know too much for your own good— Shang Qinghua squinted his eyes at them.

—Well, Jiu-ge tells us everything. I remember him complaining about the disgusting old fart, I remember when he came back from his first immortal alliance conference, he was saying how that man was eyeing him and his Shijie like a depraved… What was it?— Minghua looked at her sisters.

—A depraved animal trying to appear as an attempt of a human being— Jinghua answered. 

—That.

—He was and still is, that disgusting thing.

—I was too busy trying not to get killed by my martial siblings that time so I didn't notice— Shang Qinghua said.

—Mm, we need to be careful, that old man already managed to mobilize the sects to get Tianlang-Jun, if any of us manages to get on his bad side he will without a doubt put everyone against us. 

—That old coot.

—Well it would not be different for me since everyone already hates me, he might even use that against me.

—We don't hate you!!— the triplets said immediately. 

—Well, you are annoying, but I guess I don't hate you either— Shang Qinghua said almost pouting. 

—Neither do I!!— Chi Huo said from the kitchen. 

—Well that's five people against half the cultivation world.

—Six if you count your daughter.

—Ah! I can't wait to see little Ying'er again, last time she was such a little thing, now she's a young woman— Lei Jinghua said —I'm sure you have spoiled her rotten, we will have to teach her how to deal with men.

—A kick between the legs and that's it, if it sounds like something broke even better— Lei Minghua snickered.

The sisters laughed and started to stand up. —We should go and help Huo-jie.

The two men saw them go. Shang Qinghua simply went to the table and took out his paperwork to continue with it as Shen Jiu simply enjoyed his tea. The place was nice, he had made sure that the house was big and had everything, the town was not small but not big either, and people here did not know about the past of his sisters. It was also close to Cang Qiong. 

Hearing the chatter in the kitchen, watching the big home, thinking of how things had changed, Shen Jiu looked down to his cup of tea and saw his reflection, not much different from what he saw every time before a vision. 

He had the house, his sisters were there, all like a family, he had saved his disciples up to this point and had changed so many things. He could not help but feel guilty. 

Why? Why did he still feel sad and tired if things were going his way? Why did that anxiety, fear and sadness not lessen? He was supposed to feel happy, he was supposed to enjoy things as they turned out to be better, yet, it was difficult, to fly on his sword and not being able to stop the thought of what jumping down would feel like, of wanting to tear his skin apart, of feeling pain, of ending everything even though he had to be happy.

Why wasn't he happy?! Deep down he only wanted to sleep, tired of having to care but feeling guilty for thinking that way. He was supposed to want to live.

Yet even though that pressure and the slight feeling of suffocation was there, when Shang Qinghua asked something about work he replied as if nothing. When one of his sisters came and gave him a taste of the food, he gave her a smile and a compliment. Even when he was tempted to take the tea pot and hold it with his bare hands just to burn his skin, Shen Jiu kept a normal expression and simply stood there acting normal. 

"It will pass, it's just a stupid impulse" yes, the impulse of assuring himself that something bordered with desperation when he was alone. But he stopped it every time, since his goal was to survive, keep his disciple from practically destroying the world and killing thousands of people, that and to survive.

Was it bad for him to get angry? To look at the people around him, enjoying themselves due to their ignorance. Seeing their smiles and carefree existence, while he had this weight on his shoulders that could not be taken away. Shen Jiu felt guilty and stupid for locking at his disciples and feeling rage inside him because they could enjoy themselves and grew safely and happy, for looking at his sisters and see that they could tolerate a man's touch and presence, for not having a way out.

All these things made him angry, wanting to hurt others. But he couldn't not, he knew it was bad to want to make others feel the same as him, to hate their blessed ignorance, so at the end he would simply hate himself and redirect that desperate want of hurting towards himself. 

He just quieted it down, to a soft murmur on the back of his head that he would constantly ignore just to keep going. 

—A-Jiu.

He calmly looked up, to see Chi Huo walking towards him with a big pot on her hands. Not a second after he was at her side taking it from her hands and waiting for one of the triplets to put a rock on the table with Shang Qinghua's help, then the pot was put over it. The older woman opened the lid to show a fragrant soup still bubbling, with mushrooms, fish and vegetables in it.

The others brought chopsticks, spoons and bowls for everyone to take as well.

—I made sure it's not too seasoned so it won't upset your stomach, but I promise it is good.

—I'm sure it is, I have tasted your cooking before.

—Then eat, eat, I made too much and we are celebrating, I will give you a pot to bring some for Ying'er when you go back, she must taste her auntie's food so she wants to come visit us soon, I'll even make sweets for her even if they are expensive. 

—We can buy anything we want Jiejie! We are filthy rich now thanks to Jiu-ge, and we can work in the tea house in any case, we know how to play instruments so they will pay even better— Lei Lihua said happily as she poured some soup and vegetables on her bowl.

—Mm, you should work, it would help for others to not pay much attention to you— Shen Jiu said approvingly —And in case anyone starts pestering you, you only have to say your brother is an immortal of Cang Qiong and they will leave you alone. 

—Of course I will, this town might not be near the entrance of the sect, but it is at the feet of the mountain range, they are under Cang Qiong's protection, it's a shame I can't say my brother is a peak lord, that would make them fear for their lives— Lei Minghua said as she laughed. 

—Well now we have two brothers that are peak lords— Chi Huo said as she hugged Shang Qinghua who just let her.

The man tasted the soup and smiled, this time genuinely. —This tastes awesome, I'll make sure to send food and everything you need if I can eat like this every time I come visit.

—You can't come when Yingying is here though— Shen Jiu warned.

—I know, It's not like I have much time to come here, today was an exception, I needed a break from those stupid peak lords and Zhangmen-shixiong, they didn't even gave a thanks for my work in the matter of the invasion, hell they even tried to blame you Shixiong, you were the only one there! Hadn't you been on time a lot of people would have died and they still dare to try and blame you.

—They are like that sometimes. 

—But it's not good for them to be like that!!

Shen Jiu and the sisters were surprised by the sudden outburst, especially coming from Shang Qinghua whose anger was usually silent.

—They think they are big and better because they were born in loving and supporting families, having the world given to them, they don't respect others and only choose to demonize and see as bad what they want to and glorify those they like, if you are not up to their standards of what is good or expected then you are just trash. 

Looking down, Shen Qingqiu could not help but to agree to the others' words. 

—I can't fight as well as them and I'm useless even though I'm the one keeping the sect going, Shixiong goes to a brothel and suddenly he is a lecher, everyone just decided to hate on you because they didn't want to make an effort of knowing you, they didn't even try to know me either, I'm just the An Ding peak lord that everyone walks over, but oh who can compare to the War god from a good family or the other young Masters or honorable cultivators, everyone else is just trash. 

—Hatred is easy to have, and if you don't like someone is more easier to believe the bad things others say about them and not question the truth behind, it's just something every human does, they are immortal, but no matter how beyond the human capacity and abilities you go and how stronger you get, a human is a human, as well as a street rat is a street rat no matter how much wealth they die with at the end— Shen Jiu added.

—Humans… that's why I prefer demons, at least it is normal to expect treason or treachery from them, but humans fool you into believing them and then…

—To trust is difficult— Chi Huo said, gaining their attention as she put her chopsticks down —Isn't it? We came into the world trusting our parents, but for people like us, the ones that brought us to the world are the first to betray us, abandoning us, selling us, beating us, but… don't we still have each other here?

She looked at her two little brothers with a smile.

—We are not even related aren't we? But we decided to… call each other as brothers and sisters, we decided to trust in those that understood us the best, we matter for each other, and here we can forget those that hate us or ignore us, because with this is enough. 

Shang Qinghua's expression slowly softened as he looked at the food, remembering how before he would have first tested it for poison, in the sect or the northern kingdom, yet here he had just eaten without a doubt. 

—Huo-jie is too kind for this world— Shang Qinghua suddenly said —You remind me of my mother, but much better.

—Your mother?— Shen Jiu raised an eyebrow. 

—My father was a strong man, a woodcutter that would sell the wood to the townspeople. He married my mother because she was the prettiest one yet from a poor family. My mother was kind unlike my father, that's why Chi Huo reminds me of her. 

—That's nice then— said woman smiled.

—But you are much better, my mother never stopped my father from beating me and just accepted the money when Shizun bought me.

—Well, one thing in common I guess, we all were bought and ruined in one way or another— Shen Jiu said as if it was nothing and started eating once again.

Shang Qinghua stared at him for a moment, his eyebrows twitched for a moment, then followed his example. 

—Jiejie— Shen Jiu looked at her —For Ying'er and I, can I have more food to take? 

She smiled. —Of course.

Just like that they continued eating peacefully, somehow, that rage in Shen Jiu subsided as his sister’s words stayed deep within him.

.

.

.

Liu Qingge finished hearing his sister, his mind in chaos as he remembers every time he had insulted Shen Qingqiu in the past. The girl, noticing his state of mind, served him tea as she herself thought about it.

There was no Shen family at all, not one they would be interested in anyways. Three rich households had that surname, two being from wealthy merchants of generations and one being a noble house. None had sons that had joined a sect, none had anyone named Jiu, none of them had any connection to Shen Qingqiu. Since the Liu family had quite some power, investigating such things was easy, and the results had come quickly. 

She hadn't expected such an outcome, everyone thought of Shen Qingqiu as a spoiled young master, yet their people could not find any family or relationship between him and some rich household, the most they found was that he had appeared one day with Zhangmen-shixiong out of nowhere. But the way he moved, talked, and his extensive knowledge and talents. Was it really possible for someone from a normal family to show such things?

—But… it cannot be… I…

Liu Mingyan looked at her brother, who could still not assimilate the situation. 

—Brother…

—I insulted him countless times, he never said anything.

—We can still keep searching, maybe there is another one…

—No, I'm going to ask him directly.

As he said that he stood up and walked towards the door. Liu Mingyan immediately followed trying to stop him, not forgetting the gifts they had prepared. Once outside she hopped into the sword, holding onto her brother's clothes to keep herself steady. The sun was already setting, couldn’t her brother wait until tomorrow?

—Brother must you act so harshly? We can wait until tomorrow. 

—I can’t!

As they were landing on Qing Jing. Liu Mingyan pursed her lips. —But what if you asking him makes him angry?

They got off the sword in front of the bamboo hut, light visible from the windows. Shen Qingqiu’s temper was well known, he had somehow refrained from big fights and from spreading poisonous words in the last years, but someone could not change that easily. 

—I still have to know, to mend my mistakes.

Looking at her brother, the girl nodded, understanding that it was not only a matter of honor and life debt, but of their own morals. To have been falsely accusing someone all this time, but for that person to not defend themselves, even she wanted to know the reason behind all that. 

How was it better to be scorned at, insulted and looked down upon than saying the truth and correcting the rumors? Then it hit her, how people even after hearing how Shen Qingqiu had fought against the demons during the invasion still blamed him at first, since only he could be so treacherous. It wasn’t a matter of truth or false, but a matter of trust.

Lost in her thought, she missed how her brother had started walking, and by the time she realized, he was already too close to the door. She ran behind him, as she suddenly heard the laugh of a girl from inside the house. 

—Gege wait!

Liu Qingge kicked the door open, forgetting completely about how he should not do that, and went in. 

—Shen Qingqiu!

The girl stood in the door as she saw her brother freezing in his place, looking inside, she found Ning Yingying sitting, ready with her chopsticks and a bowl in hand. Then her eyes moved to the Qing Jing peak lord, who was as frozen as her brother, standing there with a pot in his hands, his hair down and combed into a low ponytail, giving a really homely appearance. Shen Jiu then frowned.

—Liu Qingge, What do you think you are doing?

—I…

Liu Mingyan looked at her brother and then the peak lord. —Shen-shibo, I’m sorry for the intrusion, I told him to wait until tomorrow but…

—Shen Qingqiu!— finally coming back to his senses, the War god started talking —I… I have to speak with you.

Shen Qingqiu gave a tired sigh as he walked towards the table and put the pot down, to then look at the other. 

—Shizun…— Ning Yingying looked at him with doubt.

—Just stay there— he said to her without looking —So, What is that the War god wants with this one?

—Shen Qingqiu, I… Are you really a young master?

The other was clearly surprised by the question, probably expecting something related to him saving the other at the Ling Xi caves and not an interrogation about this.

—Why is Shidi asking such a question?

The warning in his tone of course, was completely ignored by the Bai Zhan peak lord. 

—Are you or not? I… I could not find a Shen family, but you… I believed you were one, just like I believed you tried to kill me during that mission all those years ago, but… none of those are true, are they?

Shen Qingqiu gave an exasperated sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose. —It was Shang Qinghua wasn’t he?

—Yes it was him. 

“No wonder he had so much money for the furniture” Shen Jiu thought as he gave a side glance to the Liu siblings. 

—Right, so, if I answer your question will you leave me alone?

—I want the answer, but I still have things to discuss. 

—The answer is no, I am not a young master.

—Shizun!— Ning Yingying stood up with worry.

He turned to look at her. —It’s alright, I don’t care anymore, after all no matter what I say or do they will go against me anyways.

Pursing her lips, the girl went to him and tugged at his sleeves. —But…

—This…— Liu Qingge looked at their interaction, but didn’t dare to say a thing as he had already misunderstood a lot of things about Shen Qingqiu, he had heard the rumors about this disciple, but he didn’t dare to believe them so easily even if he was seeing their interaction. 

—Are you done Liu Qingge? I was no young master, I am a street rat with a little luck that climbed his way to his position, I don’t care what others think of me anymore, they didn’t care of asking in the past and now no matter what they say they won’t take me from my position, so go, go and tell the others a filthy street rat is a peak lord and he must have used dirty trick to get where he is. 

—I would not do that!

—Really? But you and the others love to berate me based on those rumors, just go and tell them about me and how oh I was with my disciple alone so they can make their ideas and so ruin her reputation alongside mine! 

Seeing that the situation was going in the wrong direction, Liu Mingyan grabbed her brother's arm to try and make him leave with her.

—No, but… if you are not doing anything… unless you are I would not-!

—Liu Qingge!!— enraged, Shen Qingqiu went for his fan. 

The Liu siblings prepared themselves to be flown away when Ning Yingying interrupted. 

—Baba no!!

They all froze in place, until Shen Qingqiu slowly put down his arm and looked towards the girl who was completely hugging his arm.

—Yingying- 

—I’m not embarrassed of it!!— the girl shouted at him —I don’t care if they hear or not, I don’t care if people look bad at me or badmouth me, that won’t make me want to change anything. If Baba is questioned for his ascendance, then I’ll be too!! I’m not a little girl anymore and I won’t just let other people talk!!

—....

Turning her head towards them, Ning Yingying glared at the Liu siblings. —So if they want to tell others I don’t care, even better, I will fight whoever has something to say about it. I can’t even have a peaceful dinner with my Baba or talk with him because of the rumors.

Liu Mingyang took the opportunity to stand in front of her brother. —I… we won’t tell, but I assume a talk about this tomorrow will be necessary. I'll take my brother back, I’m really sorry about the interruption, Shen-shibo, Ning-shimei. 

—I… was in the wrong— Liu Qingge said —I will ask for forgiveness tomorrow. 

—Now go— Shen Qingqiu simply said. 

—Now we have to reheat the food— Ning Yingying pouted as the other two went out.

Sighing, Shen Jiu simply said. —Just use a talisman for that. 

Liu Mingyan closed the door, and without even waiting for a second, smacked her brother in the head with all her strength. 

Chapter Text

The sun was barely up in the sky when Shen Jiu went out of his home to supervise the morning run. His students as always were half asleep while preparing to start running. Luo Binghe had his hair as atrocious as always, Zhang Huimei was standing with her eyes closed as she had somehow mastered the ability to sleep while standing, Ming Fan was one of the few ones perfectly dressed and awake just like Yingying, although the last one was still yawning. Mo Laquan wasn't even there yet.

—Shimei, your hair is such a mess in the morning.

He heard Ning Yingying say as she carefully combed Mao Shi's hair.

—It's still not as bad as Binghe's…

—What's wrong with my hair?— the boy asked.

—Shidi, you still have a comb in it— Ming Fan said as he took said object out of the fluffy hair and handed it to him. 

—Oh, I forgot it there. 

—See? You are a disaster— the youngest girl said as she rolled her eyes. 

—At least I don't drool when I sleep.

—That was one time!! 

—Enough— Shen Jiu said as the figure of Mo Laquan appeared, running in their direction while trying to tie his hair in a low ponytail —Disciple Mo, this is the third time you are late this week, one more and you'll be doing handstands outside the library for three hours and I’ll deduct ten of your credits. 

—I'm sorry Shizun, It won't happen again! Please don’t take my credits, I almost have enough to get that limited edition book on arrays! 

—Ming Fan, make sure to wake him up tomorrow. 

—I understand Shizun.

—You are cruel Ming Fan— Mo Laquan said as he finally joined the group of disciples —You are my roommate yet you let me get late. 

—It's your responsibility to wake up in time and to stop reading encyclopedias until past midnight. 

The other made a clear sound of protest. —That's not fair…

—Even Luo-shidi woke up on his own, and he's a mess.

—Hey! 

—What? You are, you had a comb stuck in your hair.

—I said enough, everyone to their positions, we will start— Shen Qingqiu interrupted yet again, the disciples did as told.

When he was about to let them start, he saw two silhouettes in the distance, coming towards him. Why did people have to always ruin his plans and interrupt everything he does? He gave Ning Yingying a small sign, making her look over and then nod, he then sent his disciples to run, his daughter going slower until she was last and then returning.

The Liu siblings were already standing at a small distance by the time the girl returned, then Liu Mingyan came closer.

—Shen-shibo, Ning-shimei— she greeted.

Shen Jiu just nodded while Yingying returned the greeting, then Liu Qingge came closer.

—Let's go to a more private place— he looked to the side and made a sign to one of the hall masters present that morning —Hall master Guo, please supervise the students and send them to practice their forms after.

—Yes Shixiong— the man nodded.

The four of them made their way towards one of the pavilions, where Shen Qingqiu put just a couple talismans, then the place was completely secure of prying ears. Ning Yingying quickly started preparing the tea with expert moves and handing it to the others, then looked towards her Baba with a smile. He patted her head and then took his cup of tea to take a sip.

—Shen Qingqiu- 

As Liu Qingge opened his mouth, Liu Mingyan nudged him, making him fall silent. Shen Jiu didn't know what the girl did or said to him last night but apparently it was enough to make him obey her.

Putting his cup down, Shen Jiu looked at them. —No matter what Ying'er said yesterday, I expect from Liu- shidi and Liu-shizhi to not say a word about the matter.

The girl immediately protested. —But Baba!! 

—It's better this way, the other inner disciples won't say anything, but the outer disciples, no matter how good had they been to you until now, are still nobles and will try to tarnish your reputation to get your place, spoiled people always love to look down on others, or do you not remember how they treated Mao Shi and Luo Binghe at the start? 

The girl pursed her lips. —But…

—To acknowledge me like your father will make the outer disciples as well as the disciples of other peaks come at you because your father is a scum.

—But you are not!! Just because they are stupid assholes that can't mind their own fucking business doesn't give them the right to-!!!

—Language! 

She huffed and pouted, still frowning. —It's true though.

Shen Jiu looked at the other two. —So, can I have your word that you two won't say anything? 

—But… is your daughter, your family— Liu Qingge says.

—For that exact reason is that I don't want others to know, being related to me will be nothing but a problem. 

—A-Niang would disagree— the girl mumbled. 

—Your mother did the same as me, didn't she?

The girl finally remained silent. Li Liu had, after all, given Yingying a different surname in hopes she would not be linked to a whore.

—I…— Liu Qingge seemed confused —But, since when did you have a daughter?

—Since I was born— Ying'er said with a smile.

Liu Mingyan sighed. —I won't tell anyone if that is what Shen-shibo wants.

—Who's the mother? 

Shen Jiu watched fascinated as Liu Mingyan slowly turned her head to glare at her brother who had just made a stupid question. He really was liking the girl, maybe it was not bad for her and Yingying to be friends.

—Why should I answer that?

—I… no, Shixiong should not answer if he doesn't want to— at the reasonable answer, Liu Mingyan relaxed and gave her brother an approving glance. 

—We will not pry into matters that don't concern us— the girl said.

—Buu, and I thought I could finally boast about the portrait I have of her.

Liu Qingge cleared his throat before bowing as much as he could in Shen Qingqiu's direction. 

—Shen Qingqiu, I must ask forgiveness, I falsely accused you in the past of trying to murder me when you saved my life, and now you have saved me again, and I… have also believed rumors that weren't true, insulting you on them, for that I must ask your forgiveness. 

Looking down at the man, Shen Jiu took a moment to process his words before simply nodding. 

—Alright, forgiven, now go. 

Hearing his words, Liu Qingge raised his head and frowned deeply.

—No, you don't mean it, and I have to repay you as I owe you my life. 

—You don't owe me anything, go and leave me alone. 

Standing up, Shen Jiu made a sign for Yingying to take Liu Mingyan away, as an indicator that the conversation was over, and then walked out of the pavilion and to his abode. The two girls watched how Liu Qingge took a minute to realize what had happened before running after the other.

Yingying simply enjoyed her tea before taking out some snacks and offering some to her guest. Mingyan was silent, yet still took one and ate it.

—Well, they will argue for quite some time, Baba won't accept anything he offers— she commented.

—Why? 

—Because he is a man, he always says the worst thing you can do is trust a man, only women can be trustworthy most of the time, although I know that in battle, the only one he would trust his back to would be Liu-shishu. 

—I see…— she silently made the effort to remember that for future references.

—Just to make it clear, I know Liu-shijie can be trusted, as she resembles Liu-shishu in terms of honor, but just in case some rumor actually starts, Baba is not my real father.

Liu Mingyan looked at her in surprise. —No? 

—We don't look anything alike now do we?— she simply said —Baba is my Jiujiu and godfather, but he's still my Baba, he's the one that raised me and provided me with everything. 

—Then… your mother?

—She was Baba's sister, she died after giving birth to me, she was the only family he had left, I know he loved her very much, my aunties have told me in their letters how close they were, still, they could not spend too much time together. 

—....— Mingyan remained silent, she had obviously thought that Ning Yingying was Shen Qingqiu's biological daughter and the result of him going to brothels, yet apparently she was simply his niece.

—If the truth comes out, I will not be embarrassed of calling him my Baba, he raised me and taught me everything I know, he's a really good person, but others just refuse to see it because of the rumors, of course I lack knowledge of how the rumors came to be, but still, most of them are pretty much false.

Raising an eyebrow, Liu Mingyan asked. —Most? 

Ning Yingying grinned. —There is just one that is half true, I must admit it, my Baba does go to brothels. 

Her eyes widened slightly. —He does? 

—Yes, my mother was sold to one.

Her words took a moment to sink in, then Mingyan paled. —Then…

—Yes, Baba went to the brothels to see my mother, then after her death, he went to see me, since I was being raised by the madam as her granddaughter, he also has a great relationship with some of the girls there and calls them sisters, they don't work at the brothel anymore thought, Baba bought them a house and now they are free.

—Free? 

Ning Yingying was now the surprised one. —Yes? Does Liu-shijie not know how a brothel works? You think the girls work there because they want to? They are either sold as some kind of slave, or they have to sold themselves and sign a contract that won't let them go until they are able to buy it themselves, but is either that or dying of cold and hunger in the streets.

—I see…

Ning Yingying understood her somehow, she did believe that until her Baba explained it to her, not to mention, Liu Mingyan was a young lady of a noble family that believed in honor and thought that immoral acts like those would just be done by immoral people, also, she did study under Qi Qingqi, that was such a sheltered, judgmental and an actual spoiled young lady from a rich and noble family. 

—It's not to be judgemental nor anything, I'm also quite sheltered myself as Baba spoils me a lot, but Qi-shigu, I have heard her spoke bad of the brothel ladies, she is the real spoiled young lady, she always talks about helping women, and I'm sure she does as she accepts a lot of girls that are clearly poor and have all their hope in being accepted in the sect, but she also insults those that need the most help, or do you really think prostitutes like to sell themselves just to eat instead of having a normal life? Even if they are bought you won't know if they'll have a good life, take my mother as an example. 

—Your mother?

—Yes, she had her contract bought by a noble and was turned into his concubine, she got pregnant and the official wife tried to kill her so she ran away back to my Baba, he actually doesn't admit it in front of me, but I know a little of medicine as Baba has taught me, and I'm pretty sure she died because she was pregnant of me and had to travel all the way while expecting me, that must surely have caused her death, it was too bad Baba didn't get to buy her contract at time.

—I'm really sorry for that.

—It was not your fault, why would you be sorry? As long as you don't talk bad of my Baba with others it'll be fine, I'm just saying this, because normally prostitutes are the first to die when a demon roams around hiding between people, and they also know a lot of what happens around, consider that for your next missions.

—I will make sure to keep that in mind.

—Now Liu-shijie, I do like you a lot, you are so pretty and proper as well as strong. Tell me, what kind of literature do you like? Or maybe we could talk about poetry or paintings. What do you think? 

Mingyan smiled. —I like reading, in fact…— she started to take out a book from her Qiankun pouch —Maybe I could introduce you to a popular novel my martial sisters at Xian Shu enjoy a lot.

.

.

.

—Shen Qingqiu!! 

Closing his eyes. Shen Jiu tried not to break the fan in his hand as he kept going through the dance moves he was teaching the girls. The three of them, though, completely lost concentration as they saw the Bai Zhan peak lord approach them while holding a dead beast over his head as he started to descend from the sky in his sword. 

—Concentrate.

The girls once again focused on their Shizun and kept following his lead. Liu Qingge stepped down his sword as he saw how Shen Qingqiu jumped high and twirled in the air before going down, his disciples imitating him, Zhang Huimei managing to do it perfectly, while Ning Yingying lacked strength on her jump and Mao Shi landed on her face.

—Mao Shi, you need to practice more. 

—I'm sorry Shizun— she said as she started to get up, her face dirty and a small cut on her forehead. 

Shen Qingqiu frowned and went to her, taking out a handkerchief and cleaning her face. —Ying'er, help your Shimei with that cut.

—Yes Shizun. 

As he saw his daughter take care of it, Shen Jiu turned around to glare at Liu Qingge, who was still staring like an idiot. 

—Liu Qingge, what's the meaning of this?

The Bai Zhan peak lord put the carcass on the floor, blood dripping from the open wound of the beast.

—This is a-

—What are you doing?! You are ruining our training place!! 

Taken aback, Liu Qingge blinked in surprise. —But you are just dancing, you can do that anywhere. 

—Does that mean the place has to reek of blood? And this is the only place in the peak where we can have privacy, of course you had to come and ruin it! 

Pursing his lips, the Bai Zhan peak lord looked at the dead beast.

—This is a horned striped bear, it… helps with one's cultivation, I just… thought that, as you don't let me repay you, I must take things into my hands, so I brought this, the horns can be made medicine, the skin is good for clothes and the meat is nutritious. 

—I don't need any dead animal Liu Qingge, just leave me alone— he turned around to look at her disciples —Ning Yingying, take your Shimei to the bamboo hut and make sure the wound closes well and doesn't leave a scar, Zhang Huimei, go practice on your own, you are lacking coordination, although your strength and control is good. 

—Shen Qing- 

—Liu Qingge, leave.me.alone.

The fourth of them saw the man walk away. Ning Yingying looked at her Baba and then at her Liu-shibo.

—Liu-shibo, you can deliver the meat to the kitchens, ah, but don't let the cooks touch it, me and my martial sibling will prepare it.

Frowning, the man asked. —Why not let them touch it, they are here to cook.

—Because if the food is for Shizun they'll make it bland tasting and disgusting, they don't like Shizun, and Shizun doesn't care if the food tastes good or not as he barely eats anything in the peak, but if I bring him the food he will eat for sure.

Liu Qingge nodded and once again lifted the carcass and made his way towards the kitchens, waiting there and glaring at the cooks until Ning Yingying, the girl from before and two other disciples came to him.

—Liu-shibo, as an advice, if you really want Shizun to accept the beasts for him to eat, please bring the meat ready to be cooked and the different parts already cleaned and ready to process, also, say it is for us, or he will never accept anything. 

—I understand, but… why are you helping me? 

At his question, Ning Yingying's cheeks colored slightly. —I just… had a conversation with Liu-shijie, she told me how you want to show how much you regret your past actions, so I will help you.

Remembering that this was Shen Qingqiu's daughter, and how his sister had told him that she really cared about the man and wanted his reputation to improve, he accepted her words and nodded.

—I will do as you say from now on.

—Yes, you have to show perseverance, Shizun doesn't trust people easily— she said and then looked at the two boys with her and her Shimei —Ming-shixiong, Luo-shidi, you two will take care of the beast, I'll have a talk with the cooks. 

The Bai Zhan peak lord watched this for a moment before going away. The next few days he spent his time hunting down other beasts and doing as Ning Yingying had told him, yet he was still being rejected.

Frustrated, he went to talk with the only person that came to mind.

—What can I do? I owe him my life and he won't let me repay him.

Mu Qingfang looked at him. —That… might be a little bit my fault and Zhangmen-shixiong's.

—Is it… because of what you told me?

—Yes, I was getting to know Shixiong for the past years. He was finally opening up more, it is hard to get his trust and now I have lost it, Zhangmen-shixiong hasn't dared to go look for him after what happened. 

—But, Zhangmen-shixiong spoils him and gives him everything he wants as well as expensive gifts. Why would he not trust him? He always defends him.

Mu Qingfang frowned, remembering the fight on the cave. —I don't think he trusts him at all, more like, he feels like he has to do those things, He also disrespects Shen-shixiong's wishes constantly, calling him by names the other doesn't want to hear, for me it feels like Zhangmen-shixiong wants to compensate for something, but Shen-shixiong doesn't want to be compensated, not when he doesn't even get trust from the other.

The War god could not understand, Yue Qingyuan was a man of honor, a respectable sect leader and man that worried about the sect, always kind, so different from Shen Qingqiu, but it looked like the man could not stop going after the Qing Jing peak lord like a dog.

Why would you defend someone you don't trust? Why always be on their side and let them do whatever they wanted if you were going to think the worst of them at a critical moment? 

—Shen-shixiong is not a bad person, he just… has a temper. Honestly, who of our martial siblings doesn't have one? The difference is they have a temper while berating Shen-shixiong, while he only gets angry at them for going against him for every little thing, not to mention, during these fights, have you ever truly seen Zhangmen-shixiong being on Shen Qingqiu's side? 

—What?

—I only remember seeing Zhangmen-shixiong reprimanding him like a child before Shen-shixiong finally snapped at him and everyone started to berate him for that, then he would try to gift something to him and Shen-shixiong would of course reject it.

—But, that's rude, to reject the presents, and they were all expensive. Why would he reject them? 

—Liu-shixiong, people have the right to reject something, you know? Etiquette says one must accept the gift and give something in return, but you still have free will and can still reject them, you would never accept a gift from someone you hate, or an enemy, sure, the two of them are neither, but that doesn't change the fact that they do have a bad relationship and Shen Qingqiu can decide whether to accept the gifts or not the same way he can decide whether to accept what you bring to him.

—I… understand.

Mu Qingfang watched the other's expression.  —Shen-shixiong has probably not recovered completely, he knows about medicine and I assume he does like it, maybe he wouldn't turn away rare plants or materials for medicine, although I'm not against you giving him beasts, he does need to eat, even if as an immortal he can do inedia, for him is not recommended. 

—That Ning girl did say something about him not eating. 

—Well yes, he's actually pretty skinny, he hides it under layers of robes, but it's easy for me to notice, I have never seen him eat more than the occasional snack. 

—Then I'll keep bringing beasts, his disciples will prepare them and cook them.

—Good, I will have to send my head disciple to check on him. Shen-shixiong is closing himself to others, it's good that you do go and interact with him.

—But… he 's close to Shang Qinghua.

—What?— he asked.

—Yes, the rat told me, he… also told me to investigate Shen Qingqiu's family.

—His family?

The man took a moment before nodding. —I didn't find any Shen family related to him, and when I asked him, he admitted that he was not one, he said he was… a street rat, or so he said.

—Mm, I guessed as much, honestly, I just didn't want to… actually accept it.

—What do you mean you guessed it? 

—Liu Qingge, I'm a healer, even though I have not been permitted to treat Shen-shixiong fully, I'm still his doctor, after knowing he was an apprentice of an apothecary, it was easy to infer that he was from a normal family, but then, I have seen how he has always been too skinny, how his cultivation was a little crippled and how he always gave us everything to fit the image of the Qing Jing peak lord almost as if it was necessary, so he was rather very poor or… maybe an orphan of the streets, the last would explain his lack of trust, I had disciples like that.

The healer thought about it for a moment, while looking at the new formula for a medicine he was trying to create.

—Although I have to say that it surprises me to hear that Shang-shixiong and Shen-shixiong are close, they never truly talk, but then looking back to recent sect meetings, Shen-shixiong was helping Shang-shixiong and the other trusted him with documents.

—You are quite observant…

—I'm a healer, if I wasn't then it would be difficult to notice when you or the others are injured— he sighed —For now anyway, you will have to put a lot of effort if you want Shen-shixiong to even accept your gifts, try with what I told you, and with his disciples, he cares a lot for them, so if they have a good opinion of you he might be more open to accept you.

For some reason Liu Qingge felt like the conversation was directed to another direction from what he was talking about, just like when he was with his sister, still, he just nodded. 

Two days later Shen Qingqiu had to watch as Liu Qingge brought more meat and things as well as medicinal flowers as some kind of tribute or peace truce. The man looked at all the things offered and quietly took some of the herbs that he thought might be useful in the making of the medicine he was working on. Immediately after he opened his fan to hide his face.

—Don't get used to it.

He said dryly before going inside his hut and closing the door. The war god didn't quite register what had happened until he looked to the side, where Ning Yingying and Liu Mingyan were giving him the thumbs up from some shrubs. After he delivered the rest of the things to the disciples, he went back to his peak, a faint smile appearing on his face without him noticing. 

Chapter Text

—What are you all doing?

Ming Fan was startled by the sudden voice and the shadow over his scroll. He quickly looked up to see Deng Tengfei standing behind him.

On the grass, Mao Shi and Luo Binghe were reading what seemed to be a bestiary, they both opened their eyes in surprise as they saw the Qian Cao head disciple standing there.

—Deng-shixiong— Ming Fan went to stand up but the other just put his hands on his shoulders and kept him sitting.

—Ah, don't waste time with greetings and such, I'm here in my free time, I want to talk to someone that doesn't talk about medicine all the time.

He simply sat down on the stone bench right next to Ming Fan. 

—So? What are you all doing?— he asked in a calm voice.

—I'm reading a technique book I exchanged with my credits. They are studying for Shizun's next quiz in class, if they answer well they might get some credits.

—I see, what is your technique about?