"Yo, You Su, where are you headed?" asked a bearded uncle carrying a jug of wine.
"I'm going to the City Lord's Mansion for a meal. Uncle Liu, don't drink too much."
"Good, good! You've made something of yourself now. From here on, come buy fried dough sticks from me—I won't charge you!" Uncle Liu laughed heartily twice, then slipped past him and walked away.
You Su walked down the street, and nearly everyone stopped to exchange a few words with him.
Warmth filled his heart. Though he was a cultivator, he was blind, an orphan, and had struggled alone to keep the sect afloat for all sorts of reasons. Naturally, he had become part of the vulnerable class in the eyes of these ordinary people. Now that he was putting on a show of a weakling making a comeback, You Su could feel that they were sincerely happy for him.
In truth, You Su was happy too. The journey to the Divine Mountain had finally yielded results, and he had genuinely grown stronger. On the road to saving his junior sister and Mistress, he had taken a tremendous step forward.
He drew a deep breath and continued on his way. Suddenly, he noticed something flash before his eyes. He tried to catch that flicker with his eyes again, but to no avail. Only after releasing his Spiritual Sense did he realize that it was a lantern, blown into motion by the wind. The candle inside flickered between light and darkness before finally going out.
You Su did not pay it much mind. He was far more sensitive to such abrupt changes in light and darkness than before. With the help of that piece of rotting flesh, he believed that one day he would regain his sight, and his joy grew even stronger.
In a corner where no one noticed, a pitch-black, bat-like creature huddled in the darkness beneath the eaves. It fixed its eyes on You Su's departing back, its two rows of buck teeth twitching wantonly.
The City Lord's Mansion was bustling with visitors, its lights blazing brightly.
The guests invited by Gu Yao arrived one after another, chatting merrily among themselves. When You Su blended into their ranks, no one approached him for conversation.
After entering the main pavilion, a servant led You Su to his assigned seat. There were quite a few people at this banquet—forty-one in all, including the sect masters. Thus, it was not one large table. Instead, forty-one small tables had been arranged throughout the vast main hall, with everyone's seats ordered from highest to lowest status.
You Su sensed his position and found that it was actually directly below Gu Yao, City Lord Liu, and the six sect masters. The seat opposite him belonged to Wu Cheng.
Before long, Gu Yao and City Lord Liu arrived. Everyone rose to welcome them. Only after City Lord Liu gave the order did they all take their seats, and fine wine and delicacies were brought out one after another.
You Su was not accustomed to gatherings like this, nor did he understand why these people, despite being cultivators, were so eager to raise cups and exchange toasts. To Spirit Platform Realm cultivators, even the finest mortal wine was hard to drink enough to get drunk on, let alone the few people seated at the top, who were in the Condensing Water Realm. Gu Yao was even a great cultivator of the Feather Transformation Realm.
Since none of them could get the other drunk, what was the point of desperately toasting Gu Yao?
Still, he was not some aloof man utterly ignorant of etiquette. He silently raised his cup as well and toasted each of the several people seated above him.
You Su could hardly be said to have any connection with the six sect masters. He was somewhat familiar with a few of their disciples, though. Among the six sect masters, some said nothing and drained the toast You Su offered in a single gulp, while others wore kind expressions and praised You Su as they drank.
During the banquet, two unfamiliar young cultivators toasted You Su and exchanged a few brief words with him. You Su could sense that the two genuinely wanted to befriend him. As for Wu Cheng's toast, You Su hesitated for a while, then merely took a small sip and let it go.
As the banquet continued, the topic naturally shifted to this inscrutable blind top-scorer. Gu Yao, however, saw how awkward You Su was and quickly took control of the conversation, preventing them from lingering on the subject. His method was, naturally, to announce the affiliation of the subsidiary sect.
When Gu Yao announced that the Sky Guard Sect had become a subsidiary sect of the Xuanxiao Sect, no one was surprised. Only the remaining five sect masters showed a trace of dimness in their eyes. Everyone raised their cups to congratulate Sect Master Qi, and Qi Daodong responded to each toast with a radiant smile.
Next to be revealed was the greatest suspense of the night—the recipient of the Xuanxiao Sect's Auditory Disciple qualification.
Of those present, only the few who had learned the result beforehand failed to show nervous anticipation. Everyone else, like actors on a stage, put on an equally marvelous silent drama as the suspense unfolded:
When it was announced that You Su had obtained the Auditory Disciple qualification, everyone wore a different expression. Some were furious, some helpless, and only a very few showed approval;
Then, when Gu Yao announced that Wu Cheng had been made a Formal Disciple by special exception, everyone was once again filled with envy and shock. It was as if someone from their village had finally gotten into Tsinghua University. Their gazes toward You Su also carried varying degrees of schadenfreude;
But when Gu Yao explained that You Su had voluntarily given up the Formal Disciple position, those people became regretful, confused, and incredulous once more. They were furious that You Su truly lived up to being blind—he was genuinely shortsighted.
You Su was not disturbed by the outside world. He settled his heart and stopped paying attention to their changing gazes, instead considering which dishes in front of him he should pack up for his junior sister to taste later. The food was not particularly delicious, but every dish consisted of rare delicacies from the mountains and seas.
The banquet finally ended, and everyone agreed to see Gu Yao off tomorrow morning.
Gu Yao smiled and tacitly agreed. Without the Lotus Sword Venerable's orders, he would indeed have returned to the sect. It would also be awkward to go back on his word and deliberately remain in Chuyun City, so he secretly decided to put on the appearance of leaving, making it more convenient to protect You Su in secret.
When they were parting, Gu Yao called You Su over and told him when he would need to report.
It turned out that Formal Disciples had a fixed reporting period: the beginning of spring each year. Auditory Disciples had no such restriction and could go at any time, but they could only attend lectures for one year from the day they reported. You Su was quite pleased with this arrangement. He wished he could set out tomorrow.
However, You Su had to bring his entire Household along. He also had to find a way to keep the junior sister and Mistress's possession from being exposed along the way, while matters such as carriages and routes still needed to be settled. This journey to the Divine Mountain was no trip where he could simply leave on a whim.
But compared with securing a foothold in the Divine Mountain, these difficulties no longer amounted to much. The Divine Mountain stood at the peak of the entire continent. As long as they arrived there safely, he would certainly find a way to save his junior sister and Mistress. You Su also knew he could not let his guard down; exposing their possession too early would not be a good thing.
After returning to the sect, Ji Lingruo seemed unwilling to accept that You Su had already comprehended sword intent while she was still an idiot who could not freely control Mystic Qi. She came to find You Su early to learn how to circulate qi. Under You Su's strict order, however, she changed into clothes that covered her body before the lesson began.
After the lesson ended, the first autumn rain arrived without warning. It poured like the Milky Way spilling from the heavens, as though it meant to wash the entire world clean all over again.
Amid the roar of the rain, You Su fell asleep with hope in his heart.
The next morning, the rain stopped.
When Ji Lingruo called out to wake You Su, she muttered that there was such a heavy fog today. You Su paid no attention and hurried out to see Gu Yao off, only to be stopped by Wu Cheng on West Willow Road.
Wu Cheng harbored no ill will. He had brought two pieces of news that drove You Su to the brink of collapse:
First: A strange fog had descended from the heavens, and Chuyun City had been sealed off. Everyone was to remain at home and not move about.
Second: Gu Yao was dead.
Before you continue