Kong Youyue

The news that the grand mage Bai Yuanzhi was residing on Snow Stone Mountain spread quickly throughout the Yi Water region.

On the mountain path of Snow Stone Mountain.

"Halt." A checkpoint had been set up on the mountain path; Snow Stone Castle was not a place just anyone could enter. A group of soldiers watched as several young men and women approached the checkpoint. These youths were dressed plainly and possessed an ordinary air, clearly commoners.

"What are you here for?" one soldier barked.

"Kind sirs," a pretty young woman said quickly, "we heard that a grand mage is living on Snow Stone Mountain, so we wish to seek an audience with him, hoping to be taken in as his disciples."

"That's right, kind sirs, please show some leniency and let us go see the grand mage," the youths added one after another.

They were all very young, filled with longing for the future!

How high was the status of a mage? They all yearned to become one as well.

"Hmph, hmph." The captain in charge of the checkpoint, a lean middle-aged man, sneered, "You little ones, let me ask you: do you even have mage talent?"

"We don't know."

"Once the grand mage sees us, he will know if we have talent."

The youths spoke up in succession.

"What a joke!" the lean middle-aged man scoffed. "How precious is the grand mage's time? Why would he see you so easily? Besides, you come here without even knowing if you have mage talent? Do you think the grand mage is going to test you one by one?"

"Perhaps one of us has high talent and will be favored by the grand mage," a girl said immediately.

"Alright, alright." The middle-aged soldier shook his head. "Go on, go on. These past few days, I've already lost count of how many dreamers like you I've seen! Youngsters, look at reality! Back in my day, to learn battle qi, I specifically joined the army and went through several brushes with death! Who do you think you are, that the grand mage would take you as disciples?"

"I'll tell you the truth: the grand mage has long since ordered that he will not see any guests! He won't even see nobles, let alone the likes of you," the middle-aged soldier said.

"Ah."

The youths looked at each other, feeling helpless.

The soldiers in charge of guarding the post were loyal to their duties and would not let them in no matter what; no matter how they pleaded, it was useless.

Not long after.

A carriage came speeding over, followed by a large group of cavalry. The carriage was magnificent and faintly inlaid with magic arrays, ensuring that no matter how fast it traveled, the cabin remained incredibly steady.

"Stop." The soldiers of the Snow Eagle Territory shouted as before.

"We are from the Cao Clan of Yuncui Territory. Our master wishes to pay a visit to your lord," the coachman driving the carriage said.

"The Cao Clan of Yuncui Territory?"

The soldiers looked at each other.

There were not many great clans in Yi Water City, and the Cao Clan of Yuncui Territory could barely rank in the top ten. Back when the Snow Eagle Territory was weaker, the Cao Clan had been a cut above! Now that Dongbo Xueying was considered the number one expert in all of Yi Water City, the gap between the Cao Clan and the Dongbo Clan had grown even wider.

"No more than ten soldiers may go up the mountain," the lean middle-aged captain said. "This is an order issued by the Lord, please understand."

"This..." The coachman hesitated.

"Fine. Old Pan, you five come up the mountain with me; the others stay here," a voice came from inside the carriage.

"Yes."

Five powerful knights, who clearly possessed an extraordinary aura, followed the carriage past the checkpoint and up the mountain.

"We also want to visit the Lord; let us go up the mountain too," a young woman nearby who had been unwilling to give up immediately shouted.

"Hmph, hmph, visit our Lord? The grand mage won't see you, so you think our Lord will?" The lean middle-aged man shook his head and sneered. "Alright, you'd better give up."

During the period leading up to the New Year, Snow Stone Castle was busier than ever before.

The commoners hoping for a stroke of luck were one thing, but many nobles from within the Yi Water region also came to visit. Since the grand mage would not see guests, they sought an audience with Dongbo Xueying! They wanted to ask Dongbo Xueying to help them get the grand mage to accept a nominal disciple. They figured... since the grand mage had settled here, he would surely give the lord, Dongbo Xueying, some face.

However—

Dongbo Xueying would not see any guests either! Zong Ling helped block them all.

In the morning.

A manservant ran toward the bamboo building on the back mountain, but the building was empty; Dongbo Xueying was nowhere to be seen.

"Lord, Lord," the manservant shouted loudly.

The sound carried...

Halfway up the back mountain, a mountain spring rushed down from a height, crashing into the pool below, with a stream winding its way into the distance.

On a large rock beside the pool, Dongbo Xueying listened to the sound of the mountain spring while practicing a set of fist techniques—the battle qi method, the Flame Three-Stage Method. As he practiced, his full strength surged; every move Dongbo Xueying made possessed a coordinated grace, with every ounce of power in his body perfectly mobilized, naturally drawing in the fire energy from the heavens and earth.

The fire energy of the world was continuously drawn into his body, transforming into flame battle qi.

"Hoo, ha..."

With every move and every breath, Dongbo Xueying felt as if countless flames were drilling into his body, his physique constantly strengthening as it absorbed the external energy.

He had only recently awakened his Primordial Bloodline, and both his battle qi and his physical body were growing at a rapid pace. Dongbo Xueying practiced his fist techniques to perfectly master every shred of this rapidly increasing power.

"Lord." A voice drifted over from afar.

"Hm?" Dongbo Xueying stopped abruptly and looked up toward the top.

"I generally don't see those nobles, so why have they come looking for me?" Dongbo Xueying wondered aloud, picking up the Flying Snow Spear beside him.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

He transformed into a blur. To an ordinary person, it would feel as though a mere shadow had flickered past, and Dongbo Xueying would have vanished from their field of vision. This was the terrifying speed of an expert!

"Swish!" A phantom image flickered before the bamboo building, and Dongbo Xueying appeared.

"What is it?" Dongbo Xueying asked.

The manservant was startled by the sudden appearance of the lord, but upon hearing the inquiry, he hurriedly replied, "It is Lord Zong Ling's instruction. He said that the old lord's friend, Lord Kong Hai, has arrived and requests your presence."

"Uncle Kong?" Dongbo Xueying nodded slightly.

Aside from Uncle Zong and Uncle Tong, his father had very few friends! His grandfather had originally fled to Yi Water City as a beggar during a famine. Because his grandfather was an outsider, he had been isolated and bullied in the mountain village. After he lost his life while hunting in the mountains, his father had left to join the army without any attachments, eventually cultivating battle qi and continuing to live life on the edge even after retiring.

His friends were mostly from his time in the army, and because his father had spent so long adventuring, most of those connections had long since faded. Only Kong Hai had visited frequently. He had seen him many times as a child, and even after his parents were taken away, Kong Hai had come to visit once. Over the years, he had also sent people to deliver New Year gifts, and Dongbo Xueying would send gifts in return, maintaining a modicum of their old bond.

However, with his parents gone, it had been a long time since Kong Hai had come in person.

"Haha, Xueying! It's been a few years, and you've already become the number one expert in our Yi Water City. Truly remarkable!" Inside the living room, a plump middle-aged man stood up with a smile as he saw Dongbo Xueying walk in.

"Uncle Kong Hai." Dongbo Xueying nodded with a smile.

Kong Hai was secretly regretting his past neglect.

After retiring from the army, he had become a merchant, smooth and well-connected, with a vast circle of friends. Dongbo Lie had been just one of many. After Dongbo Lie and his wife were taken away, he had come to Snow Stone Castle once to comfort the young Dongbo brothers, but he hadn't returned since. It was only out of a merchant's habit that he had continued to send New Year gifts to maintain the connection.

In truth, every year he sent large quantities of gifts to various friends, and he would personally visit the more important ones.

He hadn't paid much attention to the two sons left behind by his old friend, but who could have imagined that this 'Dongbo Xueying' would single-handedly wipe out the terrifying Curved Blade Alliance? It was simply inconceivable!

"Come, Youyue, greet your brother Xueying." The chubby Kong Hai pulled the hand of a young girl in green beside him.

"Brother Xueying." The girl in green looked a bit shy.

"Youyue?" Dongbo Xueying smiled. "You've grown so much. I saw you when you were little, though I doubt you remember; you were only four or five back then."

He had met Kong Youyue when he was a child. She was Kong Hai's eldest daughter, three years younger than him.

"I came today because I have a favor to ask of you, Xueying," Kong Hai said with a smile. "Youyue has a talent for magic, and I want her to study under a Grand Mage, even if it's just as a registered disciple! I've brought the five thousand gold coins required for the apprenticeship! But the Grand Mage has so many registered disciples that he might not pay much attention to an ordinary one... I was hoping you could step in, so the Grand Mage would surely value Youyue more."

"Oh, is that all? Uncle Kong Hai, rest assured." Dongbo Xueying nodded in agreement.

When a Grand Mage took on disciples, they were strictly about the money.

A personal disciple cost fifty thousand gold coins!

A registered disciple cost five thousand gold coins! Of course, there were quotas.

But fifty thousand gold coins was an astronomical price for the nobles of Yi Water City. To this day, only Dongbo Xueying had managed to satisfy the Grand Mage by presenting the heart of the Silver Moon Wolf King!

Five thousand gold coins for a registered disciple was also a high price, and many nobles wanted to use Dongbo Xueying to plead their case just to save a bit of money.

And yet, Kong Hai had already prepared the five thousand gold coins! For Dongbo Xueying, merely saying a word was indeed a trivial matter.

"In the future, when Youyue studies magic under the Grand Mage and lives on Snow Stone Mountain for a long time, I hope you will take care of her, Xueying," Kong Hai said.

"It's a small matter. There are plenty of rooms in the castle; I will set one aside for Youyue," Dongbo Xueying replied. He often cultivated in the bamboo building on the back mountain, so he could just give the order for such things.

"Hahaha... come to think of it, your father and I once said that if you two children got along well, we should arrange a marriage between you," Kong Hai laughed heartily.

"Father!" Youyue's face turned beet red.

"It still depends on your own wishes, of course. Your parents said the same back then; we wouldn't force it," Kong Hai said with a smile. "If I had a son-in-law who was the number one expert in Yi Water City, haha, I'd be grinning from ear to ear."

"Father, that's enough." Youyue couldn't help it anymore. She was still young and thin-skinned, and she couldn't handle the embarrassment.

Kong Hai watched his daughter with a smile.

He had indeed discussed the marriage of their children when he chatted with Dongbo Lie and his wife years ago, but they had both insisted on 'letting the children decide.'

But he was bringing it up again now!

It was because he thought highly of Dongbo Xueying and hoped his daughter would become his wife! Once that happened, the status of the Kong family would rise accordingly.

He didn't even care about the Grand Mage Bai Yuanzhi! Apprenticeship? As a merchant, he could have his daughter choose any Heaven-rank mage as a teacher; why spend five thousand gold coins to apprentice under a Grand Mage?

These five thousand gold coins weren't for the Grand Mage!

They were for Dongbo Xueying!

Because the Grand Mage lived on Snow Stone Mountain!

He wanted his daughter to live on Snow Stone Mountain and spend her days with Dongbo Xueying. Over time, it was highly likely that his daughter would end up with him.

A merchant had to be farsighted and know when to invest. Kong Hai had managed to go from a common soldier to a fairly well-known merchant; he was certainly capable.

That very day, Dongbo Xueying personally introduced them to Grand Mage Bai Yuanzhi!

Upon receiving the five thousand gold coins, Bai Yuanzhi's old face crinkled into a smile, and he promised to cultivate Kong Youyue well.

That evening, Kong Hai departed, entrusting Dongbo Xueying to look after Kong Youyue.

In truth...

Dongbo Xueying was no longer a child, and having been precocious since he was young, he could clearly see through Kong Hai's intentions—partly because Kong Hai had made them so obvious! As for this little sister 'Kong Youyue' he had met as a child, Dongbo Xueying really didn't have any romantic thoughts. She was still young, only thirteen after the New Year, her body not yet fully developed; she was just a green, immature little girl.

"Swish." "Whoosh."

The long spear danced.

Dongbo Xueying lived in seclusion in the bamboo building behind the mountain, practicing his spear techniques. The spear shadows whistled, and the Flying Snow Divine Spear naturally stirred up drifting snowflakes. Amidst the snow, the figure of the youth in black appeared ethereal and uncertain, as if the man and the spear had merged into one.

"Xueying, Xueying." The lion-man Tong San hurried over in person, his long strides causing the frozen snow beneath his feet to crack.

"Uncle Tong?" Dongbo Xueying retracted his spear.

"Lord Si An, the master of Dragon Mountain Tower, has arrived," Tong San said.

Dongbo Xueying's eyes lit up. Finally, he had come. Was there finally news of his parents?

"Let's go." Dongbo Xueying didn't even bother to change his clothes, immediately rushing toward the castle with Tong San.