A Figure at the Window at Night

Not long after Su Xianling left, someone knocked on Chu Heng's door again. He got up and opened it to find a Spirit Hall staff member standing outside.

"Chu Heng, here's your living allowance for this month."

The man tossed him a Qiankun Bag. Chu Heng caught it and checked inside. To his surprise, the little bag held a hundred Soul Coins.

Spirit Hall sure is generous. That's almost a year's income for my family.

"Thank you, sir," Chu Heng replied politely.

The man smiled. He glanced up at the ceiling at the end of the corridor, then turned his back to it and spoke in a low voice.

"Kid, Lady Xianling has decided to teach you herself. You don't need to follow the schedule; just ask her what she has planned. There's also a cafeteria on the second floor. They serve three meals a day, and you can eat there for free, so don't worry about that."

His tone was ingratiating. He lingered at the door, apparently trying to think of anything he might have missed, but left without adding anything.

Chu Heng watched him go and shook his head. One person rises, and everyone around him benefits. He had only just become Su Xianling's little brother, and already this man had gone out of his way to curry favor with him.

With nothing else to do, Chu Heng decided to walk around Spirit Hall and familiarize himself with the area.

As for his first stop...

After a moment's thought, he decided to find Su Yuntao.

"Spirit Hall Administrative District ahead. Stop there!"

When Chu Heng reached the district, a Spirit Hall guard on duty held out an arm to block his way.

"Sir, I'm here to see Administrator Su Yuntao."

It had been less than two hours since he and Su Yuntao had parted. Chu Heng could only hope Su Yuntao wasn't too busy and hadn't received another assignment.

"You're looking for Administrator Su Yuntao? What's your relationship to him?"

It was a routine question, but one of the guards headed into the district to fetch him anyway.

"Um..."

Chu Heng wasn't sure whether to reveal who he was. Judging by how Su Yuntao had acted inside Spirit Hall earlier, he clearly didn't want others to know they were close.

Then Chu Heng remembered the man who had brought his allowance. Before offering that advice, the man had deliberately shifted his position. Spirit Hall probably had something like an Image-Recording Stone, and likely didn't allow its staff to get too close to disciples like him.

Chu Heng hesitated so long that the guard questioning him grew irritated. But since he was only a child, the guard put it down to nerves and didn't press him.

Fortunately, less than two minutes later, the guard who had gone inside returned with Su Yuntao behind him.

As soon as Su Yuntao came close, the other guard greeted him.

"Administrator Su, this child said he wanted to see you. I asked how he knew you, but he wouldn't say, so I'm sorry to have troubled you to come out."

Su Yuntao smiled at the guard before answering.

"Thanks for the effort. He's a nephew of mine. He came specifically to see me."

With that, Su Yuntao stepped closer and patted the guard's chest twice. The guard looked down, and his eyes lit up.

"Well, if he's your nephew, Administrator Su, that settles it. Go on and take him in."

The guard laughed and warmly ushered Chu Heng toward Su Yuntao.

"Mm."

Su Yuntao took Chu Heng's hand from the guard and led him into the district.

Only after they reached Su Yuntao's own quarters did he turn to Chu Heng.

"What's wrong? Did you need something?"

Chu Heng chuckled and scratched his head.

"Not really. I just missed you, Uncle Su."

A smile spread across Su Yuntao's face.

"You're a big boy now. What are you saying things like that for?"

Then his expression turned serious.

"Little Chu Heng, you did the right thing back there. Don't reveal your identity to outsiders. Even though you belong to Spirit Hall, some people might set their sights on you and cause trouble you don't need."

"Mm-hmm, I understand, Uncle Su."

Chu Heng nodded, then suddenly added,

"Uncle Su, not long after you left, Sister Su Xianling came to see me. She said she was willing to teach me..."

Su Xianling didn't seem like someone who would hurt him, but Chu Heng still wanted to learn as much as he could about the sister he had only just met. It would make it easier to "win her over" later.

"What!"

At the sound of Su Xianling's name, Su Yuntao jolted.

"Are you telling the truth?!"

Excited, Su Yuntao gripped Chu Heng's shoulders and shook him.

"It's true. Sister Su also said the hall master asked her to come help..."

Chu Heng told Su Yuntao what had happened.

The mention of the hall master convinced Su Yuntao that Chu Heng was telling the truth. He clapped his hands sharply.

"Chu Heng, you must make the most of this chance. Treat Lady Su Xianling well."

Su Yuntao then told Chu Heng what he knew about Su Xianling.

In truth, he knew very little. Someone in his position rarely had a chance to meet her. He had heard his colleagues talk about her often enough, though, and caught a glimpse of her once or twice. That was how he had formed his opinion.

She had reached the rank of Soul King at only twenty. Coming from a much bigger place, she naturally didn't think much of the others at the Nott City branch hall and was usually cold toward them. Yet when it came to major Spirit Hall affairs, her decisions were sound, and she handled matters so fairly that no one could fault her.

Su Yuntao's description mostly matched the Su Xianling Chu Heng knew, except for one thing...

To Chu Heng, Su Xianling was playful and mischievous, not cold as Su Yuntao claimed.

Could Su Xianling be the type who turns unbelievably sweet with people she likes?

Chu Heng's imagination began to wander, but he quickly came back to himself and nodded at Su Yuntao, who was still offering him advice.

The two chatted a little longer. During their conversation, the system issued a notice:

[Missed story check-in: Become the Grandmaster's disciple]

The notice had actually appeared while Su Xianling had Chu Heng standing as punishment. At the time, he had been in no shape to reach the story event and could only let it pass. Now that the system had marked it as missed, Tang San must have already become Yu Xiaogang's disciple.

Su Yuntao told Chu Heng to head back on his own and said he could have dinner on the second floor of Spirit Hall.

After dinner, Chu Heng returned straight to his room. He planned to try out its meditation chamber and see what difference it made to his cultivation.

Just then, that familiar figure appeared outside his window, standing alone in the quiet night.