Silver Snow rampaged through the hall, knocking over who knew how many disciples before stopping in front of a wooden chest amid a chorus of yelps.
Only then did Lan Yue put on a show of surprise. "Senior Sister, oh no! It looks like Silver Snow has run off in a temper. Let's go check before it hurts anyone!"
"Yes, we'd better chase after it. Silver Snow has a terrible temper. What if it tears down the Spirit Artifact Hall?" Li Bai nodded repeatedly.
"All right, let's hurry inside and see." Qing Zhu put away her oil-paper umbrella, her expression equally grave.
Beside them, Yun Xi clenched her fists, her face full of worry.
They were just about to enter when a group of elders flew down from the sky.
"Did Silver Snow just run off? We can't let it frighten the other spirit artifacts in the Spirit Artifact Hall. Hurry, let's take a look!" the Spirit Artifact Hall Master said anxiously.
The other elders looked incredibly solemn too, as though they intended to arrest Silver Snow and bring it to justice.
At the sight of this, Lan Yue's heart lurched.
[Lan Yue: Oh no, is Silver Snow going to be in trouble?]
"Silver Snow really is mischievous. Lan Yue, just have a proper talk with it later. Whatever you do, don't force it," Yun Chong added from behind them.
Of course, he meant every word. Silver Snow truly wasn't something they could control.
Lan Yue and the others breathed a sigh of relief. Following the trail Silver Snow had left, she found a small room in the innermost part of the Spirit Artifact Hall, where several old wooden chests stood.
She was still wondering what excuse she could use to explain this to everyone when Silver Snow swished a couple of times, and the chest instantly split into pieces.
An exceedingly scrawny boy lay curled up inside. His little face was as pale as snow, and his gray-blue robes hung from his body like a ragged sack.
Sensing the movement outside, he abruptly opened his eyes and glared fiercely at everyone.
At that moment, he was like a little wolf covered in wounds, trying to frighten his enemies away with a vicious glare.
"Is this... ten-thousand-year cold jade?" Yun Chong reached out, and a piece of ten-thousand-year cold jade tied around Yuan Shuo's neck flew into his hand.
Only after the ten-thousand-year cold jade was removed did everyone belatedly smell the heavy scent of blood on the boy, along with the vigorous vitality contained within it.
"Yuan Shuo." Unable to hold back any longer, the Spirit Artifact Hall Master dropped to one knee and carefully touched the boy's sunken cheek.
Yet the boy's eyes remained fierce, and he even sank his teeth hard into the man's finger.
Yuan Su didn't resist. He even withdrew all his defenses.
Before long, the boy had bitten his hand bloody.
Even Yuan Shuo froze briefly when he saw the bright red blood dripping down.
"You're Xiaxia's child. And I only realized it now!" The Spirit Artifact Hall Master's voice trembled.
"Why did I only realize it now? How could I only realize it now? I deserve to die. I truly deserve to die!"
In that instant, the Spirit Artifact Hall Master summoned his spirit artifact. He was about to stab himself, but Silver Snow immediately stopped him.
The long halberd fell to the ground with a clear clang.
"Don't, brother! If you do that, who's going to avenge Yuan Shuo?" Fang Ding was practically worrying himself sick beside him.
The moment they let their guard down, this fellow tried to hurt himself again. If Silver Snow hadn't stopped him in time, he would probably have stabbed himself before they could react.
"Yuan Shuo, don't be afraid. We'll get justice for everything you've suffered. You can rest easy." Fang Ding walked over and ruffled the boy's messy hair with his broad palm.
At the same time, he slipped two Life-Saving Pills into the boy's mouth.
This time, the boy didn't resist. Soon, following the gentle pressure of that hand, he slowly closed his eyes.
Before losing consciousness, he took one last look toward Lan Yue.
At this sight, the Spirit Artifact Hall Master, who had been frantic just moments earlier, stared wide-eyed.
He met Fang Ding's gaze, and they exchanged voice transmissions.
Yuan Su: What's going on? I'm Yuan Shuo's actual uncle! Why is this child closer to you instead?
Fang Ding rolled his eyes. All you cared about was hurting yourself. You didn't even give him pills to keep him alive. Who would trust you?
The Spirit Artifact Hall Master was speechless.
Yuan Su: How many spirit stones did those three pills you brought out today cost? I'll pay you back for all of them.
Fang Ding: We've known each other for so many years. Why bring that up? Hurry and take Yuan Shuo to Spirit Healer Valley for treatment.
Beside them, Lan Yue was moved too.
*[Lan Yue: Ah, that's Elder Fang for you. I remember that in the original novel, he was the elder who reached out to help Yuan Shuo. Even after Yuan Shuo went to the Demon Realm, he never forgot that kindness. He changed his name to Fang Shuo and even secretly saved Elder Fang's life several times.*
*How did a child who knew to repay kindness have such a miserable childhood? It's such a shame he ended up becoming a great demon who killed without blinking! The author really has no humanity! If I ever get back, I'm going to grab that author and shake them hard!]*
The Spirit Artifact Hall Master silently lifted Yuan Shuo into his arms. He gave Fang Ding a complicated look, left him with a few words, and vanished.
"Thank you for calming Yuan Shuo down. I, Yuan Su, owe you a favor."
Now that the protagonist had been rescued, Lan Yue finally breathed a full sigh of relief. Having these powerful figures from the Southern Spirit Sect investigate was better than fumbling around on her own.
As for the ghost creature's whereabouts, as long as the Sect Master and the others were attentive, they would surely discover clues. She had even less reason to worry about that.
Lan Yue looked around and asked in confusion, "Where's my master? I saw her just now. Why has she suddenly disappeared?"
She had wanted to ask her master about Divination, but hadn't expected her to be gone already.
"She's probably gone to look for the person who harmed our sect's disciple. Once Martial Aunt Guangji takes action, there's nothing she can't resolve," Li Bai explained, his eyes full of admiration.
His brain had previously short-circuited, making him remember his martial aunt as Fairy Guangji. After returning, he had reflected on his mistake and thoroughly crammed all the deeds his youngest martial aunt had accomplished over the years.
Only after listening to his master's accounts did he realize that the sect's many years of peace weren't due to a lack of unexpected incidents.
Nor was it because the space here was stable and no Demon Abyss Rifts had ever appeared. It was because Martial Aunt Guangji had guarded them all these years.
Lan Yue nodded. "That's right! When Master takes action, she's worth two people!"
That meant her master wouldn't be able to drag her out of bed early every day and leave her hanging in the sky all day long!
Yet she had celebrated too soon.
The next day, her master hauled her up again and set her on the large rock where the spirit tortoises on Spirit Moon Peak slept.
"Didn't you want to learn Divination? You can start sensing things now. This is an excellent spot for sensing the morning's purple qi. If you can successfully learn to harness the energy between heaven and earth, you'll soon reach minor attainment in Divination." Guangji folded her arms, her voice cool and clear as shattered jade.
"Then, Master, when will I be able to see things that have already happened, or even manifest images of the future?" Lan Yue's dark eyes sparkled.
"Sensing images of the future and manifesting them is only possible once you reach major attainment in Divination. Give up on that for now!"
Lan Yue wailed inwardly.
[Lan Yue: So digging into gossip myself is still the sweetest option. It saves both time and effort! Let me see what fresh gossip there is today...]
"Focus your attention. Concentrate!"
"Ow, ow! Master, don't hit me!"
"Only with single-minded focus can you achieve anything in your studies!"
"All right, all right! Your disciple will focus now. I'll focus!"
Before you continue