Not daring to trust

Far away, somewhere deep within the Xiao Clan compound, Yao Chen's soul form suddenly let out a mighty sneeze without warning. "Achoo-!"

Immediately afterward, Xiao Yan, who sat cross-legged beside him cultivating, seemed to sense something as well and followed with a loud sneeze. "Achoo-!"

"How strange. Why do I feel like someone's talking behind my back?" Yao Chen rubbed his nose, a trace of bewilderment appearing on his face.

At his little stall in the marketplace, Xiao Yi had no idea that his "brilliant" speech had already stirred a reaction from its subjects. Seeing the listeners before him laughing their heads off only made him feel more pleased with himself.

An even more "unfathomable" smile appeared on Xiao Yi's face. With a turn of his wrist, he fished his "tools of the trade" out from beneath the crude folding wooden table-a battered eight-trigram compass, several rust-covered copper coins, and a yellowed scroll with fraying edges. He actually looked somewhat like a wandering fortune-teller.

"Friends and neighbors, listening to stories is good fun, but stories alone won't quench your thirst! I, the great Master Xiao Yi, don't just tell these exclusive inside stories. I have even more impressive talents!"

He slapped the objects onto the table with a smack, lifted his chin, and made his announcement with a touch of pride.

"I am well versed in the I Ching Eight Trigrams and skilled at drawing fortune near and keeping calamity at bay. Whether it's fortune-telling and divination, treating illnesses and exorcising evil, assessing the feng shui of homes, or tracing dragon veins and pinpointing auspicious sites, there's nothing I, Master Xiao, can't handle! Fair prices, with no cheating of young or old! If you need anything, just ask. Satisfaction guaranteed!"

This sudden expansion of his business left the crowd, who had been listening with relish, stunned. They had enjoyed his gossip about the Xiao Clan because it was fresh and entertaining, but when it came to actually paying him to tell their fortunes or assess feng shui, unease began drumming in their hearts. After all, who would trust a half-grown boy like him, especially the notorious "Crazy Ghost"?

And so the crowd, which had packed the area so tightly that not even water could get through, rapidly dispersed like a punctured balloon. Some shook their heads, thinking the boy was growing more ridiculous by the day; some snickered, treating it as nothing more than a monkey show; others kindly urged him to hurry home before the Xiao Clan caught him and dragged him back for another beating.

Before long, Xiao Yi's stall was deserted. He sat all alone on his little folding stool, with his few "tools of the trade" laid out before him alongside a heap of "exclusive inside stories" nobody wanted.

Looking at the empty space around him, the smug smile on Xiao Yi's face gradually froze, replaced by a barely perceptible trace of disappointment. He pursed his lips and muttered under his breath.

"Tch. A bunch of common fools who can't recognize gold-inlaid jade when they see it. How could the likes of you see through this master's abilities so easily..."

Despite his words, he still felt somewhat hollow inside. He had worked so hard to dig a tunnel and escape, then spent ages talking, only for all that thunder to yield barely a drizzle. This was not the "rise to fame and glory" he had envisioned.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yan, sitting cross-legged in the Xiao Clan compound, was far from calm. All the glorious futures Yao Lao had promised kept echoing through his mind-becoming a mighty expert, roaming unchallenged across the continent, restoring his clan... Each rosy promise was a bigger, more tempting pie drawn on paper than the last.

Yet, for some reason, a sliver of unease lingered in Xiao Yan's heart. The days when his Dou Qi had been drained dry and he had endured endless humiliation remained as vivid as a nightmare. Could I really trust this old ghost who calls himself "Venerable Yao" completely? He stole my Dou Qi, and now he wants to be my teacher. What if... what if he has some other scheme? Is it really wise to pin all my hopes on a soul of unknown origins?

The more Xiao Yan thought, the heavier his heart grew. He slowly opened his eyes and gazed at the antique Black Ring before him, his expression complicated. Without betraying anything, he slipped the ring off his finger and clasped it in his palm, then stood and faced Yao Chen.

"Teacher, I'm feeling a little stifled. I'd like to go out for a walk and get some air."

Hearing that Xiao Yan wanted to go out for some air, Yao Chen's aged voice took on a trace of helplessness and self-mockery.

"Go on, then, you little brat. I shouldn't have told a wet-behind-the-ears child like you so much this early. Your temperament hasn't settled yet, and you're still at an age when all you want to do is play and run around. Expecting you to settle down and devote yourself to arduous cultivation all at once was too hasty of me."

Yao Chen assumed Xiao Yan was simply acting his age, feeling bored after cultivating for so long and wanting to go out to clear his head. He gave it no further thought. After all, the boy had just experienced the wild joy of recovering his lost Dou Qi, so it was only natural that he would have trouble calming down.

Xiao Yan put on an innocent, harmless smile and toyed with the antique Black Ring between his fingers.

"Hehe, I understand, Teacher. Your disciple knows. I'm just going to chat with little sister Xun'er. She said she made a new flavor of Osmanthus Cake today, so I'll go try it! I'll be back soon to keep working hard!"

Xiao Yan spoke with complete conviction, as though he truly were just an ordinary boy thinking about snacks and playmates. Holding the ring, he walked unhurriedly out of the secret chamber. His footsteps echoed through the empty passage, each step seeming to land on the edge of a trap Yao Chen had never noticed.

Just as he was about to leave the courtyard, his figure nearly merging with the sunlight outside, Xiao Yan paused without warning. Then his arm jerked upward, and the Black Ring he had been holding became a barely visible streak of dark light as he hurled it without hesitation toward a concealed, weed-choked corner by the courtyard wall! With a faint clatter, the ring landed amid thick rotting leaves and dust, vanishing from sight in an instant.

As though he had flung away a hot potato, Xiao Yan broke into a frantic sprint toward the Xiao Clan's main gate without even looking back. His figure swiftly disappeared beyond the courtyard, his decisiveness and speed making him seem like an entirely different person from the leisurely boy of moments before.

The moment the ring left Xiao Yan, Yao Chen's soul form shuddered violently! A bone-chilling terror seized him in an instant! That familiar feeling of abandonment and betrayal struck like a dusty nightmare suddenly torn open, driving sharp pain deep into his soul! Before his eyes, he seemed to see that disciple from years ago whom he had treated as his own son and taught everything he knew-Han Feng. That once-respectful face had become utterly vicious, those eyes filled with greed and the madness of a disciple bent on destroying his master! The similar scene and the same sense of betrayal nearly shattered his soul!

"You wretch-!!"

A roar of utter grief and fury erupted from Yao Chen's soul, laden with boundless disappointment and anguish, echoing through the empty secret chamber and courtyard.

"You vile disciple! You betray your master and profane your lineage! How dare you-!!!"

Yao Chen had never imagined that the disciple he had finally found, the one in whom he had placed such high hopes, would treat him this way! The agony of that shattered trust seemed even more sudden than Han Feng's betrayal years ago. He wanted to pursue Xiao Yan, only to realize that he was merely a remnant soul and could not stray far from the ring-and the ring had now been cast far away into a cold corner.

Xiao Yan turned a deaf ear to the heart-rending roars behind him. He simply ran forward with every ounce of strength he possessed, then kept running, as though an evil ghost were chasing him.

At that moment, Xiao Yan did not know whether what he had done was right or wrong, but he refused to entrust his fate entirely to a "teacher" who would secretly steal even the Dou Qi he cultivated. He had endured more than enough of those days without Dou Qi.