Chapter 69

Chapter 69: An Eyesore

Flowing Moon City was the closest immortal city to Limitless Sect. When disciples took a break from cultivation, they often went there to wander and relax.

Ling Bu Fei had been there a few times. No one had ever invited him before.

“So,” Bai Meng Jin asked as they walked, “do you want to go?”

Ling Bu Fei’s gaze slid away, uncertain.

Bai Meng Jin understood and nudged gently. “Go. They invited us sincerely; we should give them face.

“Besides, I’ll be leading the sect someday. It’s important to build good relationships with the disciples.”

Only then did Ling Bu Fei nod, reluctant. “All right. Since you put it that way, I’ll go with you this once.”

Bai Meng Jin laughed. “Yes, yes. You’re keeping me company.”

After that, she sent Bai Meng Lian a Message Talisman asking if she wanted to join.

A while later, Bai Meng Lian replied that their assignment was finished and she could go.

At dusk, sunset clouds painted the sky. Disciples gathered at the dock, lively and bright, chatter spilling everywhere.

The girl who had invited them—Liu Dan Qing—spotted them and hurried over, smiling. “Martial Uncle Bai! Young Sect Master!”

Then her gaze fell on Bai Meng Lian and Bai Meng Xing. She hesitated, unsure how to address them.

Bai Meng Lian was quick and tactful. She led Bai Meng Xing in a salute. “Senior Sister Liu.”

Then she added calmly, “Even though we’re sisters, once we’ve entered the sect, sect rules come first. I joined later and don’t have a master yet, so all of you are my Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters.”

Her words were proper, her manner poised. Several disciples looked at her with immediate approval.

Liu Dan Qing smiled, relieved. “Then I’ll take the liberty for now. Once Junior Sister Bai and Junior Brother Bai have masters, we can adjust how we address each other.”

As they spoke, a disciple nearby suddenly straightened. “Senior Brother Ying is here!”

Heads turned.

Several young men stepped off the ferry, and the one in front drew every eye. His robes fluttered, a folding fan in his hand, his bearing dashing and refined.

The moment Ling Bu Fei saw him, his expression dropped.

Bai Meng Jin’s eyes widened with surprise. She knew that face.

Ying Shao Guang—future Tai Yi Hall Master.

In her memory of Limitless Sect, the three people she had watched most closely were: Sect Master Ling Bu Fei, Chief Elder Bai Li Xu, and Tai Yi Hall Master Ying Shao Guang.

But from Ling Bu Fei’s reaction, it seemed the two men were not on good terms at all.

Ying Shao Guang strolled over, the disciples saluting him in stiff, cautious waves.

“Senior Brother Ying.”

“Martial Uncle Ying.”

Ying Shao Guang nodded perfunctorily. His peach-blossom eyes slid to Ling Bu Fei, and he smiled. “Oh? The Young Sect Master actually came out today. Rare.

“I thought I’d never see the Young Sect Master together with the disciples in this lifetime.” His fan snapped open with a flick. “Having a fiancée really does change things.”

His gaze shifted to Bai Meng Jin—open contempt—until Bai Li Xu stepped in and blocked the line of sight.

“Senior Brother Ying,” Bai Li Xu said coldly, “Miss Bai is engaged to the Young Sect Master. Please show some respect.”

Ying Shao Guang let out a lazy snort. “How was I being disrespectful? Did I flirt with her? Did I insult her?

“Besides,” he added, eyes sharpening, “when I’m talking to the Young Sect Master, what right does a servant like you have to butt in?”

Bai Li Xu’s face darkened. “Senior Brother Ying—”

The disciples’ expressions shifted uneasily. If they’d known Senior Brother Ying would come, why invite the Young Sect Master at all?

Everyone knew it. Ying Shao Guang had always had it in for him.

Liu Dan Qing felt like crying. When she invited the Young Sect Master, she hadn’t known someone else had invited Martial Uncle Ying.

Usually she couldn’t even manage to invite one important person. Who knew both would show up today?

Ling Bu Fei sneered and pushed Bai Li Xu aside. “What are you talking about, Senior Brother Ying? I’m an idle man who doesn’t need to cultivate. Isn’t it normal for me to wander around?

“But you?” His smile turned razor-sharp. “You actually have time for a flower festival? When you formed your core a step later than Bai Li Xu, Martial Uncle Yang went into a rage. I thought you’d feel ashamed and work harder—and wouldn’t step out until you formed a Nascent Soul.”

Ying Shao Guang had only just formed his core. A Nascent Soul was decades away. Ling Bu Fei said it purely to step on the sore spot.

Sure enough, Ying Shao Guang’s expression changed.

He was Yang Xiang Tian’s disciple. As far as talent went—aside from Ling Bu Fei, who had been born with Divine Transformation—Ying Shao Guang ranked among the highest in the sect. He had entered already at the Foundation Establishment Stage and had outpaced others at every turn.

And then, when it came time to form a Golden Core, Bai Li Xu—a man from servant origins—had taken the lead.

It infuriated him. A cripple who couldn’t cultivate occupied the Young Sect Master position, and now even the Young Sect Master’s guard was stealing his limelight.

Ying Shao Guang’s smile sharpened into something mean. “Forming a Nascent Soul isn’t that easy. We little disciples bury ourselves in cultivation every day. When we’re exhausted, we go out for air.

“Of course,” he added, emphasizing each word, “it’s normal that the Young Sect Master doesn’t understand. After all, you were born with cultivation. You don’t need to practice at all.”

The implication was unmistakable.

One stabbed the other for being surpassed by a so-called servant; the other stabbed the wound of not being able to cultivate. Neither held back.

Seeing sparks fly in the space between them, Liu Dan Qing gathered all her courage and slipped in, voice timid. “Um… Young Sect Master, Martial Uncle Ying… the sun is about to set. If we don’t board the flying ship now, we might not make it to the flower festival tonight…”

Both men looked away, remembering they were in public.

“Fine.” Ying Shao Guang snapped his fan shut. “What’s the rush?”

Then his gaze returned to Bai Meng Jin. His tone smoothed, almost pleasant. “So you’re Junior Sister Bai? I heard you’re at the Golden Core Stage, and you’re a devil cultivator too. If there’s a chance, want to spar?”

Bai Meng Jin bent into a salute, a touch awkward. “Senior Brother Ying, I’m not very good at fighting.”

Ying Shao Guang’s expression softened slightly. “Don’t worry. It’ll just be a spar between fellow disciples. We’ll stop before anyone gets hurt.”

Bai Meng Jin caught the shape of his temperament in that small shift.

Sharp-tongued, yes. Proud, yes. But not the type to bully the weak.

Ling Bu Fei found the entire exchange irritating. He grabbed Bai Meng Jin’s hand and tugged her along. “All right, it’s getting late. Let’s go. Don’t hold up Senior Brother Ying.”

Ying Shao Guang’s eyes flicked to their linked hands. He laughed. “How would that be holding me up? Junior Sister Bai speaks sweetly and looks good. I don’t mind talking a little longer.”

Ling Bu Fei shot him a cold look. “We’re in a hurry.”

With that, he pulled Bai Meng Jin onto the flying ship.

Bai Li Xu, Bai Meng Lian, Bai Meng Xing, and the others filed past and boarded one by one.

“Senior Brother,” the junior brother beside Ying Shao Guang urged, “we should hurry too.”

Ying Shao Guang rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then smiled as if amused by his own thoughts. “Coming.”