Chapter 28

Chapter 28: Dispute Between Senior Brothers
Fang Cheng Lang stood outside a room door. He raised his hand, then slowly lowered it again. A rare look of struggle showed on his clean, handsome face.

Thinking of Lan Zi Yu and Ye Cong Xin still waiting downstairs, he gathered his courage again. Just as he was about to knock, the door suddenly opened.

Yu Zhao stood less than a foot away from Fang Cheng Lang, with only the low threshold between them. She greeted him: “First Senior Brother.”

Maybe it was the clear coldness and distance on Yu Zhao’s face, but a sadness rose in Fang Cheng Lang’s heart, a feeling of being “so close yet worlds apart”. It felt like what blocked them was not the threshold, but a chasm he could never cross.

For a moment, he did not know what to say and only watched Yu Zhao in silence.

Yu Zhao quickly frowned and asked: “First Senior Brother, do you still need something? If not, I’m going back to my room to cultivate.”

Fang Cheng Lang’s heart tightened. He pushed his messy thoughts away and forced a smile as he said: “Little Six, Junior Sister Ye suggested we go admire the lanterns. Zi Yu and I already agreed. We’re only missing you.”

“Oh. Then you all go, First Senior Brother. I’m not interested in lanterns,” Yu Zhao said as she started to close the door.

“Little Six.” Fang Cheng Lang lifted his hand to block the door and spoke in a rush: “It’s rare for us to go out. The lanterns in Lantern City are very special. It would be a pity to miss them. And cultivation isn’t only about?? all the time. You need to relax sometimes too, or you’ll wear yourself out.”

Yu Zhao let go of the door and raised a brow: “But First Senior Brother, you didn’t say that before.”

Fang Cheng Lang froze.

What had he said before?

“Cultivation is like rowing against the current. If you don’t move forward, you fall back. Rest only grows laziness. Indulgence is just an excuse to play. Only people who don’t want to improve crave enjoyment. I didn’t remember wrong, did I, First Senior Brother?”

Fang Cheng Lang felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

Yu Zhao’s words dragged him straight into a piece of the past he had chosen to forget.

From the point of view of a bystander in his own mind, he watched himself sharply scolding Yu Zhao, watched himself pointing out her flaws with a stern, righteous face, as if Yu Zhao were some terrible criminal.

But in truth, Yu Zhao had only been tired after cultivating for a long time and had acted a little spoiled with him, just wanting to rest for a while, only to be hit by a storm of harsh criticism.

In that moment, Fang Cheng Lang understood.

Yu Zhao’s distance from him had not appeared in a single day. It had been built up from too many hidden grievances and helplessness, until it suddenly exploded when it reached the limit.

Black Prison had been the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

“Little Six…” Fang Cheng Lang’s eyes turned red.

Yu Zhao ignored the emotion on his face and slammed the door shut.

Fang Cheng Lang stood outside the door for a long time, then walked away like a lost soul.

Downstairs, Lan Zi Yu and Ye Cong Xin had already grown a little impatient when they finally saw Fang Cheng Lang walking toward them.

There was no one behind him.

Ye Cong Xin pressed down the joy in her eyes and asked softly: “First Senior Brother, why are you alone? Is Sixth Senior Sister not in her room?”

Lan Zi Yu’s face, which had been full of cheer, suddenly turned dark.

“What does she mean by this? Does she want to put on airs and make us go beg her again and again? In her dreams!”

Ye Cong Xin pouted in disapproval and said: “Second Senior Brother, Sixth Senior Sister definitely isn’t thinking like that. Maybe she’s not feeling well, or something else delayed her.”

“What could she possibly have to do? She’s doing it on purpose! She just wants to stir things up and make people notice her!”

Ye Cong Xin said: “Second Senior Brother, stop talking. Let’s hear what First Senior Brother says first.”

Lan Zi Yu snorted coldly and forced himself to shut his mouth, but the anger at the corners of his eyes and brows was obvious.

Fang Cheng Lang felt his chest go cold.

Lan Zi Yu’s malice toward Yu Zhao made him feel chilled all over. There was no deep hatred between them and they had never had any fierce conflict. So why did Lan Zi Yu treat Yu Zhao like a life-and-death enemy, as if he could not wait to drag her down with every word?

And in the past, he had watched all this as if it were nothing, as if it was only natural.

Fang Cheng Lang fixed his sharp gaze on Lan Zi Yu and said: “Lan Zi Yu, Little Six is your Junior Sister. Why do you have to judge her with such malice?”

Lan Zi Yu and Ye Cong Xin were both stunned by this strange question.

After a moment, Lan Zi Yu reacted and gave a mocking laugh: “What do you mean I’m judging her with malice? That’s just how she is by nature.”

“By nature?” Fang Cheng Lang said. “Little Six is someone I raised with my own hands. How could I not know her nature?”

Lan Zi Yu said: “Yu Zhao has been jealous of Junior Sister for a long time. She’s used many dirty tricks behind her back. During that sparring match, she even hurt Junior Sister on purpose and left her badly injured! I saw each and every thing with my own eyes. How could that be fake?”

Fang Cheng Lang was silent for a while, then looked at Ye Cong Xin, who stood to the side, not knowing what to do.

“Junior Sister, do you think so too?” he asked.

“No, I don’t. I think there must be some misunderstanding. Sixth Senior Sister isn’t that kind of person.” Ye Cong Xin shook her head again and again.

Ye Cong Xin had always built up the image of being gentle, kind, and understanding.

Someone like that would not talk badly about others behind their backs, even if the other person had really done something wrong.

Fang Cheng Lang nodded silently and looked back at Lan Zi Yu.

Ye Cong Xin quietly let out a sigh of relief.

But Lan Zi Yu stiffened his neck and argued: “Junior Sister is kind-hearted. She just doesn’t want to blame Yu Zhao!”

Fang Cheng Lang started to patiently explain things, using both emotion and reason, trying to clear Yu Zhao’s name.

But Lan Zi Yu was set on believing that Yu Zhao said one thing and meant another. No matter how much Fang Cheng Lang talked, he did not budge. In the end, Fang Cheng Lang also became truly angry.

Because of this, the trip to see the lanterns turned dull and boring. Even though Ye Cong Xin racked her brain to smooth things over, the mood never really improved.

In the end, the lantern outing ended in a rush, with Fang Cheng Lang and Lan Zi Yu each buying one lantern for Ye Cong Xin.

The next day, after a night of rest, the group from the Five Elements Dao Sect set out again.

They were many in number and their cultivation levels were not low, so no one with no sense dared to provoke them.

After several days of hurrying along, they finally reached Dragon Head Mountain at dusk.

Dragon Roar Valley lay where Dragon Head Mountain and Dragon Tail Mountain met. Once they crossed Dragon Head Mountain, they would see Dragon Roar Valley.

Zhou Jin Yue glanced at the sky and said to the disciples: “We’ll rest tonight at the foot of Dragon Head Mountain. Tomorrow, we’ll head to Dragon Roar Valley.”

She did not know what the situation inside Dragon Roar Valley was right now, but along the way, they had met more and more cultivators. It was clear Dragon Roar Valley was not peaceful either.

They would very likely face their first hard battle tomorrow, so resting before the fight was very important.

Hearing this, the disciples quickly went to find places to rest.

Yu Zhao also casually chose a patch of grass and sat cross-legged.

After a short while, Zhou Jin Yue walked over and sat down beside her.

Yu Zhao greeted her: “Senior Sister Zhou.”

“Junior Sister Yu, we might have to fight other cultivators tomorrow. Are you nervous?” Zhou Jin Yue asked, her eyes full of concern.

Yu Zhao first shook her head, then nodded.

Zhou Jin Yue was amused by her reaction and laughed: “You’re confusing me. Are you nervous or not?”

Yu Zhao thought for a moment and said: “You can say I’m nervous.”

But what she was nervous about was very different from what Zhou Jin Yue imagined.

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