Qiu Zhong knelt in the county office for a day, finally fainted, and was sent home by a kind person.
There was still talk on Paifang Street, saying that Young Master Ji didn't even dare to go to the Qiu Family today.
But what no one saw was that as the stars and moon rotated that night, the empty street was surrounded by Qi waves, and the clouds in the night sky shattered completely, lasting all night without stopping, making the bloodstain that ran across the sky even more terrifying.
The butler of the neighboring Kuang Family got up at Hai Shi (9-11 PM) and walked into the courtyard, suddenly feeling that the night sky today was brighter than usual.
And under the same sky, Cao Jinsong, an Instructor from Tianshu Academy, looked at the distant sky with a heavy heart, recalling the Aura in the Ji Residence.
Private cultivation…
A rural private cultivator in the Ninghua Upper Realm, not yet crowned, just one step away from Junior Third Realm Completion.
Such a thing was truly unheard of.
But what was even more outrageous was… that person had clearly entered the Ninghua Upper Realm at dusk, and then actually started to charge towards Junior Third Realm Completion, and it had been two full hours already!
Could it be that he really thought someone could break through two realms in one day?
One must know that for thousands of years, from Ninghua to Perfection, the shortest time was half a year, even for the peerless genius who had Ascended in the past, there was no exception!
This was no longer a question of whether he could succeed, but whether he truly feared death!
Yuyang County is subordinate to Feng Province, and Cao Jinsong's Mortal ancestral home was also in Feng Province, but for hundreds of years, Feng Province had never seen a Junior Third Realm Completion who was not yet crowned.
He cherished talent, which was why he remained calm on Paifang Street. His original intention was to wait for him for a year, pretend not to know, and then accept him into Tianshu Academy next year.
But what he didn't expect was that he didn't value his life.
However, Cao Jinsong could also understand that the other party was so reckless with his life, likely for the Mortal girl who was to be captured for alchemy.
A Ninghua Upper Realm from a private cultivation background was still a private cultivator, unable to see the light. He could only achieve Perfection before the girl was taken to the mountain to shed his Mortal status, enter the Immortal status, join Tianshu Academy, and seek the protection of his sect.
But unfortunately, he would soon know that achieving Perfection overnight was a pipe dream.
But if this child were to see the girl being taken to the mountain after failing to break through, his Dao Heart might shatter, and even if it didn't, he would certainly be deeply afflicted by a Heart Demon…
Because he cherished talent, Cao Jinsong was deeply worried.
Just then, Pei Ruyi had just finished her cultivation. She suddenly saw Cao Instructor sighing in the courtyard, observed him for a while, and then, with a puzzled expression, pushed the door open and walked out.
She always felt that ever since the private cultivator appeared in Yuyang County, the Instructor seemed a bit preoccupied.
“Instructor? It’s so late, why are you still in the courtyard?”
“Tomorrow, Fengxian Villa will pay a visit. Tell County Magistrate Fang to invite the Qiu Family father and daughter. You and I will find a way to protect the Qiu Family girl.”
“?”
The next morning, the day for collecting taxes and tributes had arrived. Yuyang County was bustling with carriages and horses, and loud voices. In addition to the Zhaoban Tangyi, the Kuaiban Si and Zhuangban Si all went to the streets, accompanying the tribute carts to inspect and transport goods.
But what received the most attention was still the matter of the Qiu Family girl.
Because just this morning, Immortals from Fengxian Villa arrived in Yuyang County and paid a visit to the Immortals from Tianshu Academy residing in the county office.
Afterwards, yamen runners went outside the city and brought Qiu Ru to the county office. Old Qiu was unwilling to let go, so he was also escorted there. Among the family of three, only Li Shuping was left, and she fainted on the spot in the courtyard.
Everyone who heard about this sighed with regret. The Qiu Family, from now on, would likely be ruined.
Fang Ruoyao stood in the covered walkway at this moment, surrounded by Jia Sicong, Dong Wei, and others who were seeing her off. Even Kuang Cheng was urged by his elders to come.
Among them, a young man named Guo Zixing arrived late, with an apologetic expression.
“Just now, passing by Paifang Street, I heard a strange humming sound that made my heart tremble, so I took a few more glances and arrived a bit late. What are the Immortals saying now?”
“They… they are talking about the Qiu Family matter. The Immortals from Fengxian Villa are not very kind.”
Fang Ruoyao said as she watched, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes.
At that time, the Seven Great Immortal Sects had an agreement not to interfere with each other's affairs.
She didn't understand why the Instructor, ever since arriving in Yuyang County, had never inquired about the Qiu Family girl, but today he suddenly changed his usual behavior…
In a flash, it was a quarter past noon. The grain carts dispatched by the county office had already pulled back the Great Xia tax tribute and were registering them into the warehouse at the gate, while the atmosphere in the hall became even more solemn.
This was originally the time for them to set off for Shengjing. Fang Ruoyao was a bit anxious, wondering if they could still depart today.
Unlike her, others were more concerned about whether Tianshu Academy could protect the Qiu Family girl. After all, going to the capital was only Young Miss Fang's personal matter, but whether the Qiu Family girl could be protected was more intriguing.
However, looking at the situation in the hall, Fengxian Villa seemed unwilling to compromise, and the atmosphere began to grow increasingly tense.
It seemed that even Tianshu Academy, despite being the number one sect in the world, could not truly command all Immortals. The Qiu Family girl would likely still not escape death in the end.
Just then, a yamen runner guarding the county office rushed over in a hurry, panting heavily, almost stumbling into a pillar in his haste.
“Reporting to Young Miss, that… that Young Master Ji has arrived.”
“?”
Fang Ruoyao and the others seeing her off couldn't help but snap back to reality. They exchanged glances and felt strange: “Why is he here?”
The yamen runner shook his head: “This lowly one does not know.”
“Could it be to plead for the Qiu Family girl?”
Jia Sicong, who was nearby, laughed upon hearing this: “No, no. If he really wanted to plead, why didn't he come the day before yesterday, or yesterday, but chose today instead? I think… he's here to see Young Miss Fang off to the capital. This person, fearing implication from the Qiu Family, has been hiding at home for two days, but he specially came to bolster Young Miss Fang's courage. What profound affection!”
Upon hearing these words, the people in the covered walkway couldn't help but snicker.
A few days ago, Fang Ruoyao hosted a banquet for guests but didn't invite him. Unexpectedly, he was like a clown with a painted face, eagerly coming to offer his warm face to someone's cold backside.
Fang Ruoyao also frowned upon hearing this and looked at the yamen runner: “Brother Zhong, please help me stop him. Just say I appreciate his kind intentions and tell him to go back.”
“Stopped… I stopped him, but I couldn't stop him.”
“Why couldn't you stop him?”
The yamen runner surnamed Zhong swallowed his saliva and said tremblingly: “Reporting to Young Miss, Young Master Ji, for some unknown reason, is glowing all over…”
“???”
Upon hearing the yamen runner's report, everyone was stunned, wondering what it meant to be glowing all over. But before anyone could ask, a violent wave of Qi suddenly erupted from the doorway.
Between the entrance and the front hall was a courtyard enclosed by a covered walkway, where County Magistrate Fang had planted many of his favorite autumn chrysanthemums.
Just as this violent wave passed through the door, all the autumn chrysanthemums shed their petals and leaves at this moment. Then, a figure moved like the wind, covering ten zhang in a single step, spiritual light bursting forth from his body, dazzling enough to make it difficult to open one's eyes.
Then, Ji You appeared out of thin air in the courtyard, Qi waves surging around him, his momentum like a beating drum.
If one were to describe Young Master Ji in ordinary times, he would be seen as a mischievous monkey, a timid and cowardly rat.
But at this moment, he was like a white-browed tiger with piercing eyes, his Aura surging, descending from the mountain. Just a sidelong glance from him made one feel incredibly sharp.
Besides the spiritual light and Aura, Young Master Ji seemed to have changed his clothes.
He usually wore an indigo old shirt, but now he had changed into a cloud-patterned brocade robe with gold threads, as if the reckless playboy who used to roam the streets had come back to life, yet with an added ethereal Immortal quality compared to before.
Among the younger generation in Yuyang County, Kuang Cheng was publicly recognized as the most upright and refined in appearance. But the decline of the Ji Family seemed to have made many forget that Ji You was actually no less impressive back then.
In that instant, the entire covered walkway fell silent, with only countless gazes continuously converging on the figure bathed in spiritual light.
Jia Sicong, Dong Wei, Fang Ruoyao… everyone's eyes were filled with shock, even the usually stern Kuang Cheng had his eyes wide open at this moment.
Ever since the Ji Family suffered misfortune, no one in the county had looked up to that Young Master Ji.
Especially this time, he had hidden at home for two days, not even stepping out of the main gate, which made everyone scoff at him for who knows how long.
In their eyes, Young Master Ji wouldn't hide forever, and when that girl was sent to the mountain, even if he was still afraid, it would be time for him to come out.
At that time, upon seeing this Young Master Ji again, everyone's words would carry a few more hints of mockery.
Just like when the Ji Family suffered misfortune and the Fang Residence broke off the engagement, they laughed at his submissiveness, at his cowardice, at him being so pathetic that he might as well die.
Or, they would use Young Miss Fang's entry into the Dao in Shengjing to provoke him, jokingly asking a few teasing words about whether Young Master Ji planned to rely on his wife's status.
But what they never expected was that Ji You would arrive today, moving like the wind, covering ten zhang in a single step, roaring in…
Immortal…
His Aura was boundless, like a fierce tiger descending from the mountain.
Ji You, who had hidden at home for two days, was an Immortal…
And the one who couldn't recover the most was none other than Young Miss Fang, who once had a marriage contract with him.
As early as five days ago, she had received the news of her selection into Tianshu Academy. Since then, she had considered herself a cultivator, often saying things like “my Tianshu Academy is thus and so,” and “we cultivators are thus and so.”
But it wasn't until today, when she saw Ji You's body surging with Immortal light and Qi waves like a sea, that she realized.
In front of her former fiancé, whom she had forcefully broken off the engagement with, she, who had always considered herself a cultivator, was actually just an ordinary Mortal.
“How is that possible…”
“He clearly, always hid at home…”
Fang Ruoyao's eyes widened, as if she had witnessed something utterly unbelievable.