Chapter 240: Returning Together (Part X)
Xiao Ji had merely thought that since Zhong Yinnian possessed such a clever mind, he should be much more nimble than the disciples who had come from the other families in the past.
But in fact, it seemed Zhong Yinnian only had a clever mind.
As for the rest, whether it was that set of sword arts or the application of spells, he was incredibly clumsy, possessing absolutely no talent to speak of.
Even his basic posture for swinging a sword was wrong.
Watching his stiff and unsightly posture, Xiao Ji’s eyelids twitched. “These are all fundamentals.”
Zhong Yinnian stuck his rear out, looking as though he were trying very hard. “Our Tianque Palace doesn’t study weaponry; we don’t practice fundamentals.”
Being entrusted by someone requires fulfilling the task faithfully. Since he had promised to assist Zhong Yinnian and was still counting on Zhong Yinnian to teach him divination, Xiao Ji didn’t hold back. He stood to the side, doing his utmost to correct him verbally.
But Zhong Yinnian seemed entirely unable to comprehend, constantly asking him:
“Is it like this?”
“Then what about this?”
“Is it an issue with my legs or my waist?”
Left with no choice, Xiao Ji finally went hands-on.
Supporting Zhong Yinnian’s waist with one hand and lifting his elbow with the other, he adjusted his posture for him. “It’s like this.”
Only then could Zhong Yinnian grasp some understanding.
In short, as long as Xiao Ji only gave verbal instructions, Zhong Yinnian would absolutely fail to hit the mark.
But as long as Xiao Ji reached out to touch him, bump him, poke him, or position him, he could quickly grasp the essence of it.
Thus, Xiao Ji considered it finding a way to make Zhong Yinnian shut his mouth. For an entire afternoon, he spent it touching here and prodding there on Zhong Yinnian’s body.
It actually proved quite effective.
And during this time, all the Xiao family disciples were also secretly gossiping, not knowing what was going on between Zhong Yinnian and Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji was actually personally guiding Zhong Yinnian in sword practice.
What was even more surprising was that that evening, someone even saw Xiao Ji leave his own sleeping quarters and head to the mountain peak where the Zhong family disciples resided.
It wasn’t that Xiao Ji was particularly proactive.
It was that Zhong Yinnian lacked self-awareness.
Xiao Ji believed his attitude toward Zhong Yinnian that afternoon had been very earnest and responsible.
According to their previous agreement, Zhong Yinnian had promised to teach him without holding anything back, so in the evening, he should have proactively come to find Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji had a special status on Qingyang Mountain, exclusively occupying a mountain peak and enjoying the treatment of an elder.
After today’s cultivation ended and he returned to his sleeping quarters, he had been waiting for Zhong Yinnian to arrive.
But even when the moon rose above the branches, Zhong Yinnian hadn’t come.
Only then did Xiao Ji leave and head toward the mountain peak where the Zhong family disciples were located.
When he found Zhong Yinnian, Zhong Yinnian was writing furiously, with a bird perched on his shoulder.
There was another Zhong family disciple sharing the room. Seeing Xiao Ji arrive, he politely called out “Senior Brother,” then returned to the inner room, sitting cross-legged on the bed to browse through sword arts.
The bird on Zhong Yinnian’s shoulder, upon seeing Xiao Ji enter, fluttered over and landed on Xiao Ji’s shoulder, even affectionately pecking his cheek, not acting the least bit like a stranger.
Xiao Ji considered himself to be unpopular with small animals.
Having a bird with such a lack of boundaries accidentally show him affection felt rare, so he raised his hand and poked the bird’s head.
Just as the bird tilted its head, preparing to nuzzle against Xiao Ji’s face, Zhong Yinnian’s voice rang out, “Zhong Cui.”
Hearing Zhong Yinnian’s voice, the bird stood up straight. Its two little legs hopped back and forth on Xiao Ji’s shoulder, it chirped twice, and then stopped moving.
Seeing how nimble the bird was, Xiao Ji asked Zhong Yinnian, “Does Tianque Palace also cultivate the path of beast taming?”
Within the immortal sects, the path of beast taming required extremely high talent; it truly belonged to the category where forced efforts yielded no sweet results.
It required an innate constitution that naturally harbored an affinity with beasts.
In the Demonic Path, however, beast taming was much more brutal; it mostly involved forced contracts, violating the Heavenly Dao.
Zhong Yinnian’s hands were constantly busy. Hearing this, he replied without even turning his head, “We don’t. I don’t tame beasts either; I just have some fate with this bird.”
Xiao Ji tilted his head and looked at the bird. “It has gained spiritual intelligence. If it transforms into a demon, what will you do?”
At these words, Zhong Yinnian finally set down the wolf-hair brush in his hand and turned to look at Xiao Ji. “Demons are like humans; there is a distinction between good and evil. The most undesirable practice among the immortal sects is killing them all with a single blow simply because they are demons, regardless of good or evil. What’s the point of that?”
Xiao Ji frowned. “When demons commit evil, they don’t care whether the humans are innocent or not; they eat anyone they see.”
Zhong Yinnian narrowed his eyes. “Are you just trying to be argumentative?”
Xiao Ji denied it. “I am seeking truth from facts.”
Their stances were different; the teachings Xiao Ji had received since childhood revolved around slaying demons and eradicating devils.
Zhong Yinnian didn’t bicker with him, but still asked, “If you had picked up a bird when you were young, accompanied it day and night, fed it, and raised it, and one day it gained spiritual intelligence and transformed into a demon, yet it had never committed evil, would you slap it to death?”
Xiao Ji pondered for a moment. “No.”
Only then did Zhong Yinnian feel much more comfortable in his heart, though he still said with some dissatisfaction, “Our Tianque Palace only speaks of letting nature take its course, not violating the Heavenly Mandate. Whether demons, devils, ghosts, or monsters, each has its own destiny.”
“Unlike your Qingyang Mountain, which only pays lip service to upholding justice and wishes it could wipe the world clean of demons and devils, yet fails to mention the slightest bit of your selfish desire to attain immortality and validate your Dao.”
Nearby, the young Zhong family disciple sitting on the bed browsing through sword arts saw that the atmosphere between the two had become somewhat tense with drawn swords and strung bows. He didn’t dare to breathe loudly, quietly shrinking himself into the corner, afraid of being implicated.
Xiao Ji didn’t talk back.
Because he never considered himself to be particularly just. Or rather, whether it was just or not actually had little to do with him.
He followed Qingyang Mountain’s rules simply because he carried the blood of the Xiao family, grew up eating the Xiao family’s grains, and had received the Xiao family’s grace.
He also didn’t harbor a deep-seated hatred for demons.
Because to Xiao Ji, no matter how those demons, devils, ghosts, and monsters committed evil, as long as they didn’t provoke him, it was none of his business.
If the Xiao family issued an order stating a demon was causing harm and commanded him to eradicate it, he would comply.
But if he were asked to actively leave the mountain to slay demons and eradicate devils, he could only beg their pardon as his ambitions did not lie there.
The question from earlier carried no hidden meaning; he was simply asking.
Yet he hadn’t expected Zhong Yinnian’s reaction to be so strong.
After Zhong Yinnian finished speaking and saw that Xiao Ji had fallen silent, he apologized and then turned around to continue writing furiously.
Seeing that he was busy, Xiao Ji didn’t disturb him further. He left Zhong Yinnian’s residence without a word and returned to his own sleeping quarters.
Only after entering the main door of his sleeping quarters did he realize he had brought Zhong Yinnian’s bird back with him.
He originally hesitated over whether to return it to Zhong Yinnian, but the bird didn’t seem to have any intention of going back. It landed on Xiao Ji’s cold, hard jade bed and nestled right by his pillow.
Xiao Ji took a bath, lay back on the bed, and his mind went completely blank.
When he suddenly jolted awake in the middle of the night, he saw a pale, slender hand currently wrapped around his waist.
And on the ring finger of that hand rested a silver band identical to Xiao Ji’s.
The instant Xiao Ji opened his eyes, an unfamiliar and deep male voice behind him said somewhat listlessly, “Don’t move, let me hold you. I’ll leave in a bit.”
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