The atmosphere in the main hall, where a statue of a deity was enshrined, fell into silence as Ji Yuan and Zhao Yuan Song ceased speaking.
Each lost in thought, they remained quiet for a long time. The four senior disciples exchanged glances. Xu Qiqi, intending to ease the tension, was nudged by Jiang He's sleeve.
Thus, she had to abandon her idea. Bored, she propped her chin on her hand, quietly observing the young Daoist’s clean and handsome face, finding him pleasing to the eye no matter how she looked.
However, the young girl did not realize that as she studied him, someone else was observing her.
Zhao Yuan Song's other two junior disciples, Li Jun Xian and Zheng Wan Rong, couldn't help but smile as they watched the pair.
A youth of fourteen or fifteen, already in the season of blossoming hearts.
"Why did you suddenly decide to tell me these things?"
After a prolonged silence, Ji Yuan finally spoke, his gaze calm as he looked at the man before him.
Zhao Yuan Song smiled faintly, "Because of your talent, because of your fortune, because I wish to be a fellow cultivator with you on the path of cultivation."
As he spoke, his eyes flickered almost imperceptibly. Though barely noticeable, the young Daoist caught it.
Ji Yuan appeared contemplative, offering no response, merely nodding slightly.
They fell back into silence, as if many things needed to be analyzed and contemplated in their hearts.
"Can't you guys be less serious?"
Seeing this, Xu Qiqi finally couldn't help but roll her eyes.
She couldn't quite understand why these people were always so ponderous. Was the difference between doing and not doing, and how to do it if they did, truly that difficult to decide?
Ignoring the significant glances from the young man beside her, Xu Qiqi shifted on her mat, moving closer to the young Daoist.
Then, filled with curiosity, she asked, "Why do I feel like you and your senior brothers don't have a good relationship?"
Ji Yuan was startled, looking at the approaching girl in a daze, unsure how to reply.
Truthfully, his relationships with most of his senior brothers, with the exception of the fifth, were indeed not close, as if an unbridgeable chasm separated them.
When he was younger, he had been quite close to his senior brothers. He used to pester them daily and would spend entire days beaming with joy over the candied hawthorn skewers they bought him.
However, ever since he attained enlightenment and embarked on the path of cultivation a year and a half ago, and when the old Daoist explicitly stated that Xuan Tian Guan would be passed down to him in the future.
These senior brothers instantly became distant. Their gazes towards him turned cold and aloof.
Over the past year or two, his senior brothers became busy, constantly taking on various spiritual services in the city. They were almost always out early and returning late. Though they lived in the same Daoist temple, they often didn't see each other for days.
From the beginning, Ji Yuan knew why his senior brothers had become this way and understood their thoughts. He simply never pointed it out.
It was precisely for this reason that he felt particularly close to his fifth senior brother, Guo Tao. Even now, when Guo Tao's cultivation required a large amount of money, the young Daoist never hesitated.
Because this somewhat simple-minded man genuinely, and with pure intentions, liked him as a junior disciple.
Ji Yuan couldn't help but sigh, his expression slightly dim as he shook his head. He didn't take the girl's question to speak ill of his senior brothers.
"It's because of this Daoist temple, isn't it?"
Seeing his demeanor, Xu Qiqi's eyes twinkled, and she had guessed the general idea.
With a look of confusion, she asked, "They shouldn't know you are a cultivator, nor the true origins of Xuan Tian Guan. Just for what they perceive as a dilapidated temple, they began to distance themselves from their junior disciple?"
Ji Yuan gave a wry smile and instinctively glanced to his side, his gaze passing through the side door of the main hall, over the small courtyard, and finally settling on the rooms of his senior brothers.
"Qiqi!"
Zhao Yuan Song reprimanded in a low voice, glaring at his junior sister.
The girl puffed out her cheeks, looking wronged, and shifted her mat back to sit beside young Jiang He.
"Fellow Daoist Ji..."
Zhao Yuan Song sighed inwardly. As he began to speak a word of apology, a shout came from outside the Daoist temple.
Everyone in the main hall looked in unison, and then saw a young man dressed as a servant, rushing over with a hurried expression. He crossed the not-yet-closed gate of the temple and ran straight towards them.
As he approached, they could smell a strong scent of rouge and a faint hint of alcohol.
"Daoist Ji!"
The young servant gasped for breath, his gaze falling on the dejected-looking young Daoist.
Upon seeing him, Ji Yuan already felt a headache coming on, likely knowing the reason for his visit.
"Did Shen Lang run out of money for his bar tab again?"
The corner of his mouth twitched, and he spoke with a hint of annoyance.
Yet, despite his expression of displeasure, he simultaneously reached into his sleeve and pulled out a money pouch.
"No... no..."
The young servant, still catching his breath, stammered, "Young Master Shen... he... he offended the Three Blade Society at Hundred Flowers Tower!"
Hearing this, Ji Yuan's expression immediately darkened. He then stood up, poured the servant a cup of tea, and let him catch his breath before explaining the situation clearly.
A moment later, the servant, his breathing finally steady, recounted the events in detail.
The person named Shen Lang was a distinguished guest of one of the courtesans at Hundred Flowers Tower. He had recently been staying in the courtesan's private residence, living a life of drunken indulgence.
Such matters were not uncommon. In a place like Hundred Flowers Tower, some courtesans favored talented poets and scholars. As long as one was willing to pay handsomely, no one would interfere.
After all, it was a business, and Hundred Flowers Tower was in the flesh trade. As long as money could be made, they wouldn't concern themselves with the courtesans' preferences.
However, tonight, a hall master from the Three Blade Society specifically demanded that the courtesan who had hosted Shen Lang for several days leave her private residence and attend to them for a night.
This was a reasonable request. But when the courtesan refused, the hall master of the Three Blade Society became enraged and led his men into the private residence, intending to forcibly abduct her.
Shen Lang then stepped forward, quickly subduing several men from the Three Blade Society. Fueled by wine, he unceremoniously tossed the hall master into the pond outside the private residence.
"So Shen Lang was captured by the Three Blade Society afterward?"
Ji Yuan's mouth twitched. He didn't need the servant to continue, already guessing what happened next.
Indeed, the servant nodded, confirming his suspicion.
"Daoist Ji, I know you are Young Master Shen's closest friend. Please, you must save him!"
The servant hesitated, but finally spoke, pleading.
He was a servant from the courtesan's private residence and had often run errands for Shen Lang, coming to Xuan Tian Guan to ask the young Daoist for money to cover Shen Lang's bar tabs and expenses at Hundred Flowers Tower.
From the bottom of his heart, the servant truly did not want Shen Lang, who had never looked down on him and had even taught him to read and write, to be in trouble.
Ji Yuan slapped his forehead. This was no longer a matter of just a headache; he genuinely did not know how to handle such a situation.
If Shen Lang had provoked an ordinary gang in Qian Yu City, he could have used his reputation as an alchemist to get some respect. If that didn't work, he could have fought them and paid some money afterward.
However, the Three Blade Society this time was no ordinary faction. They were one of the three most renowned societies within hundreds of miles of Qian Yu City.
Their influence was second only to the Zhao family, and their martial prowess was at least equal, if not greater.
With their power, they might treat him, an alchemist, with courtesy, but they might not show him much deference. Therefore, rescuing someone from them, especially when in the wrong, was somewhat unrealistic.
Yet, he couldn't ignore this matter. After all, Shen Lang was a friend he had known for many years.
Furthermore, he genuinely admired what Shen Lang had been persistently doing all these years, even if he didn't entirely approve of it.
"Fellow Daoist, may I ask about this Shen Lang..."
Zhao Yuan Song stood up and asked with some curiosity.
Hearing this, Ji Yuan replied without thinking, "Shen Lang is the scholar I took you to find yesterday."
He then turned to the servant, asking him to return first, and stated that he would go to the Three Blade Society later to see if he could resolve this disaster and bring Shen Lang out safely.
As for whether this scholar would end up with broken limbs or not, that would depend on his own fate.
"Please, Daoist Ji!"
The servant cupped his fists, bowed deeply, and then hurried away.
Ultimately, he was just a servant. It was already good that he found an opportunity to run out and deliver the message. He couldn't linger outside for too long, or he would undoubtedly be beaten upon returning to Hundred Flowers Tower.
After the servant left, Ji Yuan excused himself from the others and returned to his room. He took his long sword, strapped it to his back, and placed a talisman on the door crack before closing it.
Watching the talisman disappear before his eyes, he nodded in satisfaction and then quickly walked towards the gate of the Daoist temple.
However, as he reached the gate, he noticed Zhao Yuan Song approaching out of the corner of his eye and cast him a questioning glance.
"I'm curious about that scholar, so I thought I'd accompany you to take a look. Perhaps I can be of some help."
He smiled, "Of course, perhaps I won't be able to help at all in the end."
Ji Yuan gave a wry smile, not believing that Zhao Yuan Song was merely making polite conversation or trying to curry favor with him.
Frankly, he didn't have that much influence to make an outer disciple's senior brother from Jiu Xuan Sect fawn over him so.
The reason Zhao Yuan Song was willing to go, and to offer his assistance if needed, was partly due to their existing rapport and mostly because he was intrigued and had developed a good impression after hearing about Shen Lang's deeds.
"He's clearly an immortal cultivator, yet he's full of chivalry."
Ji Yuan sighed, "Then let's go!"
With that, he walked out of the Daoist temple. Zhao Yuan Song chuckled behind him and quickly followed.
However, for this night's excursion, he did not bring his four junior disciples, as the situation in the city was uncertain, and he feared something might happen along the way.
For cultivators, the "what if" scenario is often both anticipated and dreaded. It's difficult to say whether it will bring opportunity or unbearable disaster.
This was also one of the reasons why Ji Yuan had always had a good impression of Zhao Yuan Song. There were many things he could have ignored, but despite knowing there was no benefit, he insisted on getting involved.
Such behavior was unlike an immortal cultivator; it was more akin to a knight-errant from the martial world, who would always intervene when encountering injustice, never deliberately seeking personal gain or reward.
Having seen many cultivators who were calculating to the last penny, encountering someone full of chivalry naturally drew Ji Yuan's affection.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have become close friends with Shen Lang and Hui Xin. Their deep friendship was forged not only by their childhood acquaintance but also by their shared spirit.
"Thanks."
Walking on the now deserted street, Ji Yuan suddenly said without looking back.
Zhao Yuan Song merely smiled in response, saying nothing, as if he had done something insignificant.
But Ji Yuan understood that Zhao Yuan Song's action involved taking considerable risks. Not to mention the situation within the Three Blade Society, but the county town itself was currently fraught with danger, with those secretly plotting against unorthodox shrines and temples, as well as heart-gouging demons and malevolent beings causing harm.