Wuxia: Starting Off With 60 Years of Inner Strength

Her heart trembled, and her face went deathly pale. She turned to leave in a hurry.

But after just two steps, she looked back at Jiang Ran.

She knew Jiang Ran was going to Jinyang Prefecture.

But the Liuyun Sword Sect was in the completely opposite direction of Jinyang Prefecture... They had previously agreed to travel together, so how could she make Jiang Ran take a detour to the Liuyun Sword Sect now?

Their eyes met. Jiang Ran shook his head slightly and walked up to Ye Jingshuang.

"You grew up in the Liuyun Sword Sect. Your master’s kindness to you is as immense as a mountain."

"Now, she’s even suffered a cultivation deviation because of your affairs... It’s only right that you hurry back to the Liuyun Sword Sect to see her and put her mind at ease."

"As for Jinyang Prefecture, I can go on my own."

"You should just focus on going back to the Liuyun Sword Sect first."

"Then..."

Ye Jingshuang gazed at Jiang Ran.

"Once you’ve finished your business in Jinyang Prefecture, can you come find me at the Liuyun Sword Sect?"

Jiang Ran was silent for a moment before nodding gently.

"Alright."

"Mm, and if my master is alright, I’ll come to Jinyang Prefecture to find you too."

Ye Jingshuang said this with great seriousness.

But Jiang Ran shook his head.

"There’s no rush for that. The situation in Jinyang Prefecture is a bit chaotic, and it’s hard to say when things will be resolved... If we both go searching for each other blindly, we’ll most likely miss one another."

"Listen to me. Just wait for me at the Liuyun Sword Sect."

"Once my business here is concluded, I will definitely come to the Liuyun Sword Sect to find you."

"Brother Jiang, a gentleman’s promise is unbreakable!"

"I’ll be waiting for you at the Liuyun Sword Sect!"

After saying this, Ye Jingshuang dared not say more. She turned and hurried away.

Huang Xuan, Fu Cheng’en, and the others also spoke to Jiang Ran.

"Young Hero Jiang, go and take care of your business. If you need anything, just send us a message."

"If not, then we’ll wait for you at the sect... Don’t worry, Junior Sister Ye will be fine."

"Thank you, everyone."

Jiang Ran cupped his fists.

Huang Xuan and the others called out a farewell, then leaped into the air and departed.

Jiang Ran stood where he was, unsure of the strange feeling in his heart.

’This farewell with Ye Jingshuang felt different from the last one.’

’Last time, I just felt like a key ingredient for the Life-extending Pill had run off. But this time... it feels like something else is in my heart, a prickly, nagging feeling. It’s a little uncomfortable...’

Just as he was starting to process this feeling, Li Tianxin’s voice came from the side.

"They’re long gone. Still looking?"

Jiang Ran turned at the sound of the voice and saw Li Tianxin, hugging his saber, squatting in the shade at the base of a wall to escape the hot sun, a cold, arrogant look on his face.

For a moment, Jiang Ran didn’t know what expression to make.

’You’re already squatting like that, so what’s the point of putting on that cold and arrogant act...’

Jiang Ran thought for a moment and said,

"Brother Li... there’s actually something I’m very curious about. I was wondering if you could enlighten me?"

"What is it?"

Li Tianxin snorted. "Let’s hear it."

"Do you shit?"

Jiang Ran’s words were shocking.

Li Tianxin’s face darkened. "Of course I do! Humans eat grains, so how could they... not... not shit?"

Hearing this, Jiang Ran let out a sigh of relief and said with a smile,

"I just wanted to ask, when you’re shitting, do you still have that cold, arrogant look on your face? Do you look down on the latrine pit as if it were a mere ant? Do you feel that no other turd in the pit is as impressive as the one you just dropped?"

"..."

Li Tianxin was completely dumbfounded, his mind buzzing.

’What kind of goddamn question was that?’

’What in the world did I just hear?’

He couldn’t help but point a finger at Jiang Ran. He thought for a long moment before finally gritting his teeth.

"You’re just... beyond foul!!"

"Nonsense. I just washed last night."

"Utterly filthy!"

"How so?"

"Your mouth is full of shit, piss, and farts! Vulgar!!"

"...I only mentioned one of those. You’re the one who completed the set. You said more than I did, so who’s the vulgar one here?"

"I’ll fight you to the death!!"

"I’d advise you to think again."

"..."

In the end, Li Tianxin was furious but dared not act on it.

He followed behind Jiang Ran, fuming.

And thanks to this interruption, the sudden melancholy of parting had faded quite a bit.

Looking around Red Maple Manor, he realized there was hardly anyone left.

Even Zhang Zhihua was gone.

Jiang Ran was a little puzzled.

"Where’s your little shadow?"

"Gone."

Li Tianxin said,

"She left with Cheng Tianyang for Cangzhou Prefecture a couple of days ago."

"Huh?"

Jiang Ran was stunned. "How did I not notice?"

"Who else could you possibly notice besides Ye Jingshuang?"

Li Tianxin rolled his eyes.

Jiang Ran’s brow furrowed slightly. "Nonsense... My eyes see all paths, my ears hear all directions..."

"Speaking of which, there’s something I haven’t asked you yet."

"The day Shuang’Er and I went to Qianliu Manor, I felt like something was off with Zhang Zhihua after we got back."

"What exactly did you say to her?"

"Why would she say she doesn’t blame me?"

As soon as he heard this, Li Tianxin’s eyes immediately shot up to the sky.

But after a moment, feeling this reaction was a bit too obvious, he said,

"I didn’t say anything to her."

"Hm?"

Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow.

"Brother Li, we haven’t known each other for just a day or two."

"Do you think I’m some kind of fool who’s easy to deceive?"

Li Tianxin nodded.

"Hm?"

Jiang Ran’s expression darkened.

Li Tianxin quickly shook his head.

"I was just saying how smart you are! You really are smart!"

"...Is there a second half to that sentence?"

"No, no."

Li Tianxin shook his head.

"In any case, you can rest assured."

"Whatever story there was between Zhang Zhihua and me ends here... there won’t be any further complications."

"Really?"

Jiang Ran gave him a skeptical look.

He had seen with his own eyes just how persistent a girl Zhang Zhihua was.

Li Tianxin nodded.

"So, now that everyone has left Red Maple Manor, what do we do?"

"What do we do? We leave too, of course."

Jiang Ran said, "However, before we go, we need to make a trip to Qianliu Manor."

"What for? To Qianliu Manor?"

Li Tianxin was taken aback.

Jiang Ran explained,

"Someone has to be left behind to manage and maintain Red Maple Manor... Otherwise, when Shuang’Er comes back next time, are we going to let her see a garden full of weeds?"

With that, he leaped into the air and departed ahead of him.

"I’ll be right back."

Leaving Li Tianxin standing there alone, a conflicted look on his face.

’Shuang’Er, Shuang’Er, he says it so affectionately... Doesn’t even think about... Hmph!’