4. Chu Chang’an Became the Head of the Family?

The hall erupted into a sudden commotion.

"Relics? Are there really relics of the Bright Moon Sword Venerable still circulating in the world?"

"Didn't she perish completely back then, leaving not even bones behind?"

"Don't be a fool! Of course there would be relics. She was a Sword Venerable, after all; could she have possibly left nothing of value behind? The question is, what are they?"

"Anything is fine, as long as it's not just a gimmick!"

"What are you saying? This is an auction held by the Ghost Sea Tower. Items of no consequence could never catch the eye of that Tower Master! Besides, given the relationship between the Ghost Sea Tower Master and the Sword Venerable... tsk, the sign at the entrance is still standing, isn't it?"

"I don't know how the Bright Moon Sword Venerable offended the Ghost Sea Tower, but I have a rumor: what’s being auctioned this time is that woman’s spirit bones!"

"What?! Spirit bones?! That’s impossible!"

It was not entirely impossible.

Sheng Ningyu thought to herself that most of her possessions had been destroyed or buried along with her back then. Anything that could be linked to her and caught the eye of the Ghost Sea Tower for auction could only be one of a few things.

Her spirit bones, or the shards of her natal sword.

Sheng Ningyu’s smile faded slightly.

But at the same time, she knew clearly that now was not the time to dwell on these things. She needed to find someone to treat her body first—at the very least, she could not remain in this state, riddled with holes and leaking spiritual energy from every corner.

As her thoughts churned, a name finally surfaced in her mind.

—Linghuan Dock.

She had to go to Linghuan Dock and find the medical cultivators of the Cloud View Palace.

Sheng Ningyu sighed inwardly, hoping that the old man Yuan Daojun was as long-lived as a tortoise and remained in good health.

Even while lost in thought, she did not let go of her chopsticks. She deftly popped a dumpling into her mouth and leaned sideways, remaining close to Xie Qianjing as if resting against him, peering behind him through the screen of his figure.

"Don't move," Sheng Ningyu said, her tone relaxed and lazy. "Let me watch the show."

A group of cultivators in identical blue robes—fine fabric, elegant tailoring, and arrogant expressions—looked like "men of stature" from the same sect or noble family.

They must have used a concealment spell earlier to avoid prying eyes.

—But that was not the point.

The point was that Sheng Ningyu found these "men of stature" quite familiar.

Where exactly had she seen them before?

"Tsk."

A proud, cold snort came from within the group.

Though the sound was faint, it carried immense weight. Sheng Ningyu, hidden among the crowd, watched as the group of men parted, bowing their heads in respectful postures.

In the center stood a young boy.

Clad in embroidered silks, deep blue as the sea.

Her gaze lingered on the hem of the boy's blue robes, and she was momentarily stunned. Before she could think further, a voice drifted softly from slightly above her.

"Do you know him?"

Sheng Ningyu’s lips twitched. She withdrew her gaze and squinted at Xie Qianjing, finding it absurd. "Of course not. That young master looks like he’s either wealthy or noble. How could a plain, ordinary little cultivator like me ever catch their eye?"

Hearing this, Xie Qianjing laughed under his breath, his chest vibrating gently. He rested his chin on Sheng Ningyu’s shoulder, back turned to the boy, and whispered into her ear: "But I know him."

Sheng Ningyu’s eyes narrowed.

Close as they were, she caught a faint fragrance coming from Xie Qianjing.

Sheng Ningyu didn't know much about incense, but she found it pleasant.

It made her feel so at ease that—

It stirred a sense of attachment in her heart.

She frowned slightly. Where had she smelled this before?

On the other side, the blue-clad boy rested his head on one hand, idly swirling his teacup with the other, his tone dripping with disdain and dissatisfaction.

"...I don't know why everyone is so obsessed with this Bright Moon Sword Venerable. It’s just a relic, what could be so special about it? If that peerless sword called 'Moon Without Flaw' from back then had appeared, that would be worth a look, but everyone knows that sword was shattered to dust long ago..."

He had deliberately dropped the concealment spell to say these things; it was clearly intentional.

Sheng Ningyu listened without feeling angry; instead, she found it rather interesting.

The vigor of youth, so much like an old acquaintance.

Even his vanity and arrogance seemed quite endearing.

"—I recognize the family crest on his hem. He is from the Chu clan of the East Sea."

Xie Qianjing spoke suddenly.

He lowered his voice to a whisper, so low it was somewhat hoarse, like frost condensed under the moon, cold and devoid of any worldly trace.

The smile on Sheng Ningyu’s face paused.

The boy continued to spout nonsense: "...That Bright Moon Sword Venerable met her end in a demonic array so easily back then; she was likely just a fame-seeking fraud."

The hoarse voice and the boy's youthful arrogance merged, and when it suddenly rang out, it gave one the eerie feeling of time and space colliding, a sensation of living in another lifetime.

"Fellow Daoist Ning," Xie Qianjing's voice sounded by Sheng Ningyu’s ear, the cold breath brushing against her auricle, "this is the reason I appeared the day before yesterday."

The smile on Sheng Ningyu’s face vanished completely.

She turned her head, looked deeply at Xie Qianjing, and then covered the hand he had resting under the table.

His skin was ice-cold, like a piece of fine, frozen jade.

"We'll talk about it upstairs later," Sheng Ningyu said, pinching his fingertips lightly.

At first listen, she seemed entirely on his side.

Xie Qianjing curled his lips, revealing a mocking smile that no one else could see.

At this moment, as the boy's words fell, some in the hall frowned, some muttered softly, and others nodded in secret.

But the retainers around the boy clearly did not want trouble and dared not defy him, so they could only pile on the smiles and change the subject: "You are right, but this is, after all, the relic of Sword Venerable Sheng; perhaps there is something good among them."

The boy snorted, but said no more. As he rose to leave, he dropped a light, airy remark:

"Finish selecting the people quickly. If my uncle is going to the Ghost Sea Tower, I will likely have to accompany him."

The surrounding retainers nodded and bowed in agreement. Then, all the cultivators present, including Sheng Ningyu, were led away and gathered together.

A bewildered Sheng Ningyu: "?"

She clutched the unfinished flatbread in her hand, fell silent for a moment, turned her head, and whispered, "What is this for?"

The cultivator beside her was clearly well-informed: "They want to see everyone demonstrate their sword skills and select a few good sprouts to send to the Chu clan of the East Sea."

Sheng Ningyu was shocked: "But I don't know how to use a sword!"

"What?! You don't know?!"

The cultivator couldn't help but raise his voice: "Then why are you staying here?!"

Sheng Ningyu said innocently: "My hands may not know how to dance with a sword, but my mouth knows how to eat." After saying this, she took a bite of the flatbread and gave a thumbs up: "Delicious, I love it."

She could even go for seconds.

Their commotion caught the attention of the aforementioned Chu family retainers. One of them walked over and warned, "Quiet! No shouting!"

He then looked at Sheng Ningyu, then significantly at Xie Qianjing, and said, "After you finish showing your sword skills, come find me directly."

Sheng Ningyu: "..."

She looked back to see the cultivator who had enlightened her looking at them with jealousy, his tone twisted: "Is it really that great just to be good-looking?!"

In a flash of lightning, Sheng Ningyu connected this to the "great future" the shop assistant had mentioned yesterday. Her expression cracked slightly, but immediately, her face became entirely innocent, her eyes filled with confusion.

"May I ask, brother, what is going on here? He and I are both outsiders, looking for nothing more than a free breakfast, only to run into this noble family..." Sheng Ningyu held Xie Qianjing’s hand, exchanged a glance with him, and lowered her voice again. "It would be good for us to know the taboos so we don't offend someone we shouldn't and lose our lives in vain."

Seeing that she truly didn't know, the man sighed: "You know the East Sea Chu clan, right? The clan head is looking for people, and today's breakfast is provided for free by the Chu clan for the cultivators who signed up."

The Chu clan head?

Sheng Ningyu’s mind raced.

Time had flown; given the complex dynamics of the Chu clan, the position of clan head had likely changed.

She wondered if the one in power was the steady but untalented eldest, the ruthless but erratic second, or the detached but seemingly burdened third—

"—The current Chu clan head was once betrothed to that Bright Moon Sword Venerable and was deeply in love with her. After she passed, he remained full of longing, constantly collecting everything related to her. Added to that, the head of the Heavenly Star Sect once prophesied: 'A hundred years pass in a flash, the Bright Moon shall emerge. Ten thousand generations bow, all evil deeds purged.' The Chu clan head, for reasons unknown, insists that the Bright Moon Sword Venerable is about to be resurrected. He is searching the world for cultivators who are skilled with the sword—men, women, young, or old—as long as they are of decent appearance and show some flair in their swordsmanship. They are all being taken to the Chu clan’s Sea Moon Pavilion for the head to see. Even if they aren't chosen, they are rewarded with spiritual stones and treasures!"

The cultivator smacked his lips and remarked with emotion: "Weak water flows three thousand, but he only loves one. The Chu clan head’s deep affection is truly moving!"

Sheng Ningyu: "..."

Sheng Ningyu: ".............................."

Wait a minute?

Chu Chang'an became the Chu clan head??

Chu Chang'an was deeply in love??

With her???!

The news came too suddenly. For the first time since waking up, Sheng Ningyu could not control her expression and had to quickly lower her head to hide her contorted face.

Ridiculous!

Utterly ridiculous!

This statement was even more absurd than everything she had experienced in these past few days!

Before Sheng Ningyu could digest this shocking news, a voice suddenly came from beside her.

"So it seems this Chu clan head is a man of deep affection."

Sheng Ningyu looked up abruptly to see Xie Qianjing smiling, seemingly filled with emotion, his tone very gentle. Yet his expression was extremely indifferent; the combination of the two turned into an indescribable mockery.

Especially the implication of that sentence...

Sheng Ningyu’s lips twitched uncontrollably, and she felt a wave of nausea. She was about to use a fierce glare to signal Xie Qianjing to shut up, but she saw him turn his head, meeting her gaze without hesitation, his lips curling into a smile.

"It seems Fellow Daoist Ning is also very interested in the Chu clan; you were listening so intently."

Xie Qianjing trailed off, his voice light. He lowered his head, his back to the light, and those eyes, which had been as clean and beautiful as glass, turned deep and dark in an instant, like Bodhi lotuses stained with blood, emanating an inexplicable hostility.

Sheng Ningyu paused, then instantly regained her composure, her face returning to a relaxed smile.

"Everyone has a heart for gossip." She raised an eyebrow and asked casually, "What about you, Fellow Daoist Xie? What do you think of those words? How much of it is true?"

At this moment, in the large central courtyard of the back garden, sword cultivators had begun to display their techniques for the Chu family, and the cultivator who had explained things to them earlier had long since squeezed into the front row.

Cheers and boos rose and fell, interspersed with sporadic sighs and excited shouts.

One performer finishes, another takes the stage; just like the ever-changing and unpredictable human world.

And in such a noisy environment, there was one person completely unmoved.

In his pitch-black pupils, one person’s figure was clearly reflected. Xie Qianjing laughed, the sound blending into the cheers of the crowd—blurred, yet clear.

"It doesn't matter," he said slowly, though his voice had inexplicably become more hoarse. "But I noticed you seemed to have some reaction earlier, Fellow Daoist Ning. Rather than truth or falsehood, I am more curious: listening to these words, do you also find that Immortal Lord to be deeply affectionate and moving?"