If they're not insane, they're complete idiots.

 

Bai Ke's mouth twitched, as if wanting to laugh.

He saw Junxiao shake the corner of the book he was holding twice, expressionless but clearly emanating a strong sense of disdain. He reached out and took the hand-copied manuscript, flipping through it casually.

His eyes were fine for everyday life, but reading was quite challenging. The outlines of those characters were much blurrier compared to normal objects.

But cultivators were different from ordinary people, perhaps due to their frequent practice of drawing symbols and inscriptions, the characters they wrote carried a bit of spiritual aura and were much clearer.

Moreover, Lin Ji's skills were probably limited; he couldn't write delicate small regular script. Combined with his personality, his handwriting sprawled out comfortably like a person lounging on a recliner in the sun, making it not too slow for Bai Ke to read.

After flipping through a chapter, he couldn't distinguish whether it was true or false, but one thing he could be sure of was that the author had a great talent for storytelling. The narrative was full of twists and turns, and the ending left a suspenseful cliffhanger, quite intriguing.

"Let me borrow this book for a few days," Bai Ke raised his head, shaking the book in Lin Ji's direction.

Junxiao: "..." He really didn't want to bring up too much of the past to avoid Bai Ke partially recovering his memories at an inappropriate time, leading to confusion. But that didn't mean he could tolerate letting a biography written like an opera wash Bai Ke's brain.

Noticing Bai Ke's lack of reaction, Lin Ji glanced at him, explaining, "Don't take it seriously, just read it as a novel; it's quite interesting."

Junxiao: "..." His mood became more complicated.

He couldn't glare at Bai Ke, so he silently turned his sharp gaze toward Lin Ji, who had cherished and kept this piece of garbage book as if it were a treasure.

Lin Ji felt a chill down his spine from the glance, feeling like he'd been randomly hit. But he couldn't worry about any of that now; what could possibly trouble him more than the collapse of his entire worldview?

It had been several years since Lin Ji copied this book.

Every experience a young person goes through during their growth, every impressionable phrase they encounter, contributes, to varying degrees, to the intricate composition of their worldview.

And this book—Lin Ji had read it from the age of eleven or twelve until sixteen or seventeen, dozens of times over, leaving an indelible impression. Many of his beliefs, admiration for respected individuals, understanding of the path of cultivation, and aspirations for the future had been significantly influenced by this book.

Although he also felt that the book must have exaggerated and fabricated elements, most of it was based on facts. So, having it completely overturned now gave him the feeling of being struck squarely on the head, with a cudgel, leaving his face covered in blood.

"In any case... there must be some truth in it, right?" Lin Ji struggled to say.

Junxiao nodded.

Lin Ji breathed out heavily.

"The names of the people are real," Junxiao added expressionlessly.

Lin Ji: "...What else?"

"And most of the place names mentioned have existed."

"Anything else?"

"No."

Lin Ji: "..."

Damn, is this even playable anymore?! Is there any difference between this and being entirely fabricated?!

"Was everything about Yun Zheng Master fabricated too? Like slaying twelve Blood Demons?" Lin Ji felt like all those heroic deeds he idolized and admired were now lies. If that was the case, he might as well end it all, tidy up, and head straight for the sea to cleanse his brain with the salty water.

Upon hearing the name "Yun Zheng," Junxiao became even more expressionless, his tone devoid of any fluctuation. "He didn't kill the twelve Blood Demons."

Bai Ke glanced at him. Somehow, he felt Junxiao's response to Yun Zheng's matter seemed unnatural.

Lin Ji: "Who's going to stop me? I'm going to the sea today!"

"So, is this book completely baseless? Why connect Yun Zheng with those Blood Demons?" Bai Ke casually flipped through the book, asking.

At the mention of "Yun Zheng" from Bai Ke, Jun Xiao's eyes flickered for a moment. He paused, then said, "Perhaps because he killed the Blood Demon King."

"Damn, Yun Zheng Master killed the Blood Demon King?! Wasn't it said he never left his lair? How did he manage that?" Lin Ji, who had just nearly given up, suddenly revived. Compared to the Blood Demon King, the twelve Blood Demons were nothing but trash!

In a tone of "I ate a bowl of rice”, Junxiao stated: "He found their nest."

Bai Ke: "..."

Lin Ji was dumbfounded for a moment, then recalled something and asked, "Speaking of Blood Demons, the books I've read only vaguely mentioned them, saying they died in the end without elaborating on how. It was all kept secretive and mysterious. Why?"

Junxiao furrowed his brow, seeming somewhat impatient with the topic, so he curtly dismissed Lin Ji, "Chaotic circumstances, few witnesses, and it also involved a major disaster."

Lin Ji's curiosity was piqued, wanting to ask more, but Junxiao had already shifted the topic, "Who wrote this book?"

Being naturally impatient, Lin Ji was immediately nostalgic as Junxiao questioned him about the author.

In the end, he slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "Yu Shixuan! I remember now! The author's name is Yu Shixuan!"

Junxiao's expression was akin to someone who had just eaten a fly, "..."

Bai Ke paused while flipping through the book, "Yu Shixuan?"

"Why?" Junxiao turned to ask.

Bai Ke looked at him, sensing Junxiao's reaction to those words was odd.

"Nothing, I just feel like the name sounds familiar." Bai Ke casually gave a reason, though it was just a spontaneous question.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he said that Junxiao seemed even more peculiar, even asking him further, "Why does it sound familiar?"

Bai Ke: "..." What's the point of asking why it sounds familiar? You're coming to be funny?

Realizing how strange his question was, Junxiao cleared his throat and turned to Lin Ji, "From now on, when you see books by Yu Shixuan, just close them and put them back where they belong."

"Why?"

"Because out of ten sentences he writes, barely half of one might be true."

"In other words, he specializes in nonsense?" Lin Ji smirked. "What's his aim...?"

Junxiao remained expressionless, "Entertainment."

"For whom?"

"For himself."

Lin Ji: "..."

Bai Ke: "... Can I still make it back home in time now?" Looking at this cultivation world, I haven't heard of a single normal person yet. If they're not insane, they're complete idiots.

However, when a normal person encounters a completely novel world, no matter how bizarre and strange it may be, there will always be a curious heart for exploration.

Junxiao's character of speaking little but saying a lot particularly aroused Lin Ji's curiosity. Even Bai Ke, who normally had little interest in other people's lives, became somewhat curious about that legendary era of turmoil and change.

Seeing the conversation between the two seemingly deepening, Junxiao immediately fell silent. With a sweep of his black sleeve, all the scattered hand-copied books in the room instantly gathered together neatly on the round table, including the one Bai Ke was currently looking at. Then, with a wide sweep of his sleeve, all the books on the table disappeared in an instant, leaving the entire room clean and almost empty.

"Let's go, to another room," Junxiao said in a deep voice, then strode out like a shooting star. His black clothes swirled and disappeared outside the door.

Bai Ke: "..." He flipped faces faster than flipping through pages.

Lin Ji, with a face full of indignation, shouted towards the now-empty doorway where Junxiao had disappeared, "You're so cool, domineering, and handsome, Master, are you bullying your disciple?!"

After a moment's pause, he continued on his own, "Bullying!"

"..." Bai Ke didn't want to stay in the same room with this lunatic anymore, so he also walked briskly towards the door. As he crossed the threshold, he grabbed Bai Zixu, who had been standing quietly by the door without saying a word, lost in thought.

Today, his unreliable father had spent almost as much time daydreaming as he usually did in a week. Each time, his expression was particularly bewildered, yet seemed to remember something.

When Bai Ke was younger and saw Bai Zixu looking like this, he couldn't help asking what he was thinking. However, each time, Bai Zixu would forget what he had been thinking about just moments before, and then, because of Bai Ke's question, he would desperately try to remember, becoming more anxious when he couldn't recall, and ultimately falling ill, causing chaos at home.

After a few such lessons, Bai Ke stopped asking altogether, quietly worrying in his heart.

Fortunately, over the years, Bai Zixu had daydreamed countless times and had countless bewildered expressions like this. As long as no one disturbed him, he would snap out of it after a while and then be distracted by something else. Nothing serious had ever happened. Bai Ke gradually learned to let him be.

He led Bai Zixu into another room, with Lin Ji hurrying along behind them.

However, they couldn't catch up with Junxiao's speed. When the three of them entered the room, Junxiao had just finished cleaning up. Besides the original furnishings, there was nothing extra to be found.

"The one-second cleaning skill is so practical! But Second Master, why didn't you use it earlier?" Lin Ji thought about how he and Bai Ke had manually picked up each book, feeling utterly foolish!

"Troublesome," Junxiao replied succinctly.

Bai Ke: "..." Isn't picking up each book one by one troublesome? What kind of logic is this?

Lin Ji: "Then why did you intervene later?"

Junxiao glanced at him. "Because your questioning was even more troublesome."

Lin Ji: "..."

"This secluded and quiet courtyard is convenient for my arrangements," Junxiao ignored further questions from Lin Ji and turned to Bai Ke, "Each of you can have one of these empty rooms."

"What about you?" Bai Ke asked.

"I have a place to stay." Junxiao walked to the doorway, scanning a few corners in the courtyard, and asked Bai Ke, "Which room are you planning to stay in?"

"Just now, beside bamboo’s room. This room is between Lin Ji's and the one I just mentioned. It's better for my dad to stay here, easier for me to take care of him."

Junxiao nodded. "I will create a hidden door on that patch of cloud bamboo, leading to the secret realm where I reside. In the future, apart from noon and taking spiritual pills, I will be practicing in the secret realm."

"Okay."

Lin Ji, on the side, looked eagerly. "What about me, Second Master?"

Jun Xiao, who showed blatant favoritism without any hesitation, finally turned back and told Lin Ji, "You will go too."

After saying that, he noticed Bai Zixu leaning against the doorpost, gazing at the sky. He smirked and added, "Well then, I'll give each of you a talisman."

 

Translator : DarNan