Chapter 189: Master Jian's Masterpiece
Many people were involved in dispatching Ji You to the Snow Region, but ultimately, the Master's Courtyard was the one in charge.
Although cultivators are not subject to the emperor and do not need to report to the Great Xia Emperor, they always have to report back to the academy after completing a mission. This has always been the established procedure of Tianshu Academy.
However, seeing that Ji You hadn't arrived, the three Masters discussed it and sent someone to personally invite him.
And just as the Disciple of the Master's Courtyard received the order and left the Master's Courtyard, a middle-aged man in Great Xia official attire entered the Master's Building within the Master's Courtyard.
The three Masters were drinking tea and waiting for someone. Before they could speak, they saw the man in front of them already bowing.
“Master Qin, Lord Lang, Master Ji, I am Dou Xiong, Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. I greet the three Masters.”
“Oh? So it’s Lord Dou. We failed to meet you. Please, quickly take a seat.”
Tianshu Academy is a Great Xia Holy Sect. The Headmaster's lineage once had marital ties with the Imperial Family, and Great Xia's Ancestral Emperor originally came from Tianshu Academy. Therefore, even though immortal authority is supreme in the current Qingyun World, Tianshu Academy still maintains a good attitude towards Great Xia officials.
However, interactions between them have always been rare.
After all, holding positions managing academy affairs, whether openly or secretly, they still had to maintain a certain degree of independence and not get too close to mortal forces. This was an academy rule.
Although the three Masters in the Master's Courtyard liked to put on airs, they always regarded the prestige of Tianshu Academy as their lifelong ideal and respected the academy rules.
Unless, what others offered was truly a lot—
There's an ancient saying in Qingyun, 'One does not visit the Temple of Three Treasures without a reason,' especially for those who usually have no dealings. Thus, Qin Rong couldn't help but ask, “Lord Dou, what brings you here today?”
“I want to accuse a Tianshu Academy Disciple of committing violence on the streets of Shengjing!”
“Oh? Is that so?” Qin Rong’s expression instantly turned serious.
“At this hour today, someone drew their sword for no reason and cut off the lion head in front of my mansion gate. Everyone in Shengjing City can testify!”
“Who would dare to act like this?”
“Ji You!”
Dou Xiong stood in the hall of the Master's Building, his Face filled with grief and indignation.
The Immortal Supervisor doesn't care? And he even wrote a poem? He should be honored for all eternity? Then report it to the immortals!
In short, he absolutely could not accept his son being unable to return to the capital for the rest of his life.
And in Dou Xiong’s view, Tianshu Academy already disliked Ji You. Otherwise, when his son conspired to send Ji You on a mission to the Snow Region, the Master's Courtyard wouldn't have stepped in to facilitate it.
Even if it was certainly the decision of certain Worldly Family Elders in the Inner Courtyard, the Master's Courtyard ultimately didn't want Ji You to be at peace.
As an Inner Courtyard Disciple of Tianshu Academy, Ji You wasn't afraid of the Immortal Supervisor, and the Immortal Supervisor didn't want to oppose him, but he would ultimately have to fear Tianshu Academy.
Clap, clap, clap. After Dou Xiong finished speaking, he clapped his hands outwards, and several servants from the Dou Residence carried a box into the Master's Courtyard.
Then the box was opened, and a dazzling golden light shone brightly.
When asking for help, if one has no reason, one must have courtesy.
This rule has been followed in Qingyun World for a thousand years, and since Dou Xiong came from the Great Xia officialdom, and was one of the key officials who once managed taxes and tributes, he naturally understood this Dao deeply.
Qin Rong was stunned by the sight and looked at Lang Hetong and Ji Jingyao, who were sitting opposite him. All three simultaneously thought of the Sword Qi they had felt in the western part of Shengjing City earlier.
Everyone knew that only Ji You could possess such overwhelming Sword Qi in this place.
However, it was only at this moment that they realized where that sword had landed.
Dou Yuankong's role in the envoy affair was no secret. The three Masters now considered the cause and effect and felt that this sword strike was indeed not without reason.
Lang Hetong put down his teacup at this moment and said with a smile, “It’s just a pair of stone lions. You can always get another pair.
Furthermore, you should be aware of the situation between our Human Race and the Yao Race. Objects like stone lions are no longer suitable for display.”
“?”
“When the Ancient Remnant Race ruled all races, they not only liked to eat living humans raw, but also enjoyed extracting the true spirits of the Yao Race, forcing them to revert to their ancestral forms and stand guard at entrances. Their methods were extremely cruel, and your vulgar habit of placing lions at your gates originated from that time. This is a disgrace to the Yao Race.”
Lang Hetong looked at him: “The Yao Race has agreed not to be enemies with our Human Race. In the future, interactions between the two races will surely increase, Lord Dou. If you keep those lions, you will sooner or later cause trouble.”
Dou Shangshu was not here to discuss Qingyun history. After hearing this, he couldn't help but say, “The lions are naturally harmless, and it wouldn't matter even if they weren't displayed. But the key is my son.”
“Your son?”
“After Ji You cut down the stone lions in front of my mansion, he even threatened me, telling me that my son must never return to the capital in this life. I ask Tianshu Academy to uphold justice in this matter. I don't need him to compensate me for the lions, but I want my son to return, and I also want him to come to my Dou Residence to apologize!”
Ji Jingyao spoke at this moment, “Where is your son now?”
Dou Xiong replied, “My son was invited by a friend a few days ago to travel out of the capital for a winter tour.”
The old father didn't mention at all how his son frantically packed his bags and fled the capital without picking a route after the news of Ji You's return to the Nine Provinces arrived. When asked, he basically gave this answer.
Winter tour.
Hearing this, the three Masters exchanged glances, but no one spoke.
Just then, a Disciple returned from outside the door and bowed in the hall, saying, “Masters, Ji You has come to report.”
Master Qin turned to look at Dou Xiong: “Ji You is here, Lord Dou, perhaps—you should step aside for a moment?”
Dou Xiong actually felt a bit flustered upon hearing Ji You's name, not because of how strong his combat power was, but because he never understood rules and never considered Face.
So, after showing a fierce, wolf-like expression, Dou Shangshu got up and went behind the screen. A moment later, he said, “If I stand here like this, will he discover me?”
Lord Lang pondered for a moment, then waved his sleeve, instantly casting a Mystic Light onto the screen, concealing his aura.
Dou Xiong slightly relaxed, then looked towards the front hall from behind the screen.
Contrary to his imagination, Ji You did not enter respectfully. Instead, he entered with his head held high, causing Dou Shangshu to frown slightly.
What puzzled him the most was that after this rustic private cultivator entered, the first thing he looked at was not the three Masters, but the box of gold he had brought, and only then did he look at the three Masters.
Ji You suddenly raised the corner of his mouth, his mood much improved: “I greet the three Masters.”
Qin Rong was surprised by his politeness. After exchanging glances with the other two, he said, “Ji You, sit.”
“Thank you, Master, for the seat.”
“We have already learned about the process of your mission to the Snow Region through the Immortal Supervisor’s dispatch. We called you here today simply to go through the formalities, and we will not ask you too many questions here. There are just some case files that require your signature.”
Master Qin took out several case files, filled with densely written words.
Ji You glanced at them; they were basically summary-like documents written based on the Immortal Supervisor's dispatch, detailing their entire mission to the Snow Region.
Shi Junhao and Xiao Hanyan had already signed, and now only Ji You remained.
“It’s good to just go through the formalities.”
Ji You picked up the brush, signed his name while muttering, then a flash of light appeared at his waist, followed by a clatter, as he prepared to proceed with the formalities.
Dou Shangshu was behind the screen at this moment. Hearing the sound, he raised an eyebrow and saw shattered swords scattered all over the Master's Courtyard.
These swords were of similar specifications and design, likely bought together. While not much could be discerned from the broken blade fragments, the sword hilts provided clues.
On the ground, there were dozens of sword hilts.
After he woke up in the Snow Region, besides wanting the golden lump to hang from the beam, he also asked Gongshu Chou for the broken swords he had salvaged.
Gongshu Chou didn't quite understand at the time what use the swords would be if they were already broken.
Now, this was their use.
Qin Rong, Lang Hetong, and Ji Jingyao’s expressions stiffened at this moment, their right eyelids twitching wildly.
Ji You didn't see their expressions. Instead, he muttered, “During my mission to the Snow Region, I drew my bow and shot down a Spiritual Sword. When I cut down the Barbarian Soldier King, forty-one swords shattered, worth about three thousand taels.”
Dou Xiong: “?”
Qin Rong's mouth twitched: “If I'm not mistaken, those swords were originally bought by our Master's Courtyard to support your mission, weren't they?”
Ji You was stunned for a moment, then after a long period of thought, he said, “Were they?”
“Yes, they were.”
“Oh? There’s such a thing, I had forgotten—
Ji You glanced at the fragments on the ground: “So, I don’t need to compensate for them?”
Qin Rong was stunned for a long while: “We paid for them in the first place, so why would you need to compensate?”
“But I don’t have any swords left.”
“You didn’t originally have fifty Spiritual Swords, did you?”
Ji You was silent for a long time: “Alright, then I won’t charge you for these. But when I fought the Yao General in Yu Garden, two precious sabers that I had cherished since childhood were taken from me. I obtained them during an accidental fall down a mountain, and together they are worth five thousand taels.”
Qin Rong frowned at this point and turned to look at the other two Masters beside him.
Lang Hetong stood up at this moment, went to the case file room at the back, took out a case file, and after flipping through it for a long time, he asked somewhat confusedly, “Wasn’t that Yao General killed by you in the end?”
Ji You turned to look: “He was killed, but I searched his entire body and couldn't find my sabers.”
“But I remember you never used a saber?”
Ji You looked at him, thinking, 'You haven't gone out and killed anyone, have you?' “Lord Lang, you jest. Who doesn't have some unknown trump card or life-saving method? Otherwise, how could I, a rustic private cultivator, have survived until now in a world where I'm targeted everywhere?”
Hearing the words “targeted everywhere,” Lang Hetong was speechless for a moment. He then saw Ji Jingyao also stand up, approach him, and re-read the case file.
Upon seeing that the Yao General, fighting bare-handed, had inflicted numerous saber wounds on Ji You, and now hearing that Ji You had lost two precious sabers he had cherished since childhood, worth over five thousand taels, his mind couldn't help but falter.
At this moment, Ji You looked at the box of gold placed in the hall: “Actually, these are enough.”
Seeing this, Qin Rong held his breath, suddenly realizing that he had misunderstood from the moment he entered.
The simplified process he spoke of meant he no longer needed to personally write a full report on his mission to the Yao Race;
he only needed to sign the communication from the Master's Courtyard as the draft.
However, what he understood was, directly giving money.
“Then I won’t be polite?”
Ji You waved his sleeve, putting the box of gold into his storage gourd, and couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth: “You had this ready long ago and were still acting. Actually, I never liked your Master's Courtyard before, thinking you acted too pretentiously, but now I’ve had a change of heart.”
Qin Rong had wanted to stop him, but his hand, which was about to extend, hesitated.
Because he felt that if he stopped him now, the Master's Courtyard would have to pay for the two lost sabers of Ji You.
Forget it, just treat it as Dou Shangshu losing a box of gold here, which was then picked up by Ji You. At this moment, Lang Hetong and Ji Jingyao exchanged glances, then subtly looked in the direction of the screen.
After putting away the gold, Ji You stood up from the hall of the Master's Courtyard, looked at Qin Rong, and said: “Next time there’s such a good thing, call me again. As a Disciple of Tianshu Academy, I must share Tianshu Academy’s worries.”
No, I won’t call you again.
You are, your mother's, too expensive.
Before leaving, he was given ten thousand taels of gold and three thousand Spirit Stones, which was already an enormous sum. Afterwards, he ran up another bill at Qionghua Pavilion, roughly the same amount.
Now that he was back, he took a similar amount again.
Although the Seven Great Immortal Sects are all supported by the common people below, they don't really care about such mundane wealth. However, they don't engage in production, yet they need to spend large sums to purchase Medicinal Pills, making their consumption quite alarming.
The three Master-in-charges were now unsure whether this was him scamming them or them providing poverty relief.
At this moment, watching Ji You leave the Master's Courtyard, Dou Shangshu, somewhat dazed, walked out from behind the screen and stared into the distance for a long time, not understanding why Ji You dared to be so arrogant even in front of the Master's Courtyard.
This was completely contrary to the scene he had imagined when he arrived, of Ji You bowing his head and admitting his mistakes under the pressure of Tianshu Academy.
Master Qin saw his confusion, and at this moment, he rose from the wooden chair and slowly spoke.
“Do you think his disregard for rules only happens outside?”
“No.”
“When Ji You’s talent gradually became apparent, it surprised some people. Some feared he would obstruct the path of the Chu Family’s second son to enter the Inner Courtyard, so they came forward and asked us to send him to Qi Ridge to investigate the large-scale escape of Evil Seeds from the ruins.”
“That time he returned to report, he came by flying his sword over the mountain, and then walked past me, covered in Sword Qi.”
“Some say that no matter how strong an individual cultivator is, they cannot compare to a powerful background or force. Ji You is merely a rogue cultivator from the countryside, nothing to fear. But later, people gradually understood one thing: those who aren’t afraid of death are also very terrifying, though I don’t know if he truly isn’t afraid of death.”
Dou Shangshu frowned after hearing this: “Could it be that Tianshu Academy, as the Great Xia Holy Sect and the head of the Seven Great Immortal Sects, cannot even control a single student?”
Lang Hetong spoke from behind at this moment: “I know what Dou Shangshu was thinking when he came—that my Master's Courtyard and Ji You were at odds, and that we also wanted him to live a stable life. In fact, it was like that at first, but later it became quite different.”
“?”
“Master Qin told me a few days ago when he was transcribing case files that he used to find writing such things tedious, but when he wrote about Ji You’s parts, it was the most enjoyable.”
Lang Hetong picked up the signed case file from the table at this moment: “Do you think this is just routine? No, this is to be recorded in the Tianshu Academy scroll of the Qingyun Immortal History. Rescuing the Dan Sect’s direct Disciple in Qi Ridge, asking the Dao and breaking through the Sword Forest at Lingjian Mountain,”
“planning the counterattack at Yu Garden that led to the Demon Emperor’s reconciliation—these are all major events.”
“Tianshu Academy always needs to leave some stories for future generations to read. We don’t care how the Immortal Sect’s high-level officials decide, but actually, after the Lingjian Mountain’s Dao inquiry, we already admired Ji You greatly.”
“Some say history is void, but we never want those who read these historical records in later generations to ask, ‘What happened to that person named Ji You?’ and be answered, ‘He was eventually persecuted to death by the three Master-in-charges of the Master's Courtyard.’”
Dou Shangshu had initially wanted Ji You to endure the pressure of Tianshu Academy, and then thoroughly humiliate him when he came to apologize at his mansion.
But only at this moment did he suddenly realize what kind of role Ji You played within Tianshu Academy. For thousands of years, such rogue cultivators from the countryside like Ji You were rare.
His uniqueness stemmed from his origins, naturally different from those of Worldly Family scions. But setting that aside, no one would question that he was one of Tianshu Academy’s most outstanding students in recent years.
If he hadn't entered the academy in the same year as Chu River, and if he hadn't insisted on reducing taxes from external Immortal Villas, he would have even entered the Immortal Palace and been thriving.
Then become a direct Disciple of an Elder, befriend various Worldly Sect, marry a prestigious woman, and control one-ninth of the Human Race’s tax revenue.
In other words, both inside and outside Tianshu Academy, the reason people disliked him wasn't because they looked down on him or wanted to ostracize him, but because he actively chose this most difficult path.
Before the establishment of the Ji Family in Feng Province, several Elders in the Inner Courtyard had actually wanted to choose him as their direct Disciple.
He himself chose to point his sword at Night City Mountain, to destroy Immortal Villas, and to reduce taxes.
In other words, from the very beginning, he was the one ostracizing everyone else.
But what did the Dou Family have?
The Dou Family was merely a new noble that rose to power during Wei Li's reign. In the Qingyun World, where imperial power was inferior to immortal power,
Dou Xiong, the Minister of Revenue, wasn't even considered a powerful official.
The three Master-in-charges of Tianshu Academy might act against Ji You due to Family reasons or Inner Courtyard Elder reasons, but how could they possibly act against Ji You for the sake of a mortal Worldly Family?
That guy, he's someone who dared to slay a Soldier King in the wilderness with his sword.
Dou Xiong finally accepted reality at this moment, knowing that he had thought of Ji You as having too little status.
His momentary cleverness back then might truly make him unable to return to Shengjing City for the rest of his life.
Master Qin patted Dou Shangshu’s shoulder at this moment: “Actually, Lord Dou, there’s no need to be so anxious. Since Ji You accepted your money, it means there’s still room for reconciliation in this matter. Just take it slowly. First, let your son travel more outside; the Qi will always subside.”
Dou Xiong looked up at him, his mouth twitching as he spoke: “Is that so? But you didn’t seem to mention that box of gold was given by me.”
“Uh, I forgot about that—”
At this point, Ji You had already left the Master's Courtyard. The sheer amount of money made him feel an urge to treat others, which was truly frightening.
He then walked along the mountain path into the vast forest and returned to his small courtyard.
The daily affairs of the Inner Courtyard Disciples were also the responsibility of the Master's Courtyard. They had already received news of Ji You’s return and had swept away the fallen leaves in the courtyard, and added fresh water to the water Cylinder.
However, because it hadn't been lived in for a long time, the main room still had a stale, enclosed smell.
Ji You stepped inside, opened the windows and doors, then took out the cotton quilt from the bottom of a camphor wood chest, shook out the cotton, and hung it on the bamboo rack in the courtyard to air.
Then he turned back into the house, cleaned the stove, lit a fire with firewood, then threw in charcoal, ignited it with Spiritual Qi, and brewed a pot of clear tea.
Only after all of this was done did he take out the letter from his embrace, which was addressed 【Nanhua City - Ding Wanqiu】.
Earlier, because he was rushing to the Master's Courtyard to demand money, Ji You was a bit afraid that opening it would put him in too good a mood, making him not open his mouth wide enough when facing the Master-in-charge of the Master's Courtyard, so he had kept the letter until now.
At this moment, Ji You brewed the tea and slowly opened the envelope.
But when the paper from the envelope was unfolded under the brilliant winter sun, Ji You’s gaze couldn't help but freeze.
He initially thought the letter would be a long discourse, perhaps a bit stubborn but full of unspoken words, after all, he had been away for so long, there should be a lot to say.
About breaking through to a new realm, or asking him questions about his mission to the Yao Race, but what Ji You didn't expect was that there were no words in this letter at all.
It wasn't a letter, but a drawing.
To call it a drawing isn't quite accurate, as it only had two stick-figure-like characters.
The one on the right should be a female, with a black circle for the head, a dot in the middle, and a hook drawn, which should be the eyes and mouth. Several black lines hanging from the top of the head represented hair. She held a long sword, poised in a lunge, ready to thrust.
As for this long sword, it was actually just a horizontal line drawn with ink, but with Ji You’s intelligence, he recognized it at a glance.
And on the left side of the picture was also a crude little person, drawn even more simply, with a dot on the black ink spot representing the head, like a hair crown, and then pierced through the heart by the long sword in the female figure's hand, suspended in mid-air, looking quite vivid in its bowed head and chest posture, like a roasted chicken.
“?”
Ji You looked at the letter and suddenly fell silent.
What does this mean?
Is she going to stab me to death with one sword?
Ji You pondered for a long time but couldn't quite understand, thinking, there were no words in my letter that would anger this tsundere, right?
After gazing for a long time, he put down the letter, picked up the teacup, and slowly took a sip, thinking, could it be that she suffered a Qi Deviation when breaking through?—
But how should I describe this drawing? Although it had no aesthetic appeal, it was inexplicably very cute.
The Little Master Jian of Lingjian Mountain is the fastest Sky Soaring Realm cultivator in the world, and also the wielder of Lingjian Mountain’s artifacts, and she is incredibly beautiful, yet her drawings turned out to be so childish.
Lost in thought, Ji You seemed to imagine a Fairy with bare, snow-white jade feet, an fierce expression, holding a brush and splashing ink, finally completing a drawing with the clumsy strokes of a child.
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