Chapter 214 - Good Deeds
Night fell as Zhixuan led Xuanyuan to the banquet venue, the Linglong Moon Hall. Inside, Zhixuan had her own seat on the stage overseeing the Moon Stream, which circled the many sets of small tables and soft cushions laid out on the floor.
People from every major city, family, sect, and school in the Land of the East arrived and took their seats. They were like peacocks who couldn’t wait to show off their colourful features. Peacocks that demanded the attention of the Linglong Sect's Lady Saint.
"Xuanyuan, they sent many gifts to me. You can choose whatever you want and need. I have no use for them." Zhixuan said. She couldn’t care less for material things given by others. She would much rather keep her friend, Xuanyuan, safe.
"Haha, I will. Thank you." Xuanyuan smiled. He wondered how these people would react should they know their gifts were in his hands.
"I’m still uneasy… I should go with you to the Land of Darkness." Zhixuan said.
"No." Xuanyuan was determined.
"I knew you would say that." She felt helpless. The Land of Darkness was the most forbidden place in the East. There was nothing she could do.
"Lady Saint, people are all seated. You should say something." Xuanyuan tried to divert the conversation. Zhixuan looked lovely in her white outfit as she gazed downwards at those attempting to woo her.
"Thank you all for coming to celebrate my birthday." She said slowly. "Please enjoy yourselves at the banquet tonight."
"You’re too kind, Lady Saint. We thank you for your banquet." Haiya replied. His wounds were healed and had resumed role of a gentleman from a honourable family.
"You again! You sneaked into the ladies’ shower. Aren’t you ashamed?" The pig snorted while relaxing on its own cushion enjoying the wine. Xuanyuan suppressed his urge to laugh. Though rare, there were times like these when he found the pig acceptable. Haiya, at the moment, clearly felt differently. His face turned green upon seeing the pig.
"That’s the guy. I heard the ladies screams, but I didn’t think it was true."
"He’s supposed to be the future master of the Hai Family. He seems undeserving of such an honor."
Gossip and low mumbling began to fill the air.
"How dare you, stupid pig. You framed me! I’m going to kill you!" Haiya screamed.
"Do it, why don’t you? I’ll transport you into the Head of the Linglong Sect's room and see how that goes. I’m sure she’s already resting…" The pig was not afraid at all.
Haiya thought of the possibility and trembled. He said weakly, "Alright, alright. I won’t fight you."
The pig grinned and continued to drink its wine. "Nice, nice. It’s not the best wine in the Linglong Sect, but it's quite tasty indeed."
People looked curiously at the pig. Rumours had spread across the hall already - it belonged to Xuanyuan, the boy who had the secret to immortality. The boy and the pig were both arrogant and imposing.
Yin Qianxun raised his glass towards the pig and smiled, "King, I’ll toast to you!"
"How nice you are tonight, boy!" The pig drank frantically. The young disciple serving their table kept refilling its cup.
"Did you hear that? The young master Yin called the pig king! And the pig accepted! Not even a xian class fighter would call himself king. This pig is outrageous!"
"What? When I was conquering parts of the world, none of you were born yet. What do you know?" The pig snapped, hearing the gossip among the elites from the Land of the East. Xuanyuan’s temper flared up again. Was the pig afraid that people wouldn’t be able to guess who their real identities were?
"Don’t worry about it. It’s arrogant, but it knows to stay within the boundaries." Greed said.
"Brother Xuanyuan, you have an interesting companion." Zhixuan smiled.
"Haha, I don’t know it very well. It was only an egg a few days ago." Xuanyuan sighed.
At this point, a woman announced, "The Lady Saint does not indulge in luxury. Instead, she would like to turn all your kind gifts into money for those living in poverty around the Land of the East. We shall announced the list of gifts and engraved them on the Stone of Good Deeds to show our gratitude. "
The people who attended the banquet were from the richest families in the Land of the East. Many of them couldn’t care less about the poor and hungry in front of their door steps. However, they jumped onto the opportunity to praise the kindness and thoughtfulness of the Lady Saint.
A disciple carried a book that contained the list of all the gifts sent to the Lady Saint. Another disciple was holding a sword, ready to engrave the names of the people who gave gifts onto a giant crystal.
"Master Lingyun of the Cave of Clouds gifted a piece of spiritual jade."
"Master Tianjian of the Heavenly Sword Cave gifted a pair of Heavenly Swords."
"Master Lie Tianxing of the Lie Family gifted ten protection talismans."
"I don’t think I should take any of the gifts you are using to benefit the poor." Xuanyuan said.
"Don’t worry about it. I’ll pitch in the cost. The gifts they gave me were all unique and powerful. You won’t be able to purchase many of them elsewhere. For example, these Heavenly Swords were made by two Xians of Swords who practiced together…." Zhixuan explained patiently to Xuanyuan about the power and use of each gift. She was determined to equip Xuanyuan for his trip to the Land of Darkness. Seeing her sincerity, Xuanyuan decided it would be impolite to refuse the gifts.
Very soon, the crystal was covered with the names of numerous people and their gifts to Zhixuan. Even though their gifts did not reach the intended recipient, they were impressed with the Lady Saint’s generosity and none could find fault with her actions.
"Master Yin Qianxun of the Yin Family gifted a Dragon Elixir."
"Boy, you’ll need this elixir when you go to the Land of Darkness. The Black Dragon has been dead for a long time now, but its spirit is still looming. It’ll be easier for you to get inside if you take the elixir. It can also enhance your strength." Greed reminded him.
"Then I’ll take the Dragon Elixir." Xuanyuan told Zhixuan.
"Very well. See if there are any other things you like." Zhixuan raised her hand and a delicate box rose up and landed in Xuanyuan’s hands. A draconic aura surrounded him.