“This disciple pays respect to Sect Leader!” A man knelt in front of her, Hua Qian Gu lifted her head, the man was smiling, he looked ethereal, his aura shone like clouds of multiple colors, making others feel warm.
Hua Qian Gu froze and turned to Bai Zi Hua, Bai Zi Hua nodded at her to stand up.
She struggled to her feet, her legs still trembling, the man in front of her still knelt. She quickly stepped aside, feeling the man was kneeling in the wrong direction, she felt overwhelmed by what was happening.
“Mount Mao’s disciple Yun Yin pays respect to Sect Leader!” The man turned in her direction, still kneeling and bowing low.
Hua Qian Gu’s face stiffened, she hastily extended her hand to help him stand up. As she walked closer to him, she smelled an elegant fragrance.
“Yun Yin, do not scare her, you can talk to her in the Main Hall.” Bai Zi Hua said.
Yun Yin held her hand and stood up, his clear eyes filled with delight fixated on her, it seemed as if he had a lot of things to say. Then he realized he was not being respectful so he lowered his head, making a “please” gesture.
“Gu Tou mama!!!” At this point, Tang Bao flew from Luo Shi Yi’s hands, it clung onto Hua Qian Gu’s shoulder and cried noisily, it was almost scared to death.
Hua Qian Gu smiled and poked it, quietly making a gesture to Qing Shui not to worry. Then she followed Bai Zi Hua and Yun Yin to the Main Hall.
Everyone began to discuss loudly among themselves. That girl seemed ordinary, without skills or background, who would think she turned out to be a sect leader.
Ni Man Tian squeezed her hands until the bones cracked, she had mistakenly looked down on this girl, it appeared the girl would be a big problem in the future.
In the Main Hall, Hua Qian Gu saw that Shi Zun and Ru Zun were already present, Tang Bao immediately hid in her ear. Because there was an outsider, Sheng Xiao Mo sat up straight, but he still looked lazy. It appeared Mo Yan still held a grudge, he coldly stared at her.
“This disciple pays respect to Shi Zun and Ru Zun.” Hua Qian Gu knelt and reverently bowed her head.
Mo Yan snorted loudly: “We cannot accept such respect, Sect Leader of Mount Mao.” Each of his word meant to ridicule her.
Hua Qian Gu was stunned, her face turned a deep red.
Sheng Xiao Mo intervened reluctantly: “Senior brother, Hua Qian Gu was just helping a dying man.”
Mo Yan waved his hand and said: “She is a disciple of Chang Liu, yet she is the sect leader of another school, how ridiculous. Chang Liu cannot keep such a grand person. She should return to Mount Mao as soon as possible and be sect leader there!”
Hua Qian Gu’s heart sank after hearing that, she quickly lifted her head to look at Bai Zi Hua, he indifferently put down his tea cup and did not say anything.
Yun Yin frowned and explained: “After receiving news from Wang Mu Qing Niao (bluebird), I immediately returned to Mount Mao to take care of things. I knew Sect Leader had left with Zun Shang for Chang Liu so I was reassured, there were many things to take care of in the sect, I didn’t want to bring Sect Leader back amidst so many problems and troubles. Also, it’s said that Sect Leader had joined Mount Chang Liu, every day would be filled with arduous studies, I didn’t dare to interfere. For the past six months, I’ve been corresponding with Zun Shang to keep track of Sect Leader’s progress. Finally, our sect has successfully restructured, the only thing left is for Sect Leader to return to guide us. This is why I especially made the trip here to invite Sect Leader back.”
Hua Qian Gu looked at Yun Yin in bewilderment, how can he not know she was just an ordinary human? Before dying, Taoist priest Qing Xu needed her help out of necessity, she was not involved in any of this. Hua Qian Gu knew with her limited ability, she could not help him, if she became the sect leader of Mount Mao, even if the governing power was in his hands, he would still need her authorization, which would be inconvenient. Also, Hua Qian Gu was not strong enough to protect herself, if something happened then Mount Mao would be at a big disadvantage, if something happened to the sect leader, she would not be able to cope, which would be disastrous. If she remained at Chang Liu, it would be easier for him to do things his way.
If Mount Mao had successfully restructured, she would need to give back the sect leader’s symbol and palace feathers to him, she would not even need to go back to Mount Mao. Also, time was not on her side, with her weak skills, perhaps she could not even climb up to the dais of the Xian Jian Games. She only wanted to become Bai Zi Hua’s disciple, she did not care about being the sect leader of Mount Mao.
“I’m deficient, I don’t know how to be sect leader. You’re here right on time, I’ll pass the sect leader’s position to you, this would fulfill Taoist priest Qing Xu’s last wish.”
Yun Yin shook his head: “I’m aware of my teacher’s intention, I also realize it’s difficult to be sect leader. However, Mount Mao currently has internal and external enemies, if I become sect leader, my ways dealing with things would not change, which would give cause for the other disciples who have never liked me to rebel, thus it is necessary for you to be our sect leader. You have been entrusted by my teacher, you also helped Mount Mao, the disciples will obey you. In the future when everything is in order, if you don’t want to be sect leader anymore, we’ll think of another solution, how about it?”
Hua Qian Gu’s heart sank, she was still young, just a human, with limited ability. Yun Yin wanted her to be a puppet, he would pull the strings in the background, this would solve the crisis at Mount Mao. Hua Qian Gu could not help but admire him a bit.
Yun Yin spoke smoothly and elegantly, she could not disagree. She could only nod but added: “No matter what happens, I’m still a disciple of Chang Liu.”
“I understand.” Yun Yin bowed, “There will be a ceremony at Mount Mao, all the disciples who wandered off will return to the mountain, you must be there as sect leader, if not, this will hurt morale, it is why I’m here. It’s only for a few days, then I’ll guide Sect Leader back to Chang Liu.”
Hua Qian Gu looked up toward Bai Zi Hua, he nodded quietly to give his consent.
“All right, I’ll go back to Mount Mao with you.”
The bright moon rose high in the sky, in the woods, Hua Qian Gu lit incense sticks, burned burial paper, then sat under the shade of a tree and dazedly looked at the flame. Mount Chang Liu not only had plenty of jades but also plenty of burning fragrances. It was difficult to know what this fragrance was comprised of, but it smelled different from the other fragrances. It created feelings of anxiety and misery. The smoke was hazy, hypnotizing those who look at it.
She had sneaked out in the middle of the night, today was her birthday, it was also the anniversary of her mother’s death.
Usually, everyone should be joyful on their birthday, she was the only one who thought of this day as the saddest.
Always bringing misfortune to anyone close to her, this meant she could only be by herself. So lonely, so cold.
Tomorrow, she would return to Mount Mao with Yun Yin, she had not seen the outside world for six months, would there be changes?
“What are you doing here by yourself?”
The voice suddenly rang out and scared her half to death, she did not need to look up but quickly knelt down.
“Paying respect to Zun Shang!”
Her head low, only seeing his white robe on the ground, a few yellow leaves clung to it, she suddenly wanted to reach out and brush them off.
“I went to the Hai quarters to look for you but did not find you, I smelled this fragrance and decided to see what was happening, you did burn this. Why are you burning burial paper today? Who passed away on this date?”
“My mother.” Hua Qian Gu replied sadly.
“I see, try not to grieve too much…..” Bai Zi Hua had never talked much, he also did not know how to comfort others, he saw Hua Qian Gu’s thin body shaking in the howling wing.
This child, why was she so afraid of him?
“Stand up first and then talk.”
Hua Qian Gu stood up, still afraid to look at him.
“Are you here because I’m going back to Mount Mao tomorrow?”
Bai Zi Hua nodded: “When you go back, you will have to deal with a lot of difficulties, you should mentally prepare yourself.”
“Why? Don’t I just need to participate in a ceremony?” It was not like she was going to war.
“Yun Yi and Chun Qiu Bu Bai may try to harm you. Mount Mao’s strength is no longer what it once was. Also, there are disciples who want to be sect leader so they would not welcome your presence. Although Yun Yin will try his best to protect you, it is inevitable that he cannot always be with you. I thought of accompanying you, but I must settle many issues, and it is not convenient to show myself. You need to be alert, do not bring shame to Mount Chang Liu or Mount Mao.”
“I understand.”
Bai Zi Hua paused and then asked: “You still cannot use a sword to fly?”
Hua Qian Gu was surprised, feeling uneasy and embarrassed. She thought he must be disappointed in her. She could not help but feel distressed.
Bai Zi Hua waved his fingers, a silver light flashed from his waist and swept upward, it circled on top of their heads a few times then stopped in midair. The blade was thin like the wings of an insect, the light illuminated from it was green like emerald, the entire blade glimmered in the colors of a rainbow.
“I will teach you.”
Then he stretched out a hand toward Hua Qian Gu.
Hua Qian Gu looked up in shock, his appearance inspired reverence, it seemed as if he eclipsed the moonlight behind him. She froze, her brain empty, she blankly extended her hand and allowed him to take it, his hand forever cold like ice. She felt as if she was submerged in water, not being able to breath, there was no way out. Suddenly, she had a feeling she could never escape this.
Bai Zi Hua looked at her: “Do not forget the theories, the most important thing is to apply what you have studied to the sword, think of it as a part of you, you can fly wherever you want, you will not fall down.”
After saying this, he was like a deity and flew up with Hua Qian Gu onto the sword. The sword was only three meters long, but Hua Qian Gu was small so it was not crowded.
Hua Qian Gu shook and was about to fall but felt Bai Zi Hua behind helping her, reassuring her.
“Control your breathing, do not be afraid, I will let you control the sword now.”
After he said this, the sword shook violently a few times up and down, then completely descended downward.
Ahhhh, Hua Qian Gu screamed silently, they would crash into a big tree! She quickly closed her eyes but remembering he was behind her, she immediately gathered her internal energy and used it to pull the sword in another direction, the leaves brushed past them, she was sweating profusely.
“Good, now try to stabilize the sword, slowly go up.”
Hua Qian Gu guided the sword to fly aimlessly in the sky, sometimes high sometimes low, never more than twelve meters from the ground, it was dangerous. However, this was beyond her expectation, first because the sword was obedient, secondly because his presence reassured her.
Flying amongst the trees was dangerous, Hua Qian Gu concentrated on looking at the moon, her heart kept shouting to keep moving forward, keep moving forward. Finally, they shot up, out of the woods, the sword carried them toward the moonlight clear like water.
It seemed as if the wind was lifting Hua Qian Gu up, the sword gradually stabilized.
Hua Qian Gu took a deep breath, the smell of burning fragrance mixed with the smell of grass created a calming effect. So this was what flying felt like, but her wings were not the sword but Zun Shang.
Hua Qian Gu slowly mastered the techniques, flying in a circle a few times in the air. She discovered she had flown very high, so high she could see all of Mount Chang Liu and the three halls.
She descended slowly. The sword automatically returned to Bai Zi Hua’s waist, slipping into the scabbard.
“You did well.” Bai Zi Hua nodded and praised her, Hua Qian Gu felt this was sweeter than eating honey. Suddenly remembering something, she asked:
“Zun Shang, is the demonic aura on me still heavy like before? You can smell it from anywhere? Is that how you found me?”
“It is not a demonic aura but more like a mystical fragrance, easily attracting evil spirits. Right now, you have the hook jade, which hides a lot of the fragrance, evil spirits and humans cannot smell it, but I can still sense it.”
Then he handed the sword to her: “I think you and this sword are fated, I will give it to you.”
Hua Qian Gu was shocked: “How can you? Thank you for your concern, I don’t dare to accept it.”
“Do not worry, this is not the Heng Shuang sword, it is only an ordinary sword called Duan Nian (Emotionless), it is delicate and quick, suitable for a girl. You still do not have a weapon, correct? Although the Emotionless sword is not famous, it is an excellent weapon, more importantly it is spiritual, it can protect you when you are in danger. Is today not your birthday? Think of it as a gift. You need to continue to be studious so you can be a good match for this sword.”
“Thank you Zun Shang, I understand.”
Hua Qian Gu trembled as she knelt down to accept the sword, her voice also trembled, this was the first time someone gave her a birthday gift. Because of her mother, her father avoided the topic, let alone celebrate this day.
Her heart was overwhelmed with warmth, her emotions a mixture of sorrow and grief, she did not know what to say.
But how could Zun Shang know today was her birthday? Hua Qian Gu looked up at him, Bai Zi Hua saw her childish face like a dandelion swaying gently in the night wind, he seemed to understand what she wanted to ask, he replied: “Based on your appearance, I can guess.” He paused then continued, “Mount Mao is known for its sword flying techniques, now you also know, from now on try to deal with problems yourself, do not rely on Yun Yin for everything. All right, it is late, you need to hurry back to sleep, you have to get up early tomorrow.”
Hua Qian Gu was so moved she could not talk, it seemed Bai Zi Hua purposely sought her out to teach her how to fly, then to give her a sword. He probably worried if she was the sect leader of Mount Mao but still depended on Yun Yin to fly on a sword or a cloud, it would be difficult for the disciples to obey her. If they challenged her now, she can answer them. If demons wanted to harm her, she can escape. He thought of everything for her, to even the smallest details, how can she not want to do everything to repay him?
Looking at Bai Zi Hua walking further and further away, she felt so happy. Hugging the sword, she wanted to cry.