Chapter 393: Chapter 306: The Past is Like Smoke (Part 2)
Looking at Jiang Wanqin’s confident expression, Fang Qingyuan felt she was getting ahead of herself. After a moment’s thought, he said,
"I’ve got time, so I’ll go with you. We wouldn’t want a repeat of last time’s disaster."
Jiang Wanqin’s face flushed slightly, and she lowered her head, murmuring,
"I’ll leave it to you, Senior Brother."
...
Once they had agreed, Fang Qingyuan summoned Mao Cheng to inform him of his destination. He then took Jinbao and Jiang Wanqin and flew toward Yuanling Mountain in the Southern Border.
But when they arrived, Fang Qingyuan said to Jiang Wanqin,
"This place brings back too many memories. I won’t go up Yuanling Mountain for now. You go on and see Jiang Kui. I’m going to wander around Yuanling Square Marketplace at the base of the mountain. It’s been a while since I’ve seen my old friends from the She Family."
In response to Fang Qingyuan’s instructions, Jiang Wanqin could only nod in agreement. She bid him farewell, went to the gates of Yuanling Mountain, and announced her arrival.
Yuanling Mountain was where Jiang Wanqin was born and raised. She had lived here for forty years and was naturally familiar with every blade of grass and every tree. But in the twenty years since she had left, the place had changed a great deal.
For example, the Guest Officer at the gate did not recognize her. Only after Jiang Wanqin stated her identity was she welcomed inside. But once she passed through the mountain gates, she discovered that many of the faces she knew were gone.
...
Fang Qingyuan ambled through Yuanling Square Marketplace. Returning to this familiar place stirred a great many thoughts within him. He looked at the scenery, able to faintly match it to how things were when he was the Workshop Master.
When he reached the entrance of the marketplace’s main hall, Fang Qingyuan intended to look for She Xi Yu or She Xuanyan to catch up on old times. However, after asking several passing Cultivators, he found that none of them had heard the names. It wasn’t until he asked an older Cultivator that he learned the truth. The She Family, once as powerful as the midday sun in the marketplace, had since fallen into decline. Not only had they lost their post as the marketplace’s guards, but their ten-percent stake had been diluted to the point of being insignificant.
Such a drastic change in just over thirty years surprised Fang Qingyuan, but more than that, it made him sigh. He could guess what had happened. ’Without my support, how could a minor family with no real backing like the She Family ever hope to protect that ten-percent share from the major powers?’
Back then, to cash out and exit the scene, Fang Qingyuan had sold the majority of his fifty-percent share to other Golden Core Cultivators and even Nascent Soul Powers. Once these powers acquired their stakes, they naturally wouldn’t allow the She Family to maintain control over the marketplace’s security.
He recalled how he had once privately advised She Xi Yu to cash out as well. ’What a shame. The old fellow was blinded by the power he held at the time and refused to let go. He thought he could carry on under Jiang Kui’s protection, so he didn’t listen to me.’
’It seems even Jiang Kui couldn’t protect him in the end.’
Since his old acquaintances were gone, Fang Qingyuan decided against searching for them. ’If I can’t find them, then so be it. Everyone has their own destiny, don’t they? It’s best to let our past connection remain in the past.’
Having come to terms with this, Fang Qingyuan settled down in Yuanling Square Marketplace for a few days, patiently waiting for Jiang Wanqin to emerge. However, when five consecutive days passed and she still hadn’t appeared, Fang Qingyuan realized that something wasn’t right.
’Even if Jiang Wanqin wanted to stay a few extra days, she knows I’m waiting for her here in the marketplace. Even if she didn’t want to come out, she would have sent a Flying Sword Communication to let me know. How could five days pass without a word? That’s not like her at all.’
With these thoughts clear in his mind, Fang Qingyuan went to the foot of Yuanling Mountain and presented a formal calling card.
...
’Fang Qingyuan is here? How did he get here so quickly?’
In her secluded cultivation retreat on the mountain peak, Jiang Kui held Fang Qingyuan’s calling card, a look of surprise on her face. She had expected it would take him at least a month or two to arrive. She never thought he would be here in just five days.
Jiang Kui rose to her feet and deactivated the Array in the adjacent room, revealing Jiang Wanqin inside. She then asked in an exasperated tone,
"Did Fang Qingyuan come with you this time? Why didn’t you tell me?"
Jiang Wanqin just huffed and turned her head away, refusing to look at Jiang Kui.
Seeing this, Jiang Kui sighed and said mournfully,
"Am I truly unfit to be a Mountain Master? Nothing ever goes my way. Now even my only Foundation Establishment Disciple is turning against me."
Jiang Wanqin turned her head back, looked at Jiang Kui intently, and retorted,
"I invited you to visit time and again, but you always refused. Now that the situation has soured, you try to lure me back here to marry me off to a man I’ve never even met, all to curry favor with the Di Family. Is that how a master is supposed to act?"
Hearing this, Jiang Kui stood to the side, her brow tightening.
"I watched you grow up; I was the one who taught you. Would I ever do you harm? Di Yun is simple and straightforward, the same age as you, and already a Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator just a step away from the late stage. His background is illustrious—he’s a direct kinsman of Di Qing from the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect, and the Di Family’s ancestor is the great Nascent Soul expert Di Yuanpu. How can you possibly find him unacceptable?"
Jiang Wanqin simply closed her eyes and fell silent, clearly unmoved by Jiang Kui’s words.
Jiang Kui looked at Jiang Wanqin’s expression, furious yet helpless. ’I thought she would still listen to me, just like when she was on Yuanling Mountain back then. Who knew that after less than twenty years in the Qingyuan Sect, she would become so rebellious?’
Just then, a disciple came to the door again to report that Fang Qingyuan was growing impatient in the reception hall and hoped Jiang Kui would come out to greet him soon.
There were still many old-timers on Yuanling Mountain who had once worked under Fang Qingyuan. Although thirty years had passed, these people were still very respectful upon seeing him.
"You think about it carefully. I’m going to see Fang Qingyuan. I hope you’ll have come to your senses by the time I return."
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