Su Ming took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the storm raging in his heart. He knew his master was skirting the issue, but he also understood that since he was still alive, it meant the immediate crisis had passed.
He didn’t press for details. Some things, his master kept from him for his own good. Right now, he didn’t even qualify to know the truth.
“Then… what’s the result?” Su Ming asked.
“The result is that the two of us have now hitched our wagon to a star,” Lin Yu said with a sly chuckle. “From now on, you can swagger around the sect without anyone daring to mess with you. Of course, that’s assuming you don’t provoke someone like the Sect Leader.”
Su Ming was stunned.
Hitched their wagon to a star?
“Alright, don’t stand around freezing in this cold wind,” Lin Yu urged. “Let’s head back. The show’s over, but we still need to get our stories straight, so we don’t slip up later.”
Su Ming nodded.
He took one last look at that old pine tree, then turned and walked toward his cave dwelling.
His steps were a bit unsteady, as if he were walking on cotton. It wasn’t until he pushed open the stone door, entered the familiar-smelling secret chamber, and saw the formation lines flickering on the surrounding stone walls that he felt a sliver of genuine safety.
The stone door slowly closed, sealing off the wind, rain, and prying eyes from the outside world.
Su Ming sat cross-legged on the meditation cushion. Instead of immediately entering a trance, he pulled out a flask of cold tea from his storage pouch and took a big gulp.
The icy tea flowed down his throat into his stomach, sending a shiver through him. His mind finally sharpened a bit.
“Master,” Su Ming set down the flask, “can you talk now?”
A faint light flickered on the Xuantian ring.
Lin Yu’s soul body didn’t emerge. His voice directly resounded in Su Ming’s Consciousness Sea. “That person just now recognized me as a ‘Survivor of the Shen Family.’”
Su Ming was taken aback. “The Shen Family? Which Shen Family?”
“The one that was wiped out a thousand years ago—a formation-crafting aristocratic family,” Lin Yu explained briefly. “It’s the same excuse Sect Leader Yun Miao used to save you from the Heart-Questioning Platform.”
Su Ming’s mind raced.
The Heart-Questioning Platform, the Sect Leader, the Grand Elder, the Survivor of the Shen Family, the Starfall Soul-Nurturing Ring…
A clear chain of connections rapidly formed in his mind.
“So…” Su Ming’s eyes lit up faintly, “the Sect Leader was… gambling before?”
“He was gambling on the Grand Elder’s old feelings for the Shen family,” Lin Yu said flatly. “And just now, the Grand Elder came to verify it himself. Lucky for us, the bet paid off.”
Su Ming fell silent.
He recalled Sect Leader Yun Miao’s calm and composed demeanor on the Heart-Questioning Platform, and the final concession from Punishment Peak Master Cui Yan. So, behind all of that stood that gray-robed old man.
“Master, you…” Su Ming hesitated, “are you really a member of the Shen family?”
Lin Yu rolled his eyes inside the ring.
*Am I hell a member of the Shen family. I’m an outstanding wage-slave from the 21st century, a pure-blooded successor of our time.*
But he couldn’t say that.
“Your master has lost his memory,” Lin Yu said with complete conviction. “When that Grand Elder asked me just now, that’s what I told him. I don’t remember if I’m from the Shen family; I only remember some formations. Since he believes I am, then I am.”
Su Ming: “…”
Was this even allowed?
“It’s called ‘reasonable ambiguity,’” Lin Yu lectured. “Sometimes, you don’t want to say too much. The more confused and clueless you are, the more others will use their own logic to fill in the blanks for you. And what they imagine is often more perfect than anything you could fabricate.”
Su Ming nodded thoughtfully.
He had used this tactic before, dealing with the old foxes in the Repair Hall, but he never dreamed he could use it on a Nascent Soul grand elder.
“So… from now on, your disciple is a member of the Shen family?” Su Ming asked.
“Yes,” Lin Yu said. “From now on, if anyone asks about your heritage or why your formations are so exquisite yet bizarre, just steer them in that direction. Anything like ‘awakening of family memories,’ ‘bloodline instincts,’ or ‘dreaming about it’—you can use it all.”
“It’s a universal protective talisman.”
Su Ming took a deep breath.
He understood the weight of this identity. It wasn’t just an excuse; it was a shield, a get-out-of-jail-free card. With this identity, any talent or anomaly he displayed in formations would become completely reasonable.
Even his terrifyingly fast cultivation speed could be chalked up to “a long buildup finally paying off” or “bloodline awakening.”
“There’s also some good news.”
A hint of pleasure crept into Lin Yu’s tone. “That Grand Elder agreed to help your master find cultivation methods and materials to repair my soul body. In a few days, Void Stone Powder, Boundary Origin Sand, and Soul-Nurturing Wood Pith will be delivered.”
Su Ming’s hand jerked, nearly dropping the flask in his hand.
“Soul… Soul-Nurturing Wood Pith?”
Su Ming’s voice trembled.
He had seen this item in the *Records of Heavenly Treasures*. It was the essence that grew in the heart of ten-thousand-year-old Shadow Wood. Even an inch of it would make Golden Core cultivators fight to the death, and it was priceless on the open market, with no supply available.
“And Void Stone Powder? Boundary Origin Sand?”
Su Ming felt like he couldn’t breathe.
“Master… you… you didn’t con that Grand Elder, did you?”
“Can what we cultivators do really be called conning?” Lin Yu snorted. “This is called ‘an elder’s gift, not to be refused.’ It’s a token of his feelings for an old friend. If we don’t accept it, we’re being disrespectful. Don’t you understand?”
Su Ming swallowed hard.
He understood. But he still found it nerve-wracking.
Lin Yu’s voice turned serious. “If you accept the favor, you must bear the karmic consequences. From today onward, Su Ming, you are a true ‘insider’ of the Cloud Hidden Sect. If the sect is ever in trouble, you’ll really have to step up.”
“And once this identity is solidified, there will be more eyes on you.”
“Originally, you were just a talented True Disciple. Now, you’re a golden boy carrying the ‘heritage of an ancient aristocratic family.’ Although the Grand Elder has your back, and no one will dare touch you openly, expect plenty of covert tests.”
Su Ming nodded.
He understood.
Heavy is the head that wears the crown.
There was never a free lunch in this world, let alone free Soul-Nurturing Wood Pith.
“Are you afraid?” Lin Yu asked.
Su Ming was silent for a few breaths. Then, he suddenly smiled.
He stood up and walked over to the formation platform in a corner of the cave dwelling. Seven rods of Star Pattern Steel, left over from his Foundation Establishment process, lay there, covered in cracks—traces of having endured the pounding of star force.
He reached out and touched those cracks, feeling their rough hardness under his fingertips.
“I am afraid,” Su Ming said softly.
“Your disciple fears death, fears pain, and fears trouble.”
“But…”
He lifted his head, his gaze falling on the night pearls embedded in the ceiling. His eyes were clear and bright. “I fear even more being crushed like an ant, just like before.”
“If this hat can save my life, then even if it’s heavy enough to break my neck, I have to wear it.”
“Not only wear it, but wear it steady.”
Inside the ring, Lin Yu watched Su Ming’s straight back, and the corner of his mouth curled up slightly.
*This kid has really grown up.*
*He was learning to weigh options, to make choices, to find his own place to survive in the shadows of giants.*
