Young Master Bai — Chapter 47

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Chapter 47: A Reputation Ruined Is Never Simple…

Few great figures capable of reforming an entire race are fools. The negotiations with the Unknown Truth Sect were finally resolved smoothly. Next came the preparation of yao bones and yao cores for trade, as well as selecting yao to accompany them for research. For the first time in a thousand years, the Great Snow Mountain was stepping out into the world. Bai Chen had to personally oversee matters — no mistakes could be allowed. But before that, he had one more investigation to conduct at the Hidden Wisdom Sect.

Last night, Bai Chen had returned to his room and shifted into his true form, waiting for Li Wuming. Who knew what the man had been wandering about for; only near dawn did he drift back. After returning, he simply held the little fox for a moment before falling asleep, leaving Bai Chen with no chance to ask.

As usual, Chenzui came to pay respects to the Ancestor and submit his assignments. What he saw was the Ancestor’s tail sweeping idly over the body of the sleeping man. Unsure whether to interrupt, he obediently placed his written essay on the desk and stood with bowed head beside the bed.

Though he hadn’t cultivated last night, he had completed his homework. This at least gave Bai Chen some satisfaction. He no longer minded Li Wuming pretending to sleep with a smile tugging at his lips no matter how the tail swept across him. Instead, Bai Chen looked calmly at his junior. “You’re up? Without Lu Ren Yi lurking to ambush you yesterday, I imagine you slept well.”

Lu Ren Yi was utterly loyal to the Demon Sect. The Ghost Tactician had ordered him to train the Six-tailed Red Fox, and so he had hidden day and night waiting for chances to strike. Along the way, Chenzui had tasted every assassination trick of the demonic cultivators. These days, even drinking tea, he cautiously tested for poison. His experience in the martial world had leapt up a level.

Yesterday, with that stubborn demonic cultivator finally gone, he had slept soundly. If not for the Ancestor’s homework, he would have clung to his pillow and refused to rise.

Chenzui was quick-witted. Hearing Bai Chen’s words, he understood the Ancestor was displeased with his laziness, and hurriedly explained, “Ancestor, it’s not that I want to slack off. My yao core is already saturated. No matter how much spiritual qi I absorb, I cannot convert it into power. It only wastes qi and makes me feel bloated.”

This surprised Bai Chen. But thinking further, indeed there had never been examples of yao breaking through bloodline limits through effort. Humans could have commoners ascend the throne, but the upper ranks of the yao were always the same clans, unchanged for millions of years.

Yao were born with power. As their bodies grew, their yao power gradually awakened. If their age was insufficient, their yao core could not endure surplus qi.

Knowing now that blind absorption was harmful, Bai Chen did not put on airs before his junior. He sighed softly. “It was my oversight. Clearly, the yao must study well the true source of our strength.”

Relieved, Chenzui quickly added, “It’s not just me. Over the years, there have been diligent yao on the Great Snow Mountain, but no matter how they cultivate, within a month they hit a ceiling. Forcing more qi only shatters their yao core and ruins their foundation. Everyone has run into this wall. In the end, none can break through bloodline limits. Discouraged, they all give up.”

Who would willingly remain at the bottom? Upper yao might drift through life, but the lower and middle ranks had tried. Their bloody results proved that bloodline gaps could not be bridged. In the end, they could only remain slaves and servants, mocked by their betters. Leaders who had once rallied the weak to challenge the upper bloodlines became laughingstocks — still cited as warnings to juniors not to harbor delusions.

This was the first Bai Chen had heard of such things. It seemed that during his death, the yao had indeed made efforts under human pressure.

For lowly yao, even risking their lives to escape slavery was worthwhile. They would be useful to today’s Great Snow Mountain. Bai Chen asked, “Do you remember which yao met this wall?”

The Red Fox clan was also of high rank. To them, such matters were jokes. Chenzui had overheard and now recounted, “It was fifteen years ago. I only recall the leader was an ordinary wolf yao. To break through, he even challenged the Heavenly Wolf clan. At first, he defeated a few soldiers, giving the lesser yao confidence to follow his example. But when he met stronger Heavenly Wolf instructors, he failed. They beat him back into his original form and crippled his cultivation. If not for the son-in-law [Li Wuming] stepping in, he would have lost his life.”

The Heavenly Wolf clan still organized by military ranks — lowest were soldiers, above them instructors, then guards, then generals leading the clan. The bloodline gap among yao was vast. Even with five hundred years of cultivation, an ordinary wolf yao couldn’t match a newly grown Heavenly Wolf soldier. For him to achieve even that much showed great effort.

Bai Chen pressed, “What was that wolf yao’s name?”

“Seemed like Jinyi Lang?” Chenzui was not certain. Red Foxes feared bloodshed and he had no taste for such tales.

Bai Chen frowned. “That doesn’t sound like a name of an ancient descendant.”

At this, Li Wuming finally stopped pretending sleep. Lazily wrapping an arm around Bai Chen’s waist, he answered, “He was raised as a mount by a cultivator. He learned much from his master, but after his master died, he fled to the Great Snow Mountain.”

Since Li Wuming had personally intervened to save Jinyi Lang, he naturally knew his story. Bai Chen understood that he had acted to preserve a spark for the Great Snow Mountain. Silently grateful, he only asked his Dao companion, “Not sleeping anymore?”

Li Wuming knew his little fox was concerned about his absence last night. But he wanted to give Bai Chen a surprise, so he still said nothing, only smiling. “Your tail was too comfortable. I couldn’t bear to wake.”

This only made Bai Chen more curious. He asked directly, “Where did you go last night? Did you sneak off to do something bad?”

The little fox was learning to play straight ball now. Li Wuming could only smile helplessly. To avoid losing his fox’s embrace tonight, he confessed. “I was too excited after receiving your love token to sleep. So I went to the Shaoyin Hall to read.”

Among the Hidden Wisdom Sect’s four halls, the Shaoyang Hall preserved the Dao Ancestor’s methods and held important classics entrusted during wartime. Over a thousand years, it had amassed a vast collection.

Bai Chen had never heard of going to read after a love confession. Doubting, he asked, “The Heaven’s Way Alliance already had the Unknown Truth Sect copy every sect’s records. For a hundred years, the Hidden Wisdom Sect has barely touched those texts. What are you looking at here?”

The Unknown Truth Sect possessed humanity’s greatest library, classified and open for borrowing. If searching for something, that was the place. But Li Wuming shook his head. “The Unknown Truth Sect copied only translations of the ancient scrolls into common language. Some things are visible only in the originals.”

After five thousand years, human script had changed greatly. Few could still read the ancient texts. Bai Chen was surprised Li Wuming could. “Those are tortoise-shell inscriptions. You can read them?”

Li Wuming admitted it freely, brushing his Dao companion’s nose with a smile. “Underestimating your man, aren’t you? I know a lot. If I joined the Unknown Truth Sect, even Feng Shiqi would have to worship me as a grand elder.”

Ancestor and Dao companion flirting was not something Chenzui dared to interrupt. He stood against the wall pretending to be a fox mural. Soon, however, He Yu’s voice came from outside. “I heard you were looking for me?”

Activating the Sect’s flying stones required disciples’ tokens. Bai Chen had asked someone to fetch He Yu. Seeing him now, he let Li Wuming off for the moment and opened the door. “I wish to meet your sect’s Elder Lingyun. Could you lead the way?”

This put He Yu in difficulty. “The Grand Elder cultivates in seclusion within the four halls. We ordinary disciples have no access.”

Bu Lingyun was not only a grand elder but the headmaster’s mother. Outsiders could not see her so easily. Knowing he was presumptuous, Bai Chen changed target. “Then could you take me to Headmaster Bu?”

At this, He Yu relaxed. “That’s no problem. The headmaster finds Sect Master Feng too talkative. To avoid him, he’s training sword in the peach grove near Lihuo Palace.”

Bu Tiange treated all the same, within and without. Hearing he even found Feng Shiqi tiresome, Chenzui suddenly felt being carved with ‘annoying’ wasn’t so bad. He muttered to Bai Chen, “He’s really cold, ignoring even the Heaven’s Way Alliance leader.”

“The headmaster lost his father young, and upon succession was challenged by many for his youth. It’s natural his temperament is cold.”

He Yu would not allow slander of his headmaster. He explained quickly, then led them warmly. “It’s not far. Please follow me.”

Daoist sects favored plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum — followed by pine and cypress. But the Hidden Wisdom Sect was filled with peach groves. Legend had it these trees were planted by the Demon Lord himself, who joked that since sect disciples were all aloof, they needed peach blossoms to ward off lonely fates. [This echoes the plum trees planted by the Fox Immortal.]

Whether they brought romance or not was uncertain. But the groves became training grounds, for the Demon Lord had blessed the trees with rebirth. Disciples would cut them down for sword practice and send the wood to the kitchens.

When Bai Chen arrived, Bu Tiange was felling peach trees. Each stroke of sword qi toppled a trunk, neatly cleaving it into uniform blocks regardless of size. His precision was astonishing.

Li Wuming, born to carefree boldness, wielded a sword with unrestrained might. He could split mountains, but fine control was not his strength. Seeing Bu Tiange’s skill, he clapped. “Excellent swordsmanship. Your sword qi is more obedient than most hands.”

Swordsmen rarely praised peers. Yet Bu Tiange showed no joy, only sheathing his sword and glancing coolly. “You’re late.”

“Last night we spoke long with Sect Master Feng. We dared not disturb you.”

Bai Chen was very respectful. “I haven’t yet thanked Headmaster Bu. Without your praise of the Great Snow Mountain, Sect Master Feng would not have been so cordial.”

The Great Snow Mountain’s reputation among humans was poor. Without Bu Tiange’s voice, just Elderly Village would have taken endless effort to explain. Feng Shiqi’s willingness to negotiate owed something to the Hidden Wisdom Sect.

But Bu Tiange’s reply was as cold as ever. “I only spoke truth. A gentleman disdains flattery.”

To speak truth is hardest of all. Bai Chen did not mind. Smiling, he said, “Better a true gentleman than a power-hungry man. That’s what I most admire about the Hidden Wisdom Sect — you always see clearly your heart’s path, able to hold on and let go. In this world, if you uphold righteousness without self-deprecation to give others face, some will brand you a hypocrite, eager to trample you down. Evil men cannot touch the powerful, but you’ve stolen their light, outshining them. How hateful to them.”

The fox’s flattery was pleasant. Bu Tiange finally spoke more, still cold but sharper. Breaking off a peach branch, he smiled icily. “So what? I don’t live for them. Every decision of the Hidden Wisdom Sect bears Heaven and Earth as witness. If it dazzles them or stirs their jealousy, let them gossip in the shadows.”

Having seen Feng Shiqi, Bu Tiange was in poor spirits. Bai Chen guessed as much and tested, “It seems the Heaven’s Way Alliance has complaints against your sect.”

Sure enough, Bu Tiange’s expression darkened. “Some petty men suspect I took your bribes, even that I have improper relations with you, betraying humanity for the yao.”

The Nine-tailed White Fox had a ruined reputation. Mention his name, and people imagined seduction. Bu Tiange had not only met Bai Chen but escorted him back. Rumors were inevitable. For one nearly obsessive about conduct, no wonder he was angry.

Bai Chen was not ungrateful. He said humbly, “The Great Snow Mountain has implicated the Hidden Wisdom Sect.”

This softened Bu Tiange slightly. Still, he disliked scandal, so he kept distance. Crushing the peach branch underfoot, he said coldly, “A fly thinks biting a man makes him as filthy as itself. But a fly is still a fly. If it dares show itself, sooner or later it will be swatted.”

Flies didn’t wound fatally, but their bites were maddening. Seeing Bu Tiange’s foul mood, Bai Chen refrained from pressing. Inwardly, he recalled the Great Snow Mountain’s own tarnished reputation.

In his time, there were rumors of Bai Chen’s dalliances, but the Great Snow Mountain was feared for its ancient inheritance and yao powers. Cultivators might guard against them, but they still respected their arts.

In recent years, malicious gossip had twisted this. Now people claimed the Nine-tailed White Fox’s only power was seduction. All yao achievements were belittled as bedroom tricks. Ancient knowledge of medicine, hunting, communion with Heaven and Earth — all dismissed as outdated. Yao themselves began believing it. Even the fox clan thought beauty was their only worth. They boasted of seducing men, competed in lovers and looks, neglecting real arts.

Bai Chen had already sensed this dangerous trend when first meeting Chenzui. If it continued, the yao’s ancient heritage would be lost. The young would become useless ornaments. When humans invaded, none would fight back.

Bu Tiange, born of a great clan, had heard such rumors and found them filthy. Yet even he had believed the Nine-tailed White Fox promiscuous. Before meeting, he had prejudice. Only seeing Bai Chen wholly devoted to Li Wuming, his words matching Daoist heart, had persuaded him. Otherwise, he would have expelled him immediately.

Such was the terror of gossip.

The rumor-mongers had seen the Great Snow Mountain’s weakness after losing its Nine-tailed White Fox, and twisted opinion, guiding the entire yao race into corruption. To kill an enemy unseen — that was true cunning.

Feng Shiqi lacked such malice. The upright Bu Tiange was even more unlikely. Bai Chen had not yet found the culprit. Though doubts weighed on him, he suppressed them for now and said sincerely, “I owe Headmaster Bu. If you need me, I’ll come at once.”

“Heaven cherishes life. If the yao live in peace, that is return enough.”

Such a gentleman as Bu Tiange knew nothing of rumor-mongering. He was only angry at being slandered, never blaming Bai Chen.

Now, having cut peach trees from Qiantian Palace to Lihuo Palace, his temper cooled. Remembering, he said, “Enough of this nonsense. I checked Lu Wen. He was adopted at age three by my grandfather and grew up in the sect. He could not have saved you six hundred years ago.”

Every disciple’s origins were recorded. For the headmaster, checking was simple. Bai Chen had not expected Lu Wen to have grown up here. He frowned. “But when we met, he recognized me.”

Five hundred years ago at Zhetian, Lu Wen’s reaction to him was not what one showed to a stranger. Fearing Bu Tiange’s disbelief, Bai Chen added, “Your mother was there too. She must have seen his wariness toward me.”

This puzzled Bu Tiange. “Could there be an illusion that makes someone grow again?”

Bai Chen had never heard of such a technique. But he was certain Lu Wen was suspicious. “The world holds endless wonders. If I hadn’t seen it myself at Elderly Village, I wouldn’t believe a yao could deceive a fox’s eyes. To uncover his origins, Headmaster, may I meet Elder Lingyun?”

This was reasonable. Bu Tiange thought a moment, then agreed. “I can take you to the Taiyin Hall. But when you speak to my mother, you must be respectful. Do not say anything rude.”

~ Chapter End ~

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