Chapter 8
Chapter 8
When I first started following Senior Brother, I wanted a name of my own.
But Senior Brother refused to give me one no matter what.
He said that once you gave someone a name, you had to take responsibility for them, and he did not want to be responsible for anyone just yet.
“Then did your master take responsibility for you?” I asked him.
He nodded, raised a hand, and plated a hardened crust over the wet mud before sitting cross-legged on top of it.
“Beyond the Four Domains and One Realm, he gave me a place to belong.”
Perhaps too much had happened that night. Even Senior Brother, who was always so cold and unshakable, seemed a little overwhelmed. At last, he wanted someone to talk to.
And so I became his first choice.
“Aside from the Four Domains and One Realm, there is another place on Wuwang Continent called Xiangwu Mountain. That is the Fifth Domain I mentioned.”
Senior Brother tossed away my stone, picked a larger one, and casually drew a circle in the wet mud.
“Xiangwu Mountain is not a real mountain. It is a Void Realm constructed by my master. Its entrance is a barrier that only Abandoned Blessings can enter.”
Only then did I learn that on this continent, besides Blessed Cultivators and mortals, there was another kind of person-the Abandoned Blessings. More people called them by another name: Brood.
Abandoned Blessings were children born from the union of Blessed Cultivators and mortals.
Yet neither side was willing to acknowledge such a child, just as the Four Domains had never recognized the existence of Xiangwu Mountain.
Senior Brother said,
“Pure-blood Blessed Cultivators see Abandoned Blessings as a disgrace that pollutes their bloodline, while mortals have always feared Blessed Cultivators and followed them blindly, so they do not dare openly associate with Abandoned Blessings either.
“That is why, since long, long ago, the Abandoned Blessings whom everyone despised could only hide from place to place and struggle to survive-until my master appeared.”
Senior Brother’s master, Xiang Suize, came from the Northern Plains sect lineage. He was born with powerful Blessed Power, a genius among geniuses.
He cultivated faster than ordinary Blessed Cultivators, and his vision stood far above theirs as well.
He believed Abandoned Blessings should not be called Abandoned Blessings. Like Blessed Cultivators and mortals, they had the right to live on this continent.
“Master was right!” I could not help chiming in.
“What are you shouting for? He is my master.”
Senior Brother gave a soft, mocking laugh and tapped my forehead, then continued,
“Later, my master ignored the objections of the Northern Plains lineage, announced it to the world, and established his own sect. He said Xiangwu Mountain would accept all Abandoned Blessings on this continent. To prove his resolve, he even took in one of the Abandoned Blessings and raised him by his side.
“That one of the Abandoned Blessings was me, your Senior Brother.”
With that, he lifted his brows and pointed at himself with no small amount of pride. Then he added,
“If my master had not broken away from the Northern Plains, that fellow surnamed Bai just now would have been his first disciple. Bai Yujian has never been able to accept that. For years, he has repeatedly come to make trouble for me, only to lose and go back to be cursed out by his father. Honestly, it is tragic.”
“That is because he overestimated himself! I have never thought Blessed Cultivators were anything special. If I had to choose, I would enter Xiangwu Mountain, just like Senior Brother!”
I curled my lip and, full of righteous passion, played the bootlicker for once.
I thought I would receive Senior Brother’s praise. Unexpectedly, his expression suddenly went cold.
“Do not say things like that again.”
I opened my mouth, not expecting my very first attempt at flattery to end in such miserable failure. I felt terribly defeated.
Yet the sight of my dejection made Senior Brother laugh instead.
He lifted my chin, told me to close my mouth, and explained,
“You are a Pure-blood Blessed Cultivator.”
Senior Brother said the Silver Light on me was a Protective Light Talisman set by a Blessed Cultivator. Earlier, he had ruled out the possibility that I was a mortal, but he could not determine my exact background.
“Shanting once said some strange things, so I thought…” Senior Brother’s voice trailed off. Then he smiled in relief. “Thank goodness. Thank goodness you are not one of the Abandoned Blessings.”
Although Xiangwu Mountain supported them, and the lives of Abandoned Blessings were much better now than before, there were still plenty among the Blessed Cultivators who had only grown more extreme because of it, resisting Abandoned Blessings even more fiercely.
For example, the owner of that restaurant.
He had hung a magic artifact at the front door that could test a Blessed Cultivator’s bloodline, making it clear that Abandoned Blessings were not welcome.
“It is much better that you are a Blessed Cultivator. Maybe you even come from some wealthy, noble family. If you find your parents again, remember to pay me back for the steamed buns. Then I will not have brought you along for nothing.”
Senior Brother spoke with a smile, as if I had escaped some terrible calamity. But I did not feel fortunate at all. Instead, my chest felt terribly blocked.
I said dully, “Senior Brother, stop smiling.”
From Bai Yujian’s words, I had more or less heard that the situation of Xiangwu Mountain and Senior Brother’s master was not optimistic, and I could not help worrying for him.
“Senior Brother, that Dongze Sect Leader Fu Zhenqian sounds very bad. Will he do something to your master?”
“Hard to say.”
Senior Brother’s expression instantly turned grave.