Xun Feng
Following many pleasantries, the final decision was to give Bai Yumo first place, Tang Ye second and Che Gulu third. Virgin Che Gulu was adamant about not hurting women due to it being nothing to brag about and actually shameful. In addition, he was worried about being embarrassed if he lost. Was a man’s pride worthless? He accepted Tang Ye’s good will, so he might as well have forfeited first place. Plus, he could just make it up in tomorrow’s contest. Thus, Bai Yumo gained first place without having to do any thinking whatsoever.
It went without saying that Tang Ye didn’t want Bai Yumo to be the ultimate winner. Sadly, the consequences of using Hazy Footwork rendered him uncompetitive; he needed medical attention fast, lest he ran the risk of qi deviation, let alone fight.
Bai Yumo was reluctant to accept the win, but she wasn’t a competitive individual, so she preferred amicable solutions.
“Brother Tang, can I call you Brother Tang from now? From an exchange of blows, friendship grows. From now on, you’re welcome to join me in my small kitchen.”
“You’re too kind, Miss Bai.”
Bai Yumo now viewed Tang Ye as someone who respected societal norms as opposed to her former impression – a dumb block of wood.
People rubbed their eyes when they saw the three get along. Quanmu assumed Tang Ye seduced Bai Yumo with his looks and then joined hands to subdue Che Gulu, but Che Gulu was celebrating. Xun Feng was the only one who wore a forced smile whilst never taking his gaze off Tang Ye.
Once Tang Ye bid Bai Yumo and Che Gulu farewell, he headed off to his class’s location. Before anyone could congratulate him, he sent Shi Weiliang an eye signal and shook his head. She immediately signalled for her classmates to form a circle around Tang Ye. Only Si Fu ambled forward and smiled to ask, “What’s the matter?”
“I got hurt; it’s nothing serious.” Tang Ye’s low voice was an indication that his internal injury was pretty serious.
Since Si Fu and Tang Ye practiced internal disciplines in different realms, she couldn’t mindlessly help him. “Bear with it. I’ll go fetch you some medicine.”
Tang Ye nodded, and then Si Fu left. As soon as she departed, someone weaved through the crowd to gently pat Tang Ye on the shoulder. Because Tang Ye wasn’t focused, he failed to dodge in time. The physical contact was enough to give away his condition if the individual was observant, but Tang Ye played it cool and calmly looked behind him.
“Can I help you?” queried Tang Ye.
Xun Feng chuckled cordially. “You make it sound like we don’t know each other. The competition is over, Brother Tang. Would you accompany me on a walk
Tang Ye ran his eyes down to Xun Feng’s feet, back up to his head, scuttled back a small step and asked, “Are you really into this sort of stuff?”
“Well, you’ll have to follow me to find out, won’t you?”
“… Fine. Let’s go.”
Though Tang Ye knew Xun Feng would be a handful if he were to be shameless, he wanted to know what Xun Feng wanted to talk about.
“Brother Xun Feng, could I accompany you two?” All of Bai Yumo’s companions seemingly vanished not long after she left, so she came over when she spotted Xun Feng. She didn’t know what Xun Feng was up to based on what he told Tang Ye, but she was concerned since Xun Feng was the one who suggested they drug the horses. As Tang Ye let her win, she didn’t want him to be Xun Feng’s next victim. If Xun Feng refused to let her join them, then her conclusion was that Xun Feng would attempt to assassinate Tang Ye.
Xun Feng chuckled. “No man could ask for anything more than the company of a beautiful lady. By all means, join us.”
Students of the academy saw Tang Ye follow expressionlessly, Xun Feng lead brightly and Bai Yumo constantly scanning.
Xun Feng started the conversation with, “Not many direct disciples of Beihai’s Bright Mirror carry the Tang surname.”
It was Bai Yumo’s first time learning Tang Ye was from Bright Mirror Palace.
“Ever since the internal upheaval in Tang Clan, they were divided into north and south. The faction in the south inherited the Tang Clan name, while Tang Qiong led the others north to restart as Bright Mirror Palace. Even after the split, the conflict never ceased. It has been over two decades since the last war between the two clans. One contributing factor was Bright Moon Palace’s loss of direct descendants. Compared to Shuzhong, Bright Mirror Palace has hardly any Tang-surnamed descendants. As a consequence, the power balance eventually skewered to one side.” Xun Feng maintained his smile and didn’t even spare Tang Ye a glance, but it was obvious where his words were aimed and at whom. “Why, in that situation, would they allow one of them to enter Liu Shan Men? Does Bright Mirror Palace have no intention of reeling their people in?”
Tang Ye didn’t give any sort of response.
“Was Bright Mirror Palace’s leader, Matriarch Tang Mian, the elder sister?” Ignoring Tang Ye, Xun Feng continued, “Tang Clan has grown their influence, but they still haven’t been able to cross the boundary separating north and south. Despite their wealth and manpower, they can’t match the martial world’s three biggest sects or the unorthodox factions’ four biggest groups unless someone obtains Evil Exterminator to reunite the Tang Clan that’s been split for centuries. She was young and capable, but it was too much for her to hold up the fort without sufficient support. It was tragic because she had no means of retaliating to all the provocations.”
Tang Ye just silently followed along. No matter how much Xun Feng might’ve detested Tang Ye, he felt genuine respect for the youth who didn’t bite his bait.
“Not bad.” Xun Feng audited Tang Ye from top to bottom. “Your life must’ve been rough. You were born into a prominent family, yet you have never been able to stop running forwards – and have been forced into joining Liu Shan Men. If fate was kind enough to give you an alternative option, you would be so much farther than where you are now – and definitely not be forced into this lame contest. It pains me just to think about what could have been.”
Fed up, Bai Yumo admonished, “Brother Xun Feng, you are going too far. Every family has its story. It has nothing to do with an individual’s futur-”
“You misunderstand, Sister Bai. I am pitying Brother Tang. I am not discussing his future.”
“Huh?”
Xun Feng turned his attention to Tang Ye. “I am talking about the. Massacre. Of. Shang. Ri. La.”
