Dance Of The Dragons
Chapter 414 : Discussion Conference (3)

Chapter 414: Chapter 414 : Discussion Conference (3)

"What are you doing?" The man heard himself asking.

Heads snapped toward Qiao Wei, whose eyes crackled like smoldering embers.

"Nothing," Zhang Fengxi quickly released Meng Xiyan from his grip. "I was just..."

"I don’t care," Qiao Wei interrupted him mid-speech. "Sorry to disturb you. I will go take a nap now."

Storming past gaping onlookers, Qiao Wei marched toward one of the empty chambers and slammed the door shut behind him, the clang echoing his rage. The meticulous order of the room, a stark contrast to the turmoil within, only fueled his fury.

The roar of his blood, a relentless river, drowned out the world. Every beat of his heart pounded out a rhythm of fury, fueled by the image of Zhang Fengxi touching another man.

A tiny voice piped up in the back of Qiao Wei’s mind, whispering doubt. Maybe he’d misread the scene. Maybe pinning Meng Xiyan against a wall wasn’t a prelude to intimacy, just a misplaced gesture. It wasn’t like they were kissing...

Qiao Wei choked on the thought, the possibility twisting like a viper in his gut. What if they were about to? The mere notion sent a fresh wave of heat searing through him, leaving him raw and exposed.

Flinging himself onto the bed, Qiao Wei clawed at the linen, almost causing the thread to fray beneath his desperate fingers. It had been a mistake, a terrible mistake, to bring Zhang Fengxi to the Discussion Conference.

His shizun’s worries about other sects poaching Zhang Fengxi seemed trivial compared to Qiao Wei’s own gnawing fear -- that some smooth-tongued charmer would steal away his man.

To make matters worse, Zhang Fengxi did not come after him.

But if he truly did, they might end up arguing in the Moonlit Bamboo Sanctuary.

Shame flushed through Qiao Wei and he groaned into his palms.

He couldn’t do this. Not here. Not now. He couldn’t become the reason his revered shizun, his entire sect, became the laughingstock of the cultivation world.

He had to rise above this jealousy, this possessiveness. He had to be the mature, wistful cultivator everyone believed him to be. He had to face the three men outside, head held high, heart heavy, and hope buried deep.

And yet, when he finally gathered the courage to step out of his chamber, there was no one outside. The pavilion was empty.

The merry sounds outside of the pavilion told him that the banquet already started at Tian’an Jade Palace’s banquet venue.

The three men must have left ahead of him.

Qiao Wei swallowed back tears of disappointment.

It made sense that Meng Xijun and Meng Xiyan did not wait for him, but shouldn’t Zhang Fengxi at least wait for him to go to the banquet together?

Or was he so enraptured in Meng Xiyan that he forgot all about Qiao Wei?

Qiao Wei cursed under his breath.

A knot of fury twisted in Qiao Wei’s gut, burning so hot it threatened to turn his insides to ash.

Now that he thought about it, Meng Xiyan was a pretty young man with a tantalizing resemblance to Liu Wenyuan.

Maybe that’s why.

Qiao Wei could not help but recall the memories of his life as the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Realm.

The weight of the truth hit him so hard that he had to take a seat on a nearby bamboo chair to steady himself.

If Liu Wenyuan did not let himself be blinded by jealousy, he would be the one Zhang Fengxi married and sired children with.

This remained an indisputable fact.

Zhang Fengxi’s love for Xie Jianyu sprouted from the charred remains of his devotion to Liu Wenyuan. Qiao Wei knew, in his heart, that their love was not meant to last forever.

Though the thought was agonizing, Qiao Wei gradually calmed down. There was no need to cling to emotions as fleeting and fickle as love.

There was no need to hang onto emotions so fleeting and fickle as love.

The next time he met Zhang Fengxi, he needed to tell him to hold onto his love for their children until Qiao Wei returned to the Heavenly Realm, and not to abandon them so soon.

Resolute and unwavering, Qiao Wei slipped into a new set of clothes.

As the night deepened and succumbed to the darkness, the path ahead of Qiao Wei unfolded in a mesmerizing symphony of light.

At least a hundred lanterns were hung along the paved roads and bridges leading to the banquet venue, their warm glow bathing the banquet participants in a welcoming embrace.

Amidst the shimmering embrace of water, the Autumn Breeze Pavilion of Tian’an Jade Palace rose like a dream carved from jade and moonlight. Five sinuous bridges, each a jeweled dragon breathing fire, arched across the water, their reflections dancing alongside carp that skimmed the surface like scattered stars.

Its tiled roof, glazed in a thousand shades of jade, whispered secrets to the moon. Upward-curving eaves, adorned with delicate swallow carvings, held aloft strings of lanterns that cast a warm, honeyed glow upon the scene.

At the end of each bridge, a senior disciple of Tian’an Shang Sect was waiting to greet each guest.

"Welcome, Master Qiao Wei,".

"Mn, thank you."

"Please enter."

As Qiao Wei crossed the bridge’s final span, the pavilion unfolded before him in a symphony of light and shadow. Silk lanterns, painted with auspicious symbols and delicate landscapes, hung like captive fireflies, their flames chasing across the crimson and gold carpet that draped the marble floor.

Ten rectangular tables, each designated for a specific sect, were adorned with an abundance that proclaimed Tian’an Shang Sect’s wealth and warm hospitality. Jiangnan delicacies, diverse and vibrant, were presented in a graceful procession, tempting the palate with each reveal. Guests, at their leisure, could further indulge by requesting specific dishes for their dining pleasure.

Yet, amidst this bountiful spread, the one table reserved for the Wushan Temple Sect stood curiously bare. It awaited its occupants, a silent canvas ready to be painted with the colors of their arrival.

Qiao Wei’s eyes automatically shifted to the Dalian Meng Sect’s table.