Love & Redemption
Chapter 39 - Farewell to the Youthful Years (Part 2)

Chapter 39: 39 Chapter Farewell to the Youthful Years (Part 2)

Today is the second update.

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"Let me see, let me see!"

Linglong had been calling out for a while and finally snatched the kaleidoscope from Zhong Minyan’s hands. She looked inside, mesmerized, and was reluctant to let go.

"Second Senior Brother, you have really a lot of odd treasures!" she exclaimed. "What else do you have?"

Chen Minjue smiled and said, "I have plenty! Little Junior Sister Linglong, if you like them, you can come and see them at my place next time... but remember, these items can only be borrowed, not given away."

"What, you cheapskate!"

Linglong rolled her eyes at him but ultimately handed over the kaleidoscope regretfully to Xuanji.

While Chen Minjue took out some small toys, others also started bringing out their belongings, spreading toys made of wood, books, and an exquisite Nine-Linked Rings puzzle on the bed.

Linglong, who had a keen eye, suddenly noticed a small, conspicuous dagger among the pile of gifts. She grabbed it and turned it over, examining it for a long time. The dagger had a gold-plated scabbard, small yet intricately patterned. A tiger’s head was carved on it; the teeth and eyes of the tiger appeared lifelike. What was even more pleasing was that the tiger’s eyes were made of green Liuli that shone brilliantly when turned, as if alive.

"This one is beautiful!" she said as she drew the dagger, twanged it lightly with her finger producing a humming sound; the blade was clear as autumn water, sharp enough to cut hair, certainly not an ordinary decorative item.

"Who gave this? This dagger is really great!"

Linglong couldn’t bear to part with it.

Zhong Minyan coughed softly, saying in a low voice, "It was from me."

Linglong’s eyes widened. "Xiao Liuzi, when did you get such a nice thing? How come I never saw it before?"

Zhong Minyan’s face turned red, a hint of pride in his eyes. He pretended to be casual and smiled, "If you could easily see good things, they wouldn’t be good things anymore. Do you think Sixth Brother has nothing?"

Linglong lightly hit him and after examining the dagger for a while longer, finally handed it to Xuanji. She curiously asked, "Why would you give away a dagger?"

Zhong Minyan smiled and explained, "The last time I went demon hunting on Lutai Mountain with Master, I saw this dagger in a weapons shop in town. It had been ordered two years ago, but nobody came to pick it up. The blacksmith had no choice but to sell it. After all, not many people use daggers. The price was dropped again and again, but I still found it expensive and haggled with him for a long time to buy it. It’s a good piece indeed!"

Xuanji carefully examined the dagger, held it in her hand for a while, and then looked up with a smile, "Thank you, Sixth Brother, for the beautiful dagger."

Zhong Minyan became serious and said, "It’s not given to you to play with. Think about how many times you got injured at the Flower Pinning Conference. And think about your performance when we went to Lutai Mountain to hunt demons. Without discussing your cultivation, you’re a cultivator after all, and you don’t have proper protective gear. If something dangerous happens, you’d be defenseless. I gave you the dagger as a weapon for self-defense, to avoid situations like that time... when you were stabbed with nowhere to parry."

Xuanji, who usually had little patience for sermons, even when coming from him, simply responded with a faint "Oh" and said no more.

Zhong Minyan knew her temperament and could only sigh, continuing, "I don’t intend to lecture you like Master and the Eldest Senior Brother. I just hope you use the dagger for self-defense, that’s all. Don’t be annoyed."

Xuanji pursed her lips, looked up at him with a shy smile, and then sincerely thanked him, "Thank you, Sixth Brother."

Zhong Minyan huffed, finding her temperament beyond words.

Linglong tapped him on the head, pouted, and said, "What are you huffing at! Don’t you bully Xuanji!"

Zhong Minyan felt completely at ease seeing her, and immediately burst into laughter. "Who would dare to bully Miss Linglong’s sister? That would be asking for trouble! Quick, tell me, who’s the foolish one? I’ll teach him a lesson for you!"

Linglong was also amused by him and just kept fussing with him playfully.

Chen Minjue joined in the fun, teasing, "Wow, Miss Linglong makes a move! Such a move, Fish Crossing the Dragon Gate, aiming directly at Sixth Junior Brother’s pair of counters... eh? Sixth Junior Brother counters with a move, Monkey Stealing Peaches, effectively reducing most of the power! Well done, well done!"

Everyone knew he was adept at talking, and since Xuanji had missed the most exciting part of the Flower Pinning Conference due to her injuries, they encouraged him to keep talking.

Chen Minjue was very generous indeed, and without any objection, he immediately cleared his throat, assumed the posture of a storyteller, and loudly proclaimed, "So, let me regale you all with the story! Speaking of that day’s final competition, it was quite the spectacle..."

He spoke with such fervor that saliva flew and the climaxes piled up, incomparable to Zhong Minyan’s bragging skills on that very day. A competition that was already thrilling became ten times more so through his narration, captivating even those disciples who had witnessed the event. Both Zhong Minyan and Linglong scratched their heads in delight, one jumping up and the other sitting down in excitement.

An entire afternoon passed in his vivid storytelling.

Finally, it was Chu Yinghong who could stand it no longer and came in to disperse the crowd.

"You little imps, didn’t I tell you not to disturb your junior sister? You all just ignored me!"

Seeing the uncle master coming in to clear the room, everyone reluctantly stopped talking and stood up. Fortunately, Chen Minjue’s throat was dry from all the talking, so he chuckled and said, "If you want to know what happens next, wait for the next story session! But today, we need to pack up and head home. Brothers, let’s not tire out our junior sister; let’s clear out!"

The senior brothers all nodded in agreement, bid Xuanji farewell with well-wishes, and then left. Linglong, still not wanting it to end, tugged on Chen Minjue’s sleeve repeatedly saying, "Second Senior Brother! Second Senior Brother! Come again tomorrow to continue the story! Don’t forget!"

Chen Minjue thought to himself that there wouldn’t be a next time, but he kept nodding and smilingly replied, "Sure, sure! We’ll continue tomorrow!"

Only then did Linglong happily let him go.

Chu Yinghong came in, and tapping her on the head with a smile, she said, "You should go out too. Staying here won’t let your sister sleep well. Your mother is also waiting for you to come eat."

Upon hearing about food, Linglong realized that her stomach had long been growling. She chuckled and stuck out her tongue, then turned to hold Xuanji’s hand, saying, "Xuanji, I’m off to have dinner. You should rest early too! I’ll come again tomorrow to chat with you!"

With that, she scampered off, leaving Xuanji to stare blankly at the pile of gifts on her bed.

"Let me see, let me see." Chu Yinghong said with a smile, sitting beside the bed. She picked up the gifts one by one to examine and play with, laughing, "These kids are quite generous, aren’t they? They brought so many nice things."

Xuanji nodded, then suddenly shook her head and sighed, "With so many things, when would I get to play with them all?"

Chu Yinghong picked up a dagger and examined it, casually remarking, "How could you not have time to play? You’re still young."

"Isn’t it true that I’ll soon be going to Little Yang Peak with Aunt Hong... no, with you, Master? Starting cultivation, I probably won’t have time to play then," said Xuanji with a gloomy face. In her heart, cultivation meant having no time to eat or sleep, let alone play with toys.

Chu Yinghong was taken aback, "Cultivation is one thing, play is another."

Then she suddenly understood and laughed, reaching out to stroke her hair, "You silly girl, you don’t think I’m a demon master, do you? The kind who chases after you with a whip all day to make you cultivate?"

In her heart, Xuanji thought that was almost exactly it... but she dared not say it aloud.

"Xuanji, first of all, you have to like what you call cultivation. One cannot do something they dislike for long or do it well." Chu Yinghong tapped her nose, "You don’t hate practicing; it’s just that the Sect Leader’s methods don’t suit you which makes you dislike cultivation. If Aunt Hong makes you feel like cultivation is fun, would you still be unwilling?"

How could cultivation be fun? Xuanji opened her big, clear eyes wide and stared straight at her.

"How could it not be fun?" Chu Yinghong smiled, "Just think, if you learn Sword Control, you could fly in the sky, go wherever you want, and arrive in the blink of an eye. You could drink Fruit Yellow at Lutai Mountain in the morning, have lunch back at Shaoyang Peak, and in the afternoon, go watch the sea of flowers at Fuyu Island. All the beautiful mountains and rivers in the world would be yours to explore and enjoy. If you learn the Immortal Law, you could hunt demons yourself; if you meet people you dislike, you could even slightly punish them. Once you become a skilled individual, you would find many things in the world interesting, things you have never seen or heard of before. You wouldn’t be afraid of others bullying you, neither would you worry about catching a chill and getting a fever. You could boldly say what you like and dislike... Aren’t these things interesting?"

Hearing her put it that way, it did indeed sound quite interesting. But...

"Aunt Hong, I’m really lazy. I don’t want to roam around; I love staying at home and daydreaming. I also don’t like to argue or fight with others..."

The more she spoke, the softer her voice became, and she felt quite pitiable.

Chu Yinghong waved it off with a laugh, "Even if you want to be lazy, you need the capability to be lazy. For skilled people, being lazy is a taste; for the unskilled, it’s incurable. Once you have learned, if someone asks you to do something, you can just grab your sword, swoosh away, and go be lazy somewhere else – quite justifiable indeed!"

Going somewhere else to be lazy sounded like a great idea. Xuanji’s spirits lifted, and she giggled, grabbing her hand, "Okay! Aunt Hong, then I want to cultivate! When will you take me to Little Yang Peak?"

"We need to wait until your injuries are completely healed," she said, bringing the medicine from the table, feeding her, and adding, "What you need to do now is to rest well and heal. Don’t do anything strenuous. The sooner you heal, the sooner Aunt Hong can take you to Little Yang Peak."