Eighteen eighteen

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Fu Tingyun used a soul imprint to transfer some assets to Su Xiaoyuan, and the faint panic in his heart gradually settled. The brokerage would likely take half a day to process, so she would receive the news before sunset. By then, everything could return to normal.

However, this action would bring a minor complication. The second senior brother, who managed his finances, would be able to track the flow of funds, and their sectmates would discover his location early and immediately send someone to find him. As a result, he would have to return to Taiyan ahead of schedule.

Having resolved the major issue, Fu Tingyun regained his usual calm and went out into the courtyard to meditate as usual.

After a moment, he sensed something was amiss.

The red thread that usually clung to him as soon as he sat down was nowhere to be seen today.

He slipped into the formation to search and found it curled up in a corner. Sensing his approach, it retreated further and even hid its ends.

This was a clear sign of rejection.

Fu Tingyun frowned and said, “Come here.”

Instead, the red thread tightened itself around a formation pillar, refusing to obey him.

He waited for a while, but the thread was resolute in ignoring him.

Closing his eyes, he stopped paying attention to it.

Until dawn broke, the red thread never came near him again.

Returning early was fine.

It was an accident anyway; he had repaid what he owed her, and parting like this was best for both.

Opening his eyes after the meditation, he heard a girl getting up inside the room.

Unconsciously, he took two steps forward, then halted and turned toward the tree.

He could clearly hear the noises inside and easily imagined what she was doing.

Hearing the sound of her taking a wooden basin from the shelf, he knew she would soon go out to fetch water.

Sure enough, the door opened.

The girl’s eyelids were still a bit swollen, and the tip of her nose slightly red—it was unclear if she had cried again after waking.

But when she saw him, there was no resentment in her clear eyes, only surprise and a hint of apology.

“Fu Tingyun, have you been standing in the courtyard all night?”

A ripple stirred in Fu Tingyun’s otherwise placid heart, a tumult of complex, indistinct emotions.

“No, sitting,” he replied.

Su Xiaoyuan said, “I’m sorry. I accidentally fell asleep last night and forgot to call you inside.”

Fu Tingyun’s brow twitched slightly. “Sorry.”

The girl apparently misunderstood him. “‘Sorry’ means admitting a mistake and expressing regret.”

Fu Tingyun repeated, “Sorry.”

Su Xiaoyuan smiled faintly; today she had no mood to teach etiquette to a puppet. “You should go inside. I’m about to head to class.”

She said this while carrying the basin to the well, lifting the cover, rolling up her sleeves, and beginning to draw water.

Her arms were slender like flower stems, and even carrying the bucket was a struggle.

She could have called him to help but did not. She drew water herself and returned to the room to wash up.

The door was left half open, seemingly to allow him easy access back inside.

But Fu Tingyun did not enter.

He saw the change in the girl overnight.

Even if her appearance had barely altered and she seemed calm, it was like a flower pulled from the earth—though not yet wilted, it had lost its vitality.

Soon, her ever-clingy friend arrived.

Passing by him, the friend glanced at him in surprise.

“Xiaoyuan…”

She pushed the door open as usual, then exclaimed, “Mama! What happened here? Was there a thief?”

“Haha, what thief would be so blind as to steal from my house? The puppet cleaned up yesterday—much tidier now, right?”

Fu Tingyun expected her to complain to her friend or even cry into her arms, but instead, she feigned lightheartedness and tried hard to mask her disappointment.

“It’s much cleaner, but I still prefer the old look. It feels a bit cold now.”

The sound of a drawer opening.

“My candy?! I had a whole jar of orange candy!”

Fu Tingyun frowned; that wasn’t her candy.

Certainly not his.

“Well… I ate it by accident. When the oranges ripen, I’ll make some for you.”

“I’ll go pick oranges and help you. Don’t tire yourself out.”

“Hmm… we’re going to be late for school. Let’s go.”

Fu Tingyun heard the muffled tone in her voice; he knew she was holding back tears.

His tongue seemed to taste that candy again, but now only the bitter remnants of orange peel remained.

They walked out one after the other.

“Xiaoyuan, you’re not locking the door?”

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“No need, the puppet is home.”

“Ah? You’re not bringing it to class today? Didn’t you say yesterday you’d find time to practice after class?”

“Better not… I’ll practice when I get back tonight.”

Fu Tingyun watched their figures disappear at the end of the path, their voices carried by the wind to his ears.

“Xiaoyuan, are you okay? Has anyone bullied you?”

“No, no, who would bully me?” Su Xiaoyuan’s voice was light.

“Then why are your eyelids swollen?”

“Probably because I drank last night and didn’t sleep well. Don’t worry.”

“If anyone bothers you, tell me—I’ll beat them up.”

“Mm.”

Fu Tingyun could imagine her forced smile and determined nod without looking.

He didn’t like seeing her like this.

Fortunately, she would receive that sum of money soon.

Everything would soon return to normal.

Would it?

Of course, Fu Tingyun decisively crushed the sudden flicker of doubt that surfaced in his heart.

...

At the summit of Dragon Ridge Peak.

The five peak masters of the Taiyan Sect stood around two motionless bodies lying on black ice, utterly perplexed.

On the third day of guarding the Dharma Protectors, they finally noticed something strange. Upon inspection, the soul of the junior disciple was missing.

Third senior sister said, “Could it be that the soul transference spell went wrong?”

Eldest senior sister replied, “The junior disciple cast it himself. You’ve watched him grow up—has he ever made a mistake?”

The junior disciple had entered the sect at three and a half years old. He never misrecited a single scripture, copied a wrong talisman, or misformed a hand seal. His swordsmanship was nothing short of divine.

Ling Yue, the Immortal Venerable, was as flawless as his face.

The four looked at that face and shook their heads in unison. “Impossible. How could it be?”

Eldest senior sister stroked her chin. “Since the junior disciple wouldn’t err, then the fault must lie elsewhere…”

Everyone turned to the exquisitely crafted puppet.

Fourth senior brother said, “Could the problem be with the puppet?”

“But this puppet was crafted by the sect master of the Yan Sect himself,” fifth senior brother said. “Who dares neglect a task entrusted by our little ancestor?”

Eldest senior sister said, “Guessing here is useless. Send a message to the Yan Sect; let them send someone to take a look.”

“No need to send a message!” third senior sister blurted.

Everyone looked at her in surprise.

Third senior sister touched her nose. “Ahem, we actually have a Yan Sect member in our sect…”

Everyone gasped.

She formed a hand seal and quickly sent a sound transmission. Within fifteen minutes, a graceful youth arrived on a spirit crane.

It was the same Yan Sect junior disciple who had come to deliver goods that day.

Everyone was stunned.

The youth looked no older than sixteen or seventeen, with a pale, delicate face and large, innocent, watery eyes.

He looked at the venerable peak masters surrounding him and blushed slightly, bowing respectfully as he introduced himself.

“No need for formalities…” Eldest senior sister cleared her throat.

Second senior brother lowered his voice, “You’re here… not under duress, are you?”

The youth blushed deeply and declared, “Peak Master, please do not misunderstand. The junior and Mingxin Yuanjun are mutually fond of each other!”

Third senior sister, like a cat with its tail stepped on, was horrified. “Don’t talk nonsense! Who said you two were mutually fond? It was just a fleeting romance…”

Eldest senior sister pinched the bridge of her nose. “Let’s leave that aside and focus on the matter at hand!”

After hearing the explanation, the youth frowned. “That shouldn’t be… May I inspect the soul-binding formation within Ling Yue’s surrogate body?”

“Please do,” Eldest senior sister gestured toward the black ice bed.

The youth went straight to one of the bodies.

“Wrong, wrong,” fourth senior brother stopped him. “That’s the junior disciple’s true body; the puppet is the one beside it.”

The youth gasped, “May the Primordial Heavenly Lord bless me!”

Eldest senior sister was nearly pressing a permanent wrinkle into her brow. “The junior disciple is somewhat aloof; please check quickly!”

The youth thought, “Aloof? This is more puppet-like than a puppet.”

He hurriedly approached the puppet body, concentrated, and formed hand seals while chanting spells.

After a moment, a golden light emerged from the puppet’s forehead, expanding into a complex formation.

He inspected it carefully and murmured, “Strange, this soul-binding formation is intact—no faults.”

Eldest senior sister asked, “Really? Are you sure?”

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The youth clenched his fists, eyes resolute. “I swear by my bond with Mingxin Yuanjun that this formation is flawless!”

Third senior sister thought, “No need to be so dramatic.”

“Then it’s puzzling. Has your sect encountered this before? The formation is fine, the soul transference spell is fine, but the soul is missing…”

Eldest senior sister asked again.

“If the spell isn’t at fault… unless another soul-binding formation was used previously, and that formation wasn’t undone,” the youth pondered. “Has Ling Yue ever used another surrogate body?”

Fourth senior brother said, “Right, didn’t the junior disciple have an old puppet before?”

“Oh! I remember now!” third senior sister exclaimed. “He was going to destroy it, and I thought that was a pity… Who was guarding the Molten Abyss at the time? Do you recall?”

Before she finished, fifth senior brother’s face turned pale.

“What’s wrong?” everyone looked at him.

Fifth senior brother’s face flushed and paled repeatedly. “Does that puppet still have a formation on it?”

The Yan Sect youth said, “Rest assured, Peak Masters. Once a surrogate is destroyed, its formation naturally dissipates.”

“Actually… it wasn’t destroyed…” fifth senior brother muttered.

“What?!” third senior sister shouted. “Fifth brother, you look so honest; I never thought you’d steal under our noses!”

“I didn’t!” fifth senior brother wailed. “I’m innocent! Eldest senior sister, please believe me! That day, I was taking the puppet to destroy it, but we ran into the Patriarch…”

The other four remained silent.

“The Patriarch, as you know…” fifth senior brother said, “When he learned I was going to destroy the puppet, he jumped up shouting ‘waste of good things’ and took it without a word…”

Eldest senior sister rubbed her temples hard. “The Patriarch had a tough youth and became overly frugal… Why didn’t you stop him?”

Fifth senior brother looked wronged. “Could I stop him? I can’t beat him! He’s always scavenging junk, and I don’t see you stopping him!”

“All right, all right!” eldest senior sister said hurriedly, “There are outsiders here!”

She turned to the youth with a forced smile. “Thank you for your help, young friend. We’ve basically figured things out.”

Before the youth could reply, third senior sister grabbed him and placed him back on the spirit crane to send him off.

Second senior brother reproached, “He’s just a child!”

Eldest senior sister shot third senior sister a glare. “We’ll settle this later!”

Third senior sister quickly changed the subject. “That old puppet is probably in the Patriarch’s palace.”

Fourth senior brother said, “No time to waste—let’s ask him.”

Eldest senior sister nodded and formed a shadow transmission hand seal.

A mist rose in her palm, quickly forming a blurry figure that solidified into a semi-transparent handsome face.

“What's the matter? What do you want to ask me?” Their Patriarch, the Enlightened Dao Ancestor Wuxuan, just over a hundred years old, appeared as a man in his mid-twenties with strikingly handsome features.

But there was a certain penniless air about his brows, a result of his rough youth when sword cultivators were so poor they had to buy swords with their pants.

A hundred years ago, during his great tribulation, he was struck by heavenly thunder, leaving his mind somewhat muddled. He often forgot things and loved scavenging junk.

Eldest senior sister bowed and got straight to the point. “Is the old puppet once used by the junior disciple in your palace?”

“Old puppet?” Wuxuan Dao Ancestor scratched his head. “I have many puppets here. Which one do you mean?”

Third senior sister said, “The one resembling the junior disciple but less handsome.”

Fifth senior brother added, “The one meant to be destroyed at the Molten Abyss but was taken by the Patriarch halfway.”

“What do you mean ‘taken’? It’s not that bad,” Wuxuan Dao Ancestor corrected. “How many times have I told you? Sword cultivators don’t ‘take’ things—they ‘keep them safe’ for you!”

“Yes, yes, you’re right,” eldest senior sister’s brow twitched. “Where is the puppet you’re keeping now?”

“That one…” Wuxuan Dao Ancestor said nonchalantly, “I sold it.”

“That’s not right,” fourth senior brother noticed the problem. “The Patriarch hasn’t left the sect in years. How did he sell it?”

“Oh, the barter pouch I’m keeping for you—set a price, put the item in, and if someone buys it, spirit stones pop out. Very convenient…”

Fourth senior brother wailed, “That’s not a barter pouch! It’s a confiscated tool used to launder stolen goods! No wonder it disappeared!”

Wuxuan Dao Ancestor said confidently, “Well, I sold it. If you want compensation, I’ll pay you. I’m old and useless now, being neglected by the younger generation…”

“That’s not true. Patriarch, don’t worry,” eldest senior sister soothed him and ended the shadow transmission.

“The urgent matter is to find out where our little ancestor is now,” eldest senior sister sighed. “If others start dismantling our territory, losing money is minor; it’s our sect’s reputation that suffers.”

She paused. “For now, we must ask the leader of the Qiankun Sect to help divine the situation.”

“Maybe… no need to divine,” second senior brother suddenly said.

Everyone looked at him. “Why?”

“The junior disciple just used a soul imprint to transfer some assets,” second senior brother said.

Eldest senior sister asked, “To whom?”

“Never seen the name before. It seems to be a woman’s name. But the brokerage used for the transfer… is located within the Yunyu Sect’s territory.”

Silence fell over them.

After a long moment, eldest senior sister said, “If even you were notified, it must be a large sum.”

Second senior brother’s expression was strange. “Very large. Very, very large.”