Volume 2, Chapter 56 – Sea of Clouds

Song Chengqing was worried that spelling things out would only intensify the conflict, but Song Ruhua felt the conflict was already intense enough.

What Liang Yu had done was already deceiving their master. Just for the title of final disciple and the future seat of Dao Lord, she was willing to go this far now. If they didn’t correct her quickly, and she slid further into obsession, it would be too late to pull her back.

So even though Song Chengqing objected several times, that night he still arranged to meet Liang Yu at Qingxin Peak.

Baishan had four main peaks: Yushen Peak, Qingxin Peak, Yingke Peak, and Lianyun Peak.

Yushen Peak was the Dao Lord’s dojo. Yingke Peak was the path everyone had to pass through to enter the mountain. Lianyun Peak was the largest, with most of the buildings scattered across it.

Only Qingxin Peak stood off to the side. Wherever you looked, it was either the neighboring mountaintops or the distant sea of clouds. Especially when you climbed it at night, you could see the bright moon spilling its light across a rolling, churning expanse of white mist—perfect for reflection and clearing the heart.

By now the sky had already dimmed. The bright moon hung overhead, and the summit was wrapped in drifting white fog.

Wearing the white robe with yellow patterns and black trim that marked him as a personal disciple, Song Ruhua walked alone up to the summit. He found a pavilion set in the middle of the sea of mist and sat inside, quietly waiting.

For tonight’s meeting, he had actually prepared for the worst. He’d brought his life-bound sword, the Yuqing Sword , and was holding a certain level of guardedness toward Liang Yu.

How to put it.

Even if he assumed Liang Yu had already fallen into the demonic path, Song Ruhua still didn’t believe she would choose to turn against him inside the dojo.

But some degree of vigilance was still necessary. That was a habit Song Ruhua had developed over many years wandering the jianghu.

The sea of mist was silent. Suddenly, Song Ruhua turned to look back along the path and caught sight of a faint candlelight wavering its way up.

As the light drew closer, it dimly outlined a slender figure. Under his gaze, the figure parted the sea of clouds, revealing a clear-featured woman in white with her hair coiled up.

The woman was dressed similarly to Song Ruhua, also in the robes of a personal disciple, also with a sword on her back. The only extra thing was the long box-shaped lantern of white paper in her right hand. In the firelight, her pretty features seemed to shift between light and shadow.

“Yu’er.” Song Ruhua sighed. “Can I still call you that?”

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At his words, the woman’s brows trembled. She first set the lantern down on the stone table, then lifted her head, staring at Song Ruhua with a pair of big, dark, shining eyes.

“Senior Brother entered Master’s tutelage ten years earlier than I did and has always treated me no differently from his own blood sister. However you address me is only natural.”

“So you resent me.” Song Ruhua shook his head and decided to be direct. “I chose this place—Qingxin Peak. You know what that means.”

Liang Yu nodded. “I do.”

Qingxin Peak’s scenery was excellent, but under normal circumstances, Yuming disciples rarely wanted to come here, because it was traditionally where those who broke rules or committed mistakes were punished—sent here alone to reflect.

“You really don’t have anything to worry about.” Song Ruhua looked straight into Liang Yu’s eyes.

“Little Junior Sister is only seventeen. No matter how outstanding her talent, she’s still lacking in handling affairs. Master can’t possibly establish her as Dao Lord.”

“As for everyone else, Chengqing and I won’t compete with you. Junior Brother Guo’s heart is entirely set on delving into the Dao of deduction. This position is bound to be yours in the future, so why rush it?”

Liang Yu narrowed her eyes, as if hesitating over how to respond.

“And Little Junior Sister may not even care.” Song Ruhua shook his head. “I’ve watched her duel recordings and some interviews. It’s obvious she intends to focus on her family dojo. From the very start she was never meant to be your rival.”

“You had no need to sour things with her—much less try to deceive Master.”

“…I was indeed in the wrong here.” Liang Yu drew a deep breath. “I’ve been trapped in this arena of fame and profit, and ended up getting bitten by it instead.”

Hm?

Song Ruhua froze, never expecting the Liang Yu who’d always liked to talk back since childhood to admit her mistake so easily.

“You truly understand?” he asked, testing her.

Instead, Liang Yu smiled. “It’s only you and I here, Senior Brother. Why would I need to put on an act?”

Her attitude was so sincere it actually made Song Ruhua feel a bit ill at ease.

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“I’ll take the initiative to admit my fault to Master,” Liang Yu said, meeting his gaze. “To be honest, I had a feeling at the time that Master knew exactly what I was scheming, and just held back for the sake of our bonds. I’ve been reflecting on myself these past days.”

Is that so?

For a moment, Song Ruhua really didn’t know what to say. In the end, he could only nod. “Then when Master returns with Little Junior Sister…”

“I’ll be there to receive them,” Liang Yu nodded as well. “Leave all the ceremonies and formalities to me.”

Song Ruhua was taken aback, momentarily at a loss for words.

“Why would I need to lie about this, Senior Brother?” Seeing him still hesitate, Liang Yu added the final push. “Little Junior Sister’s talent is astonishing. Her entering Yuming’s gates is a blessing for the dojo. Once I thought it through, I was happy for us—why would I harm someone who’ll be my aid in the future?”

Right. That made sense.

Enlightenment dawned on Song Ruhua; he finally understood why Liang Yu’s attitude had flipped.

Condensing the Aspect at seventeen—Little Junior Sister’s talent really was terrifying, the sort that all Nine Dojos would fight over.

Once a genius like that grew up, even leaving aside the path past Returning to the Innate, reaching the Sixth Turn was practically guaranteed—no worse than any of the famed prodigies of the age.

Liang Yu’s temperament had been shaped from childhood. She’d grown up spoiled, with a strong sense of autonomy, but she also knew how to seek benefit and avoid harm. She might like butting heads and talking back over minor issues, but when it came to major matters of right and wrong, she always made the correct choice.

Her deception of their master had been before Little Junior Sister’s public duel.

It must have been after the duel, when she realized how frightening Little Junior Sister’s talent was and that provoking her wasn’t worth it—and, on top of that, seeing that Bai Xiang valued her family dojo more and was unlikely to take over Baishan—that Liang Yu finally shifted her mindset and decided to prioritize their sect ties.

This line of reasoning was something Song Ruhua was filling in on his own, but he didn’t believe there was any other explanation.

After all, Liang Yu was someone he’d watched from the age of thirteen or fourteen. He knew very well her nature of “bullying the soft and fearing the hard.” For her to change like this was only natural.

“Then I’m relieved.” He stood up and nodded to Liang Yu. “Late autumn nights are cold. Little… Junior Sister, make sure you don’t catch a chill.”

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With that, he stepped out of the pavilion and quickly vanished into the sea of clouds.

Liang Yu, however, stood there in a daze, savoring the way he’d abruptly corrected himself at the end.

“‘Little Junior Sister.’”

“‘Little Junior Sister.’”

“Heh…”

With a cold laugh, Liang Yu pulled out her phone from her sleeve and, eyes frosty, dialed an unfamiliar number.

“You’ve finally come around.”

A deep male voice sounded on the other end. Just from that naturally authoritative tone, you could tell he usually held a high position.

“It’s not that I’ve come around,” Liang Yu said coldly. “It’s them… Back then they called me ‘kin’ and ‘family’ every other word to coax and trick me, and in the end they still bowed to these cold rules.”

“Gratitude is the most valuable and least valuable thing in the world,” the man said. “When you truly become Dao Lord of Yuming, you’ll agree with that.”

“I already agree quite a bit,” Liang Yu sneered.

“And I’ve realized you and I are actually pretty similar—both supposed to inherit glory, both cast aside, both scheming day and night about making a comeback.”

Maybe because she’d completely let go mentally, Liang Yu actually dared say such “rebellious” things to him.

She went further: “This recent conflict with the Shinu people, and the rise of the New Affairs Faction—that’s all your doing too, isn’t it?”

“What are you trying to do, exactly?”

“Carve out your own rule in the Southern Wilds?”

The man deflected. “When you’re involved to a certain degree, I’ll tell you everything.”

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“You won’t be able to hide it for long.”

Standing atop the mountain, Liang Yu looked out over the sea of clouds.

“The Shinu delegation has already arrived in Qiyun Circuit.”

“She went over this time specifically at Wang Ran’s invitation to attend the ceremony. Guess what she’s really there to investigate?”

“She just suspects I’m involved as well, that’s all.” The man chuckled. “And she’s not wrong to suspect it.”

Liang Yu laughed too. “She’s never given up on finding out how Bai Nianchan died.”

“But she still hasn’t crossed the line so far,” the man’s tone cooled. “…You’re truly ruthless toward your master.”

“I don’t want to be.” Liang Yu ground the words out between her teeth.

“All these years I’ve helped her bury the truth, even begged for her sake from your side. And the result? She doesn’t care at all whether taking another disciple will turn me into a laughingstock!”

“So, do you need my help?” The man only spoke again after letting her vent.

“Yuming Sword Dao is still very important. If eliminating one Condensing the Aspect cultivator lets you have a smooth transition of power, that’s a very good deal.”

“You’re really that generous?” Liang Yu was skeptical.

“Of course there’s something in it for me.” The man didn’t deny it.

“Just like with Bai Nianchan back then.”

“Even a corpse has considerable research value.”