Watching the Mountain

Chapter 23: Chapter 18: Ten Years

The Sect had assigned Xu Ran an Elder’s Cave Mansion, but after just a few days, he moved back to his original one.

His current research required him to travel frequently to the Spirit Fields at the foot of the mountain, and the Elder’s Cave Mansion was at the summit.

The distance to the Spirit Fields at the mountain’s base was quite far. With his Qi Cultivation Stage cultivation, traveling back and forth was inconvenient, so he moved back.

Later, for some unknown reason, the Peak Master of Spirit Stream Peak found out about this and gifted him an Immortal Crane to make it easier for him to travel up and down the mountain.

He accepted the Immortal Crane but felt it was too ostentatious. ’In the eyes of most, I’m still just an ordinary disciple. What would it look like, riding an Immortal Crane through the Sect every day?’

Regarding his choice, the Peak Master of Spirit Stream Peak simply shook his head helplessly and ultimately let him be.

Upon hearing that Xu Ran wanted to conduct some research, the Peak Master of Spirit Stream Peak didn’t even ask what he was researching. He directly assigned ten mu of Spirit Fields to him, allowing him to study whatever he pleased. The Sect would not interfere, nor would it demand any results.

Furthermore, he told Xu Ran that if he needed anything, he could ask at any time. All of Spirit Stream Peak’s Spirit Fields, Spirit Medicine Gardens, and Spirit Fruit Gardens—aside from some private research plots belonging to the other Elders—were completely open for him to access as he wished.

Such an attitude, such generosity. Xu Ran could only marvel inwardly. ’With such an enlightened Peak Master, how could Spirit Stream Peak not prosper?’

Yet, the reality was quite the opposite. In recent years, Spirit Stream Peak had become much more desolate than when he first joined the Sect. The number of disciples had been reduced by nearly half.

However, compared to the other main peaks, Spirit Stream Peak’s situation was considered relatively good.

Ever since the Secret Realm incident, the Profound Pure Sect’s situation had deteriorated daily. In just ten short years, it had shrunk from its original nine main peaks to only six.

The situation for the remaining six peaks wasn’t much better. The number of disciples had plummeted, and all the benefits and stipends were far inferior to before.

The disappearance of three main peaks meant that at least three Nascent Soul Stage Supreme Elders had perished. Among them was Divine Sword Peak, where Ye Shan had once resided.

The disciples left from these three main peaks were randomly assigned to the remaining six.

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A new cafeteria had opened at the foot of Spirit Stream Peak, specifically to provide Spiritual Cuisine for the Outer Disciples.

The Sect had suffered heavy losses in all aspects over the years, to the point where it could no longer distribute Elixir stipends regularly. Fortunately, the Sect had previously stockpiled a large amount of Spirit Rice in preparation for Yue Qingyu’s breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Stage.

Given the Sect’s current situation, Yue Qingyu’s Valley Qi Pills could certainly no longer be refined. So, they took out all this Spirit Rice and made it into Spiritual Cuisine to replace the Elixirs, allowing the disciples to maintain their regular cultivation and get through this difficult time.

Xu Ran often came here to eat as well. The main reason was that the Spirit Chefs in this cafeteria were truly skilled. Simple ingredients became incomparably delicious in their hands, leaving one with a lingering, savory taste.

Perhaps for this very reason, the Sect’s act of substituting Spiritual Cuisine for Elixirs was quickly accepted without causing much of a stir.

This day, Xu Ran came to the cafeteria to eat once again. When he was halfway through his meal, a powerful, booming shout suddenly rang out:

”Someone! Get me a bucket of Spirit Rice, half a Fire Spirit Chicken, and half a pot of Hundred Fruit Wine! And make it quick!”

The words had barely faded when a stooped, old man with disheveled white hair walked in, dressed in lavish robes.

After entering, he propped one foot on a chair and leaned one hand on a table. His head was cocked to the side, and a chopstick-sized Bamboo Sword dangled from his mouth. He exuded an air of a common hustler.

Upon seeing him, the disciples who were eating all broke into smiles. One of them called out to him:

”Well, if it isn’t Ye Zhenzhuan! You’ve come to freeload another meal off us?”

Most of the disciples present recognized the old man. He was none other than Ye Shan, the once peerlessly graceful prodigy who had shone brightly in the Immortal Ancient era.

Within the entire Profound Pure Sect, Ye Shan was the only one of his stature who would come to eat at the Outer Sect Cafeteria.

Hearing the disciple’s shout, Ye Shan retorted with a look of displeasure:

”What do you mean, ’freeloading’? Such an ugly word! We’re all fellow disciples, part of the same family. How can you call this freeloading?”

His words were met with a roar of laughter from the crowd. A disciple then teased, ”We all eat from bowls, but you order by the bucket. Are all True Disciples such big eaters?”

At this, Ye Shan puffed out his chest with a look of pride and said in a smug tone:

”Of course! As a True Disciple, isn’t it perfectly normal for me to eat a bit more than you? Otherwise, why am I a True Disciple while you’re all just Outer Disciples? And this is just now. Back in the day, I could eat more than ten buckets in one sitting!”

His words were met with another wave of laughter. Someone chuckled, ”Ye Zhenzhuan, you’re bragging again. We’ve never heard of anyone becoming a True Disciple by being a big eater.”

Ye Shan slammed his hand on the table and said angrily:

”Nonsense! Everyone under the heavens knows that I, Ye Shan, never brag!”

He had just finished speaking when someone stood up and countered, ”I just saw you bragging to the students at the Enlightenment School at the foot of the mountain yesterday.”

Hearing this, Ye Shan shifted his position and retorted, ”Bragging? I was teaching them Swordsmanship! The children at the Enlightenment School are the future of our Sect. As a True Disciple, isn’t it perfectly normal for me to instruct them in Swordsmanship? I haven’t even asked the Sect for Contribution Points.”

”You want to ask the Sect for Contribution Points? You’re lucky the Sect hasn’t punished you for misleading the youth! Everyone knows that ever since you were injured, Ye Zhenzhuan, you can’t even hold a sword steady. How can you teach anyone Swordsmanship?”

Ye Shan’s bluster deflated. He shifted again, but his tone remained forceful, ”I may not be able to hold a sword steady, but my insight is still there! With my eye for talent, guiding a group of children in Swordsmanship is a piece of cake, isn’t it?”

His words were met with another round of laughter.

”Oh, right, right, right. Ye Zhenzhuan, you could probably teach someone to become a Sword Saint with your insight alone. Never mind what anyone else says, we all support you. You should definitely ask the Sect for Contribution Points. Then you wouldn’t have to come here to the Outer Sect Cafeteria to freeload.”

Ye Shan retorted unhappily, ”I’ll say it again, I’m not here to freeload! We’re all one family, why are you all so petty? Back in my day, I—”

Before he could finish, someone cut him off with a wave of their hand. ”Don’t ’back in your day’ us. We all know your legendary deeds, Ye Zhenzhuan. No need to repeat them. Just eat your food.”

”Yeah, you’re always boasting about your past. If you keep it up, we won’t let you freeload here anymore.”

”I told you, it’s not freeloading!”

”Ah, right, right. Just hurry up and eat.”

Ye Shan ate incredibly fast, wolfing down his food like a starving man reborn. While the other disciples were still slowly savoring the Spiritual Cuisine in their bowls, he had already finished the entire bucket of Spirit Rice on his table.

He then quickly devoured half a Fire Spirit Chicken and downed half a pot of Hundred Fruit Wine. Full and satisfied, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, let out a contented burp, and strode out of the cafeteria.

Watching his retreating back, the crowd chuckled and commented that he was probably off to the Enlightenment School at the foot of the mountain to boast about his past deeds again.

Hearing this, the others laughed as well.

Xu Ran had been sitting quietly to the side. ’This laughter is grating to the ears, but for Senior Brother Ye Shan, perhaps it’s what suits him best.’

Just half a year after waking up, Ye Shan had picked up his sword and stepped into the Sect’s arena. However, he lost, predictably, to an obscure ordinary disciple.

Although the Sect’s disciples were shocked by this outcome, they didn’t mock him. Instead, they offered encouragement, hoping he could overcome his injuries and pull himself together soon.

But Ye Shan’s pride couldn’t accept such a fall from grace. He took their encouragement as mockery, which for a time made the atmosphere between him and the other disciples extremely tense.

It was said that the other sects still feared Ye Shan greatly. Even after personally witnessing his Golden Core being shattered, they remained uneasy, worried that he might one day reappear before them, once again an invincible, prodigious youth.

Less than two years later, calamity struck the Sect. Ye Shan’s master perished, and Divine Sword Peak vanished.

These successive calamities, coupled with Ye Shan’s arrogance, suddenly gave rise to many voices within the Sect, saying things like if Ye Shan hadn’t been so high-profile in the Secret Realm, the Sect wouldn’t be in its current state.

’Fighting for the Sect? Wasn’t it just for his own glory?’

Although the Sect spoke out to stop these rumors and affirmed Ye Shan’s contributions, they couldn’t stop the disciples from gossiping in private.

Later, as the Sect suffered one calamity after another, no one paid him any mind. By the time the Sect finally stabilized somewhat, he had, in the blink of an eye, turned into this person who loved to brag about his past deeds everywhere.

And his appearance had aged ten years for every one that passed. He had gone from a high-spirited, prodigious youth with sharp brows and bright eyes to the hunched-over, white-haired old man he was today.

At first, the Outer Disciples were very cautious around him. After all, no matter how weak Ye Shan had become, the Sect had yet to strip him of his True Disciple status. His former peerless grace was still deeply engraved in everyone’s minds.

But over time, after more interactions, everyone simply got used to it.

After that, the gossip about him died down, and no one blamed him for the Sect’s situation anymore. After all, what could anyone do with a man who just liked to brag and live in the glory of his past?

It was said that even people from the other sects, upon hearing news of him, concluded that Ye Shan was finished for this lifetime and could no longer pose a threat to them.

’All things in this world are changed beyond recognition by the passage of time. Just like Senior Brother Ye Shan. Looking at him now, how many people could connect him to the invincible prodigy he once was?’

’I wonder if the world will ever have the chance to see that peerlessly graceful figure again.’

Xu Ran shook his head. After finishing his meal, he silently got up and walked out of the cafeteria.

He hadn’t taken more than a few steps when a message was suddenly delivered to him from Ning Caique, whom he hadn’t heard from in a very long time. She hoped he could go see her at the Chores Courtyard.

According to the person who delivered the message, her condition was very poor, and she might not have many days left to live.

Xu Ran closed his eyes slightly, his mind recalling the young girl from Xu Family Village. ’Has the day of parting arrived again, just like that?’

’And this time, it’s a parting with no hope of reunion.’

Xu Ran gave the messenger a slight nod and said, ”Please lead the way.”