019 Phoenix Feather

  Jiang Zhen rarely had a ce to sneak away from the Sed have fun.

  Most of the time, the Elders either threw a tantrum or threatened him with suicide if he even thought about it.

  “Sect Master, if you leave now, I will set myself on fire.”“Sect Master, if you disappear again, I will starve myself to death!”“Sect Master, we are still rec from st time! What if another demonic beast appears?!”

  Jiang Zhen sighed.

  It wasn’t his fault they were so dramatic.

  This time, though, he had a det excuse.

  A Sacred Beast called Lake Marigold—a Fourth Realm spirit fish—had turned demonic. As the leader of the Isotion Path Sect, it was his duty to ha.

  Which, of course, he did.

  Easily.

  With the problem swiftly dealt with, Jiang Zhen saportunity. Using his Shapeshifting Teique, he infiltrated a group of Sect disciples and an Elder who were traveling to Yellon City. Officially, the trip was for diplomatic retions.

  Jiang Zhen knew better.

  It was about an au.

  Some treasure had caught the Sect’s attention, and the Elders wao acquire it before anyone else.

  Jiang Zhen, however, couldn’t care less about some random treasure. The Elders could hahat mess themselves.

  Instead, his i y elsewhere—

  Selling goldfish.

  More specifically, the offspring of Lake Marigold.

  Each fish carried a trace of spirituality, and one in a thousand had the potential to awaken their spark. It was a harmless little experiment. Jiang Zhen wasn’t a monster. He didn’t forything upon the fish—if one of them was destined freatness, then so be it.

  Of course, none of this would be fun if he sold them normally.

  So, naturally—

  He preteo be a mortal.

  An ordinary old man.

  And thus, his goldfish arcade stall was born.

  A little game of ce. A test of fate.

  It urely for research.

  It was definitely not about having fun.

  …

  Maybe.

  And then walked irange guy.

  Jiang Zhen had seen many cultivators in his time.

  But this one?

  This one was weird.

  At first gnce, he almost mistook the young man for a true mortal. His stealth teique was almost as good as Jiang Zhen’s own, an impressive feat for someone so young.

  Almost.

  Unfortunately for the kid, Jiang Zhen wasn’t blind.

  The boy’s body was pact, refined, aively powerful. His muscles weren’t those of a simple borer—they had i, the kind hohrough Body-Tempering teiques.

  And that was the problem.

  Stealth teiques and Body-Tempering teiques did not mix well. A different kind of training was required, The Sword opy Sect had two famous ones—Iron Skin and Sword Body—both of which made their practitioners physically unshakable. But no matter how well one hid their presence, a trained eye could always reize the signs.

  The way he moved.The way his muscles respoo every small shift.The natural stability in his posture.

  Sigh.

  The folly of youth.

  As a responsible Senior, Jiang Zhen decided to educate the foolish young man who thought he could mix stealth and body refi.

  Rather than education, though—

  It was more of a prank.

  Every time the young man almost caught a goldfish, Jiang Zhen popped the paper with a subtle burst of qi, freeing the fish.

  And then—

  The kid tried again.

  And again.

  And again.

  For two entire days.

  What kind of lunatic spent tying an arcade game rigged against them?

  Jiang Zhen offered to just sell him a goldfish. Thirty copper s. Simple. Fair.

  The boy ignored him.

  Utterly ignored him.

  Jiang Zhen squi the strange young man, trying to figure out what exactly was wrong with him.

  Why waste time pying when you should be cultivating?

  Young people nowadays were s and reckless.

  Ba his day, fun was only allowed after one became an Immortal.

  …

  Er.

  Or maybe after one became a Sect Master.

  Jiang Zhen had to admit—there were body-tempering teiques patible with stealth arts.

  The Isotion Path Sect, for example, had a few. Teiques that hohe body without making one move like a walking fortress. But whatever sect this kid had e from? Didn’t have them.

  The trast was jarring.

  The kid’s stealth teique was brilliant. His presence melted into the surroundings with the ease of a seasoned assassin. It was as if the kid didn’t have qi. If Jiang Zhen hadn’t been who he was, he might’ve mistaken him for a simple, unassuming mortal.

  But that body refi stuck out like a sore thumb.

  Jiang Zhen almost felt tempted to take the young man as a disciple, just to fix the tradi. Someoh this level of talent ih? If properly trained, he could be an invaluable asset to the Isotion Path Sect.

  “A sed disciple isn’t so bad.”

  Imagine, Jiang Zhen thought, a diamond in the rough, polished under my guidance…

  And so, when the young man approached his stall again—

  Jiang Zhe a hint of excitement.

  …

  Then he saw the demonic cultivator beside him.

  Jiang Zhen immediately sobered.

  He was old, but he wasn’t senile. Moreover, his qi sensory was top-notch. The girl standing with the young man had the lingering st of demonic cultivation ging to her soul.

  Not the type that could be washed away with repentance.

  Jiang Zhen’s first instinct was to warn the young man—tell him to be careful, to avoid unnecessary trouble—

  But then—

  The young man opened his mouth—

  And exposed him.

  Jiang Zhen eechless.

  A huhoughts passed through his mind in an instant.

  How did the kid find out?!

  No o a single soul—should’ve been able tnize him!

  For years, Jiang Zhen had perfected his mortal disguise. He was a master of deception, a true expert in blending in. Ahis brat had waltzed up to him and torn off his mask as if it were nothing!

  This was bad.

  This was very bad.

  He couldn’t let his sect members find out about this. They were in Yellon City right now, dealing with an au… and probably a martial tour. If wot out that he was here—pying arcade games—instead of bae, the Elders would riot.

  He o retreat.

  Jiang Zhen decided to go nuclear.

  “Hah! Don’t bme me if you ’t win a simple arcade game!” he shouted, his voice rising. “It’s definitely your fault, kid! A skill issue! Eh? Eh? What now? Gonna hit me?!"

  Meanwhile—

  Underh his sleeve, he was charging a hidden talisman.

  This wasn’t an ordinary escape talisman.

  It was an Isotion Path Sect life-saving talisman—a teique derived from demonic arts but refined into something far more specialized. It couldn’t be interrupted. It was instantaneous. The moment it fully charged, it would teleport him directly back to the sect.

  It took time to activate, sure—

  But it was uable.

  Origgered, nothing could stop it.

  He just needed a few more—

  “Judgment Severance.”

  Jiang Zhen’s breath hitched.

  A golden cross-shaped rupture briefly fshed in the air between him and the young man.

  Then—

  Shatter.

  Jiang Zhe it before he saw it.

  The talisman under his sleeve—

  It broke.

  Like gss.

  Tiny, glittering fragments of golden dust drifted from his fingers.

  The teleportation riggered.

  Jiang Zhen stared, utterly fused.

  That was impossible.

  Jiang Zhen reached for his face—

  And froze.

  His disguise was gone.

  The wrihe frail-lookiures—vanished. His previously all-white hair had recovered a few strands of bck, making him look more middle-aged than elderly.

  The bystanders stared.

  Jiang Zhen could feel their awe.

  Not because he was handsome—though yes, he was absolutely handsome—but because of what his transformation implied.

  He had been a cultivator all along.

  And these people—fellow stall owners, city folk, simple mortals—had ied with him like family for the past few days. They had gossiped with him, shared meals, pyed games, ughed, and treated him like one of their own.

  Now?

  Their attitudes shifted instantly.

  No one spoke.

  No one dared to approach.

  Jiang Zhen sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

  "Sheesh… It was fun while it sted."

  Thankfully, no nized him as the Sect Master of the Isotion Path Sect. He rarely showed his fa public, after all. Even within his ow, only the Elders regurly saw him.

  But still.

  The distaween him and the people around him felt palpable.

  No matter how well he blended in—

  At the end of the day, he was not one of them.

  That realizatio a bitter taste in his mouth.

  Jiang Zhen exhaled.

  "No point lingering."

  He turoward the infuriating young man who had exposed him.

  “Let’s talk somewhere else.”

  Before the young man could respond, Jiang Zhen flickered—

  —reappearing atop a high building some distance away.

  He frowned.

  The moment his feet touched the rooftop—

  The young man appeared beside him.

  At the same time.

  Jiang Zhen’s eyes narrowed.

  I didn’t even notice the fluctuation of his qi.

  It was uling.

  One of the most annoying things about stealth teiques was how difficult they made gauging someone’s strength. It was usually Jiang Zhen himself who ehis advaaking pleasure in others failing to see through his power.

  But now?

  He was the o guessing.

  Jiang Zhen sighed.

  This kid was no ordinary young man.

  His voice took on a new edge of curiosity. “Your stealth teique is impressive… it’s as if you have no qi at all.”

  The mysterious young man faked a cough.

  “Ah, don’t think too much about it.”

  His tone was light, almost casual—

  But Jiang Zhen could feel somethih it.

  It was flustered.

  Embarrassed, even.

  Jiang Zhen narrowed his eyes further.

  Now that was iing.

  Jiang Zhen was a blunt man.

  “What’s your realm?”

  The young man tilted his head. “Guess.”

  “I don’t want to.”

  The young man smirked. “We should do introdus first, you know?”

  Jiang Zhen almost felt offended.

  “You don’t know me?”

  “Wow, you are such a prick… introdus first, old man. It’s o put a o a face.”

  Jiang Zhen narrowed his eyes. “You go first.”

  The young man grinned. “Da Wei.”

  Jiang Zhen frowned. “I don’t reize your name.”

  “I’d be surprised if you did.”

  “A fhen.”

  Da Wei chuckled. “Heh, don’t leave me hanging.”

  Jiang Zhen crossed his arms. “I should apologize for leaving you hanging, but I don’t want to.”

  “Wow, you are so childish.”

  Jiang Zhen sighed. “My name is Jiang Zhen.”

  Da Wei furrowed his brows. “Jangjen? Jamjin? gg?”

  Jiang Zhewitched. “It is Ji-ang Zh-en.”

  “Got it, gg.”

  Jiang Zhen exhaled slowly through his nose, suppressing the urge to flick the young man off the rooftop. “What do you want with the Isotion Path Sect?”

  Da Wei rested a hand on his hip. “It’s for my follower. She was forced into discipleship by a demonic cultivator—practically forced to learn a demonic teique that would kill her if she stopped practig it.”

  Jiang Zhen’s eyes flickered toward the girl iion. She stood a few rooftops away, head bowed, breathing harsh, shoulders stiff, and hugging the fishbowl as if it were a lifeline.

  He returned his gaze to Da Wei. “And you believe her?”

  Da Wei didn’t hesitate. “I heard the Isotion Path Sect has a method to transform demonic teiques into non-demonic teiques. If the Isotion Path Sect is indeed righteous as they cim, they should be able to help her without discrimination, correct?”

  Jiang Zhe out a small chuckle. “The Isotion Path Sect is very knowledgeable ohing demonic, but why would they help her? Why would I help her?”

  Jiang Zhen scoffed. “As if you have anything I’d want—”

  Da Wei pulled something from under his sleeve. A single crimsoher, brimming with life ford radiating pure fire qi, pulsed in his grasp.

  Jiang Zhen’s words caught in his throat. His eyes widened, jaw slightly open as he took in the feather’s brilliahe warmth it emitted wasn’t just heat—it was alive.

  Da Wei tilted his head. “How about a trade? A life for a life. Seems fitting, doesn’t it?”

  Jiang Zhen swallowed, his mind rag. “What is that?”

  Da Wei smirked. “Phoenix Feather.”