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019 Phoenix Feather
🕑 Added 2025-02-21 10:07:26 +0000 UTCJiang Zhen rarely had the chance to slip away from the Sect and enjoy himself.
Most of the time, the Elders would throw a fit—or worse, threaten self-harm.
"Sect Master, if you leave now, I will set myself on fire!"
"Sect Master, if you disappear again, I shall starve myself to death!"
"Sect Master, we are still recovering from last time! What if another demonic beast appears?"
Jiang Zhen sighed.
It wasn’t his fault they were so dramatic.
This time, however, he had a decent excuse.
A Sacred Beast, the spirit fish known as Lake Marigold, had succumbed to demonic corruption. As the leader of the Isolation Path Sect, it was his duty to handle it.
Which, of course, he did.
Effortlessly.
With the matter swiftly resolved, Jiang Zhen saw an opportunity. Using a Shapeshifting Technique, he blended into a group of disciples and an Elder headed for Yellow Dragon City under the guise of diplomatic relations.
He knew better.
They were after some treasure at an auction.
Jiang Zhen, however, had no interest in some trivial bauble. The Elders could handle that mess themselves.
His interest lay elsewhere—
Selling goldfish.
More specifically, the offspring of Lake Marigold.
Each fish carried a trace of spirituality, and one in a thousand possessed the potential to awaken their spark. A harmless little experiment. Jiang Zhen wasn’t a monster; he didn’t force anything upon the fish. If fate deemed one worthy, so be it.
Of course, simply selling them wouldn’t be any fun.
So, naturally—
He disguised himself as an ordinary old man.
And thus, his goldfish arcade stall was born.
A little game of chance. A test of destiny.
Purely for research.
Definitely not because he found it amusing.
…
Maybe.
And then, the strange youth arrived.
Jiang Zhen had seen countless cultivators in his time.
But this one?
This one was odd.
At first glance, he almost mistook the young man for a true mortal. The boy’s stealth technique was exceptional—nearly on par with Jiang Zhen’s own.
Almost.
Unfortunately for the kid, Jiang Zhen wasn’t blind.
The boy’s frame was compact, refined—deceptively powerful. His muscles weren’t those of a mere laborer. There was intent behind their development, the kind honed through rigorous Body-Tempering techniques.
And that was the problem.
Stealth and Body-Tempering did not mix well. Their principles clashed. The Sword Canopy Sect had two renowned techniques—Iron Skin and Sword Body—both of which made their practitioners physically indomitable. But no matter how well one concealed their presence, a trained eye could always discern the signs.
The way he moved.
The way his muscles reacted to the smallest shifts.
The natural stability in his stance.
Jiang Zhen sighed.
The folly of youth.
As a responsible Senior, Jiang Zhen decided to educate the foolish youth who thought he could mix stealth and body refinement.
Well.
"Educate" might be the wrong word.
It was more of a prank.
Each time the young man nearly caught a goldfish, Jiang Zhen flicked a thread of qi, subtly tearing the fragile paper net—freeing the fish at the last moment.
And yet—
The boy kept trying.
Again.
And again.
For two whole days.
Jiang Zhen stared at him in silent disbelief.
What kind of lunatic spends two days playing a rigged game?!
Feeling a twinge of guilt (but mostly curiosity), Jiang Zhen finally offered to sell him a fish outright.
“Thirty copper coins. Simple. Fair.”
The boy ignored him.
Utterly.
Jiang Zhen squinted at the strange young man, attempting to discern what, exactly, was wrong with him.
Why waste time here instead of cultivating?
Young people these days… could be so reckless.
Back in his day, fun was only permitted after one became an Immortal.
…
Or.
Maybe after becoming a Sect Master.
Jiang Zhen grudgingly admitted that there were body-tempering techniques compatible with stealth arts. The Isolation Path Sect had a few—methods that refined the body without turning one into a walking fortress.
But this kid’s Sect?
Didn’t have them.
The contrast was painfully obvious.
His stealth technique was exquisite—his presence melted into the surroundings like an assassin’s shadow. It was as if he didn’t possess qi at all. Had Jiang Zhen been anyone else, he might’ve mistaken him for a simple mortal.
But that body refinement…
It stuck out like a sore thumb.
For the briefest moment, Jiang Zhen considered taking him as a disciple—just to fix that contradiction.
A talent like this… if properly trained, he could be an invaluable asset to the Isolation Path Sect.
“A second disciple wouldn’t be so bad,” Jiang Zhen mused.
Imagine it—a diamond in the rough, polished under his guidance...
And then—
The young man returned to the stall.
Jiang Zhen felt a rare hint of excitement.
…
Until he saw the demonic cultivator beside him.
Jiang Zhen immediately sobered.
He was old, but not senile. His qi sensory was unmatched. The girl standing next to the youth carried the unmistakable taint of demonic cultivation—its stench clung to her soul.
Not the type that could be washed away with repentance.
Jiang Zhen’s first instinct was to warn the young man—advise him to tread carefully, to avoid unnecessary trouble—
But then—
The boy opened his mouth.
And exposed him.
Jiang Zhen froze.
A hundred thoughts raced through his mind.
How did this brat figure it out?!
No one—not a single soul—should’ve been able to recognize him!
For years, Jiang Zhen had perfected his disguise, his mortal facade honed to perfection. He was a master of deception, an expert at blending in.
And yet—
This boy had casually torn off his mask as if it were nothing!
This was bad.
Very bad.
He couldn’t let his Sect members find out about this.
Right now, they were in Yellow Dragon City—attending an auction... likely a martial tournament as well.
If word got out that their Sect Master was here—wasting time playing arcade games instead of handling Sect matters—
The Elders would riot.
He needed to retreat.
Jiang Zhen decided to go nuclear.
“Hah! Don’t blame me if you can’t win a simple arcade game!”
His voice rang out, deliberately loud.
“It’s definitely your fault, kid! A skill issue! Eh? Eh? What now? Gonna hit me?!”
Meanwhile—
Beneath his sleeve, qi surged into a hidden talisman.
Not just any talisman.
An Isolation Path Sect life-saving talisman—a technique derived from demonic arts, but refined into something far more specialized.
It was instantaneous. Unstoppable.
The moment it fully charged, it would teleport him directly back to the Sect.
A surefire escape.
He just needed a few more—
“Judgment Severance.”
The young man’s calm voice cut through the air.
Jiang Zhen’s breath hitched.
A golden cross-shaped rupture flashed between them—fleeting, yet absolute.
Then—
Shatter.
Jiang Zhen felt it before he saw it.
The talisman—
It broke.
Like glass.
Tiny, glittering fragments of golden dust slipped through his fingers.
The teleportation never triggered.
Impossible.
His mind reeled. That technique was foolproof! Even an Immortal-level cultivator shouldn't have been able to disrupt it so effortlessly!
He instinctively reached for his face—
And froze.
His disguise was gone.
The frail wrinkles, the carefully crafted appearance of an aging mortal—all erased. His once snow-white hair had regained streaks of black, making him look middle-aged rather than elderly.
Silence.
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 never been one of them.
For days, these people—fellow stall owners, city folk, simple mortals—had chatted with him, shared meals, played games, and treated him as their own.
And now?
They stepped back.
No one spoke.
No one dared to approach.
Jiang Zhen sighed, rubbing the back of his head.
"Sheesh… It was fun while it lasted."
Thankfully, no one recognized him as the Sect Master of the Isolation Path Sect. He rarely showed his face in public, after all. Even within his own Sect, only the Elders regularly saw him.
But still.
The distance between 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.
A bitter taste lingered on his tongue.
Jiang Zhen exhaled.
"No point lingering."
His gaze shifted to the infuriating young man who had exposed him.
“Let’s talk somewhere else.”
Before the youth could respond, Jiang Zhen flickered—
—reappearing atop a distant rooftop in an instant.
And yet—
The moment his feet touched the tiles…
The young man was already beside him.
At the exact same time.
Jiang Zhen’s eyes narrowed.
He hadn’t felt a single fluctuation of qi.
Unsettling.
Stealth techniques were infamous for concealing a cultivator’s true strength. Jiang Zhen himself had long enjoyed this advantage—watching others struggle to fathom his depths.
But now?
He was the one left guessing.
Jiang Zhen sighed.
This kid…
Was no ordinary young man.
Jiang Zhen’s voice took on a new edge of curiosity.
“Your stealth technique 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.”
Light. Casual. Offhanded.
But underneath it—
Flustered.
Embarrassed, even.
Jiang Zhen narrowed his eyes further.
Now that was interesting.
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 introductions first, you know?”
Jiang Zhen almost felt offended.
“You don’t know me?”
“Wow, you are such a prick… introductions first, old man. It’s nice to put a name to a face.”
Jiang Zhen narrowed his eyes.
“You go first.”
The young man grinned.
“Da Wei.”
Jiang Zhen frowned.
“I don’t recognize your name.”
“I’d be surprised if you did.”
“A foreigner, then.”
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. Because of you, I think my speech pattern changed in a weird direction.”
“Wow, you are so childish.”
Jiang Zhen sighed.
“Jiang Zhen. That’s my name.”
Da Wei furrowed his brows.
“Jangjen? Jamjin? Changcheng?”
Jiang Zhen’s eye twitched.
“It is Ji-ang Zh-en.”
“Got it, Changcheng.”
Jiang Zhen exhaled slowly through his nose. He was suppressing the urge to flick the brat off the rooftop.
“What do you want with the Isolation 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 technique that will kill her if she stops practicing it.”
Jiang Zhen’s gaze flickered toward the girl in question.
A few rooftops away, she stood rigid, shoulders stiff, breath harsh, hugging the fishbowl as if it were a lifeline. She must have strained herself keeping up—and yet, she had still managed to follow them.
Impressive.
His eyes returned to Da Wei.
“And you believe her?”
Da Wei didn’t hesitate.
“I heard the Isolation Path Sect has a method to transform demonic techniques into non-demonic ones. If the Isolation Path Sect is as righteous as they claim, they should be able to help her without discrimination, correct?”
Jiang Zhen let out a small chuckle.
“The Isolation Path Sect is very knowledgeable on demonic arts… but why would they help her? Why would I help her?”
“How about a trade?”
Jiang Zhen scoffed.
“As if you have anything I’d want—”
Da Wei reached into his sleeve.
And pulled out—
A single crimson feather.
It pulsed in his grasp, brimming with life force, radiating pure fire qi.
The warmth it emitted wasn’t just heat.
It was alive.
Jiang Zhen’s words caught in his throat.
His eyes widened. His breath stilled.
This was—
Da Wei tilted his head.
“I’ll ask again. How about a trade? A life for a life. Seems fitting, doesn’t it?”
Jiang Zhen swallowed, his mind racing.
“What is that?”
Da Wei smirked.
“Phoenix Feather.”
