《Tales of a Young God》 Cup 1: Over a Cup of Tea He was at an inn which had an open theatre in its courtyard. He was wearing plain green robes which covered his legs as he sat on a stool looking at the play being performed. His hair was jet black and the only ornament he had on his hair was a piece of a white jade crane. His dark emerald eyes glittered as he enjoyed the song sung by the actor. He was sitting alone at his table enjoying his cup of tea. He was always in a mood to have tea. Maybe it was because his real identity made him crave for tea. Who wouldn¡¯t want a cup of hot brewed tea when it was raining? It was his turn to play after the act so he was waiting at the lounge. A random woman who had heard his zither skills had asked him to accompany her in her dance. And he had agreed gladly. ¡°Are you sitting alone? Can I have this seat?¡± asked a timid voice pointing at the empty seat opposite his table. ¡°You may have this seat. I am here alone.¡± It was a young female mortal of about 15 of years, and she seemed to be without a chaperone. She had dressed plainly in soft pink but something told him that she was a noble lady. Her bearings were not awkward but it was graceful, even in the way she had pulled the chair and sat down. She had not worn any pieces of jewelry or any make-up so as to hide her identity but nonetheless, it was nice to look at her. She must have probably sneaked out of the house, he thought, as he had noticed that her voice was refined though it was timid. He expanded his vision and he saw that there were some martial artists following her. He smiled at that, probably guards following her without her knowledge. It was none of his business. So, he acted normal. ¡°Would you like to have some tea? I apologize, this pot of tea is turning cold. We can ask for a freshly brewed tea if you like,¡± ¡°A pot of hot water will be fine. I am carrying my own tea leaves.¡± Ah, so she is indeed a noble lady, probably afraid that she might be poisoned in the outside world. ¡°Waiter! Please bring us a hot pot of water and a set of two new cups.¡± ¡°I will be right there!¡± called a nearby waiter. ¡°I am sorry, I have not introduced myself. I am known as Hua, a wandering musician.¡±Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! ¡°Oh! So it is you, Mr.Hua! I have heard so much about you from my ser- -friend. I came to this inn because my friend told me that you would be singing today with her friend.¡± He caught her slip of tongue and chuckled lightly. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was famous around here. You flatter me. I am just a common musician who is traveling to see the world.¡± ¡°No, Mr. Hua, you¡¯re too modest. I trust my friend. What she says is always true!¡± The waiter brought a new set of cups and hot water in a pot. ¡°Miss umm--?¡± ¡°Call me Xiao Lok, they say I am very lucky,¡± she blushed. ¡°Xiao Lok, can I have some of the tea you are going to brew? I like to taste different kinds of tea.¡± ¡°Oh sure, Mr. Hua, My tea leaves are personally given to me by my brother. You will never forget the taste.¡± And she started brewing the tea for both of them. ¡°Here, sir, your cup of tea, I hope you enjoy it,¡± she said shyly but there was confidence in her voice. She was sure that Mr. Hua would surely enjoy this tea that her brother had lovingly brought it for her from overseas. He inhaled the steam before he drank and loved the scent. Xiao Lok was surely lucky like her name, he thought. He had detected a slow working poison in the tea. It was a lethal poison whose antidote could only be prepared by the person who made this poison. He sipped the tea and smiled happily, ¡°How long have you been drinking this tea? It tastes exquisite!¡± ¡°I knew you would love this tea! I have been drinking it for almost five months now,¡± she gushed. Ah, another two weeks now and she will be dead. He drained the entire teacup and insisted on drinking everything from the teapot. She didn¡¯t hesitate and let him drink everything, thinking that her tea was making someone happy. ¡°Waiter! Bring another set of cups and a pot of hot water again!¡± he called out again. ¡°Yes, coming sir!¡± ¡°Mr. Hua I didn¡¯t know that you would like my tea so much. But I have run out of tea leaves.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, Xiao Lok. Because I had all your tea I will also brew you a pot of tea with my own tea leaves.¡± He was a god. No poison could harm him. And like he said, he had truly enjoyed the tea not minding the poison. He can get rid of them the moment it touched his tongue. The waiter brought another batch of the tea set and teapot. He lifted the lid of the pot and took out a small pouch with some dried leaves in it. The leaves were white in color. These leaves were from his garden in the godly realm. He had nurtured them with his own rain. It had the power to cure any type of ailments including poison. She was excitedly looking at his preparation. He poured tea into two cups and before he gave her he drank from one of the cups. ¡°This is to prove that I don¡¯t have any evil intention towards you and that my tea does not contain any poison.¡± She was shocked! She had dared to venture into the outside world fully prepared. She was immune to most common poisons and so she was not afraid to eat and drink outside. But she was happy with his sincerity. ¡°Mr. Hua, I trust you. Now, I am more convinced of your sincerity. You¡¯re a good man.¡± He gave her the other cup and she gingerly brought it to her lips. The aroma of the tea was enough to make her nerves feel calm. Just the scent of the tea opened up all her veins. And when she took a sip, her heart felt so warm! This was the best tea that she had ever had in her life! ¡°Mr. Hua! Your tea is more amazing than mine. Where did you get such tea leaves?¡± ¡°I prepared them myself. I have a garden of tea leaves at home.¡± She continued to drink happily. She was immune to common poisons but lethal poisons like the one she had her in tea leaves cannot be detected even after a person died. But she was really lucky. Bai Hua¡¯s tea was getting rid of all the poisons that had accumulated in her blood. In fact, from now onwards no poison can ever harm her. She had become completely immune to any type of poison in this world! Cup 2: The fog gently glides on the river banks The actors on the stage ended their act to a round of applause from the spectators. It was a romantic play and the couple had finally united after crossing many hurdles. The woman was from a noble family while her lover was in the infantry. The plot was common but the actors had acted magnificently. Bai Hua joined in the applause enthusiastically. These kinds of mortal stories always intrigued him. Mortals seemed to cherish love and dreams, and hold on to them more strongly when they were threatened. How mortals find happiness in small fickle things, as if their short lives revolved only around these things, he sighed inwardly. Xiao Lok was also clapping her hands earnestly as if she could relate to the story of the play. ¡°Well, Xiao Lok, it¡¯s my turn now. I hope you will like my zither skills,¡± he said as he stood up lifting his zither which was covered in a white cloth from the corner beside his stool. ¡°Mr. Hua, I will be very happy to hear you play the zither. I will really enjoy your accompaniment with Sister Wei¡¯s dance performance¡± Bai Hua stepped out of the lounge area and made his way towards the stage holding his covered zither in both of his hands. The actors had left the stage after receiving the applause and some had gone backstage to change. While others had remained in the audience seats to watch the next performance. Bai Hua climbed up the short steps to the stage and took his place. The random lady, who had requested him to accompany her in her dance, emerged from the backstage and gracefully walked towards the front side of the stage. She gave a slight bow to Bai Hua as an acknowledgment and greeted the audience with a charming smile. She appeared to be in her early 20¡¯s. She was wearing a pale pink dress with white robes on top of her dress. Her hair was long and it moved gently with her every move. She had light make-up on her face and she wore silver hairpins with green gemstones on it as if she had matched her outfit with Bai Hua. ¡°Greetings to everyone who have gathered here this evening. I have a brilliant musician today with me who will play the zither for my performance,¡± she said musically. ¡°Many of you don¡¯t know him, but he¡¯s a traveling musician and I have invited him especially for this evening before he leaves for another place. He is Mr. Hua.¡± She looked at his direction as she smiled at him. Many people clapped their hands at this introduction. To the audience, for Miss Wei to praise a musician was enough for them to like him. They were regulars at the inn because Miss Wei came to dance and sing often in this inn.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Bai Hua took the cue of the dying clapping sound to begin. He unwrapped it and produced a dark zither with strings that were also black in color. Some people had never seen such a zither and stared at it. He gave it a stroke and an enchanting sound came out from the strings. And then, he slowly played a gentle melody that tugged at everyone¡¯s heart. Miss Wei began to sing and dance. ¡°The fog gently glides on the river banks It tells me that you are coming back. Oh, how long I have waited for this day! You appear like a deity singing a lay And my heart flutters like a dandelion. Your breath moves me so, my lord, And then two handfuls of your gaze And all the flowers in my heart have bloomed.¡± She had started dancing slowly as if she was dancing with an invisible man, with eyes sparkling and a happy heart clearly written in her face While the zither followed her song and movements perfectly, making it a solemn act. The audience had become so quiet the moment they heard the zither. And when she sang of a meeting with a lover, they could feel her longing and love for this lord. She was dancing on the stage yet, in their minds, she was dancing near a river bank with dew-decked flowers gently swaying in the gentle breeze. Her clothes matched her performance. It made her look like a young lady who was experiencing an innocent first love. And the gentle sound of the zither made them think of some natural sounds like a bird chirping sweetly somewhere, or a harmonious buzzing of bugs. It made their experience ethereal... The music gradually receded and stopped as she slowly ended her dance with a happy sigh. All was quiet. Then they broke from their reverie and looked at the stage. Everyone was amazed at this novel experience. They stood up and gave a heart-warming applause for the performance. They were never going to forget this in their life. They had been lucky to visit this inn that evening. They were so mesmerized by her performance and was all focused on her that they did not notice Bai Hua who was stealthily escaping from the stage. He liked to play the zither and so he had taken up the vocation of a musician to suit his role in the mortal realm. He had played in such a way that the focus would not be on him, but on the performer. He was happy to heighten the experience of the performance but did not like to outshine himself. He was the gentle rain that does not destroy but wash away the dust and dirt. The gentle rain that makes flowers, grass, and trees rejuvenate and make them look more beautiful. He was 1500 years old. But he looked like he was just 19 years old. In terms of heaven, he was considered the youngest god! But he was called Mr. Hua in this town in regard to his profession. He went back to his previous seat and kept his zither in the corner and ordered for tea again. Xiao Lok was no longer there. She was gone. He wished her a good life in his heart. She was a sincere and honest lady for someone who had come from the nobility. It was not his business regarding her poisoning, but he had helped her for her sincerity. From here on, she had to look after herself. Clearly, someone wanted her dead. Hopefully, she gets the courage to face her enemies. Though she had acted timid and shy, Bai Hua could tell that she was actually very intelligent but her heart was too good. In this one month that he had stayed in the mortal realm, he found that being virtuous was actually a disadvantageous trait. He was an observer and abstained from too much interaction with mortals. They were going to die one day, he didn¡¯t want to form any connections. And he continued to drink his tea. Cup 3: Invited to a Party Bai Hua had left that town after he stayed there for two more days. People usually didn¡¯t remember him much after the passage of time because he stayed low and didn¡¯t attract too much attention to himself. People who had heard him playing the zither just remembered that they had once enjoyed some good music. Just as the audience of Miss Wei had only focused on her performance and hadn¡¯t paid too much attention to his playing even though it was him who had conjured such a magical performance. The audience will just remember that Miss Wei had performed her masterpiece that day, and that there was a certain musician that day after the passage of time. He was still in the East Mainland. Now, he was in another town called Baoshan, it was much bigger than the previous town. There were more people on the streets. He didn¡¯t need to eat or rest. So he had been traveling most of the time without eating but just enjoying teas in the inns that he visited. And he had some mortal money with him from the performances he had been giving for a month now. Sometimes he had impulsive cravings for mortal food and he would buy some fruits or eat at an inn. It was already a week since he ate any sort of meal. He had walked quite a distance and now he was in the center of the town. He looked around the place and saw a huge restaurant with a board that said ¡°Baoshan Heavenly Cuisine.¡± He was intrigued by the name and decided to go inside to check out the food. He entered the restaurant carrying his zither at his back. He had been traveling for so long yet there was not even a speck of dust on his boots or robes. He didn¡¯t look outstanding but he looked like a gentleman. He searched for an empty table on the ground floor but all tables were full. So, he went up to the first floor and took the one that was near a group of what looked like to be a group of boys from rich families. He pulled out a chair but was stopped by a voice. ¡°Excuse me, sir, that table is reserved,¡± said a nearby waiter. ¡°Please, sir, follow me. There is another empty table.¡± The waiter led him away from the group and pulled out a chair from a table that was close to the window. He placed the zither under the window and took his seat. The waiter offered him a menu to look but he did not even open it. ¡°What do you think is the best delicacy in your restaurant?¡± he asked. The waiter looked at him and seeing that though he looked like a gentleman he did not wear any accessory except for the jade crane on his hair. And his robes also appeared to be of unknown quality. The waiter felt that he must be a tourist from another place. He felt sympathetic towards this customer as he had also come to Baoshan 4 years ago in search of a job. ¡°The barbecued duck with our special sauce is what I would recommend to you, sir,¡± he had not lied, he had offered him a delicacy which was always in demand because it was delicious as well as affordable. There were other expensive ones as well. But the waiter felt that those delicacies would certainly burn a hole in the pouch of this customer. ¡°Okay, please give me that and a bowl of rice.¡± ¡°Thank you, sir, I will come right up with your order,¡± he left saying this. ¡°They are late!¡± someone said in a loud voice. It was one of the boys from the table of rich kids. They all looked like they were about 17 or 18.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Calm down. They will be coming soon. Girls are usually late. I don¡¯t know what takes them so long to come out of their houses,¡± replied a boy closest to the speaker. ¡°We can only wait,¡± said another. Suddenly, Bai Hua could hear some giggling sounds from the stairs. His table was not far from their table and so he could hear all their conversation. He hadn¡¯t meant to eavesdrop. A group of three teenage girls was coming up the stairs. They were all dressed in rich colors and were wearing expensive pieces of jewelry. They then went and took their seats at the table where Bai Hua had tried to sit earlier. ¡°What took you girls so long?¡± the same boy who had talked loudly asked. ¡°Gathering news, little Chao, unlike you who only thinks about food,¡± mocked one of the girls. ¡°I do not!¡± he exclaimed, offended. ¡°We know that you are starving. Go ahead and order.¡± He scoffed and called over a waiter and shoot off a list of food without even looking at the menu. Every one of them laughed at this. ¡°Okay, boys, listen we have news for you,¡± said the same girl, ¡°there is going to a party tonight at the governor¡¯s house. It is arranged only for teenagers. The governor¡¯s daughter had organized this for her guest who has visited her from the imperial city. And we are all invited!¡± ¡°That¡¯s such a great news.¡± ¡°I wonder who the guest is though.¡± ¡°Yeah, the governor¡¯s daughter is going to such an extent to please the guest.¡± ¡°Must be someone with a good background.¡± ¡°Do you think it¡¯s the Prime Minister¡¯s daughter? I heard she likes to travel around and visit towns.¡± ¡°Nah, I don¡¯t think it can be her. I heard she¡¯s in the imperial city. My father just came back yesterday from there. Couldn¡¯t be her.¡± They went on chatting happily about the party. The waiter had brought the food to Bai Hua¡¯s table and he gingerly tasted a mouthful with the chopsticks. It was delicious. He wasn¡¯t hungry but he just liked to experiment and appreciate little things like food that mortals lived to eat or eat to live. He didn¡¯t know. Mortals were complex. The food for the other table had also arrived and they started eating. They were still talking about the party. The girls were discussing what to wear while the boys were talking about the other girls that might turn up at the party. Then another girl in the group suddenly smacked her forehead. ¡°I forgot! I was supposed to find a musician for tonight! The governor¡¯s daughter had asked me to find one. And now I won¡¯t have time. I have to go and get my new shoes and I also have to decide on my clothes and hairpins,¡± she continued, wailing. ¡°Hey, wait! Isn¡¯t the guy from before carrying a zither?¡± asked the boy called Little Chao loudly. ¡°Who?¡± asked most of them gathered. ¡°That guy!¡± and he looked towards Bai Hua, ¡°he¡¯s not old and looks average. The governor¡¯s daughter will be okay with this. Wait, let me go and ask him.¡± He cleaned himself with a napkin and made his way towards Bai Hua. ¡°Hey, listen, umm Mr..?¡± ¡°Call me just Hua,¡± said Bai Hua, he didn¡¯t want to be called Mister by a kid who looked like about his age in appearance though he was actually 1500 years old. I have to act like I am a teenager too, he thought. ¡°Okay, Hua, would you agree to come and play your zither for a party tonight? You will be heavily rewarded for your time. What do you say?¡± ¡°Where is the event?¡± ¡°It¡¯s at the governor¡¯s house. So, are you willing?¡± ¡°Okay. I don¡¯t mind. I will come.¡± ¡°That¡¯s really great to hear. Come after the sunset. Just tell the guards that Zhang Chao has asked you to come. That¡¯s my name.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Okay. Thank you. I will see you then,¡± saying this Zhang Chao went back to his friends. ¡°What did he say?¡± ¡°He agreed. Nice fellow. My charms were not wasted.¡± His friends guffawed at this while the girls only giggled. ¡°There, Wang Ju, your problems are solved. Now you owe this mighty one a favor,¡± he said as he pointed at himself. Wang Ju only giggled and said, ¡°Now I have all the time to myself. Don¡¯t worry, Little Chao, I will pay the bill for our food today as a sign of gratitude." The cost of the food which they had eaten would have fed the whole diners inside the Baoshan Heavenly Cuisine. But for them, it was not a big deal. Bai Hua was happy to be able to finally meet people with a higher social status. All this time on the mortal realm he had only mixed with common people. It was not that he did not like the common people, but he wanted to see how the rich lived in the mortal realm. He was intrigued! Cup 4: Recognition Bai Hua had left the restaurant after finishing his food. He still had time before sunset so he decided to walk around before he headed for the Governor¡¯s mansion. East Mainland was quite normal. So far he had not encountered any immortal or any strong martial artists. His knowledge of the mortal world was limited. He was never meant to live a mortal life and so everything intrigued him. Yet, he didn¡¯t get too involved to affect their fates drastically. Gods have always been indifferent to mortals. They had other concerns and so the mortals had ¡°Son of Heaven¡± to rule in their stead. People were going about their business and some of them were in a hurry as the sun was almost setting. He could see women hurriedly buying groceries. While some people were seen hurrying into the apothecary. The sky was glowing red and small clouds were floating as if they were little ships sailing on a red ocean. The governor¡¯s mansion was on the edge of the town, separated by a tiny grove from the main town. He started making his way towards the mansion enjoying the changing scenery as he could see some trees as he moved closer to the mansion. He had asked the address from the waiter earlier before he left the restaurant and now he followed as directed by that waiter. He walked until he saw a walled-off mansion with a gate that was guarded by two soldiers. He reached the gate and declared, ¡°I am Hua, a musician sent by Zhang Chao. I am here for an event.¡± ¡°A musician you say? Sent by young master Chao?¡± said one of the burly soldiers gruffly. ¡°Yes¡± ¡°Do you have weapons on you?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have anything dangerous on me.¡± Both the soldiers saw that his body was lean and the robes couldn¡¯t possibly hide anything dangerous on him. They just saw that he had zither with him. The young mistress had ordered them to be very strict with the security today because of a certain guest who had come from the imperial city. There were stronger guards inside the mansion and the guest also had powerful guards following, besides they were confident that no one would dare attack the governor¡¯s mansion as the governor was the brother of one of the king¡¯s favourite concubines. ¡°Okay, you may go in. After all, you were recommended by young master Chao. Wait at the garden, someone will come and fetch you when it¡¯s time.¡± Bai Hua went in and was taken by surprise at the luxury of the mansion. The town outside was thriving but the inside of these walls it was a different world. Ah, so that¡¯s how the rich live in the mortal world, he mused. There were many trees which he had not seen outside the walls. There were flowers all along the path to the garden that lied outside the mansion. He was admiring his surrounding when he heard footsteps from the side. It was a maid who seemed to be walking in his direction. ¡°Are you here for the party?¡± and looking at his zither at the back, ¡°a musician?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Please follow me.¡± He was led inside the mansion. There were more flowers inside. The walls were intricately designed and spoke volumes about the wealth of the owner. He followed the maid till they reach outside a quarter that had white lilies carved and painted on the giant doors. She gently pushed it and he was shown inside a hall.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. The hall was almost empty except for some servants who were giving last minute touches to the preparation. ¡°Please wait by the seat there,¡± she pointed to the corner near the front of the hall. There were a couple of seats arranged there. ¡°You can also get refreshments from the table there.¡± And she left. Bai Hua wasn¡¯t interested in eating anymore. He didn¡¯t need to eat if he wills it. He went and took down the zither from his back and sat. He admired the lavish colours of the curtains and flowers. Slowly guests started coming through the door. They were all kids who were richly dressed. Some were giggling and chattering. And he could hear snippets of their conversation. They were all wondering who was the guest of the young mistress of the governor¡¯s mansion. He had been observing the people the whole time. And he had noticed that the first arrivals were people who were moderately rich and the people who came later were richer than the former. And it continued in this fashion. They had formed groups and were sitting in their own groups. Finally, he noticed the ones from the restaurant. They were among the last ones to arrive. He figured that they were indeed among the richest kids in the city. Zhang Chao was looking for someone the moment he entered the hall and when he spotted Bai Hua, he gave a nod to him and went to take his seat among his friends. He was making sure that Bai Hua was keeping his word and had not bailed out at the last minute. Bai Hua could really feel the sign of relief on Zhang Chao¡¯s face. Almost everyone had arrived. Maids were serving dishes and wine to the guests. Suddenly, the herald shouted, ¡°Baoshan¡¯s Governor¡¯s young mistress has arrived with her guest.¡± Everyone looked towards the opened doors to see a beautiful young girl who was dressed in a purple dress wearing bright sparkling hairpins. And there was someone beside her, who was the guest. She was beautiful in her pale pink dress and similarly, she was wearing accessories on her long hair. Everyone had stood up the moment they entered. It was a sign of respect for the host. The people who were looking at the two of them can see that the guest was not as beautiful as the host. But there was something about her that made them want to look at her more. Bai Hua had smiled the moment they entered because he had recognised one of them. It was the lady he met at the inn in the previous village. The one who had offered him tea. The one who was poisoned. The noble lady who was had sneaked out to watch him play the zither but was gone when he came back. And she was here now as the guest of the Governor. That means her background was not small. It was big enough for the daughter of the Governor of Baoshan to organise such an event just to please her. The intelligent ones among the people that had gathered here understood it. The herald didn¡¯t even say her position. That meant that she didn¡¯t want to disclose it. It only made them think that her father or mother must be from the imperial clan or like the rumours said she may be the daughter of the Prime Minister. Most of them might have visited the imperial city but they didn¡¯t have the privilege to meet distinguished people. Some of their parents might have but it didn¡¯t extend to the children. Bai Hua was intrigued. It was the second time he had met her in the mortal realm. Was it her fate? ¡°Everyone, this is Xiao Lok. Her father is a friend of my father¡¯s. Please take good care of her tonight. She comes from the imperial city.¡± Ah, a friend of the governor, so that means he must be in some high position like the governor or even higher since the young mistress seems to be taking care of her, thought everyone. Xiao Lok gave a slight bow to everyone and gave a charming smile. And everyone returned her bow. Xiao Lok had not noticed Bai Hua. And Bai Hua had thought that she might have forgotten him as everyone tended to do so after some passage of time, though it had just been a few days since he last saw her. Both of the women went up to the front and sat as everyone also took their seats. ¡°So, cousin, do you like it?¡± whispered the young mistress to Xiao Lok. ¡°Don¡¯t call me that here, Ting¡¯er someone might hear you,¡± chided Xiao Lok in soft tones. Ting¡¯er giggled softly and said, ¡°Okay, okay. If you say so, Xiao Lok. So how do you like it? Your maiden trip to the towns of East Mainland, is it worth it?¡± ¡°Ah, big brother told me to travel and see the world. He even persuaded father to let me go out of the imperial city. And it was worth it! Big brother really cares about me even when we have different mothers.¡± ¡°It seems he really does care about your happiness. He made you drop all your books and let you escape from the imperial city. I wonder how your father must be faring without you. Are you sure you don¡¯t want to stay longer? You just came here yesterday!¡± ¡°Ah, I can¡¯t. I must head back.¡± ¡°Sigh, I can only visit you in the imperial city then. I don¡¯t think you might know anyone here. We will go and talk to them after they settle down. I am sure they want to talk to you too.¡± Xiao Lok had scanned the faces when Ting¡¯er had said that she might not know anyone here. She suddenly gasped when she looked at someone who was sitting close to her but was out of her line of vision before. ¡°Mr Hua!¡± Cup 5: The shape-shifting sword ¡°Mister who?¡± asked Ting¡¯er. ¡°Mr Hua, the musician there,¡± and she looked towards Bai Hua. Ah, she even recognises me, he mused. She stood up and walked towards Bai Hua, Ting¡¯er had also stood up curiosity written all over her face and followed Xiao Lok. Xiao Lok had pretended to be a commoner when had she met him, And now she was feeling very awkward with her circumstances at the moment. She felt insecure about her identity all of a sudden. ¡°Hello, Mr Hua, I didn¡¯t expect to see you here,¡± she said bashfully as she gave him a slight bow. He had stood up as well seeing that she was making her way towards him. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to remember me,¡± he admitted honestly after joining his hands to give her a bow now that she had revealed her station. ¡°How could I not remember you? I remember everything. It was the best performance I had ever seen in my life. I apologise I could not meet you after the performance, I had an urgent business to attend to at that time,¡± she gushed. ¡°Ah, you flatter me every time we meet¡± he gave her a lop-sided smile. All this time Ting¡¯er was looking at both of them with curious eyes. She was bursting to know the relationship between this man and Xiao Lok. She finally cleared her throat to get Xiao Lok¡¯s attention. ¡°Ahem!¡± ¡°Oh sorry! I forgot to introduce you; this is Ting¡¯er, the daughter of the governor of Baoshan.¡± Bai Hua joined his hands and gave Tiger a bow respectfully and said, ¡°According to Zhang Chao, my employer for tonight¡¯s party.¡± ¡°Ah, so it was Zhang Chao who had brought you here,¡± Ting¡¯er stated comprehendingly after looking at his zither that was lying on a table and after listening to their conversation. ¡°Did someone say my name?¡± said a familiar voice from behind them. It was Zhang Chao, he had come towards them when he saw that the three of them were talking. As far as he knew, Bai Hua was new in town and shouldn¡¯t know anyone. It had baffled him to see Bai Hua was smoothly having a conversation with the two most important people inside this hall. ¡°Hello, everyone,¡± he greeted them with joined hands without bowing. ¡°Zhang Chao, was it you who invited him here?¡± asked Ting¡¯er. ¡°Yes, eldest miss Ting, we met him today and seeing that he was a musician I invited him here. You had tasked little Wang Ju to find you a musician tonight. I helped her out.¡± ¡°Hmmm... you seem to have done a good job. Xiao Lok has just been singing praises of him.¡± ¡°Ah, then I can¡¯t wait to hear him playing,¡± Zhang Chao replied. ¡°I am just bearable. I am no expert,¡± Bai Hua said humbly.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Mr Hua, I shall then trouble you to play for us,¡± asked Ting¡¯er. To her, he was just an employee but since Xiao Lok seemed to be familiar to him she had acted politely. ¡°Someone, call the dancers.¡± ¡°Yes, young mistress,¡± said a maid, bowed and left Now everybody¡¯s attention was on this group of people. Just as Zhang Chao was curious others were too. And they had looked their way when Zhang Chao joined the conversation. A group of girls with similar clothes walked in. Bai Hua went to his seat and played the zither while the girls danced to his tune. He played a tune that was not too fast nor slow just right for the occasion. It was actually a tune suitable for cranes on a moonlit night. Cranes would have danced gracefully to this tune but the mortal girls weren¡¯t bad either. He used to play his zither alone in the godly realm. But now that he was in the mortal realm, he enjoyed playing for these mortals. He felt that his music was not wasted even though he was playing to fragile things that won¡¯t remember for long the beauty of his music. The performance ended and everyone gave a loud applause. The music was good and the dancers had perfectly moved according to his music. Everyone was happy and they started to talk and interact with others. Ting¡¯er didn¡¯t give any chance to linger with Bai Hua for long but dragged her away after Xiao Lok had sung another round of praises. He had just smiled and stood aloof as she got dragged away by Ting¡¯er. ¡°Mr Hua, this is payment for your performance tonight. You can leave whenever you want,¡± a maid said as she handed him a pouch. He didn¡¯t even check but took it and thanked her. He decided to leave the hall. He wanted to relax in the grove that was outside the mansion. It was more natural than the profusion of flowers and other forms of plants inside the wall of the mansion. He picked up his zither and walked out of the hall unnoticed. The rich mortals were more colourful than the poor ones, he realised. He didn¡¯t know about their hearts. But he had a lot of time to search for their hearts. He was a god. Time was tangible. He had not bothered to say his farewell to Xiao Lok thinking she would forget him anyway. She had merely remembered him today because they had met just some days ago. But she will eventually forget him as he did not want to be remembered. He willed it so. He passed the garden and nodded to the guards as he left. And took the left road. The road was lined with trees and he could feel that the trees were becoming thicker and thicker as he walked. The waiter at the restaurant had told him that if he took the left road from the governor¡¯s mansion it will eventually lead him to the imperial city of East Mainland. The waiter had thought that Bai Hua would be travelling in a carriage when he asked about the imperial city and not walk to it like Bai Hua was doing at the moment. As he was walking the zither disappeared into a black wisp. Bai Hua walked as if he didn¡¯t notice any change. Then there was a small yawn from the side of his right shoulder. A tiny black snake was perching on his shoulder. ¡°Xiao Sh¨¨, are you having fun in the mortal world?¡± ¡°Your Highness, do you still plan to wander in the mortal world for long? I know it¡¯s been only 3 days or so in the godly realm but later on, they will realise that you¡¯re missing,¡± said the little black snake concernedly. It had green eyes like emerald while its entire body was pitch black in colour The little black snake was called a ¡°snake¡± only by someone like Bai Hua. But it was actually the spirit of his shape-shifting sword. The spirit of one of the ancient divine dragons that have taken the form of Bai Hua¡¯s weapon. It had disguised itself as a black zither to suit his master¡¯s mortal look. But it was actually a sword that could only be wielded by Bai Hua. ¡°Let them do whatever they want. I will do whatever I want,¡± Bai Hua said enigmatically. The ancient divine dragon seemed to understand its master¡¯s thoughts and nodded. It coiled down from the shoulder towards Bai Hua¡¯s wrist to twist around his wrist. It had turned into a coiled dragon wristband with emerald eyes. Bai Hua kept on walking until he heard the sound of a stream. He didn¡¯t need rest but he liked the sound of the stream and decided to listen to it and meditate for the night. The moon was shrouded by soft clouds and it was a cool night. He flew up to the highest tree he could see and sat on its branch. The tree and its leaves didn¡¯t even flutter when he sat. It looked like he was weightless as if a dragonfly was perching on a leaf. He inhaled deeply and he could hear everything around him. The dew that was gently dropping from a nearby leaf. The sound of crickets and the buzzing of some insects. He could also hear the relentless flow of the stream. This made him happy. His long black hair was swaying gently in the wind and he closed his eyes to meditate. Cup 6: A Drowned Child Bai Hua opened his eyes when he realised that it was dawn. The sky was starting to glow and the forest below was covered in mist. His tree was a good vantage point. He could see the mist slowly rising from the stream and gradually covering the rest of the area. It was a fine morning in the mortal world and he did not regret leaving the godly realm to experience small things like this. He flew down from his tree and breathed in the fresh morning air. He didn¡¯t want to walk today. He was told it would take 2 days to reach the imperial city and the sound of the stream was really enticing. So, he walked to the edge of the stream. The speed of the stream wasn¡¯t too fast or too languid. But he could see that it was very deep even though it was not as wide as a big river. But it was big enough for a canoe to sail on its waters. He pulled out his white jade crane and threw it into the stream. As soon as it touched the water it elongated into a white canoe with the head of a crane at the front. He jumped into the canoe and sat down without making any ripples on the surface of the water. As if the canoe understood what its rider wanted it started moving forwards and followed the course of the stream. Bai Hua was sitting happily and was enjoying the boat ride. After a few moments, the crane canoe stopped suddenly. Bai Hua lifted his eyebrow at this sudden stop. ¡°Your highness, there is a human body caught by the overlying branch of a tree. It seemed to have been carried down by the stream,¡± said a voice that seemed to be coming from the head of the crane. ¡°Let me have a look at it, Xianhe.¡± The canoe moved towards the body. ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem to be dead. I can still feel the soul inside the body,¡± said Bai Hua after he took a look at it, he flicked his hand and the body flew towards the canoe and landed on his lap. Yet, Bai Hua¡¯s clothes remained dry. And the clothes on the person¡¯s body started to dry fast as if the air was absorbing it. Bai Hua had not seen the face earlier. Its long hair had covered most part of the face and the body was still undeveloped, so he couldn¡¯t say whether it was male or female. But now that it was lying on his lap he could tell that it belonged to a boy who seemed to be around 11 years old. The boy didn¡¯t seem to come from a poor family, in fact, his clothes were of the highest quality and there was also a jade pendant hanging by the waist of his robes. His delicate face was pale and he was not even breathing. ¡°Xianhe, continue with the journey. I will take care of this mortal.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± The canoe had become larger when Bai Hua took in the boy and now it started moving again. Bai Hua didn¡¯t do anything but the body slowly started to regain its colour. Low breathing sounds slowly started to issue from his nose as well. And after a while, it started giving off soft snores like he was sleeping peacefully. ¡°Big brother Chen, I knew you would come back for me,¡± he mumbled as he snuggled closer to Bai Hua and continued to sleep. Bai Hua didn¡¯t know how to react to this but let the boy sleep on his lap with his arm as the pillow. He was initially treating the boy as he would treat a pet back at his residence. But he had seen mortal familial interactions and he had also seen how parents took care of their children. This was the first experience for him and he felt warm inside.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. They travelled down the stream in silence and after a while it became noon. The boy moved to show signs of discomfort. ¡°Xianhe,¡± Bai Hua called. ¡°I understand, Your Highness.¡± A white tent appeared over them and blocked out the sunlight. The tent looked like the wings of the crane trying to protect its riders. From afar it looked like a giant crane that was floating on the stream. The boy had remained sleeping, snuggling comfortably in Bai Hua¡¯s bosom. It was already evening when the stream led them near some human habitations. The stream was shallower around this part. Bai Hua could see that the imperial city was just some distance away now. The stream had swerved around the gentle slopes yet it was a faster way to reach the imperial city. The imperial city was located at another mountain and Bai Hua had travelled from Baoshan which was the nearest city to the imperial city lying on the east side of its borders. From here the stream was going in a different direction. The crane canoe stopped by the shore as Bai Hua decided that it was time for the boy to wake up. He had slept the entire day and he would be hungry anytime soon. He carried the boy out on the shore and the canoe returned back to his hair as a normal jade crane hair accessory. And even his dark jade dragon wristband returned to its disguise. A covered zither appeared behind his back which was tied to his chest. Both of the spirits had understood that their master had resumed his mortal role. Bai Hua gently shook the boy and the boy yawned and opened its eyes to reveal a pair of stormy grey eyes. He looked at Bai Hua for a moment and then his surrounding and jumped down from his arm swiftly. ¡°Who are you?¡± demanded the boy, ¡°where is big brother Chen?¡± Bai Hua calmly said, ¡°My name is Hua, I found your body floating upstream. Did you drown by any chance?¡± There was shock written all over the boy¡¯s face, ¡°You¡¯re trying to say that all that had happened was not a dream?! In my dream, I had sneaked away from our group to try and swim in the stream last night. But I felt a sting and before I know it I was drowning and I couldn¡¯t even move my muscles. But I thought it was all a dream. It felt dream-like. I would have never ventured out alone at night without proper protection!¡± ¡°Hmmm... something tells me you were under a spell. Somebody tried to kill you,¡± Bai Hua concluded. ¡°Was it you?¡± the boy asked suspiciously. ¡°Little brother, I am just a travelling musician. I won¡¯t have saved you if I wanted you dead,¡± Bai Hua chuckled. ¡°How did we end up here if you say that you saved me?¡± he still insisted. ¡°I carried you, of course, you were resting so I didn¡¯t wake you up until now. You must be hungry. Let us go get some food first.¡± ¡°Brother Hua, don¡¯t you want to know who I am?¡± asked the boy somewhat embarrassed when he heard that Bai Hua carried him all the way here. He could see that Bai Hua was carrying a zither as well. He felt like he had been a burden. ¡°You can tell me while we are eating. I know that you are starving¡± Bai Hua said with a knowing look at his stomach. And as if on cue the boy¡¯s stomach growled. He slightly blushed when he got found out. ¡°But I don¡¯t have any money on me. I left everything in the camp.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, little brother, I am willing to feed you as well,¡± And seeing the awkward look in the boy¡¯s eyes Bai Hua smiled and added, ¡°you can pay me back later when you find your group, alright?¡± ¡°Okay, brother Hua.¡± Something in the way that Bai Hua had spoken or just by being in his presence the boy had mellowed. The boy knew it was not right to completely trust strangers but something inside him believed everything Bua Hua said. Bai Hua didn¡¯t look like a rogue and he was calm and gentle. The boy liked him. And so they made their way towards the small habitation not very far from the stream. And some distance up the mountain, they could see the imperial city that was lined by a wall that circled the base of the mountain. The mountain wasn¡¯t steep but it had gentle slopes just like Baoshan city but it was a lot bigger than Baoshan city. The wall wasn¡¯t far from the habitations and Bai Hua decided to lead both of them inside it as they would be able to find a restaurant inside the wall. Cup 7: The Sixth Prince They entered the gate of the imperial city without any hindrance. It was like the guards there didn¡¯t even notice them. The boy was only thinking about food and didn¡¯t even pay attention to his surroundings. He walked in front while Bai Hua followed him behind. There were many stalls lined up inside the wall. The boy was wistfully looking at all the food stalls. Bai Hua noticed his wistful expression and chuckled. ¡°Follow me, little brother, I¡¯ll take you to a proper restaurant.¡± He led him until they reached a moderate looking restaurant. Bai Hua wasn¡¯t worried about the cost. But the little brother wore an embarrassed face when they stepped into the restaurant. He had thought that Bai Hua as a travelling musician would not have much money on him. Some people looked up when they entered the restaurant. They saw a pair of two fine young men. Especially the younger one, he had a delicate face and he seemed to have a noble background. Once again, Bai Hua had retreated and made the boy take the limelight. Bai Hua had a traveller¡¯s appearance but he never looked dishevelled. His green robes were always clean even after travelling for a month. Anyone who looked at him would actually mistake him for a scholar rather than a musician. He had an elegant air even though his only accessory was his white jade crane. But the zither behind him made people register him as a musician. The boy did not look bad as well. His robes were dark in colour with silver embroideries and with the jade pendant hanging down his waist he looked like a young lord. Bai Hua had arranged his hair into a bun at the top with a black ribbon that he had given to the boy. Together they look like a young lord and his attendee travelling together. They took a seat at an empty table and a waiter appeared. ¡°What will you have, young masters?¡± ¡°Anything he wants to eat,¡± said Bai Hua. The boy¡¯s eyes sparkled and he fired away a list of delicacies after looking at the menu. He was a bit guilty at the price of the food but he promised inwardly that he would pay back everything and even reward Bai Hua for saving him. He just needed to return to his home. ¡°Anything else, young master,¡± asked the waiter to Bai Hua. ¡°Ah, a pot of your best tea and of course, a bowl of your restaurant¡¯s special noodle.¡± After the waiter left with their orders, the boy spoke first. ¡°Brother Hua, are you just going to have that? Is it on my account? Have I ordered too much? Are you poor?¡± he asked with a little blush forming around his cheeks. ¡°Hahaha... I brought you here knowing that I could afford it. Don¡¯t worry I was rewarded handsomely for my last performance. Have your fill. Don¡¯t worry about the money.¡± The boy was shocked at the carefree way Bai Hua dealt with matters. He was totally unconcerned about money. The boy knew that he was dressed well and anybody who found him would have used him to get a huge reward from his father. But Bai Hua had not even asked his identity. He was even feeding him now after saving him. He was truly grateful to Bai Hua and he had even come to admire him. He sighed and said, ¡°My name is Xia Feng. I am the youngest son of Xia Rong, the family head of Xia clan. I was travelling to the imperial city of East Mainland with my elder brother Xia Sheng. Last night we had camped near a stream to continue travelling today but I had a weird dream where somebody was calling me from the stream and I had gone to find out the source. The water was very tempting and the rest of the story is the same as I told you earlier. I couldn¡¯t move and I was drowning. I thought I was having a nightmare and I would eventually wake up. I didn¡¯t know that I was really drowning and by the looks of it I would have died, but you saved me, brother Hua.¡±This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. He had stood up and joined his hands and gave him a deep bow. ¡°Little brother Feng, you don¡¯t need to do that, it must have been your fate to be saved. You don¡¯t need to lower yourself in front of me.¡± Bai Hua did not understand the position of Xia family in East Mainland but he understood that the Xia clan hold an important position from the tone of Xia Feng¡¯s voice. He stood up and made Xia Feng sit. The waiter also arrived with their food on a huge tray. He laid all the food on the table and went back to bring Bai Hua¡¯s tea. ¡°Eat. Your brother must be searching for you. After you¡¯re full we¡¯ll go and send him news about you.¡± ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go to big brother Chen, he will know what to do,¡± Xia Feng rubbed his nose and started eating. Bai Hua had noted that this ¡°big brother Chen¡± was the same one Xia Feng had mumbled in his sleep, and he was not his elder brother but another person. And it seemed that he was closer to this ¡°big brother Chen¡±. Bai Hua paid their bills and left the restaurant. Like he expected he could afford the mortal food with his mortal money much to the shock of Xia Feng. Now that Xia Feng was no longer hungry, he was actively looking around and enjoying the red glow in the sky. Then suddenly, he whirled around. ¡°Brother Hua, we were supposed to meet up with big brother Chen here! The Red Phoenix Pavillion!¡± ¡°Ah, then we don¡¯t need to wait around, we¡¯ll just go to the pavilion and ask this brother Chen to send a message to your brother telling him that you are safe.¡± His eyes sparkled. Xia Feng was obviously happy now. He had already forgotten his near dead experience. Mortal kids, resilient and full of limitless hope, mused Bai Hua to himself. Bai Hua asked the address of the Red Phoenix Pavilion from a passerby and found out that it wasn¡¯t far. They walked till they were in front of a huge establishment painted in red. It looked grand and there were even guards outside its huge doors. Just above the door, there was a board with the sign ¡°The Red Phoenix Pavilion¡± written in gold. The building looked the most intimidating around the area. Bai Hua thought, ¡°This brother Chen seemed to be someone important.¡± Xia Feng pulled Bai Hua and made for the doors. But they were stopped by the guards, ¡°Do you have reservations?¡± asked one of the guards rudely looking at both of them. He had just skimmed at Xia Feng¡¯s face and focused on Bai Hua. He was looking at Bai Hua as if he did not even deserve to stand outside its doors. Xia Feng¡¯s face turned sour at the tone of the guard. Bai Hua didn''t think that they would be blocked. He could have nullified their senses if not as he had done to the guards at the gate earlier. Then suddenly one of the guards quickly shook the rude guard and whispered something into his ear while keeping his eyes on Xia Feng¡¯s jade pendant. Then, the rude guard¡¯s face turned white. ¡°My apologies, young master of the Xia family, this lowly one didn¡¯t recognise you! I didn¡¯t expect you would be coming with only an attendee! The prince has been waiting for you inside,¡± he quickly apologised while giving Xia Feng a deep bow. All the guards were bowing now. ¡°Rise, tell the prince I am here,¡± said Xia Feng with a commanding voice. There was a glint of surprise in Bai Hua¡¯s face but his face remained the same. A guard rushed inside to announce Xia Feng¡¯s arrival and after a few seconds, a young man came out followed by his attendants. He looked around Bai Hua¡¯s age. He was wearing dark blue flower embroidered robes with a gold headband tied around his bun. A jade pendant was also hanging down from his waist with a tiny horse carved on it. He had an innocent face with brown intelligent eyes. He looked at Bai Hua first and then at Xia Feng, then his eyes widened. ¡°Feng¡¯er! Why are you alone? Where is your brother? Where are all your attendants?!¡± the prince asked, with a bewildered expression. ¡°Big brother Chen!¡± he said as he ran into Prince Chen¡¯s arms. Chen patted on his head in a reassuring way. ¡°Let¡¯s go inside and talk, is that your friend?¡± he asked Xia Feng looking at Bai Hua. ¡°That¡¯s brother Hua, he saved me.¡± ¡°What? You were in danger? Tell me what happened to you!¡± he exclaimed in an alarming tone, his eyes were full of concern. He looked at Bai Hua and asked, ¡°Why don¡¯t you join us as well and tell me what happened to Feng''er, Mr Hua? Let me introduce myself, I am the sixth prince of East Mainland.¡± Bai Hua joined his hands and bowed to the prince. ¡°Yes, brother Hua, stay with me until my brother arrives,¡± Xiao Feng asked beseechingly. ¡°Okay if you insist, little Feng,¡± assented Bai Hua as he followed the group. After this, Xiao Feng started relating everything that had happened to him to Prince Chen (without giving any time to Bai Hua). Hearing Xia Feng''s account, Prince Chen immediately sent out messengers to relay the news of Xia Feng¡¯s safe arrival to the imperial city to Xia Sheng¡¯s group. Cup 8: To the Xia Mansion ¡°Are you sure you were not sleep-walking?¡± asked the sixth prince as they sat around a lounge area inside the Red Phoenix Pavilion. Xia Feng was sitting beside him and was acting like a small puppy in front of him. There were only three of them in the lounge. The attendants were dismissed. ¡°Big brother Chen, it felt like a dream but I really did drown! Big brother Hua saved me. Tell him, brother Hua, tell him how you found me,¡± Xia Feng turned to Bai Hua for assistance. It was obvious that Xia Feng was still bewildered about the whole affair and he could only trust Bai Hua. ¡°I believe, your highness¡ª ¡° ¡°Please, just call me Chen, Mr Hua,¡± the sixth prince smiled at Bai Hua. ¡°Brother Chen, I believe he was under a spell. He would have woken up the moment he jumped into the water if he was sleep-walking but he told me he couldn¡¯t move. So I came to the conclusion that it could only be a spell. I found him perching on the branch of a tree nearly dead. I didn¡¯t know that he was a young master of a privileged family.¡± ¡°The imperial family and the Xia family are in your debt for saving this young master of the Xia family. The Xia family is one of the most important families in this mainland. Our imperial Dong family quite pales in front of them. Brother Hua, please ask whatever you want and I will grand it as long as it is under my power.¡± ¡°Brother Chen, I don¡¯t need anything. I am a content person. I have no desires in this world. And since little Feng has met you, I should continue with my travels as well.¡± ¡°No, brother Hua, you must stay with me. Even if you don¡¯t want anything, stay with me and tour the imperial city with me. I know it¡¯s a first time for you here as well. Please?¡± Xia Feng begged with huge round eyes. This kid was an expert in coaxing, Bai Hua realised. ¡°Yes, please stay with us. I am sure when Xia Sheng arrives he will scold me if I let you go without clearing this life debt. Stay with us, at least for Feng¡¯er¡¯s sake, please,¡± Chen added noticing that Xia Feng was looking for his support. Bai Hua didn¡¯t want to meddle too much with mortal affairs. But he had already saved Xia Feng, and there was something about this kid¡¯s stormy eyes that intrigued him. He could feel that the child was not an ordinary mortal. And he wanted to find out more. He was on an adventure after all. Staying won¡¯t hurt. ¡°I¡¯ll trouble both of you then,¡± he stood and bowed to both of them. He knew his position. He was a travelling musician and the people in front of him were lords in this world. He could only flow with the currents of this world. Both Chen and Xia Feng were happy with his replies. Both of them have been afraid that he would decline their invitation. Bai Hua looked too indifferent to them. Chen then turned to Xia Feng and said, ¡°I have sent out messengers telling your brother that you¡¯re safe and that I¡¯ll be escorting you to your family mansion. He will come directly to the mansion without coming here. It¡¯s already late, why don¡¯t you rest for tonight and then tomorrow you can visit the imperial palace with brother Hua here?¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°Okay, big brother Chen. Let¡¯s go to our mansion. I knew we were meeting you here so I came here first and I didn¡¯t have any money on me,¡± he said without hesitation and turning towards Bai Hua he added, ¡°brother Hua, you will be very happy in our mansion. And I have many things to show you!¡± Bai Hua smiled at him seeing his enthusiastic face. ¡°Okay then, let¡¯s make our way to the Xia family mansion. Someone! Get the carriages ready!¡± Chen called out. ¡°Yes, your highness!¡± replied a voice from somewhere. They all stood up and made their way towards the exit. It was now dusk and maids were scuttling around inside the Red Phoenix Pavilion to light lamps on the walls. When they stood at the threshold of the establishment they were greeted with a fine carriage big enough to carry more than six people inside. Four magnificent horses were reined to the carriage with a carriage driver sitting at the front. Chen was after all a prince of the East Mainland. The three of them got into the carriage and when Chen knocked at the interior walls of the carriage it started moving. ¡°Brother Hua, so it¡¯s really your first time in the imperial city?¡± asked Chen politely while Xia Feng looked out of the window whose curtains were parted. Bai Hua smiled helplessly. It was his first time in the mortal world. But he wasn¡¯t a stranger in the godly imperial palace. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s my first time,¡± he managed to say. ¡°Feng¡¯er, you were very lucky to have met brother Hua here. And you should thank the gods that he happened to be travelling near the stream and have not taken the common road.¡± Xia Feng nodded profusely. He wasn¡¯t even listening properly. Chen sighed, ¡°Forgive his lack of manners. He¡¯s probably dreaming about the upcoming competition. His near-death experience has not even fazed him.¡± ¡°Competition?¡± ¡°There is a competition organised by our imperial Dong family. And both Xia Feng and his brother Xia Sheng were travelling to take part in it. Any unmarried man can participate in the competition either he may be a child or an old man. But he must have level 10 spiritual powers. That is the only condition. We haven¡¯t announced to the public yet but families like the Xia family are aware of it.¡± Xia Feng interrupted and said proudly, ¡°I have level 12 spiritual powers!¡± ¡°A level 12 prodigy who nearly died drowning you mean. A legend,¡± Chen teased. ¡°I met brother Hua who saved me that means that even my luck is level 12!¡± Xia Feng retorted shamelessly. Both Chen and Bai Hua burst out laughing at this. ¡°So, that means even the public can participate even those from other towns?¡± Bai Hua asked. ¡°Yes, if they can make it. An immortal is staying at the imperial palace as a guest and he had suddenly asked for this competition. He said he¡¯d give out pills as rewards for the top 10 rank holders. To be honest with you, brother Hua, he does not care about the champion. Actually, he¡¯s looking for a disciple. That is why Feng¡¯er here is so excited. He¡¯s a genius of the Xia family next to his elder brother Xia Sheng.¡± Xia Feng turned slightly red when Chen mentioned him. ¡°Big brother Chen, I am not as talented as you and big brother Sheng.¡± ¡°You¡¯re about to surpass us. You can¡¯t say we are talented when your spiritual powers are about to reach ours at this age!¡± "But, but... I have no battle experience like you and big brother Sheng!" "That didn''t stop you from beating the young master from the Wang family last month! I heard it all from your brother." They went on bickering like siblings. Bai Hua was listening intently. So, this little young master is a genius. Who would want him killed then? Two mortals I have both come in contact with have people wanting them dead, he mused. Mortals seem to crave power more than anybody else. Maybe it is because they are weak, to begin with. Bai Hua heard a gate opening and then the carriage came to a halt. They alighted from the carriage and what he saw was a huge mansion with the moon casting its silvery glow on it. And there were many servants who had come out to greet the prince and the young master of the mansion holding white silk lanterns in their hands. Cup 9: For Now, I am Free ¡°Greetings, young master. Welcome back to the imperial city. Greetings, sixth prince,¡± said a middle-aged man joining his hands and giving a bow. He seemed to be the steward of the Xia Imperial family mansion while the other servants behind him greeted these two aristocrats with a deep bow. The sixth prince may be the prince of this kingdom but inside the Xia family home and to the Xia servants the Xia members were the only authority. ¡°Big brother Xia Sheng will be arriving soon, I have reached earlier due to some complications on the way. Brother Dong Chen had assisted me in bringing me and my guest home,¡± Xia Feng said in an authoritative voice. A master was a master in front of his subordinates. Xia Feng no longer had a pampered air but he was really talking like a young master of an important family. He looked towards Bai Hua and said, ¡°This is Mr Hua, a very important guest of the prince and me, make special arrangements for his stay.¡± Xia Feng was about to lead them inside the mansion but the prince interrupted him. ¡°Feng¡¯er, I won¡¯t stay back. I¡¯ll go back to my mansion tonight and I¡¯ll come tomorrow morning. Hopefully, your brother would have met my messengers and would be rushing here swiftly. If he isn¡¯t far off then he¡¯ll reach here by the middle of the night.¡± He then turned towards Bai Hua and said, ¡°Brother Hua, I thank you once again and hope that you enjoy your stay at the Xia family mansion. You¡¯re welcome anytime to stay at my mansion as well. I will take leave from both of you now,¡± saying this he nodded his head towards Xia Feng and entered his carriage once again. ¡°Have a good night rest, both of you,¡± he called out pleasantly from his window and then the carriage turned and left the mansion towards the gate which lied beyond the fountains and the garden path. ¡°Brother Hua, let¡¯s go in,¡± saying this he pulled Bai Hua and led him inside the mansion followed by the steward and the rest. The inside of the mansion was richly adorned. Huge vases with long slender leaves were lined up along the walls. There were also paintings on the walls with proud figures. ¡°Brother Hua, please follow the steward, he¡¯ll take you to your room and meet me later after you have freshened up for the dinner. I promise a good meal in your honour.¡± Bai Hua wasn¡¯t hungry. These days he had eaten more than he had expected. But just to make the kid happy, he nodded. ¡°Old man Fei, take brother Hua to his room,¡± Xia Feng said to the steward. ¡°Mr Hua, please follow me,¡± said the steward deferentially. He could see that though Bai Hua looked like a musician with his zither, the young master was treating him very well. Besides, Bai Hua didn¡¯t look like a common musician but he looked very refined like a scholar instead. Bai Hua bowed to Xia Feng and followed the steward, He was led up to a staircase and was showed inside a very comfortable room. There was even an attached bath-house. The steward opened a cupboard and there were many spare robes and fresh towels inside it. ¡°Please feel at home here, Mr Hua. And let me know if you need anything. I¡¯ll station a maid outside to personally attend to your needs.¡± ¡°Mr Fei, thank you for your hospitality. It¡¯s okay. I don¡¯t need a maid. I¡¯ll take care of the rest now,¡± and seeing that he was going to argue, he added, ¡°don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll be fine. I like to be alone. I hope you¡¯ll grant me that.¡± ¡°Ah, Mr Hua, this has never happened before. We always take care of our guests. The youngest master will not be happy if he finds out. But if it is about your preferences, then I have no choice in this matter. I will send up a maid to invite you for dinner then,¡± he said regretfully and bowed and left. As soon as the doors were closed, the zither disappeared and the little black dragon appeared.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°Your Highness, are you willing to stay with mortals under one roof?¡± he asked curiously, ¡°you have never stayed inside a house before in your one month of travelling in the mortal world.¡± ¡°The boy is curious. I want to observe more. His eyes foretell of a great change in this mainland. I won¡¯t stay long but long enough to see the wheels turning for this child.¡± ¡°I have sealed off the room from the outside world, your highness. The mortals won¡¯t interfere.¡± There was a white glow and a fair white-robed man appeared out of nowhere. His hair was dusky white like those of the feathers of a crane. And he was wearing the same crane shaped white jade hairpin that was earlier on Bai Hua¡¯s hair. ¡°Your Highness, I will prepare a bath for you¡ª¡° began Xianhe but Bai Hua interrupted him. ¡°Xianhe, I can do it by myself. I have another mission for you. I need you to visit the godly realm and find out if the Divine mother has been looking for me. It has not been long there but I need you to tell her that I am travelling and will be unreachable for a while.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± Xianhe bowed and disappeared in a white light. ¡°And Xiao Sh¨¨, you can also roam tonight. Don¡¯t cause too much trouble for the mortals though.¡± Xiao Sh¨¨ grinned in his snake form and mischievously said, ¡°Your Highness, I don¡¯t go provoking weak mortals. Kunlun will not have it. And you are too serious for a young god, Your Highness. I hope you loosen up while you are in the mortal realm.¡± ¡°Xiao Sh¨¨, you talk too much. Leave, before I roast you and feed you to the mortals. You dare say that I am too serious,¡± Bai Hua said lazily. He shot a small spark from his eyes at Xiao Sh¨¨. Xiao Sh¨¨ yelped as his green eyes sparkled mischievously and he skilfully dodged it. ¡°Okay, okay, no trouble. Got it,¡± and he also disappeared. Bai Hua¡¯s sword Xiao Sh¨¨ and his mount Xianhe were both divine spiritual beasts. But Xiao Sh¨¨ was special. He was from the ancient divine spiritual beasts, a grade higher than Xianhe and he was also one of the young ones from the dragon race. Its body had not even hatched from its egg yet its spirit had formed a contract with Bai Hua and was now travelling with him as his sword. Bai Hua walked towards the bathhouse and there was a small bathtub big enough for three people. The maids had already filled the tub before he entered the room. Soft steams were rising slowly from the tub. He didn¡¯t feel travel worn or dirty but he did want to get a good soak and so he removed his clothes and entered the bathtub. His hair was floating in the water and he looked like a vulnerable teenager. He didn¡¯t like the scent of the flower essence that was put into the water and he changed it into the smell of fresh bamboo leaves after a heavy downpour of rain. His robes were always clean even if he had worn it for so long. He didn¡¯t need a new one. But just to show that he had changed, he flicked his hand and the design and the colour changed immediately. Instead of his earlier plain green robes, now it was soft blue like a lazy sky. It was a set of new robes. And now there were white cranes embroidered on the cuffs and edges of his robes. It was simple yet gentle like his appearance. He didn¡¯t wait for the maid but walked out of the room by himself and just followed the hallway. He was not lost. He knew where he was. He gradually made it to the dining lounge. Xia Feng was already there reading a book in his hands. Hearing Bai Hua¡¯s footsteps, he looked up and smiled. ¡°Brother Hua, I was faster than you!¡± he said clearly happy with his achievement. ¡°Brother Hua, the food will be coming out soon, the steward was about to send a maid to call you.¡± One of the maids attending on Xia Feng pulled out a chair for Bai Hua so that he could join Xia Feng¡¯s table. He thanked the maid and sat down. ¡°What are you reading there, young master Feng?¡± Bai Hua asked. ¡°Brother Hua, just call me little Feng like you did before. No courtesies between us, please. And I am reading a book on how to become a disciple of an immortal. I need to prove that I can be a good disciple. Winning the competition is not the only way.¡± ¡°Why do you want to be a disciple of an immortal?¡± ¡°I heard he¡¯s from the Central Mainland. And that he¡¯s an elder of a prominent Sect. He had come a few days ago wandering into the Imperial city. I want to be an immortal too! The East Mainland doesn¡¯t have much immortal. It can be counted in one hand,¡± he said regretfully. No wonder, I didn¡¯t come across any one of them in my time here, Bai Hua thought. They are scarce here. The food was brought out and they started eating. Xia Feng then talked about how he wished to see the Kunlun Mountain and the world beyond that. He had been dreaming about it ever since he had learnt how to have dreams. Bai Hua was the listener the whole time while Xia Feng told him about the kinds of opponents he expected in the competition. They had carried on their conversation after the dinner and parted only when Xia Feng had started yawning. Bai Hua returned to his room enlightened. He now knew that mortals at their tender age have big dreams which make them competitive and even delusional. He smiled to himself. A mortal was truly ignorant. Kunlun Mountain in the mortal myths was actually very different from the original one. He had been there, he was from there. He knew more about it than all the books in the mortal realm written on it. He didn¡¯t sleep but lied on the bed thinking about how to handle his own problems when he heard the sound of galloping horses from afar. It was the elder brother most likely who had reached the mansion like the prince said he would. He wasn''t curious about the elder brother. He was only interested in Xia Feng. He felt like it was the fate of the child to meet him. Then he closed his eyes to continue meditating. Let the heaven search for him later on. For now, he was free. Cup 10: The Morning of the Competition The next day breakfast was brought to his room. Xiao Sh¨¨ and Xianhe had not returned from their respective missions. He didn¡¯t want to waste the food so he stored them away in his space. He was still as fresh as the second he had stepped out from his bath yesterday. He avoided the people inside the mansion and went out to walk in the garden; it was still quite early in the morning. He could feel the gazes of the maids on him and so he subdued his presence. He walked around the mansion and reached a small pavilion which overlooked a pond that was filled with little clusters of blooming tiny lotus flowers. He liked the cosy atmosphere of the pavilion and decided to spend his morning looking at the serene scenery around him. It wasn¡¯t long before he heard the running footsteps of Xia Feng. The little boy had come searching for him. For some reason, the boy was growing on him. ¡°Brother Hua, I came to check on you in your room but you weren¡¯t there. Some maids told me that they saw you in the garden, so I have come searching for you. My brother returned to the mansion last night and he wants to meet you!¡± he said without a pause. ¡°Oh, I decided to take a walk because you seemed to have quite a lovely garden here and then I stopped by the pond to enjoy the morning calmness until you came and disturbed me just now,¡± he said pretending to be a little annoyed. ¡°But, but... I want you to meet my brother! Let¡¯s go back to the mansion. I swear I will leave you alone after you meet my elder brother. He¡¯s been waiting to meet you ever since I told him about yesterday¡¯s incident,¡± he said pulling Bai Hua¡¯s sleeves. ¡°I don¡¯t think it will be necessary. Look, he¡¯s coming here right now,¡± Bai Hua said as he turned to look at the newcomer. It was a young man who seemed to be around 18 that was lazily walking towards them. He had sharp eyebrows and looked similar to Xia Feng except that he looked more matured and there was a wildness about him like someone who was closer to the wild than to human beings. He was wearing a brown robe with the darker shade of stripped prints like those of a zebra. His black hair was tied in a knot and he was wearing a similar jade pendant that Xia Feng was wearing. He had a roguish handsome look. ¡°I hear that my brother was quite a handful for you, Mr Hua. I heard that you had to carry him all the way to the imperial city. This idiot doesn¡¯t even know how to handle life-threatening situations. He¡¯s told me everything about the incident. Our Xia family owes you a life debt to you Mr Hua,¡± he said solemnly as opposed to his lazy demeanour as he joined his hands and gave a deep bow. Bai Hua was shocked. The mortals were really taking a life debt seriously when they have the chances to be reincarnated again. ¡°Mr Xia Sheng, please. you don¡¯t need to take it that far. Anyone would have saved Xia Feng if they saw him like I did.¡± ¡°And our enemy would have finished the job if it wasn¡¯t for you. I believe in your theory. It couldn¡¯t be as easy as what Dong Chen said. He¡¯s naive. My brother wouldn¡¯t have sleep-walked to his death without external influence.¡± The three of them were now sitting around the small table inside the pavilion discussing yesterday¡¯s incident. There weren¡¯t any maids around and they talked without inhibitions. They were expecting the sixth-prince as he had promised to visit them this morning. And he also came as in on cue after some moments. Many theories were born inside the pavilion regarding Xia Feng¡¯s assassination attempt. Because after much discussion they had concluded that it was an assassination attempt but luckily Bai Hua had saved him. Unknown to the other three mortals, it was actually only Bai Hua who could have saved Xia Feng. No mortal doctor or martial artist could have saved him. The soul was only lingering inside the body but Xia Feng¡¯s body had already given up on him. Bai Hua had managed to bring him back to life. But the other three mortals didn¡¯t know this. They just thought that Bai Hua had saved Xia Feng luckily and that he couldn¡¯t have protected Xia Feng if enemies actually attacked them as he was just a mere musician. Bai Hua had declined all forms of rewards and gifts for saving Xia Feng. He had just managed to let them agree on letting him stay in the mansion which was not even necessary for him but he had to pretend to like it to make them stop their nagging.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Later on, the conversations diverted to the competition for the visiting immortal. With the prince in their company now he had more information regarding the competition. The public notice was out that morning and the competition was going to be held within a week. Many people who live far away from the imperial city were going o miss this opportunity. Some were even happy to get the pills as prizes even though they would not be able to become his disciple. The imperial city had burst into a cacophony of people discussing the event. Some people had even hurried to take the initiative to send messengers outside the city. The competition had three phases:
  1. strength and spiritual power testing;
  2. combat prowess measurement through group combat; and lastly
  3. championship battle from the chosen top 10 contenders from the group combat.
Bai Hua was not interested in the competition but he wanted to see the immortal. This was going to be his first time meeting an immortal of this world and he was curious. The sixth prince had told him that the immortal was given his own quarters as a very special guest and even he was not free to meet him. He had not even seen his face, in fact. All this mystery surrounding the immortal only piqued their interests. But according to the rumours that the prince had heard from the imperial palace, the immortal didn¡¯t look very young and all his hair were white. Bai Hua decided to just stay inside the Xia family mansion before the competition as he was not keen on going outside. He liked the bustle of the city life but he saw that there were some very fine books inside the Xia mansion. Xiao Sh¨¨ had discreetly returned to him later and had stayed on his wrist in his coiled dragon bracelet form. While Xianhe had not returned as time flowed differently in the godly realm. From that morning, Bai Hua had left the others to their own devices while he had gone to read mortals books from the Xia family collection. Nobody had bothered him thinking that he was a mere musician with no spiritual powers as they could feel no spiritual aura from him. Xia Feng would occasionally come and visit him sweating profusely having been training with others. Bai Hua liked the mortal books. Some of them were quite moving. The mortals were quite insightful even with their limited knowledge, he realised. He especially liked a poetry that was scrawled on a book of paintings. It read: ¡°There is a river with your name That runs from my heart And turns the entire ocean of my soul lilac.¡± He didn¡¯t know if it was written by a man or a woman but he knew that the poet was in love when this was written. He had never fallen in love but he had a feeling it was so. It made him warm in the inside. It reminded him of soft lilac clouds that are seen just before the sun sets. It reminded him of the godly realm. In this way, a week quickly passed away and the morning of the competition arrived. Bai Hua didn¡¯t feel any change. Time was irrelevant for him; he was a god after all. He had wanted to ask the Xia boys to allow him to go and see the competition but they had practically dragged him off to the arena before he even asked him. When he reached the arena prepared for the competition he realised that it was a very big affair. Stalls and hawkers were everywhere. The number of people had also increased. The entire arena was packed with audience and competitors. There were ten big stages raised inside the arena. And there were many gates where people were queuing up for. ¡°So, they have begun the first phase of the competition,¡± Xia Sheng observed from inside the carriage. They all stepped out inside from the carriage one after another. And Xia Sheng handed a token to Bai Hua as soon as he came out of the carriage. ¡°Show this to the uniformed guards and they will take you to our family seat. We¡¯ll follow you after we get through the first phase. Don¡¯t worry, both of us will make it through it. Our physical strength and spiritual powers are more than the required level.¡± ¡°Yes, brother Hua, we¡¯ll be back by the time you find your seat,¡± Xia Feng added confidently. ¡°Good luck to both of you then,¡± said Bai Hua as both of them nodded their heads showing acknowledgement and left for one of the gates for the participants. Bai Hua easily got help from a guard when he showed his token. He was deferentially taken to a seat that was quite close to all the stages. It was a good vantage point to watch the battles from his seat. He easily tracked down Xia Sheng and Xia Feng from among the crowd of people. Like both of them said, they had easily passed the first phase. They had to each stand on a white looking flat stone and it glowed green when they passed. Those who got red were rejected. For the physical test, there was a hammer kept on the ground after the spirit test. Each one of them had to strike on a white boulder the size of a big boulder and if it glowed green it meant the person passed to the next phase. Some contestants could not even lift the hammer and were directly disqualified when the examiners saw that they couldn¡¯t even lift it. But the Xia boys had passed the second phase easily as well. After observing everything, Bai Hua realised that those two brothers were quite strong as compared to other people. Especially, Xia Feng, he had managed to even shock the examiners when he passed those tests successively. For some reason, Bai Hua felt pleased to see Xia Feng doing well. And suddenly to Bai Hua¡¯s surprise, he spotted someone else at another gate whom he had met before in his journey. ¡°It is never a coincidence,¡± he smiled as he whispered to himself. Cup 11: An Immortal It was Xiao Lok but disguised as a man accompanying the sixth prince. Bai Hua had known that the sixth prince would be participating but he didn¡¯t expect to see Xiao Lok with him. But Xiao Lok wasn¡¯t taking the test. She was curiously looking around the procedures of the test. The prince had also easily passed through the first phase. Most of the people who had come to the competition were teenagers and young adults. There were some older men but they were few. It was like the teenagers had scared off the older men. Besides, it was more fitting for the younger ones to become a disciple. The older men felt that they won¡¯t progress much as a disciple of an immortal. They knew that the younger ones had much more potential. But they had participated nonetheless to obtain the pills that were promised to the top 10 participants. Bai Hua observed that the East Mainland truly lacked great martial artists. He had heard tales of strong immortals when he was in the godly realm. And also of immortals who had achieved godhood whereas the people gathered in the arena were pretty weak. He couldn¡¯t say about the young ones yet. Their dantians were still developing but for the adults, he felt that they will never achieve the state of an immortal unless by extremely impossible circumstances. The first phase of the competition was going smoothly. People were divided into groups as they passed the first phase. They were given tokens with a number on it. Xia Sheng and Xia Feng came to the seat where Bai Hua was sitting with differently numbered tokens. They were happy that both of them didn¡¯t have similar tokens. The people with the same numbered tokens were going to the second phase of the competition. ¡°Brother Hua, I wish you could participate in the competition too,¡± said Xia Feng, dissatisfied. ¡°Yes, it would have been fun for us if you were participating too,¡± added Xia Sheng. ¡°Ah, I am a musician. I don¡¯t like blood on my hands,¡± Bai Hua said modestly. ¡°Say, big brother, did you see that boy with brother Chen? I think I have seen him somewhere. I didn¡¯t get to take a proper look because they were at a different gate,¡± Xia Feng inquired. ¡°I didn¡¯t see anyone with him. There were many people and I was looking around for people from other families. I am sure they¡¯re here too. I saw some of their carriages,¡± he said as he scanned the crowd. He zeroed in on the other side of the gallery and his eyes glinted as if he had seen someone he was looking for. ¡°Feng¡¯er, stay with brother Hua, I am going to check out something.¡± And he left another word towards the direction he was looking at. Bai Hua had also seen what Xia Sheng was looking at. It was a group of youngsters who were all dressed magnificently. They seem to belong to the great families and nobilities of the kingdom. ¡°Big brother probably went to check on his potential opponents. He is very competitive,¡± Xia Feng confessed. Bai Hua laughed when he heard that. He had siblings too but they were much older than him in terms of thousands of years. And he never had been competitive because there weren¡¯t many peers of his age in the godly realm. He was the young one. Major gods didn¡¯t have many children. There were also some lowly gods in the lower tier of the godly realm but their children were not true gods. They made up the commoners in the godly realm. ¡°Look, who¡¯s here, the youngest master of the Xia family. Word has it that the great prodigy nearly died by drowning,¡± came a sniggering voice followed by many footsteps. Xia Feng recognised the voice and turned towards the speaker. ¡°Wang Fu, you dare show your face here? Do you still want the beating from last time?!¡± Xia Feng said angrily. ¡°I was tired that day and you technically won because I was distracted. That is not even worth mentioning,¡± said Wang Fu dismissively. He was wearing a distracting colour of green robes while his companions were wearing mischievous smiles on their faces. It was obvious that Wang Fu was the leader of this gang. They were all teenagers older than Xia Feng.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Bai Hua was curious to see Xia Feng¡¯s exchanging words heatedly with a boy who seemed to be a little older than him. Bai Hua had taken Xia Feng to be a mild-tempered boy but now he could see that he was clearly angry! ¡°You lay your filthy eyes on my sister again and I will send your sorry ass to your Wang mansion!¡± Xia Feng was now raising his voice. The others just laughed at Xia Feng¡¯s ¡°tantrum¡±. Wang Wu continued to provoke him. ¡°Too bad your sister is not around today. But look who¡¯s with you today? A delicate looking attendant. Is he your brother¡¯s new lover? I heard that your brother prefers men over women.¡± They all laughed at this. Xia Feng moved to attack Wang Ju shouting, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare slander my brother and brother Hua!¡± but Bai Hua pulled him back. ¡°Hiding behind an adult are we?¡± Wang Fu mocked looking at Xia Feng¡¯s red face. ¡°Brother Hua, let me go. Let me get rid of this trash today! I swear the Wang family will regret mocking our Xia family today!¡± But Bai Hua didn¡¯t let go and calmly said, ¡°He¡¯s afraid of you that¡¯s why he¡¯s provoking you to get you disqualified. Remember no fighting among the contestants inside the arena?¡± Xia Feng stopped struggling when Bai Hua reminded him of the competition¡¯s rule. Wang Fu was now wearing an ugly expression. ¡°Little Feng, your brother¡¯s lover even behaves like a woman. Truly worthy of the Xia family!¡± he spat and added ¡°I¡¯ll take care of you in the competition. I¡¯ll show how real men win in a battle, hmmph!¡± He raised his chin and left followed by his followers. ¡°Brother Hua, I swear I will defend your honour. I will beat his ass in this competition if not my name will not be Xia Feng anymore!¡± For some reason this made Bai Hua laugh and he started laughing. A little mortal kid was staking his family name to defend him. He was truly grateful yet he found it undeniably hilarious. ¡°Brother Hua, you don¡¯t believe in my capabilities?¡± Xia Feng said disheartened after hearing Bai Hua laughing. ¡°Little Feng, I believe in you. I just found it funny that you want to fight with someone for some silly reason. Don¡¯t easily stake your name again like that again,¡± he gently chided Xia Feng. ¡°But he makes me so angry! Just because he belongs to one of the great families of this kingdom, he has the audacity to provoke me again and again!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t let their provocations rile you up. You should not become their prey easily. Be your own master. No one should control your emotions except you. Okay?¡± ¡°If you say so, brother Hua. But I am still thrashing him today! Nobody insults my family or friends!¡± Bai Hua sighed and patted Xia Feng. For some reason, Bai Hua felt that he was taking care of a pet cat instead of a human child. His Divine mother had a spiritual beast that behaved exactly like Xia Feng back in the godly realm. ¡°Cool down, little Feng, you¡¯re too young to be affected by the world. Look, they are going to start the second phase.¡± Just like he said, someone had appeared on a raised platform that overlooked the stages prepared for the battle. ¡°Gentlemen who have gathered for the competition, the first phase of the competition is over. The first phase is a fair way to determine both your physical and spiritual strength disregarding your background. This was done so that everyone had a fair opportunity.¡± The speaker scanned the crowd for effect and continued, ¡°My name is Mr Bao and I will be the commentator for this competition. All those who passed the first phase were given a token. The number written on the token corresponds to the stage. Each stage has a number written on it. Please assemble on the stages according to the tokens you received. Anyone who had exchanged their tokens with another person will be disqualified. So, please make sure your token is the one given to you by one of our examiners.¡± There were audible groans as those who had exchanged their tokens with others went to retrieve their original token. ¡°Okay, now that we have cleared that up, please make your way to the stage.¡± Xia Feng left Bai Hua when this announcement was made saying he¡¯ll come back victorious. Bai Hua could see that Xia Feng, Xia Sheng and the sixth prince were all on different stages. He also noticed that Xiao Lok was sitting on the opposite gallery to him. It was strange how she turned up in places where he was. ¡°Contestants, listen up now. There are many of you on the stages. The first tier of the second phase is quite easy actually; you fight to knock off your opponents off the stage. The last two standing on the stage will advance to the second tier of the second phase. The judges are ready. Let the match begin!¡± Just after he said that Bai Hua felt a presence. An immortal was present in the audience. The immortal had hidden his presence well but it was easy for Bai Hua to spot him. But it was not the immortal described by the sixth prince to them. Then, he¡¯s another immortal, thought Bai Hua. Right after then he also felt another presence, it wasn¡¯t strong like the first one but the spiritual powers of this person was comparatively stronger than all the others who had gathered here except him and the immortal. And when he spotted this person, he looked exactly like the description made by the prince and unlike the real immortal which he had spotted before him he was quite conspicuous and was sitting with someone who seemed to be the king in the opposite gallery. Things were about to get interesting, Bai Hua inwardly smiled. There was a fake immortal and a real immortal inside this arena. Actually, he could feel the presence of only one immortal in the imperial city. Bai Hua was convinced that something big was on the way. He wasn¡¯t wrong when he had seen the eyes of Xia Feng and seen a tiny flicker of a prophecy that was already moving. Cup 12: Like Bubbles The ten stages were now filled with cries of pain as participants were being kicked out of the stage by other participants one after another. The numbers had dwindled down drastically to some 10 or 20 contestants in some stages while others had formed into pairs to attack others. All this time Bai Hua had noted the fluctuations of spiritual powers on the stage and he could even predict the winners of all the stages. He could also see that the immortal and the fake one were also both noting the progress of all the stages. He wanted to know more about the immortal and left his place to check out the immortal. Bai Hua could feel that the immortal was hidden among the audience very well from ordinary eyes but for him, the immortal was easy to spot. Bai Hua could feel no evil intentions on the immortal but it was the first time for him to notice an immortal in the mortal realm. Thus, he was very curious. Bai Hua walked up to a man who seemed to be in his early 30¡¯s. This man was wearing plain grey robes with only a wooden hairpin on his hair that was tied in a simple knot. Bai Hua went and stood near him and noticed that the man had his eyes on Xia Feng. Xia Feng may be only 11 years old but he was doing quite well. He had knocked out contestants who were seemed stronger and were burlier than him. There were only 8 of them in his stage now. And everyone was looking warily at each other as they try to take care of the rest of the participants. Xia Feng looked the weakest and so the rest of the seven wanted to kick him out first. Bai Hua could see that the other seven had mutually agreed to take care of Xia Feng. They were all older than Xia Feng and there was even a middle-aged man among them whose spiritual powers were the strongest in among them. ¡°Quite an interesting kid, right?¡± Bai Hua spoke to the man beside him. ¡°Huh? Ah, yes. That kid is quite promising. I wonder where he is from,¡± said the man absentmindedly without even looking at Bai Hua. Bai Hua didn¡¯t answer but continued to look at Xia Feng¡¯s stage. Xia Feng was quick and nimble and he was manoeuvring in such a way that the other seven contestants¡¯ attacks were landing on each of them instead. Most of the audience were now looking at Xia Feng as he was the only contestant that looked the youngest. They were amazed that he was doing so well in the face of seven contestants that were all trying to kick him out of the stage. But one by one the other seven was gradually kicked out of the stage until only Xia Feng, the middle-aged guy and another youth was left. Earlier they had underestimated Xia Feng because of his age but now both of them were wary of Xia Feng. It was not easy for Xia Feng as well. He was sweating. He was right when he had told them some days ago that he may be a prodigy but he didn¡¯t have much battle experience. But he sure was handling his position well noting the fact that he was fighting people with different styles of fighting and not the sparring partners that he usually fought against. But everyone was thinking that Xia Feng would be eliminated as they thought that he might be exhausted and thus giving the advantage to the other two who seemed to be much stronger than him. ¡°Are you here to scout for talent, sir?¡± asked Bai Hua to the man standing beside him. The man was shocked when he finally registered what Bai Hua was asking. But he only raised his eyebrow at Bai Hua. ¡°Young man, I am only here to enjoy the show as everyone else. But it¡¯s really nice to see young ones doing so well these days. That kid¡¯s parents must be really proud. Even though he may not win in this competition, he has proven mettle today.¡± ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry, he will make it,¡± Bai Hua said confidently.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The man gave him a weird look and continued to watch the matches on other stages. Slowly, some matches were ending on the other stages as two contestants were left on those stages. There were only some battles left including Xia Feng¡¯s stage. Both the sixth prince and Xia Sheng were among the winners and they were now looking curiously at Xia Feng¡¯s stage as well. They both knew that Xia Feng was a prodigy but even prodigies have challenges which are beyond them. But to everyone¡¯s surprise, Xia Feng overturned the outcome of the match as he smoothly landed an attack on the middle-aged man who wasn¡¯t expecting the attack from Xia Feng thinking that the kid would not dare to go against a mountain when he was merely just an ant. As the attack was unexpected and the middle-aged man had already aimed an attack on the other youth both the attacks connected. The youth was cleanly knocked out of the stage just before the middle-aged man was also pushed forcefully out of the stage. Xia Feng was the only one standing on the stage. His stage was the only one that had only one man standing and so he was declared the unanimous winner of his stage much to the shock of the audience. The middle-aged man had become furious and had stormed towards the judges regarding the result of the match. ¡°Well, young man, you seem to have a good foresight. You were able to predict the outcome of that battle,¡± the man commented to Bai Hua. ¡°Ah, it was just my wish. He did it all by himself.¡± All matches had now come to an end. There was a little confusion as Xia Feng was the only odd one out. The judges were now rapidly discussing how to decide on the next match as they were receiving complaints from the middle-aged man and his supporters. Bai Hua saw that the man beside the emperor who seemed to have strong spiritual powers besides him and the man standing next to him was whispering something to the emperor. The emperor nodded respectfully and then he called one of the judges on the platform where they were sitting. The judge took some orders from the emperor and went back to the other judges to relay the message from the emperor and they all nodded to whatever he was saying. And after that, the commentator come up to the platform prepared for him and shouted with his spiritually enhanced voice, ¡°Everyone, please calm down. The judges have decided. Regarding the battle on stage 6, the winner is just one man. The rule might have stated that the last two standing on the stage will proceed to the next phase of the competition. But in this case, there was only one man left standing on the stage so he is declared to be the only winner of the stage. It does not matter if you were ¡®accidentally knocked off¡¯ just before the third competitor,¡± he said meaningfully as he stared at the group of the defeated middle-aged man, and added in an authoritative voice, ¡°and that is final.¡± He looked at the rest of the crowd with a smile and then said cheerfully, ¡°Congratulations to all the winners who have passed the first tier of the second phase of the competition successfully. Now, regarding the second tier since we have only 19 contestants for the next competition, there will be a drawing of lots. The lots will decide your opponent and there will be one empty lot. The one who gets that empty lot will be exempted from the competition and will directly proceed to the next competition. That is all for now. The next competition will take place after a week. See you all after a week!¡± The audience went straight into discussions after the declaration of the result and some were very sceptical of the result. Some people who had recognised Xia Feng as the youngest master of the Xia family began to complain that the judges had been biased towards Xia Feng because of the Xia family position in the kingdom. Bai Hua heard everything but he didn¡¯t care about it. Reputation or honour was a fickle thing for mortals. He knew that it was like bubbles that only sparkle or shines for some seconds and disappears with a pop. Bai Hua bowed and left the immortal knowing that he would be seeing him again in the next match. And he had noticed that the Xia boys were searching for him. So, he made his way to where they were looking for him. He needed to congratulate them on their success as well. While Bai Hua was leaving, the immortal had looked at him and where he was going. And when he saw that Bai Hua was walking towards Xia Feng his eyes glinted. He had felt that Bai Hua was a commoner but for some reason, he had felt perturbed being near him. Bai Hua had felt very indifferent to him. A normal human won¡¯t have been like that. Sure, Bai Hua was watching the match engrossed but something was off about him. He thought he might have imagined it and such forgot about it. He needed to focus on the unnatural fluctuations he had felt a month ago in this mainland. He was sure he¡¯d find out about the source but it had disappeared. The immortal was hoping to track it down and he had thought that the competition was a good place for him to find the source but he had not felt anything for a month now. Or his treasure was wrong? Cup 13: Prince Dong Chens Secret There was a week before the next round and Bai Hua didn¡¯t know what to do in the meantime. So, he had taken leave from the Xia brothers the next day saying he¡¯ll be back on the day of the tournament while he had planned to wander around the imperial city playing his zither. He was also curious about the immortal but he was sure he would see him on the day of the tournament. But bai Hua could not even go further from the gate of the Xia family mansion. He was spotted by the sixth prince Dong Chen who was also going out of the house after spending the night at the Xia Mansion the previous night. He had beseeched Bai Hua to come and stay at his mansion and being unable to decline his request, Bai Hua agreed and got onto the prince¡¯s chariot. ¡°Brother Hua, you will not be disappointed, I assure you,¡± consoled Dong Chen who was already on familiar terms with Bai Hua. ¡°I may not always be able to keep you company but the Xia brothers told me that you are interested in art and literature. My personal collection will not keep you bored for this one week. I hear that you exhausted every book in the Xia family home. Hahahaha.¡± ¡°Ah, they told you about it? Little Feng feels sympathetic towards me as I am not a part of the competition and he¡¯s been trying to keep me busy. I believe, he made you take me to your place as well.¡± Dong Chen smiled guiltily but said honestly, ¡°Yes, he did make me take you to my place, but I have always intended for you to stay at my place as well. It¡¯s quite lively even without Feng¡¯er. I have a little sister of my own who is quite a handful.¡± Bai Hua was suddenly reminded of a girl who was disguised as a boy and was with Dong Chen the other day inside the arena. And then he smiled. ¡°Poor Feng¡¯er,¡± Dong Chen continued, ¡°There are rumours already circulating around the city that he made it through unfair means. I have done all I can to block the rumours. I don¡¯t want Feng¡¯er to feel down before the next match.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He¡¯ll be fine. He¡¯s a unique kid. I haven¡¯t seen a fiery kid like him before. You worry too much. You¡¯re spoiling him actually.¡± ¡°Ah, I think you¡¯re right. I believe I have been spoiling him too much. He has been sticking to me ever since he was a child. I used to visit the Xia Family home back in their province. And he used to follow me everywhere I go. His brother, Xia Sheng was shocked that Feng¡¯er had taken a liking to me back then. It seemed he was quite an introvert when he was a kid,¡± Dong Chen said, reminiscing. ¡°Pardon my inquisitiveness, Prince Chen, but I see some similarities between Feng¡¯er and you. It¡¯s obvious that the Xia brothers look very much alike. But Feng¡¯er and you have a similarity which I am afraid I am unable to point out.¡± Dong Chen looked quite surprised when Bai Hua said this. ¡°Brother Hua, your observation amaze me. Because I know that you¡¯re a good man and because you have saved Feng¡¯er¡¯s life I will tell you a secret. I am not the son of the current king. I am actually the nephew of the king. My parents died when I was just a baby and the king who is my father¡¯s elder brother took me in as his own son. It is a royal family secret. Even I was told this just some months ago by the king who is my royal father now. My mother and Feng¡¯er¡¯s mother are sisters. Though Xia Sheng is also from the same mother he has more of his father¡¯s side of fierceness while Feng¡¯er has taken much of his mother¡¯s sensibilities just like I have taken my mother¡¯s like I have been told by royal father. So, the Xia brothers and I are actual cousins. I am much grateful to my royal father and my current mother who is a concubine of the king. I am her only son and she dotes on me very much.¡±You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Bai Hua had not expected such a secret behind his simple hunch. But the story that Dong Chen had disclosed to him was reasonable. After all, even if his parents had died he was rightfully a prince, from the imperial Dong family of the East Mainland. ¡°Your secrets will not be disclosed. Prince Chen, you can trust me to keep it safe.¡± ¡°Thank you, brother Hua. Look, we have arrived in my mansion, ¡° he said as they entered the gates of a mansion which was smaller than the Xia family mansion. ¡°I know it¡¯s not as grand as the Xia mansion but the Xia family is a league of their own. But I hope you¡¯ll be happy here.¡± ¡°I am fine even if I don¡¯t have a roof over my head, Prince Chen,¡± Bai Hua admitted honestly. The prince thought that Bai Hua must have led a hard life before, looking at his zither and noting the fact that he was just a musician. But Bai Hua had really meant it when he said he was fine without a roof over his head as he had spent most of his time in the godly realm sailing on clouds and sleeping on it most of the time. They got down from the carriage and entered the mansion. There was an open courtyard inside the walls of the mansion and a young girl was impatiently tapping her fingers on the table with her back to them. And hearing their entering footsteps, she whirled and said, ¡°Big brother Chen, you only love Feng¡¯er. You left me behind yesterday and went off to make merry at the Xia family home while I was patiently waiting for you!¡± ¡°Twelfth Princess, I told you I¡¯ll be back in the morning. It is morning and I am back, aren¡¯t I? You¡¯re just like Feng¡¯er when it comes to being impatient,¡± Dong Chen shook his head and then turned towards Bai Hua and said, ¡° Forgive my little sister for her manners, let me introduce her to you. She¡¯s the Twelfth Princess of the East Mainland, Dong Lok. Quite an ugly name she has.¡± ¡°Ah. Xiao Lok is the Twelfth Princess? What a coincidence,¡± Bai Hua said calmly. He was always suspicious of Xiao Lok¡¯s identity and she had not disappointed him. Xiao Lok had remained rooted to where she was standing the moment Dong Chen introduced her to Bai Hua as if she had been caught of some mischief and had no place to hide anymore. ¡°Ah, Mr. Hua, we meet again. The circumstances keep changing whenever we meet,¡± she said guiltily. Dong Chen was the one who was shocked now. ¡°Wait a moment. Both of you have met before?!¡± he asked incredulously. ¡°Yes, brother Chen,¡± she said as she came towards them and gave them each a slight bow, ¡°I met him while I was on my travels a few days ago. Remember I had to leave the imperial city to see the ¡®outside¡¯ world according to elder brother Ran?¡± Dong Chen was truly speechless. He just kept looking at Xiao Lok and then Bai Hua and then Xiao Lok as if trying to make sense. ¡°Brother Hua, I hope you are not some spy who is tailing the nobles and the royalties of East Mainland,¡± Dong Chen finally said in a joking manner. ¡°Brother Chen, now you are the one without manners. I was the one who approached Mr. Hua when we first met. Forgive him, Mr Hua, he¡¯s not as refined as he acts to be.¡± And she added guiltily to Bai Hua, ¡°I am sorry to have hidden my identity twice. It was only for precaution. I wasn¡¯t allowed to use my identity while travelling. I hope you will understand and forgive me.¡± Bai Hua joined his fists and bowed. ¡°Greeting, Princess Lok. This humble subject will not take anything to his heart. I am afraid you think too highly of me. I am just a mere commoner. You needn¡¯t be so worried about your actions. It has not affected me in any way.¡± ¡°Mr. Hua, you¡¯re too humble. My outside experience was memorable because of your performances. I will cherish them dearly.¡± Bai Hua had not planned to meet her again but fate was knitting a different kind of pattern for her. Fate seemed to be working really hard for Xiao Lok and Xia Feng, he thought. Cup 14: Poppies of Blood Bai Hua had been staying at Prince Dong Chen¡¯s Manor for some days now. The next round of competition was drawing nearer and the sixth prince had been busy getting ready for the next contest. Xiao Lok had visited him often, keeping him company. And today she had come first thing in the morning again. ¡°Mr Hua, would you accompany me outside the imperial city today? There is a poppy field just beyond the south gate. And it has started blooming. I wish to paint it for elder brother. I have not given him any presents for a while now.¡± When Bai Hua first saw her in the theatre house he had believed her to be frail and delicate though he knew that she was intelligent. He had observed her for the past few days and had seen that she was mischievous when Dong Chen was around but was polite to everyone else including him. But she seemed to like his company as she had been regularly visiting the manor introducing new things to him every day. And today it seemed it was painting. ¡°Is it for your elder brother Ran, the one whom you are so fond of?¡± ¡°Yes. He has always bought presents and gifts for me. Even the tea leaves that you had the chance to drink with me when we first met were also a gift from him.¡± ¡°Oh, he was the one who had thoughtfully got you those tea leaves,¡± he said serenely, and thought ¡°the one who wants you gone.¡± ¡°He¡¯s coming back to the kingdom soon. He had been away in another kingdom handling father¡¯s affairs. So I must prepare him a gift before he gives me one. Please bring your zither as well. I feel that I will be more inspired by you playing while I paint.¡± They took a carriage and left the manor towards the direction that she had mentioned earlier. Bai Hua alighted from the carriage while Xiao Lok was helped by her maidservant who had been travelling with them. They went up-hill followed by the manservant who was carrying all the instruments for Xiao Lok to paint. ¡°We¡¯ll be able to see once we reach the top of this small slope,¡± she said enthusiastically. And after she said that the meadow just below the slope appeared. It was covered with an endless sea of poppies that went on and on as far as the eye can see. It was Xiao Lok who gasped when she saw the scenery as well. She had led Bai Hua here yet it was her whose breath was taken away by the scene. There was even a small pavilion on the other side of the meadow. They walked towards it and settled down. Xiao Lok seemed to have come prepared as her servants had brought out small stools and tables for her. She sat down and began preparing to paint the scene that was unfolding in front of her. The sun was slowly climbing the heavens and the shade of the red poppies flickered with the brightness of the sun. The sky was partially covered with clouds flaked across the sky like white waves over a blue sea. Bai Hua was enjoying this experience. He sat down and pulled out his dark zither from the cloth wrapping. He strokes a few strings and started playing a tune that made one feel happy to be alive. It was a morning tune, a tune that praises the sun for not forgetting to wake up the fortunate souls from the struggles of mournful night. Bai Hua knew that Xiao Lok would have died by now if she had not met him. So, he was actually playing the tune for her. It was an ode to her life. Xiao Lok will never know what she was supposed to go through but the music that Bai Hua was playing soothed her, it made her heart warm. She too felt happy to be alive, to have seen this marvellous scenery today, to be breathing on this glorious day. Xiao Lok started painting and she became so absorbed that she even didn¡¯t hear her maidservant reminding her to eat lunch. Bai Hua already said he had eaten his fill in the morning and left to explore the field. He wandered around the field until the pavilion was no longer in sight. He walked aimlessly and sat down under a tree. He muttered under his breath and with a ¡®pop¡¯ sound an old man in brown robes appeared with a wooden staff in his hand. The old man looked around as if searching for his summoner quietly ignoring the presence of Bai Hua. The old man clearly couldn¡¯t see his summoner and so he moved as if to disappear but was stopped by Bai Hua. ¡°Greetings, local land deity.¡± The old man turned swiftly towards Bai Hua and pointed at himself and asked, ¡°You can see me, mortal?¡±The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Ah, I am not a mortal.¡± ¡°An immortal, then? Say, did you see anyone else here?¡± the old man asked suspiciously. ¡°No, I did not see anyone else. I was also quite surprised when you appeared out of nowhere.¡± ¡°Strange, I definitely felt someone summoning me. I am sure it was a higher god,¡± the old man muttered to himself. He thought deeply for a moment and said, ¡°Wait a moment, how did you know that I was a local land deity? You¡¯re just an immortal. You shouldn¡¯t be able to identify a god if I don¡¯t release my aura.¡± ¡°Ah, but you did. Your aura is surrounding you even now.¡± ¡°Huh? When did I do that?¡± he checked himself and like Bai Hua had said his aura was surrounding him. The old man looked confused. ¡°I am sure I didn¡¯t do that purposely,¡± he muttered again. ¡°O, land deity. Since you have appeared I will take this as a good sign and opportunity. I would like to extend gratitude to you for taking care of this field of poppies. It has made me very happy.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± he stroked his long beard and smiled widely, ¡°at least I was not disturbed unnecessarily. Young immortal, you have fine eyes. You know what to appreciate and whom to appreciate.¡± The old man looked at the field of poppies and smiled wistfully, ¡°I once helped a flower deity and she thanked me with a poppy seed. These flowers have kept me company for centuries. Mortals come here sometimes to see the poppies but I have never met an immortal who had appreciated my poppies like you.¡± ¡°They must be blind then,¡± Bai Hua offered. ¡°Hahahaha... young immortal, it seems you are new here. Our kingdom¡¯s immortal would not have come to see my poppies as you did. After they had become immortals they left for other kingdoms. This kingdom had produced a total of 6 immortals. I know since I am the oldest land deity in this kingdom.¡± Bai Hua had been right to summon the local deity. He knew more than what the history books had recorded. There was mention of more than 20 immortals in the kingdom with only 4 current immortals from the kingdom. Others were dead or had remained out of the memories of the mortals. Mortals, after all, died too soon to remember anything. ¡°O great land deity, can you tell me how many immortals are here in this city at the moment?¡± ¡°That¡¯s easy, excluding you, there is only one immortal in this city,¡± he said proudly. So, Bai Hua was right. There was just one immortal in this city. The one he had met must be the only one. The other one was clearly a fake one. One could live for hundreds of years through cultivation but to achieve true immortal was rare. ¡°Wait a moment, young immortal, why are you asking me this? Is he your enemy?¡± he asked suspiciously again. ¡°You have me wrong, O great deity, I am just a young immortal from another kingdom who is just travelling to gain experience. My cultivation is still low. That was why you didn¡¯t detect me when you first saw me.¡± The old man seemed to have believed Bai Hua¡¯s story and nodded his head profusely. He didn¡¯t want to think that Bai Hua was fooling him but accepted his explanation. Bai Hua did look young and he did look weak. The local land deity felt proud to have met a young immortal from another kingdom and felt more happy to have his poppies appreciated. He stood straight and said grandly, ¡°Young immortal, I wish you blessings on your journey. Sorry to have startled you with my appearance,¡± and saying this, the local deity disappeared with a pop. ¡°Six, you say. But I am sure it is going to be seven soon,¡± Bai Hua muttered and smiled. He got up from the tree and walked back towards the pavilion. Xiao Lok was painting again. She had left out the sky and focused on the flowers. Seeing that Bai Hua was looking at her painting she commented, ¡°I am waiting for the evening sky. It will make my painting more beautiful.¡± He sat down and went to play his zither. They only went back to the manor when it was nearly dusk. She had poured her heart into the painting and Bai Hua appreciated her sincerity but pitied at the fact that it was for a man who was after he lived. He was sure that it was her brother who had poisoned her. And now he was also anticipating his return as well. He wanted to see the prince¡¯s reaction when he finds Xiao Lok hale and hearty. When they reached the manor, there were already lighted lanterns hanging inside the manor. It was getting dark. And even before Bai Hua reached the inner courtyard, he could hear Xia Feng¡¯s voice. ¡°I visit him after a long time and he¡¯s not even here? What¡¯s taking them too long? That Dong Lok is trying to snatch brother Hua from me. I shouldn¡¯t have let you make him stay here, big brother Chen. You¡¯re all conspiring against me!¡± Xia Feng was ranting for sure and both Bai Hua and Xiao Lok had heard the subject of his displeasure. ¡°Xia Feng, you give me too much credit. I have never been called a thief.¡± Xiao Lok entered holding her painting. She had insisted on carrying it herself. Xia Feng pointed at her and said loudly, ¡°You! You¡¯re not only a thief but an eavesdropper as well!¡± ¡°I was not only me who heard it but Mr Hua as well. Your voice was quite loud. The whole manor must have heard your childish voice proclaiming me as a thief.¡± ¡°Ah, Feng¡¯er and Xiao Lok, keep your bickering aside. You make me embarrassed in front of brother Hua,¡± Dong Chen winced. ¡°Big brother Chen¡ª¡° ¡°Big brother Chen¡ª¡° Both Xia Feng and Xiao Lok started and Bai Hua couldn¡¯t help it but laugh at their childish behaviour. ¡°Hahahahaha... Both of you are so childish.¡± ¡°I am not!¡± ¡°I am not!¡± They said simultaneously again. ¡°Come now, why don¡¯t you show your painting to everyone. You did exert yourself today.¡± Xiao Lok shot a glare at Xia Feng And then unrolled the painting on the table. Everyone gasped at the beauty of the painting but it was Xia Feng who gasped the loudest. Xia Feng laboriously muttered, ¡° Bl....ood!¡± Xiao Lok was annoyed now, ¡°Calling me thief was one thing, but now you¡¯re even insulting me?!¡± But Xia Feng ignored her and continued to mutter, ¡°Blood. Bood all over the field. I see blood, a bloody battlefield.¡± Only Bai Hua understood what he was saying. Only Bai Hua understood the meaning behind the word ¡°Blood¡±. Cup 15: The Tunes Of Blood He glared at the jade goblet fiercely. The surface of the wine showed two bickering kids over a painting. Someone he wanted dead was stubbornly alive and even seemed to be glowing with health and vigour. And another who was supposed to be death came back to pass into the third round of the competition. His plans were going to be affected. This new development was among his calculations. Xia Feng was supposed to be dead! He had even hired a sorcerer from another kingdom to do the deed but he managed to stay alive. And Xiao Lok was not exhibiting any of the signs she was supposed to show after consuming the tea he had given her for more than five months now. At this rate, his master was going to be furious with him. He did not like the idea of displeasing his master. Dong Ran, the crown prince of East Mainland, sat with a scowl on his face. He did not like what he was seeing in his spying goblet. Though he was the crown prince, lately he had felt that his father was being too biased towards Dong Chen, he was not threatened by him, but he needed to clip his wings, just in case. Dong Chen had strong ties with Xia family, and he was intimidated by it. Dong Chen never showed any signs of greed towards the crown, but in the royal family no one can tell what someone actually wants or thinks. Everything can be a fa?ade. On top of that, his father had been going against him in the court session and he found out that it was actually because of Dong Lok. Never had he thought that a weak and timid girl could come up with strategies for their father that always went against his wishes. And he needed to remove both Xia Feng and Dong Lok, if he was ever going to be a king. He would have preferred to get rid of Xia Sheng more than Xia Feng, but his master had insisted that Xia Feng posed a greater danger to his position than Xia Sheng. The goblet turned red as he was mulling over these bumps to his road to become a king. It meant that his master was calling him.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. A hooded man appeared on the surface of the wine now. ¡°I see that you have failed in getting rid of the pests I asked you to.¡± A genderless voice came out from the goblet. ¡°Master, I don¡¯t understand how two of my plans can fail both at the same time! Something is wrong here. Have we been discovered?¡± ¡°Fool! No one in this kingdom can figure out our plans. Use the vial of my blood to mix with anything the princess eats to hasten her poison, no one will find out the cause. And about Xia Feng, leave it to the competition; he will not come out alive.¡± ¡°Yes, master. I obey your will.¡± ¡°I will be coming soon once I handle some affairs here.¡± The goblet turned to normal and their conversation ended. Dong Ran smiled at the thought of finally achieving his dream of wearing the crown. Bai Hua knew that blood was going to be shed soon and that Xia Feng and Dong Lok were going to play a big part in it. The outcome was going to decide the fate of this kingdom and also the fate of both Xia Feng and Dong Lok. His eyes were not wrong. Unwittingly he had danced right into the thick of the action. At this rate the Master of Stars will notice his presence in the mortal world. He had tried not to mess with the fates of the mortals but he had already done so. Maybe Xia Feng and Dong Lok were fated to be saved, but the Master of the Stars didn¡¯t know the saviour of these two mortals was going to be someone who did not even have a fate. They were so lucky to have been saved and preserved by Bai Hua. Bai Hua spent his time in Prince Chen¡¯s manor perturbed by the blood he had seen and also worried about the blood that Xia Feng had seen. Xia Feng had glimpsed a bloody battlefield, but he did not realised the implications of it. Dong Lok had painted the sea of poppies but she did not realise the future that she had painted with her brush. Xia Feng and Dong Lok slept fitfully that night after they had bickered over the painting unaware that their lives were being plotted by someone who was very close to them. The next day, Dong Lok was summoned by Dong Ran and she had to leave to visit the Crown Prince. While Xia Feng decided to practice more in order to stay alive and protect his family if ever he was caught up in a battlefield like he saw yesterday. Bai Hua was keen on the future of this tiny kingdom and so decided to watch the drama that was going to unfold soon. Conspiracy was thick in the air and it was going to explode soon. He can almost hear the tunes of blood in the air. Cup 16: A Brother That Knows How To Really Pamper Dong Ran had successfully invited Dong Lok to his Crown Prince manor. He had also carried out his master¡¯s orders and had stealthily given her food laced with the vial of blood. He was exceptionally happy that day. He trusted his master¡¯s plan and was not worried about Xia Feng¡¯s fate. And since his mood had been flipped completely after making sure that Dong Lok consumed the poisoned food, he decided to throw a party that night. He had always established a facade of benevolence and kindness in front of the people. And now, he was going to stamp his reputation on all his guests that night. All important people in the kingdom had been invited that night. While at Prince Chen¡¯s residence, invitations from the Crown Prince had arrived. And Prince Chen had asked Bai Hua to accompany him as his special guest. Bai Hua could not say no as he had his own agenda that night. He felt that the mystery about the life attempt on Xia Feng and Dong Lok may be brought to light if he met certain people. And besides, he was curious to meet the fake immortal who was responsible for organising such a competition for recruiting disciples. And if he was lucky, he might get to meet the real immortal whom he had met at the arena the other time. The Xia brothers and Dong Lok had relayed messages to them saying that they would meet them at the party. Since Bai Hua was going as a guest this time and not as a musician, his zither took its place on his wrist as his loyal wristlet with a dragon head. He decided not to lay low that night but mingle freely among the mortals. When Bai Hua and Dong Chen reached the hall where the party was being thrown, they were immediately noticed by the guests gathered there. Initially it was because of the status of Dong Chen as one of the princes of the kingdom but gradually people started to notice the calm and graceful disposition of the emerald-eyed friend of the sixth prince that was tagging along behind him. He looked like a noble young master from a prestigious family. And even Dong Chen had been revising his views about Bai Hua ever since he met him. It was too coincidental for Bai Hua to have saved Xia Feng and also to have established a friendship with Dong Lok. And the more he was in his company, the more he realised that Bai Hua was exceptionally wise for his age, more like a prodigy. He never forgets what he reads, and Prince Chen was also shocked when Bai Hua could read and understand books with different languages effortlessly. He could never be a simple musician like he modestly always claimed to be. But since, Prince Chen trusted him; he decided to follow his guts. Bai Hua did not seem to be a bad guy and besides, he had never displayed any evil intention towards anyone. While Prince Chen was musing over the identity of Bai Hua, Bai Hua had spotted Dong Ran and Dong Lok . They were looking towards them and seemed to be approaching towards them. Clearly, Dong Lok had noticed their entrance and was now going towards them.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°What took you so long, brother Chen?¡± scolded Dong Lok as soon as they were near, ¡°the Crown Prince had been waiting for you for a while now. He has been looking forward to meet brother Hua who I said was coming with you.¡± ¡°Ah, sister, now you¡¯re showing your true colours. Now that you have met a new friend, you are tossing this brother away. Alas! I am nothing but a toy for this royal sister,¡± complained Dong Chen jokingly. ¡°En, so this the musician friend that my sister has been praising since her return from her travels,¡± smiled Dong Ran. ¡°Oh, royal brother, this is the friend I met during my short travels. He was the one who really liked the tea leaves that you gave me. And he is also a good musician. You must give him a reward because he even saved the young master of the Xia family too.¡± Bai Hua now realised that it was this kind looking Crown Prince who had been poisoning Dong Lok and though this Prince seemed to be smiling, his eyes showed shock and anger. This implied that he was related to the incident of the drowning of Xia Feng. Bai Hua didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry. He wanted to scout out the area and look for suspicious persons, but he didn¡¯t think that the most suspicious person would present himself in front of him right after he entered the hall. Either he was lucky, or that Dong Lok¡¯s luck was rubbing off on him? Bai Hua gave a bow and said, ¡°Ever since I had met the princess, I had wondered who was this brother that she spoke highly of all the time. It turned out to be your royal highness. And please, I desire no reward for helping the young master of the Xia family. Goodness should be done for goodness sake.¡± ¡°My sister hardly goes out of the imperial palace but this time she seemed to have hit upon a very fortunate encounter. Please, I must show my gratitude in some ways,¡± begged the Crown Prince. ¡°Oh well, if you insist, your highness, if it isn¡¯t a big trouble for you then I would like to have the same batch of tea leaves that you had gifted the princess. I am sure the tea has many benefits which I am unaware of. Look how the princess is glowing. Surely, your highness must be taking really good of this princess.¡± The Crown Prince turned white for a brief second thinking that Bai Hua had discovered his plot. But he managed to calm his heart in time before anyone had noticed. But it didn¡¯t escape the eyes of Bai Hua, in fact, he could even notice the trace of a very lethal blood poison in Dong Lok¡¯s system. But he wasn¡¯t worried because he knew that no poison could harm her ever since the gift he had bestowed on her on their first encounter. The Crown Prince is going to be more furious later when he realised that the princess was unaffected by any kind of poison in the world. The Crown Prince managed to say, ¡°I will have one of the servants prepare for you after this party. It may not be expensive, but the tea leaves are indeed rare in this kingdom.¡± ¡°Now, come and join the rest of us. I am sure you our musicians will not disappoint you with their talents though Xiao Lok tells me that you are by far the best she has heard.¡± Anytime now the Crown Prince expected Dong Lok to take ill and slowly die of the poison his master had given him. And Bai Hua was looking forward to witness how the plans of this brother that really knows how to "pamper" one''s sister were going to fail. Cup 17: What An Entertaining Night Most of the competitors who made it to the final round were invited to the party. The guests were mostly young people who came from good backgrounds: some were children of the nobility, some were noted for their skills and some were just there simply because they were known for some accomplishments here and there. There was even one among them who had instantly become famous for his ability to draw a portrait of strangers who he might meet in the future. But, it goes without saying that, cultivators were shown the highest respect in that gathering. Bai Hua, the absconding Rain God, went about in this lower mortal realm pretending to be a mortal musician not having once displayed his powers in front of the mortals. He had not even shown a tiny bit of spiritual powers in front of his mortal friends. Though they know in their hearts that he was more than just a mere magician, their hunches never came even a tiny bit close to his real identity. Xia Feng with his childlike imagination thought that his brother Hua might be royalty of some bigger kingdom and his guess was the closest to the truth that they could get. Bai Hua was the son of the Jade Emperor. This qualified him like royalty, and the heaven sure was qualified to be included in ¡°some bigger kingdom¡±. Though the scale was off by an astronomical mark, it was the closest guess. Bai Hua had seen the thirst for power and greed in the eyes of the Crown Prince, and he didn¡¯t understand how Dong Lok could be regarded as a threat to his position. She was a competent princess, that he was aware of, but much too innocent in the ways of the world. She had been poisoned for so long by her own brother but she was happily living in her ignorance. She could have died at any moment if he had not intervened that day. Her current poison was what worried him presently. Because he was aware that the Crown Prince was not powerful enough to produce such kind of poisonous blood and the little amount of poisonous blood in her system was not his, though he detected some traces of the poison on his body. This meant that there was another player in this game of hide-and-seek. In front of him, Dong Lok was closely attended to by the Crown Prince agreeing to her whims and nodding to her conversation. Anyone looking at this pair of siblings would think that they were the only children of the king and that nobody could break this bond. Dong Chen joined in their conversation now and then, always deferentially keeping his status in check never intruding and also never crossing the limits. While Bai Hua screened the crowd for signs of the Xia brothers. Dong Chen noticed this and commented, ¡°They are late today, I thought they would be here earlier than us but it seems they haven¡¯t even shown up yet. They would have let me known if they were not coming to the party.¡± ¡°Oh, I am sure they must have their reasons. Something tells me that it must be something regarding Xiao Feng.¡± ¡°I hope nothing bad happens to them.¡± ¡°Brother Chen, if you are concerned about all the matters of the world at your age, you will have grey hair before your next birthday. Don¡¯t worry too much, enjoy the night. I am expecting a very entertaining time tonight.¡± ¡°Hahaha¡­. Brother Hua, I wish you won¡¯t make light of my hair. I won¡¯t be able to marry a decent girl if my hair turns grey so soon.¡± Hearing them laugh, Dong Lok turned to both of them and asked, ¡° Why are you laughing? Are you boys making fun of me behind my back? Brother Chen, I clearly heard that you won¡¯t let me marry off even if your hair turns grey. Did Xia Feng say something about me to you again? ¡± ¡°Xiao Lok,¡± interjected the Crown Prince while patting her head, ¡°you heard your brother Chen wrong. He wasn¡¯t talking about your marriage. It was his marriage that he was concerned about. Don¡¯t get angry over such issues. I will not let anyone force you into anything. Even if it is Father Emperor, I will take your side. This brother promises you this.¡±Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°How this little mortal lies so naturally, Your Highness. He didn¡¯t even blink while saying such promises while feeding poison to one¡¯s own kin. Despicable!¡± said Xiao Sh¨¨ through direct inner audio. ¡°I won¡¯t even eat him if he were to bring himself on a golden platter. Your Highness, are you sure you don¡¯t want to strike him down right now? Why delay judgment, when you already know of his sins?¡± continued Xian Sh¨¨ with his glowing eyes from Bai Hua¡¯s wrist. ¡°You keep your nose off the affairs of these mortals, Xiao Sh¨¨.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t but you can¡­ Even heaven is not fair,¡± it murmured. ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°Nothing, Your Highness, please enjoy your adventure,¡± and it went quiet. Bai Hua spiritually flicked Xiao Sh¨¨''s ears and grinned. He could hear it whining but it said nothing again. An infant dragon dares to be so impertinent, thought Bai Hua. The mortals present there were not aware of this brief exchange. If they knew that an ancient divine dragon was present among them, they would have all kowtowed and worshipped it. But more than this, if they find out that one of the sons of the Jade Emperor, His Divine Highness Rain God was walking among them, they would have died from shock. Some of them have not even seen a real immortal in their lifetime, forget a god. The party continued with dancing, eating, music, but Bai Hua didn¡¯t feel the presence of the unknown immortal nor the fake immortal who was the guest of the kingdom. On the other side, Dong Ran was all smiling but his frustrations were starting to show. Dong Lok was supposed to start feeling weak and ill. The blood poison was untraceable but effective. Before the night was over she was supposed to die. But she was still hale and hearty. He didn¡¯t want her alive before the next court session which was the day after the following day. His master had insisted that she needs to be gone before the next court session. He knew she was a thorn to his plans, and his master had predicted that she would be his great stumbling block if she was made to live longer. So, he decided to get rid of her that night. He couldn¡¯t wait for the poison to take effect. He excused himself and went off to prepare assassins to assassinate her. When the party was coming to an end, Dong Lok found out that her coachmen and guards were all drunk. So, the Crown Prince offered to send his guards to take her home, but she refused to trouble him. And so he requested Dong Chen to take the princess home saying he trusted him the most. And thus, Dong Chen, Bai Hua, and Dong Lok all got into one carriage and made their way to their homes. Unknown to them, there were assassins waiting for them on their way. The Crown Prince was quite happy and slept peacefully thinking that he could report the death of the princess to his master without raising any suspicions on himself. If the poison was not going to work then a knife can do the same job. Bai Hua was suspicious of the whole arrangement and sat waiting for his entertainment to finally begin that night. It was not a rainy season, but suddenly it started drizzling and fog started climbing up on the road. ¡°Wow, rain at this time of the year. This is a surprise.¡± ¡°Brother Chen, take this sign as a blessing. You will meet your future wife soon. I am sure this is a sign. Your hair won¡¯t be grey before your wedding. At last, you are saved,¡± Dong Lok giggled. Bai Hua smiled too. He was smiling at the joke and also because he had effectively paralyzed the spiritual powers of the assassins who lay in hiding. They were cultivators who seemed to have higher spiritual powers than Dong Chen and his guards. Without Bai Hua, they would have surely accomplished their mission. But not tonight. Then their carriage was attacked. The assassins thought that the fog was aiding them by covering their movements. And they thank the gods for this blessing; little did they know that it was actually a curse. Sounds of metal clashing in the air was heard. "Ah, another entertainment seems to have been planned for us." Dong Chen turned to his sister and Bai Hua, and said, " Stay inside the carriage, I''ll go out and see what''s going on. Do not come out unless I tell you otherwise." Then he jumped off the carriage and rushed towards the assailants. But Bai Hua disobeyed his friend''s words and turned to the Princess before going out and said, " You can watch if you like," (it''s an entertainment planned for you after all, he said inwardly). Shouts of shock and desperation were heard one after another. The assassins had finally realised some anomalies with their powers. Cup 18: Who Says I Cant Fight? Figures were moving about in the fog. It was clear that the assassins were being overpowered gradually by Prince Chen and his guards. "Something is wrong, Captain!!" screamed one of the assassins as he was cut down by a guard. "Retreat!" commanded someone from the shadows who seemed to have been the so-called "captain" of this group of assassins. Without their spiritual powers, eventhough they had higher cultivation and experience, they were being pushed to their limits. "Don''t let anyone of them escape!" ordered Dong Chen. "Yes, Your Highness!" came the unanimous response from his guards. Dong Lok removed one of the arrows that had lodged through the carriage and peeked through its hole to see what was going outside. But she couldn''t see anything with the fog and the darkness. She wanted to go out but she knew she would only be a burden to her brother and the others. So, she stayed inside the carriage with an anxious heart "Brother Hua, what are you doing outside? Stay inside the carriage!" panicked Dong Chen. "I am trying to help you," came the swift reply as Bai Hua effortlessly disarmed a nearby assassin and went to chase after the retreating assassins, and disappeared through the fog. He could have dealt with the assassins without even lifting a finger but he didn''t want others to know the extent of his powers. He had already raised doubts regarding his identity but he didn''t want the matter to blow out of proportion. Nobody can blame him if he helped them by showing a little fighting prowess. And the fog and the little drizzle was also hiding his movements. He counted a total of twelve assassins. Three were down but the rest were retreating. He made the assassins lose their co-ordination and made them run towards Dong Chen and his guards while they thought they were retreating. He hadn''t killed anyone ever since he had descended in the mortal realm and so whenever he got close to an assassin, he sealed their movements hoping that the guards would take care of them. The "Captain" of the assassins was having the worst mission of his lifetime. Never had he come across a mission where he had lost his spiritual powers and was made to abandon a mission in such a fashion: a dog running away with its tail between its legs. And, quite honestly, he was a big dog among his peers. If he came out of this alive, his reputation was going to be in the mud. "Going somewhere without killing your prey," taunted a voice from in front of him. A man was standing lazily by a tree. He didn''t look like a fighter or a cultivator. He looked like more like a scholar. This should be easy, the assassin thought, and dashed towards the man intending to pierce his heart with his dagger-like-hands, but before he could execute his action, he felt a presence behind him and the person beside the tree had disappeared. He felt a touch and then he realized that he couldn''t move. " An ant shouldn''t hope to go against Mt. Tai," whispered Bai Hua as the assassin slowly crumbled to the ground. Bai Hua removed the fog and also stopped the drizzle. Dong Chen had made some of the guards stay behind to protect Dong Lok and had run after Bai Hua, but he did not see him even after the fog had cleared up. He was worried about Bai Hua because he had never seen him in combat or even exhibiting interest in fighting or cultivation. But just some time ago, he had single-handed disarmed an assassin that he was sure was more powerful than all of his guards and even him.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. When he finally found him, he saw that he was standing near an assassin that was lying face down on the ground. "Are you alright?" "I was pretty lucky, he didn''t put up much of a fight. I was able to seal his acupunctures before he could do anything to me." Yes, it was odd. The assassins were pretty easy to handle, Dong Chen thought. Even those that he had apprehended before were all easy to deal with. It was like they had lost all their power to fight and were all running helplessly. And the funny part was they were even running in the wrong direction. Only two assassins were caught alive including the one Bai Hua had captured. Others had committed suicide when they realized that they were going to fail. It was a good thing that Bai Hua was able to knock out one for questioning. the other one had bitten off his tongue. Dong Chen issued orders to his guards to clean up the mess and alert the imperial guards. They quickly escorted Dong Lok safely to her quarters and brought the two assassins back to Dong Chen''s manor for interrogation. Dong Chen decided not to ask anything to Bai Hua that night. He wanted to wait for common sense to help him during the day when he talks to him. The next morning news had spread all over the imperial city that Prince Dong Chen and Princess Dong Lok were attacked by assassins on their way home from a party given by the Crown Prince. Xia Sheng and Xia Feng came visiting Prince Chen''s Manor first thing in the morning. They hurried inside the manor to see if they were alright. The moment Xia Feng saw Prince Chen, he demanded, " Where is brother Hua, did anything happen to him? He was supposed to be with you last night. Even if other people don''t know, I know he was with you. Tell me he is fine." "Greetings, Young master of Xia, I am fine. I didn''t get killed last night and your brother Hua is fine. Thank you for your concern." replied a somewhat amused Prince Chen. Xia Feng flicked his younger brother''s ears and scolded him. "Apologize to his highness, just because you call him brother doesn''t mean you get to be impertinent with him." "Ah, brother Chen, who can even kill you. But brother Hua is just a musician. He does not know how to fight." moaned Xia Feng. "Who says I can''t fight?" said a voice that was approaching from another room. Bai Hua emerged looking fresh as Spring''s first spray of flower buds. He didn''t look hurt anywhere. Truthfully, he did not even look tired. Xia Feng blushed for acting like such a worried mother hen. "About that brother Hua, you must tell us today. I was quite surprised when you dashed off chasing the assassins last night. I was more afraid of Xiao Lok and Xiao Feng if anything had happened to you. You can see how Xiao Feng reacted just now. Your life is a priority." "Your highness, I won''t have dared to wander around if I didn''t have any trick up my sleeves. I know enough to survive," said Bai Hua sincerely. "But we can''t feel any spiritual power from you. Nor you look the type to fight. you look so fragile," cried Xia Feng. "Ah, so you missed last night''s party because you had a breakthrough in your cultivation, am I right?" smiled Bai Hua ignoring his rantings. "Wait, I was caught off guard when you rushed in like that. You really did have a breakthrough. That''s why you couldn''t come?" Prince Chen chimed in. "Brother Hua, how can you notice my breakthrough when I can''t feel any spiritual power from you? I don''t know you anymore." "I hide my cultivation with a sacred item not to get attention. You don''t need to be wary. I mean you no harm. I am just traveling around to see the world." "That means you''re a cultivator too and not just a musician?" "En," nodded Bai Hua. "Are you sure you''re not a spy sent by another kingdom?" questioned Xia Feng. "Xiao Feng, just earlier you were worried about his life and, now, you are accusing him of being a spy. Make up your mind," said a bemused Prince Chen, while also thinking the same lines along Xia Feng. But, he was there last night. He had witnessed how Bai Hua had helped them. And also there had been a nagging feeling ever since the previous night. He felt that Bai Hua had helped them more than he had could have seen. So, he was sure that he meant them no harm or bore any evil intention towards them. Xia Sheng didn''t know what was happening. Even he was surprised at this new development. A guard rushed in as they were bickering and reported, " Your Highness, The assassin still refuses to say anything even after we tried everything we could." "Let me get my hands on him. He tried to lay his filthy hands on my brother Hua ..... " "Ahem." "...and also brother Chen. I''ll make him talk with my two fists," promised Xia Feng, the youngest one in the room. "I''ll deal with him. Don''t give him food or water. Let''s see how long he can endure it," ordered Dong Chen.