Chapter Nine: The Summer Family of Jiangbei

Jiang Yu walked out of Azure Sea and Clouds alone.

“At my peak, I once nurtured a breath of innate qi in my belly for five thousand years—enough to sever mountains and rivers. Tonight, I failed to kill even one person at the initial stage of Condensation, and nearly half my spiritual power has been drained.”

“I ought to find some time to stabilize my cultivation.”

The night breeze brushed past; Jiang Yu felt a coolness on his forehead—that was the cold sweat from before.

Strange.

Jiang Yu glanced around and found not a soul in sight. The group of wealthy youths who had been clinking glasses earlier—when had they all fled in panic?

He thought to himself that, after what happened, even if they couldn’t do anything to help, at the very least, they’d call the police for him. Then again, those kids, though perhaps unfamiliar with Li Hao’s full background, must have heard of his reputation through various channels.

They weren’t fools. Seeing things escalate and the lead wolf himself appear, who would still care for so-called brotherhood in a moment like that?

Jiang Yu did not hurry home. Instead, he strolled leisurely, hands clasped behind his back, taking in the night scenery as he slowly departed.

In his memory, it had been a long time since he’d taken such a peaceful walk. Back then, so focused was he on ascending to the immortal realm, he spent years in seclusion, never sparing a thought for mundane affairs.

Now, with his cultivation destroyed, at a critical moment, he had ruthlessly abandoned his physical vessel, using his primordial spirit to seize a new body. Concealing his existence to live anew, he no longer felt the restless impatience of the past.

As an ancient cultivator who had survived for over five thousand years, spanning dynasties and ages, Jiang Yu’s only obsession was to one day ascend to the heavens and become immortal.

He had lived so long that his memories sometimes blurred together; in truth, his age had already exceeded six thousand years.

He recalled the longest period he ever spent in seclusion: a thousand years.

When he last emerged, it was the early days of the great Qin dynasty.

The first emperor of a thousand ages, Qin Shihuang, was still a child. During that meeting, Jiang Yu had taken the young Ying Zheng to gaze at the moon from the heavens, to look down upon the world, leaving an indelible mark on the boy.

Afterwards, as the Qin dynasty flourished, Ying Zheng unified the written language and built the Great Wall, never forgetting the experience of his youth. In his later years, he built a fleet and sent Xu Fu in search of Jiang Yu, seeking the elixir of immortality.

Unfortunately, by then Jiang Yu had retreated once more into seclusion.

When he next appeared, it was already the Western Han era, and the one who had claimed the imperial title was Liu Bang, the founding emperor.

Pulling his thoughts back, Jiang Yu lit a cigarette and quickened his pace.

At the gate of the Jiang family estate, he paused in surprise.

Outside sat a graceful figure; in the darkness, her white dress was particularly striking.

Looking closely, he saw it was Jiang Ziyue, sitting alone at the door, arms wrapped around herself for warmth.

Jiang Yu approached and found she had fallen asleep. He shook his head with a faint smile. This girl, who often called him useless, did so not out of scorn but a disappointed hope that he would amount to more.

In her heart, as his elder sister, she still cared for him.

Of course, this was nothing more than an elder’s concern for a younger sibling—nothing more.

Jiang Yu was just about to take off his jacket when Jiang Ziyue stirred, opening her eyes. She looked at him in bewilderment, then her face lit with joy: “Jiang Yu, are you all right?”

Jiang Yu nodded with a smile. “I’m fine.”

Jiang Ziyue let out a long breath, finally letting go of the weight in her heart.

“If anything had happened to you, I wouldn’t know how to explain to your parents. Let me say it again: don’t risk yourself for so-called pride.”

“I just knew Brother Tiangang would find a way to get you out of there.”

Jiang Ziyue thought no further. Since Yuan Tiangang had stayed behind, he must have had some trump card. With Jiang Yu standing unharmed before her, it was clear Yuan Tiangang had succeeded.

That was the only explanation for what had occurred.

She did not know, however, that Yuan Tiangang’s so-called trump card was merely the power of someone at the initial stage of Condensation. The lead wolf had crushed it utterly in just two minutes.

Jiang Yu would not explain this to Jiang Ziyue—such matters were beyond her experience and understanding.

He reached out to help her up. “Go and get some rest.”

Jiang Ziyue’s face showed her annoyance. “Jiang Yu, remember this: the one who sticks his neck out is the one who gets shot. Without strength, don’t do things that are pointless. I waited for you because you stayed behind for my sake.”

With that, Jiang Ziyue walked alone into the Jiang family estate.

She was a proud person, never liking to owe anyone a debt.

Soon, Jiang Yu returned to his room, closed the doors and windows, and focused on cultivating the Formless Heavenly Scripture.

...

Early the next morning, Jiang Yu opened his eyes; faint golden light flickered around his pupils.

“Though my cultivation is gone, I have nearly six thousand years of experience, and unique insights into the Formless Heavenly Scripture. With the aid of heavenly treasures, it won’t take a hundred years to regain my peak.”

Jiang Yu washed and dressed, feeling refreshed.

After a simple breakfast in the kitchen, he set off for school.

Now that he was no longer an immortal, he couldn’t sustain himself on wind and dew.

Jiang Yu, Jiang Ziyue, and Jiang Shaoqi were all descendants of the Jiang family. Due to long-standing disputes among their elders, the younger generation was affected; though they lived under the same roof, most of the time each kept to themselves.

At school, luxury cars streamed into the lot—vehicles provided by students’ parents.

As soon as he entered the classroom, a sharp voice pierced the air: “Jiang Yu, you’re actually fine?”

It was Sun Wanyue who spoke.

Surprised to see Jiang Yu, she quickly turned to a cold sneer.

Everyone had expected that, even if Jiang Yu survived last night, he’d be broken and battered.

Now, seeing him whole and unharmed, those who had attended the gathering were left with a huge question mark.

Jiang Yu felt neither joy nor sorrow toward Sun Wanyue. For one who had lived thousands of years to fuss over a teenager—wouldn’t that be laughable?

If he really wished, he could crush her with a flick of his hand.

Jiang Shaoqi looked Jiang Yu up and down and laughed, “Just dumb luck. Probably someone like the lead wolf didn’t want to stoop to a child’s level.”

“Forget it, we shouldn’t have brought him last night. If he hadn’t been so reckless and provoked the lead wolf, none of this would’ve happened.”

A few people whispered among themselves.

Jiang Yu found it amusing. Last night, when facing the lead wolf, weren’t these the very ones left trembling in fear?

Unmoved by the gossip, Jiang Ziyue, sitting in the front, appeared not to hear.

Jiang Shaoqi shook his head, changing the subject. “Ziyue, how do you think you did on yesterday’s third mock exam?”

The class perked up to listen.

Jiang Ziyue was one of the school’s prodigies, recipient of endless scholarships. Last year, she achieved the second-highest score in Cloud City, missing the provincial top spot by only three points.

After a pause, she didn’t state her score directly, instead saying, “I believe I lost a total of twenty-eight points on the questions I got wrong.”

The class erupted in amazement.

Such an answer was as good as confirming her score.

Subtracting the twenty-eight points from the total, her results were clear.

“Leaving that monster aside, second and third place this time are surely Ziyue and Shaoqi, those two genius siblings.”

Listening to the envious tones, Jiang Shaoqi lifted his chin and smiled without a word.

Truth be told, among the younger generation in all of China, few could match such an outstanding record—Jiang Shaoqi had every reason to be proud.

He smiled broadly. When had his scores ever dropped out of the top five in Cloud City?

A genius must command respect, or how could outsiders speak highly of them?

“Still, no matter how outstanding we are, we’re always overshadowed by that monster.”

Jiang Ziyue’s bright eyes dimmed a little.

Jiang Yu, curious, asked his desk mate, “Who is this ‘monster’ they keep talking about?”

As a student who kept to himself, Jiang Yu and a few other old hands were seated in the last row.

The boy beside him grinned. “You don’t know? The school’s number one beauty—Xia Qinghan, a true prodigy. She’s the cold little fairy of our hearts, nearly perfect scores every exam. I hear Oxford, MIT, even Harvard have all reached out to her privately.”

“But she’s got a unique personality, values martial prowess, and her family are martial artists. They own dojos nationwide, with branches in the military, government, and business. For those top universities, she turned them down without a second thought.”

“Oh? So she’s from the Xia family?”

The boy gave Jiang Yu a curious look. “You know about the Xias too?”

Jiang Yu chuckled, “Who in Jiangbei hasn’t heard of the Xia family? Their assets are in the tens, maybe hundreds of billions, industries everywhere. Pull anyone off the street and they’ll know the name.”