Chapter Six

Jiang Xuanfeng watched his younger sister walk away, a wry smile tugging at his lips, only to accidentally meet Ziye's eyes. They exchanged a loaded glance, then shared a faint smile and a slight nod. Xuanfeng promptly averted his gaze and began scoping out a decent corner to plant himself in.

After a quick scan, he figured the secluded spot on the west side might as well have his name on it.

Ting Zhongtong had apparently been expecting him and rose early to greet him.

"Xuanfeng, well, well! You're actually early today. Finally figured out what shame means?" Zhongtong teased, slinging an arm around him and guiding him down among the others.

Once seated, Xuanfeng fully relaxed, casually flicking a spell to clean his cup. He chuckled. "I don't mind showing up late myself. Someone practically dragged me here."

"See, there you go overthinking things again." Qin Yao shot Zhongtong an amused look before getting up to pour wine for Xuanfeng.

Next to Qin Yao sat Qin Bing, his face clouded with displeasure. He didn't utter a single word when Xuanfeng arrived, just stewed silently by himself.

Xuanfeng wasn't bothered. He threw Zhongtong and the others a meaningful glance, finding the whole scene wildly entertaining.

Ting Zhongqi, who'd been deep in a story, hastily wrapped it up the moment he spotted Xuanfeng and bounded over. After greeting his elder brother, he threw his arms around Xuanfeng. "Xuanfeng, it's been ages! How've you been?"

"Me? I don't change much. But you—you've come back from your travels pretty loaded!" As he spoke, Xuanfeng's gaze locked onto the woven grass pouch at Zhongqi's waist, a flicker of light flashing in his eyes. A moment later, he shot Zhongqi a sly grin.

Zhongqi tensed up under that stare, instinctively shielding his pouch. But being naturally straightforward, he quickly caught on that Xuanfeng was just messing with him and had no real interest in his stash. He laughed heartily. "Of course! Though I didn't run into any legendary, world-shaking 'Path-Breakers' this trip, I did stumble into some major upheavals. Plenty of good stories to tell. I'll share them all with you properly when I get a chance in the next few days."

Jiang Xuanfeng nodded. "Good. I see your cultivation's come a long way too. We can discuss the Dao while we're at it."

"Xuanfeng, you're giving him too much credit. His techniques might've improved, but his temperament hasn't matured a bit. When he gets stubborn, he's still the same as ever."

"Brother, I just got back! When did you ever see me being stubborn? And hey, that spat with Qin Bing doesn't count—he totally had it coming." Zhongqi protested, indignant. Xuanfeng glanced at Qin Bing beside him and laughed. "Figured as much. There's always a reason things get turned upside down. You must've gone through quite the ordeal, bouncing around that hall like a show for everyone!"

"Hey, Xuanfeng! You make it sound like I was putting on a circus act."

That remark finally shattered everyone's composure, sparking an uproar of laughter. Ting Zhongtong wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and joked, "So you *do* realize you were acting like a performer just now."

Ting Zhongqi flushed with embarrassment and indignation. Just then, Qin Yao stood up, one hand clutching a wine jar and the other gripping Qin Bing's ear, his face dead serious.

Over in the west corner, Yushan had barely settled in when she caught frequent bursts of laughter from the east side. Her curiosity piqued. After getting Ah Ye's okay, the group decided to head over and see what the ruckus was about. Xiaoxue took the chance to fill her in on what she'd missed.

"You showed up late today, so you missed the earlier spectacle—that thrilling duel between Ah Bing and Zhongqi."

"Oh? Something that fun happened? Did they decide a winner?" Yushan's interest sparked instantly. Her eyes gleaming, she clung tightly to Xiaoxue's arm, determined to hear every detail.

Xiaoxue covered her mouth with a chuckle and shook her head. "Not so easy to pick a winner. You know Ah Bing's nature better than anyone—if he's losing, he'll slip away faster than anyone else. Who could ever catch him?"

Yushan planted her hands on her hips and nodded firmly. "True, that's just how he is. But the fact that Zhongqi even agreed to this... If it were me, I'd tear the world apart to catch him."

"Of course that wouldn't fly." Ziye suddenly chimed in. Her eyes shimmered, and a faint mist seemed to drift from them. Yushan gently waved a hand to clear the haze—and found herself peering into the past events.

There was Zhongqi, sword in hand, landing right behind Ah Bing. The two of them twisted and turned wildly within the room's confines, sleeves floating like passing clouds—windless and soundless.

It was clear Zhongqi had pushed his speed to the absolute limit, far surpassing his usual pace. Yet that one step between him and Ah Bing stayed forever just out of reach. No matter how he cycled his spiritual energy or cast his spells, the moment he brushed against Ah Bing's sleeve, everything would snap back to stillness.

Yushan slowly began to grasp the true brilliance of this commotion. Everyone had underestimated just how shameless Qin Bing could be. Not only did he flee, but he also refused to admit defeat out loud, keeping Zhongqi perpetually dangling with the illusion of capture—only to shapeshift away at the critical moment.

Though Yushan knew him well, even she hadn't realized his illusion arts had reached such a masterful level—unpredictable and nearly impossible to see through. While Zhongqi's illusions were on par, he had lost the upper hand.

Everyone watched as Qin Bing merged into a landscape painting on a porcelain vase. Zhongqi followed, transforming into a falling leaf that drifted into the scene, but search as he might, he found no trace. Soon losing patience, Zhongqi summoned a violent wind into the vase, overturning everything inside.

That was when they noticed a single droplet drifting out from the waves, scattering into white mist that soared upward. In an instant, it slipped into the rafters. By the time Zhongqi realized he had escaped, the man had vanished once more.

"Hahaha!" Jiang Yushan doubled over with laughter. Seeing this, Ziye waved her hand, dispersing the vision and returning them to reality.

"Sis, after Ah Bing toyed with Zhongqi like that, didn't his elder brother punish him?"

"Isn't that exactly why he's sitting there so obediently right now?" Ziye smiled, glancing toward the aggrieved Qin Bing.

"No wonder! I thought something seemed off today. Come on, let's go—there's bound to be more excitement!" With that, Yushan tugged Xiaoxue and Ziye along, pushing through the crowd of onlookers and forcing her way to the front row.

Ziye found herself reluctantly pulled to the front, where she happened to lock eyes with Jiang Xuanfeng, who stood by watching with folded arms. Seeing his expression of one waiting for the show to begin, Ziye shook her head with a sigh, unable to help but remark that this pair of siblings, always eager for chaos, never failed to stir up trouble.

Just as Qin Yao pulled Qin Bing to his feet, Zhongtong hurried over to stop him. "A Yao, let them sort out their own problems. Why must you intervene?"

Qin Yao shook his head in strong disagreement. "A Tong, this kid has been getting more and more unruly lately, causing trouble without any sense of bounds. Today, he has to learn his lesson. Ah Bing, apologize to Zhongqi right now."

Qin Bing's face twisted with discomfort as he reluctantly walked up to Zhongqi, cupping his hands in a perfunctory salute.

Zhongqi turned his head away, his neck stiff with refusal to acknowledge him.

Jiang Xuanfeng grabbed a handful of melon seeds from the table and cracked them open with evident delight, pointing at the two. "That's way too insincere."

Qin Bing stared at him in disbelief, then caught sight of Qin Yao forming a hand seal. Frustrated and irritated, he yanked Zhongqi around until they were face to face. Through gritted teeth, he ground out each word: "I was wrong. Please forgive me."

"Not quite, Ah Bing. You didn't even say what you were wrong about." Jiang Xuanfeng fanned the flames again. Qin Bing was so angry he was huffing and puffing, pointing at him but not daring to speak his rage.

Zhongqi, however, felt Xuanfeng had a point and nodded in agreement. He took a step back, watching coldly. With his elder brother pressuring him from the side, Qin Bing had no choice. All his bluster deflated, his head drooped, and he said again, "I, Qin Bing, promise today that I will never use illusion arts to play tricks on others again. Is that acceptable?"

Hearing this, Zhongqi's expression softened slightly, but he still held a grudge over their earlier fight.

"Our battle today isn't over yet."

"Not over?" Qin Bing grew anxious at this, pointing at Zhongqi and raising his voice. "Come on, Ting Zhongqi, is it really that serious? Is winning or losing that important?"

"Hey, Qin Bing, that's not right. If it's not important, why did you run?" Before Zhongqi could react, Xiaoxue spoke up first in support, earning agreement from the others.

"Exactly. If winning or losing isn't important, why were you unwilling to face the fight head-on just now?"

...

Seeing himself about to be universally condemned, Qin Bing broke out in a nervous sweat. "No, no, no, that's not what I meant! I mean, the method of fleeing should also count as part of winning and losing, right? If he didn't even get a chance to strike, then naturally it counts as my victory!"

"Ha! How can you be so shameless~" This time, even Yushan couldn't stand it anymore.