Chapter 5: The Fourth Day After Transmigrating Into a Book

No matter how many thoughts ran through Chu Wuyue’s mind, or how much he fretted over what might happen next, from Qin Feiyuan’s perspective, things had gone like this…

Qin Feiyuan’s memories stopped at the moment the rich young master dug up the old beggar’s grave. The young master’s men had grabbed him by the arms, and he’d fought with all his might.

He had no idea how he’d made it back to Yucheng. All he knew was that when he came to, he was in this alley, with the corpse of a burly man at his feet—a local thug who often bullied and beat him.

Qin Feiyuan’s hands were shaking, but not because he was afraid. For some reason, he felt a strange rush of excitement. He was trying to figure out what to do with the body when he heard a faint sound from outside the alley.

He hurriedly hid behind a stack of bamboo baskets. Through the narrow gaps, he saw a figure in white appear at the mouth of the alley. The man walked with a cool brow and a detached gaze, like an immortal descended from the heavens.

Qin Feiyuan lost focus for a moment and accidentally kicked one of the baskets. The immortal turned to look. Qin Feiyuan held his breath, hoping the man would see him and afraid he would see him at the same time.

But the immortal merely flicked his sleeve, sending every basket the shopkeeper had so carefully stacked crashing to the ground. With them gone, Qin Feiyuan had nowhere left to hide.

He could only shrink farther back, afraid his wretched appearance would offend the immortal’s eyes.

But the immortal didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he slowly approached, looked down at him, and offered a faint smile as he held out his hand.

“Would you come with me?”

The clouds parted, revealing a patch of sky. Sunlight fell across the street behind Chu Wuyue, making him look to Qin Feiyuan like a god descending from the heavens.

Even so, Qin Feiyuan’s mind remained remarkably clear. He looked up at Chu Wuyue. “Why did you choose me?”

“Yucheng has been slaughtered by the Devil Race. It may not be safe for you to stay here. If you’re willing, you can come to Fengyun Sect and cultivate,” Chu Wuyue said.

Qin Feiyuan gazed at the immortal’s face, and for a moment his eyes went distant. This was their first meeting, yet that face seemed so familiar…as though he had seen it somewhere before.

Only back then, the immortal’s expression hadn’t been so gentle.

That face should have been cold, scornful, hateful, and impatient. His eyes should have been icy, too.

Not as they were now: cool and distant on the surface, but patient and gentle, with clear eyes that held no judgment, only a trace of compassion.

By the time Qin Feiyuan came to his senses, he had somehow placed his filthy hand in the immortal’s pale, slender palm.

Chu Wuyue didn’t give Qin Feiyuan time to change his mind. He closed his hand around the boy’s and summoned Frost Descent, which hovered in the air.

He took Qin Feiyuan’s hand and leaped onto the sword. But Qin Feiyuan had spent the first fourteen years of his life as an ordinary mortal. Flying on a sword might frighten him, and the OOC restrictions meant Chu Wuyue couldn’t do much to reassure him.

All he could do was murmur, “Don’t be afraid.”

Then he looked straight ahead, channeled his spiritual energy, and sped toward Fengyun Sect.

Chu Wuyue didn’t notice that Qin Feiyuan showed no sign of fear—neither in his eyes nor on his face.

Standing behind Chu Wuyue, Qin Feiyuan stared down at their joined hands. Chu Wuyue’s hand was long, pale, and clean. Compared to his own filthy, mud-streaked paw, it was like something from another world.

A faint trace of confusion crossed Qin Feiyuan’s brow. He looked up at Chu Wuyue. His pupils were black, and his expression was cold. For a fleeting moment, a blood-red glint appeared in his eyes, as if to betray the truth of Qin Feiyuan’s identity as a devil. Then it vanished.

The coldness in Qin Feiyuan’s gaze gradually gave way to confusion. He looked around, finally coming to himself. He was standing thousands of feet in the air, carried by the immortal as they flew on a sword.

Clouds streamed past them. Mountains and rivers blurred below. Chu Wuyue had summoned a thin protective barrier with a hand seal, so Qin Feiyuan wasn’t buffeted by the wind.

Even so, Qin Feiyuan instinctively moved closer to Chu Wuyue and clung tightly to his arm. His little face went pale. He pressed his lips together, lowered his head, and squeezed his eyes shut.

Chu Wuyue noticed the many new injuries on Qin Feiyuan. He wasn’t very good at treating wounds, so once they returned to Fengyun Sect, he took the boy to Chongluo Peak.

The five elders of Fengyun Sect each had several duties. Elder Ciwei of Chongluo Peak was in charge of making medicine and refining pills.

Although Elder Ciwei’s title sounded old, his looks didn’t. He wasn’t young, either, and a few wrinkles lined his face, but he still looked like he must have been handsome in his youth.

When Chu Wuyue descended from the sky with Qin Feiyuan, Zong Yuanjiu was drinking on a lounge chair in the middle of the courtyard. The moment he saw Chu Wuyue, he was so startled he rolled right off the chair. He scrambled to his feet and hurriedly bowed.

“G-Grand Martial Ancestor, greetings.”

Zong Yuanjiu cautiously looked up and noticed Chu Wuyue’s gaze had fallen on the wine flask resting on the small table behind him.

Zong Yuanjiu: “…”

Oh no. The Grand Martial Ancestor seems to dislike the smell of wine.

He shifted slightly to block the flask and smiled obsequiously. “What brings you to Chongluo Peak today, Grand Martial Ancestor?”

Disappointed that he could no longer see the flask, Chu Wuyue reluctantly looked away. The wine smelled pretty good…he wanted to try it.

He held out his hand to Zong Yuanjiu. “Two bottles of Qi-Replenishing Pills.”

“Are you injured, Grand Martial Ancestor?” Zong Yuanjiu asked. He fished two porcelain bottles from his storage pouch and handed them over. “With your cultivation, Qi-Replenishing Pills shouldn’t do much for you.”

“It’s not for me.” Chu Wuyue turned slightly, revealing Qin Feiyuan, who was clinging tightly to his sleeve. “It’s for him.”

Zong Yuanjiu saw the bruises on Qin Feiyuan’s exposed elbow, the handprint and scrapes on his face, and his dusty, miserable appearance. He looked shocked. “Who could have been so cruel to him?”

As the author of the original book, Chu Wuyue felt guilty. He knew exactly what had happened: the rich young master in Yucheng had tormented the boy. But in his current role, he couldn’t know that.

So Chu Wuyue gave a cool shake of his head. “I don’t know.”

Zong Yuanjiu didn’t press him. He narrowed his eyes and carefully looked Qin Feiyuan up and down, then turned to Chu Wuyue with a frown.

“Grand Martial Ancestor, the child only has external injuries, but they’re quite serious. He has no cultivation, so he can’t take Qi-Replenishing Pills.”

Chu Wuyue had only been able to think of the pills because of what he remembered from the original book. He asked Zong Yuanjiu, “Then how should I treat him?”

“Only the Sect Leader has studied mortal medicine. You may have to ask him to examine the child…”

Zong Yuanjiu glanced at Qin Feiyuan, standing beside Chu Wuyue, and wondered to himself: The boy looks like an ordinary mortal. What has he done to earn the Grand Martial Ancestor’s favor? The child has even dirtied his sleeve, and he isn’t angry.

He recalled the day he’d stepped into the great hall on Bihuai Mountain wearing a pair of mud-caked boots. In the blink of an eye, the Grand Martial Ancestor had swept him straight back down the mountain. He’d been forbidden from setting foot on Bihuai Mountain for three years, and he still regretted it.

Zong Yuanjiu looked at Qin Feiyuan’s small, delicate frame and began to entertain a bold idea.

Could the Grand Martial Ancestor be planning to take him as a disciple?

But before Zong Yuanjiu could ask, Chu Wuyue had taken Qin Feiyuan’s hand again and soared away from Chongluo Peak. They were heading for Yanzheng Peak, where the Sect Leader lived.

Zong Yuanjiu’s attempt to call after them was left behind.

On the way, Chu Wuyue took a moment to explain things to Qin Feiyuan. “The man you just saw was Elder Ciwei, one of Fengyun Sect’s five elders. He’s in charge of refining pills. If you cultivate here, you’ll have plenty of reasons to visit him for medicine.”

Qin Feiyuan clung tightly to Chu Wuyue’s sleeve, his eyes fixed on the immortal’s robes billowing in the wind. He didn’t dare look down at the clouds and mountains below. He only gave a quiet nod.

In the wind, Qin Feiyuan cautiously looked up at half of Chu Wuyue’s face, as impassive as a god’s. The immortal’s voice was cool and distant, with not a hint of friendliness, but for some reason Qin Feiyuan felt as if he were being looked after.

A short while later, Chu Wuyue brought Qin Feiyuan down in front of the main hall on Yanzheng Peak.

Inside, Yin Shiyan wore his usual green robes and sat on his knees before a low table, brewing tea. When Chu Wuyue landed outside the hall, Yin Shiyan slowly rose and came forward to greet him.

Once Chu Wuyue entered, Yin Shiyan bowed his head. “You’ve gone to a great deal of trouble, Grand Martial Ancestor.”

He glanced at Qin Feiyuan, who was gripping Chu Wuyue’s sleeve, and noticed the two muddy handprints on it. Somewhat puzzled, he asked gently, “Grand Martial Ancestor, who is this?”

Chu Wuyue gave Qin Feiyuan a casual push between the shoulder blades, sending him in front of Yin Shiyan. “We can talk later. He’s injured. Take a look at him first.”

Yin Shiyan would never dare disobey the Grand Martial Ancestor. He bowed his head. “Understood.” Then he turned to Qin Feiyuan and spoke gently. “Come along.”

Yin Shiyan had already walked a few steps, but Qin Feiyuan hesitated in place. He turned to Chu Wuyue and looked at him with a dependent, uncertain expression, as if he needed reassurance.

Chu Wuyue: “…”

He’d picked up the male lead himself. No matter how hard the main storyline got, he’d have to see it through. No matter how ruthless Qin Feiyuan might become in the future, for now he was just a fourteen-year-old boy in an unfamiliar place. He needed encouragement.

Chu Wuyue curved his lips into a faint smile and nodded at Qin Feiyuan. “Go on.”

Only then did Qin Feiyuan seem to relax. He turned around and hurried after Yin Shiyan, following him behind the screen inside the hall.

Chu Wuyue didn’t get involved in the treatment. He knew nothing about medicine, and he’d only get in the way. Instead, he sat beside the low table and began to arrange the teacups. Following Yin Shiyan’s earlier method, he settled down to brew tea.

The system, which hadn’t spoken for a long time, suddenly crackled like a dying fish.

[Host’s Persona OOC detected. 10 Virtue Points deducted. Current Virtue Points: 40.]

Chu Wuyue: “…” Brewing tea is out of character, too? Can’t Venerable Xuanji have a hobby? This is ridiculous.

[OOC violation detected: Venerable Xuanji dislikes being approached. The Host was too close to the male lead while flying. Since the Host did not initiate the contact, only 10 Virtue Points have been deducted as a lenient penalty.]

The Villain System’s reasoning was thorough and sound. For a moment, Chu Wuyue didn’t know what to say.

He had been softhearted. When Qin Feiyuan clung to his arm, he hadn’t pushed him away. He’d even worried that the boy might not be able to stand the strong wind while flying and had secretly raised a barrier to protect him.

The system hadn’t said anything at the time, so Chu Wuyue thought it wouldn’t deduct any Virtue Points. Who knew it would tally everything up afterward?

Even so, Chu Wuyue had to argue. The system couldn’t just deduct Virtue Points whenever it pleased.

“If you deducted points the moment I did something out of character, I’d make sure to tie the male lead to the hilt of my sword and dangle him there all the way back to Fengyun Sect. I wouldn’t touch him at all. This is your mistake. You failed to do your job and warn me when I was about to act out of character. Why should I lose Virtue Points for your incompetence?” Chu Wuyue said evenly.

[System…]

The system vanished without a trace.

“…”