2 Wave King. (2/2)
After leaving the lecture hall, Li Yang headed in the opposite direction of Great Carp Cliff, moving along the buildings and hallways that made up Wave King Hall as he headed for his home. He stopped by the closest cherry tree and broke off a thin piece of wood, placing it between his lips and softly chewing it while walking, changing his whistling to a quiet humming.
A large number of smaller buildings that people could live in were spread out between the larger hallways and buildings that made up the Wave King Hall. The larger buildings also contained places where people could live, but there were some that preferred an extra touch of peace and the cosiness that a standalone house provided so the sect made sure to have plenty such houses available. Li Yang was one such person, but his house was located a fair bit of distance away from the third lecture hall so he had to take two small spatial arrays to reach his home.
Arrays were special things that could be drawn up using the blood of either cultivators or Demonic beasts, monsters that could absorb Qi to grow just like a cultivator would. The blood was mixed with other ingredients and Qi and then used to draw images consisting of countless lines and runes that would gather together to allow the array to produce an effect once it was provided with energy. And spatial arrays were among the highest form of arrays, they could bend and fold space, teleporting people across vast distances if provided with enough energy.
The spatial arrays were maintained by the sect and were free for the disciples to use so Li Yang didn't have to pay anything and quickly reached his house. But as he arrived by the rectangular one-story building, he saw a slightly scarred and weathered man with crimson eyes and needle-like light-brown hair sitting on the terrace extending around the door. The two men noticed each other straight away, the scarred man standing up with a straight expression while Li Yang politely cupped his hands.
”It has been a while, Elder Brother Voyun. I see that you've gotten more scars, is it perhaps about time for you to tell your wife that you need to calm things down a little in the bedroom? If she is going to scar you like that, how are you ever going to be able to look at your children without having them piss their pants in fear?”
Li Yang's tongue and manner remained the same as always, even when facing one of his elder brothers. Li Voyun didn't show much response to Li Yang's taunts, his expression only sank by a nearly imperceptible degree. He stopped in front of Li Yang and towered above him, reaching a little over two metres while Li Yang was only standing at around 1.70.
”I heard that you made a mockery of Sister Miu's class and even taunted the male disciples just to get a rise out of them? Father says it's high time for you to stop playing these childish games of yours and take things a bit more seriously, you'll never amount to anything if you follow down this path of yours.”
There was no greeting or exchange of pleasantries, Li Voyun simply went straight for the somewhat soft yet stoic scolding his father told him to deliver, his expression never once showing much emotion. Li Yang responded to Li Voyun's stoic expression by maintaining a slightly bland yet carefree smile and shrugging his shoulders.
”Take things more serious, and end up like you guys? No thanks, there's already too many serious people like you in the world, it's about time that it gets someone a bit more carefree in it.”
Li Voyun maintained his silence for a short while as he looked down at Li Yang, who matched his gaze and didn't falter, a carefree yet proud light swimming around in his pupils. Li Voyun broke the silence by swiping a leather bracelet he wore, a watermelon-sized wooden plaque appearing in his grasp. The bracelet was a type of interspatial treasure, an item that had been created by both a forging master to contain a small spatial pocket where you could freely put in or take out items after using your Qi to form a connection with it. He handed the wooden plaque, which was engraved with the words Third King, to Li Yang and spoke calmly.
”Father wishes to see you. Whether or not you can truly retain your carefree ways, I hope you'll show me the answer to that.”
Li Yang's expression grew a bit heavier as he accepted the plaque, which radiated a faint warmth. Li Voyun nodded his head to Li Yang and then started to walk away, having finished the task that he came for. Li Yang looked at the plaque for a bit and spat out a heavy breath, tracing the words engraved on the plaque.
The item lit up when Li Yang finished tracing the words, a constricting feeling coiling around his entire body as he was teleported away, the scenery around him twisting and warping. When the warping subsided and he regained control of his body, Li Yang found himself standing within a rather large room where the walls were completely lined with full bookshelves. The floor beneath him was covered in a light blue and soft furry carpet, a dark-brown wooden desk standing a few metres in front of him, various documents scattered across it.
And sitting behind the desk and peering over the documents was a tall and burly man with crimson eyes and flowing black hair that hung down past his nearly square chin, an oppressive sense of power radiating from his every pore. This man was Li Yang's father, the Wave King and the Third Elder of the Deepsea King sect, Li Tian. His father didn't even raise his head from the document he was reading, only giving Li Yang a quick glance before returning to his reading, his bass and deep voice nearly hitting Li Yang like a hammer.
”Li Yang, how long until your 15th birthday?”
Li Yang's lips twisted slightly at the expected scene, his father had lived for so long that he currently had seven wives and over 300 concubines. He had so many children that it wasn't strange for him to forget when all of them were born, even if that child came from one of his seven wives.
Li Yang was a bit resentful at how distant Li Tian was, but he did actually respect Li Tian a great deal, he served as one of the pillars of the Deepsea King sect and protected the lives of countless people. He had fearlessly wadded into battle on more than one occasion to protect not just the sect itself, but also just branch offshoots or smaller sects that had shown their loyalty. Li Yang cupped his hands respectfully and dipped into a fractal bow while giving an equally short response.
”Twelve days.”
Li Tian's pupils stopped moving for a split-second upon receiving the answer, seemingly making a few calculations or going through a few thoughts in his mind. He gave a short nod of his head after he organized his thoughts, placing down the document he was reading and fully placing his eyes on Li Yang, his gaze practically piercing into him.
”Good, I'll have the World-rending Behemoth sect bring over their younger disciples for the usual sparring matches at the same time. Once the sparring matches are over I will announce your betrothal to the 33rd daughter of their Second Elder, she will be your principal wife. We want to use this as an opportunity to bring the two sects closer to make it easier to resist the growing Heaven's Gate sect. We will deal with the betrothal and the announcement, but I'll leave the actual date of the wedding and how to deal with those who resist or are displeased with you acquiring her up to you. I'll also leave it up to you whether or not you want to take part in the sparring matches, I know you won't disappoint me.”