35 The Hidden Sec (2/2)
”Trust me.”
”...”
”Please?”
He only got the barest of nods before they took to the air. Liu Sumeng didn't want it to be awkward between them but Yuan Xuelan was reluctant to talk. So he had no choice but to wallow in silence until they reached the Hidden Mist Manor in the late afternoon.
The Hidden Mist, true to its name was indeed hidden. Tucked away in the midst of a dense, spiritual energy-rich forest with layers upon layers of concealment barriers, the Hidden Mist Manor remained mysterious. The entrance was even behind a waterfall. Liu Sumeng had never stepped foot inside in this life and had only encountered the current sect leader, Peng Zhugen outside the confines of Hidden Mist territory.
Luckily, Yuan Xuelan was more than familiar with the ins and outs of Hidden Mist, and lead Liu Sumeng through a labyrinth of barriers and to the lustrous veil of running water that crashed into a crystal pool. The surrounding thicket and canopy were packed so dense around the pool that the only way in was to follow the running water, filled with mystical beasts. Even in the chill of winter, the water flowed, unperturbed by the cold. The branches, stripped of its foliage were like twisting barbs, blanketed with a sheet of sparkling white snow.
The wind hummed to their arrival with the sound of a rushing waterfall, a silver fishtail, as tall as Liu Sumeng, poked out of the river before disappearing. But none spoke signs of a busting sect manor nearby.
Yuan Xuelan lead him down a cliffside, hopping onto a tiny path that could easily be mistaken as part of the natural formation of stone. Freshwater sprayed them, chilled from winter. It smelt of wild mint, fresh and cold. Yuan Xuelan stopped by a stone wall before taking out a wooden pass and performed a set of hand seals. Liu Sumeng could feel a wave of spiritual energy dispersing.
”Let's go,” he shouted past the roar of the waterfall before stepping past the illusion. A wide cavern opened up, its rocky walls curling around the Hidden Mist Manor like a protective cocoon. Spirit lights danced in the air, glowing blue and yellow, keeping the darkness at bay.
With the sound of rushing water behind them, they made their way in.
A young man waved at them from the entrance, dressed in silver and purple. His smile was boyish but there was darkness under his eyes. ”A-Zhang!” he called, a soft voice straining to be loud.
”Hey,” Yuan Xuelan grinned and pulled the other boy into a brotherly embrace. Peng Jipei was a year older than Yuan Xuelan but it was hard to tell with his short stature and delicate frame. Even if he dressed as a girl, no one would be able to tell the difference for Peng Jipei had wide double-lidded eyes with fanning lashes. His lips were small but full and always bore a rosy tinge and his skin was flawless porcelain, smooth enough to make the fairest of maidens jealous. ”You better be taking care of yourself. Why haven't you grown?” Yuan Xuelan laughed, nudging Peng Jipei in the side.
The smaller boy grinned back and retaliated with a shove, ”I'm fine the way I am, don't you think?” He ran his fingers through lush silkie hair with not a single tangle. ”I'm still as pretty as always.”
Yuan Xuelan rolled his eyes but his mood was bright and he was used to Peng Jipei's antics, ”Well, your looks are fine, if only you'd be a little taller.”
Peng Jipei lifted his chin and dismissively waved his hands, ”If I were to be any taller and girls would be falling at my feet. How do you think I could deal with them? At least with men, I could just call them shameless and disgusting.”
Liu Sumeng never met Peng Jipei before he had fallen into madness and despair, but he decided that he didn't like the sane version of the man either. The Ivory Sword Saint wasn't entirely sure how Yuan Xuelan was able to so easily get along with him, but perhaps Liu Sumeng was biased. For his memories of Peng Jipei was one tainted with loathing, pity, and hatred. Even now, seeing his youthful smiling face, Liu Sumeng felt annoyance and distrust. He did his best to hold those feelings back.
”I think you're the one that's shameless, Peng-ge!” Yuan Xuelan teased, purposely leaning in a way that showed off his superior height. Peng Jipei grumbled and backed away from Yuan Xuelan's towering figure. It was only then he took notice of the silent and vigil Liu Sumeng.
”Who's this?”
Attention shifted towards Liu Sumeng, ”Oh, this is the Ivory Sword Saint from the Heavenly Sword Sect, I'm sure you heard of him,” Yuan Xuelan introduced, ”He's kind of…well. Just don't bully him too much, ok?”
Peng Jipei bowed, ”Oh yes, who hasn't? And only good things too: the Ivory Sword Saint who is peerless with the sword and as handsome as the sun is to a waxing moon. With you around, who would dare to challenge the might of Heavenly Sword Sect's future generation? How envious.”
Liu Sumeng almost bit his tongue from the amount of pointless flattery but still, he bowed with respect, ”It's a pleasure to finally meet you.”
Peng Jipei grinned, ”Surely, you've heard a lot about me too?”
He most certainly had. But who would want to ramble on about a man's peerless beauty? It neither felt appropriate nor becoming. And Peng Jipei, who was prodded and fished for compliments, was not very cute either. Liu Sumeng remained silent, annoyed.
Yuan Xuelan stepped in before his cousin could open his mouth again, ”Anyway, let's go greet your big brother first so we can do other things like grab some dinner. I'm pretty starved.”
”What? Oh! Wait, wait no,” Peng Jipei protested a little too fervently, ”Let's not! He's busy right now. Let's go see my mother, how's that? She misses you, A-Zhang.” Peng Jipei shuffled his feet, his smile turned strained at the mention of his mother.
Yuan Xuelan pulled his lips tight but nodded, ”Right, okay, let's go see Auntie.”