Chapter 748: Unexpected, hidden depths Original and most updated translations are from volare. If read elsewhere, this chapter has been stolen. Please stop supporting theft. (1/2)
Who was he?
Everyone was curious to know. If Cang Qiuzi wasn’t unconscious, he would be stunned, because this was none other than his eldest disciple He Yilian! He had been recommended to Celestial Mountain when he was only five years old by the old and illustrious He Clan of the jianghu. Thanks to his good family background and rare innate gifts, Cang Qiuzi took him personally under his wing. Cang Qiuzi had accepted countless other disciples to Lockheart Courtyard before him, but He Yilian was the first one he’d actually acknowledged. Thus, the eldest martial brother of Lockheart Courtyard was him.
He Yilian was a temperate man with a very good temper. He got along with others, was refined and cultivated, and extremely modest. He was a handsome and well known gentleman in Celestial Mountain and his martial arts skills were considered outstanding amongst the two Depositories and Courtyards.
Even so, he couldn’t defeat Long Feiye!
Even if Long Feiye hadn’t cultivated for a month or lacked the Lustbite Seal’s power and the sword sect master’s Nirvana Heart Arts, He Yilian was still outmatched. At most, his inner energy had only reached level five! But the rules of the ranking matches stated that anyone who set foot upon its stage had to fight. What was He Yilian doing here? Seeking death?
Amidst the shock of the crowd, He Yilian sighed lightly and clasped his hands in a bow. “Your Highness Duke of Qin, this one is He Yilian, Lockheart Courtyard’s eldest martial brother. Please grant me instruction.”
Cang Xiaoying held Cang Qiuzi as she cried, “Eldest martial brother, get off there! Are you insane?”
“Junior sister, though senior brother’s skills may be lacking, I must fight for master’s sake. How could he, as Celestial Mountain’s head elder, suffer such humiliation?” As he spoke, he turned to face the rest of the Lockheart Courtyard disciples. “Master might have fallen, but our Lockheart Courtyard has not. And it never will, isn’t that right!”
Immediately, someone spoke up from the throng. “That’s right! Eldest martial brother, good on you!”
With that, more voices of support rose to join the first, stirring the crowd with righteous indignation until it seemed like Long Feiye was the one who bullied Cang Qiuzi and his Lockheart Courtyard.
“Eldest martial brother, you’re great. Even if you fall, there’s still the rest of us! We’ll join right after you!”
“Eldest martial brother, even if you lose against a high ranked expert like Long Feiye, it’s still honorable! You’re much greater than him!”
“Hehe, I never thought His Highness Duke of Qin improved so markedly in his martial arts. Even master wasn’t his match! Eldest martial brother, you’re a fifth rank against an eighth rank. You’re the pride of our Lockheart Courtyard! In our hearts, you’re much stronger than the Duke of Qin!”
These words ignited Han Yunxi’s temper again and again. They’re absolutely shameless!
No wonder they were all Cang Qiuzi’s disciples. All of them were the same: contentious hypocrites! Their words made one sick at heart. It wasn’t Long Feiye who went to challenge the Lockheart Courtyard’s doors or suppress the weak with the strong. This was a ranking match where anyone who wanted to could join in! Here was a competition between strong contenders. For a weakling like He Yilian to avenge his master here while asking for instruction was commendable. But they’d hardly started fighting before he was laying out their differences. It made it seem like Long Feiye had done something against them, or that the man had to yield him a few moves or else be seen as a bully, or that Long Feiye’s victory here would be an unfair advantage.
How disgusting.
Long Feiye looked coldly at He Yilian, his voice like ice. “Granny You, your lordship’s match with Cang Qiuzi isn’t over yet. Where did this man come from?”
All sound ceased at his words. The Lockheart Courtyard disciples were staring gap-faced, afraid to make a peep. Cang Qiuzi was already kicked offstage while unconscious. Could it be…could it be that Long Feiye was determined to kill the man?
Granny You immediately rose to her feet. “Someone come, apprehend He Yilian for interfering with the ranking matches. He’ll await trial later!”
Abruptly, Cang Xiaoying cried out. “My father admits defeat! My father admits he’s lost, that Lockheart Courtyard’s lost…sobsob…”
Cang Xiaoying wasn’t clear on the shared history of plots between her father and his eldest disciple, but she knew the sect elder would definitely find Cang Qiuzi for revenge once he lost. There was his dealings with Grand Concubine Yi, with Duanmu Yao, and all of the illegal gains he’d done in his position. None of them could be covered up now. Thus, nothing could happen to eldest martial brother, either. With him here, Lockheart Courtyard would at least have a successor to lead them. If he died, what was she supposed to do? She had used her father’s position to gain advantages of her own to control much of Celestial Mountain’s industries and business. But she didn’t know anything about managing Lockheart Courtyard or its particulars!
“Long Feiye, my father admits defeat! Cang Qiuzi lost, your fight has ended!” Cang Xiaoying proclaimed loudly.
Long Feiye remained expressionless, so Cang Xiaoying shouted, “He Yilian, you get off there! Lockheart Courtyard’s already acknowledged defeat, get down!” She set Cang Qiuzi to one side and rushed to Granny You. “Auntir You, according to the rules of the ranking matches, the fight ends as soon as one side admits defeat! My father has lost! I’m his daughter, I can represent him to accept his loss.”
Her sincere desire to withdraw soothed the nerves of many unhappy members in the crowd, especially Han Yunxi. This bunch of Lockheart Courtyard people are simply seeking out their own humiliation.