Chapter 141
Mei Liangyu seemed to have briefly dreamed.
In the dream was the abyss sea during daytime, with waves crashing against cliff stone walls. The sound of impact made the boy standing by the sea turn around.
The boy saw that near the bottom of the cliff, a white-clothed man was speaking gently with people.
Those people he only came to know many years later.
Wenyang Zhi and Lady Linxiang whispered together, as if introducing the white-clothed man to her.
Grandmother Situ slightly raised her head, speaking with the white-clothed man. Her usually cold and stern expression in front of juniors now seemed somewhat relaxed.
Behind Grandmother Situ stood a spirit puppet that looked like a real person, with obvious joining cracks at the neck and wrists. The puppet's features resembled Grandmother Situ somewhat, but looked more like her deceased sister.
The spirit puppet kept its eyes closed, expression serene, silent and wordless.
Beside the spirit puppet was a wheelchair, with a crimson-clothed man resting his palm on the armrest, a sapphire ring on his finger gleaming brilliantly.
His age was similar to the white-clothed man's. He wasn't listening to what Grandmother Situ and the others were saying either, but stared at the spirit puppet, turning the gemstone on his finger, watching the refracted light and shadows flicker on the puppet's face.
The man smiled with narrowed eyes, his gaze full of patience, waiting for the spirit puppet to open its eyes and look at him.
In the distance, someone in a black cloak arrived late. After approaching, their gaze turned toward the two children standing by the sea.
Someone called the boy's name.
The boy turned around, blinked, and reflected in his clear, bright eyes was his elder brother, several years older than him.
The two brothers wore clothes of the same style, neat and noble, only differing in color: one black, one gold. The boy's collar had a circle of golden pattern decoration, while the elder brother's waist bore three to five black Divine Wood Signs.
The elder brother was a head taller than the boy, about eleven or twelve years old in appearance. Though young, he had the manner of a little adult. The elder brother had been steady and reliable from childhood, quiet in temperament, completely different from his younger brother's arrogance and conceit from childhood to now.
"Didn't Elder Sister tell you?" The elder brother's eyes indicated the sea ahead. "The red coral in Taiyi's sea is also called sea fire trees, very precious. They absorb the masterless energy from the sea, allowing themselves to glow and shine in the cold deep sea, with lustrous and full brilliance. Elder Sister said she wants us to dig up a few to take back. She wants to make coral bead strings for Mother."
The boy frowned, listening to his elder brother's serious explanation, boredly kicking at the sandy ground: "She wants to make coral bead strings for Mother, why doesn't she come to Taiyi to dig coral herself?"
The elder brother said: "Someone needs to stay home to keep Mother company."
The boy said: "I don't want to come to Taiyi either, let me keep her company."
The elder brother patted his shoulder: "Didn't you lose to Elder Sister? That's why you came."
The boy's face showed momentary ferocity, rolling his eyes with a cold snort.
"But we came to Taiyi secretly. How do we bring coral back from the sea?" The boy's eyes indicated for his elder brother to look behind them. "And there are so many people watching."
The elder brother scratched his head: "Looking at how well they get along with Father, they probably won't stop us from taking a few corals."
"Look at how chaotic the Five Elements energy on this sea is, it's not good to go down." After observing for a moment, the boy stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Why don't we let Father go?"
"Let me go where?" A man's low, gentle voice came from behind.
The boy and elder brother turned together, as the white-clothed man pressed their shoulders with his hands, pulling them toward his embrace, bending down close to whisper: "Shh, your plan to steal sea coral has been overheard by that black-clothed grandfather over there."
The elder brother's eyes widened slightly in surprise. The boy glanced at the black-cloaked man in the distance, not afraid at all, cooperatively lowering his voice: "How can he hear from so far away?"
The black cloak said in a deep voice: "Grandfather?"
The white-clothed man chuckled softly, rising to address the people behind: "I cannot, and have no right to represent all of Yan Kingdom in agreeing to your terms, nor do I plan to live in Taiyi."
Grandmother Situ asked: "Have you thought this through clearly?"
"This question doesn't require much thought." The white-clothed man said, "The Mechanism School was once enemies with the Six Kingdoms and still is today, but they should also know that Xuangu Continent cannot exist without the Mechanism School."
The man sitting in the wheelchair said leisurely: "Schools that disappeared in the flow of time are numerous, not few."
But the white-clothed man said: "If the Mechanism School disappears, then Xuangu Continent will also disappear."
The two children he protected in front of him blinked and looked up at their father.
The man was always gentle and agreeable, whether in demeanor or when talking and laughing. Even these words were spoken gently and softly, yet at this moment gave people an unquestionable forcefulness.
He meant what he said.
The black cloak said: "You have many troubles now. Yan Kingdom alone is enough to worry you, not to mention the Water Vessel situation..."
"I'll solve them one by one." The white-clothed man smiled. "You all needn't worry, and I hope you all won't interfere in Yan Kingdom's affairs."
Father's conversation with the four major Mechanism family leaders at that time was still somewhat obscure and difficult for those two children to understand.
The boy only stayed in Taiyi for one day.
When he woke up the next day, he was already back in Yan Kingdom.
He remembered diving underwater with his father and elder brother.
Before entering the water, Grandmother Situ said the abyss sea was chaotic and dangerous, and bringing children down might cause accidents. But the white-clothed man said letting children leave his sight was the most dangerous thing, so he insisted on taking the two brothers down.
The memories underwater gradually became blurry and intermittent, even his father's and elder brother's voices became distant and near.
In the boy's field of vision were densely packed red corals. When his elder brother and he were selecting red corals, they saw Six Mysterious Wood hidden beneath the corals, also vivid fire-red in color, like real and fake corals. The fuzzy tree branches looked rather cute underwater.
While the two were fiddling with the corals and Six Mysterious Wood, they noticed something strange about the water flow and turned back to look together:
There seemed to be a whirlpool at the seabed, sucking all the seawater toward the same place and making it fall, forming a huge circular pillar. The seawater looked incredibly thick and heavy to the naked eye, full of oppressive force.
The white-clothed man suspended in mid-air at the center of the sea whirlpool, golden protective energy burning around his body. He extended his hand, opened his five fingers, letting the faintly glowing thing in his palm fall toward the depths of the sea whirlpool.
It fell to the deep seabed, to a corner no one knew.
That familiar radiance made Mei Liangyu suddenly open his eyes.
The long memory took only a few moments for him to fully recall. Whether it was Silver River Water's toxin or Six Mysterious Wood's toxin that had invaded, his brain buzzed loudly.
At this moment, he was still in the sea whirlpool.
The seabed's suction pulled at the three of them. Zhongli Shan handed the unconscious Mei Liangyu to Xing Chun, drew his sword himself, and used Tai'e swordsmanship again, but still couldn't cut through the sea whirlpool.
Xing Chun pulled Mei Liangyu along, all three surrounded by golden protective energy to prevent being crushed directly into pulp by the sea whirlpool's suction.
Seeing Mei Liangyu awaken, before Xing Chun could feel happy, he was pulled down another large section by the sea whirlpool's suction. The chaotic Five Elements energy at the center of the sea whirlpool was violent and confused, even suppressing the three men's Five Elements energy, making it impossible for them to float upward.
Mei Liangyu also knew that no matter what, they couldn't float upward at this time and could only follow the sea whirlpool's suction. Going against the current would only make them die faster.
Seeing Xing Chun and Zhongli Shan's protective energy growing weaker, Mei Liangyu had no choice but to use Divine Mechanism Arts, making his protective energy unaffected by the Five Elements energy suppression in the sea. He chased after the swept-away Xing Chun and Zhongli Shan, pulled them to his side for protection, and together they were swept by the sea whirlpool to the deep seabed.
……
Outer City.
When discussing Xuankui and Lan Poison matters with Cao Yan, Yu Sui always appeared troubled, her brow slightly furrowed, expression distressed.
Yu Sui said: "Master is investigating Taiyi's Lan Poison incident, but I have to help cover it up... You know my Master is a Saint of the Ghost Way School, right? I really don't have confidence I can hide this from him."
Cao Yan's expression didn't change, only lowering his eyes respectfully: "The Prince's meaning is that the Princess is no longer the ordinary practitioner of before. Since she can learn Nine Schools Arts, she should begin taking over the Nangong family and do things she couldn't do before."
"What if I can't do it?" Yu Sui stared directly at Cao Yan.
Cao Yan said: "Then you'd have to ask the Prince."
He paused, then said: "Does the Princess want me to relay this to the Prince?"
Yu Sui shook her head, muttering quietly: "Even if I can't do it, I can't say so directly to Father."
Cao Yan pretended not to hear.
Yu Sui seemed troubled as she turned away, her gaze looking toward Nian Qiuyan and the other two in the distance.
Just now she had used Saint Chang Gen as an excuse, and Cao Yan's response was flawless, not revealing whether Master knew about Xuankui.
If he wouldn't reveal things related to Saint Chang Gen, what about Nian Qiuyan?
"Uncle Cao." Yu Sui stared in Nian Qiuyan's direction and asked, "Does Senior Brother Nian have connections with the Prince's manor?"
Cao Yan followed her words and also glanced at Nian Qiuyan's three, saying quietly: "He's with Xuankui, has no relationship with the Prince's manor."
"Senior Brother Nian is actually with Xuankui, you can't tell at all." Yu Sui propped her chin with one hand, continuing to ask: "So is he responsible for selling Lan Poison or making Lan Poison?"
Cao Yan answered: "The Nian family has been Lan Poison manufacturers for generations. There are many types of Lan Poison, and the Nian family excels most at the 'fragrance' category."
Yu Sui seemed to suddenly think of something, covering her mouth as she looked back at Cao Yan: "Then the Silver River Water lost by the academy couldn't be..."
Cao Yan said: "Nian Qiuyan informed me tonight of the Silver River Water's location. He hid it in the abyss sea of Mechanism Island, preserved with Six Mysterious Wood. Six Mysterious Wood has strong poison resistance, and the toxic down on its branches can completely lock the Silver River Water, so keeping it there is safest."
Since they knew the Silver River Water's location, the next step should be to retrieve it.
"So how long is Uncle Cao planning to stay at Taiyi, or will you take the Silver River Water out of Taiyi after Zhang Xiangyan and the others retrieve it?" Yu Sui asked.
Cao Yan said: "I leave tomorrow."
Yu Sui was somewhat surprised: "So soon?"
Cao Yan lowered his head without explanation.
Yu Sui asked puzzled: "Then who can take the Silver River Water out of Taiyi?"
Cao Yan said: "Zhang Xiangyan will find a way."
Yu Sui didn't return to Taiyi Academy that night, staying in the Outer City courtyard, chatting with Cao Yan until late into the night, discussing Taiyi matters, the Imperial Capital Prince's manor, and then Canhai Province.
After asking everything she wanted to know, she pretended to be tired and went to her room to rest.
Early the next morning, just as Yu Sui was drowsily about to fall asleep, Blackbeard came to notify her that Cao Yan was leaving, so she hurriedly got up to see him off.
Cao Yan stood at the Cloud Carriage Flying Dragon docking point, watching the young girl walking from the morning light. She stopped on shore and bowed her head in greeting to him, while he and several Nangong family practitioners cupped their hands and bowed in return to Yu Sui.
When departing, Cao Yan pondered that though the Princess had subtle changes after coming to Taiyi, they were hard to describe.
She seemed more composed than before.