Watching the Mountain

Xu Ran was filled with regret and couldn’t quite understand it. Flowing Clouds Master had only lost a leg. For someone at his Golden Core Stage Cultivation Realm, that shouldn’t have been a major issue. So why did he leave the Sect entirely?

It wasn’t until he bumped into the man here and saw his gaunt appearance that he realized the injuries were much more severe than he had imagined.

"Elder Flowing Clouds, what are you running for?"

Upon seeing Flowing Clouds Master, Xu Ran was about to go and greet him.

But to his surprise, the moment Flowing Clouds Master saw him, he turned and fled. Leaning on a crutch, he hopped away quickly on his one foot, his crutch tapping against the ground at an incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, he had already covered a considerable distance.

Xu Ran quickened his pace to follow, shouting from afar.

Hearing Xu Ran call out his name, Flowing Clouds Master, who was up ahead, froze. He stopped, slowly turned his head, and after a light cough, a hearty smile spread across his face as he called out a greeting.

"Well now, if it isn’t Xu Xiaoyou! What a coincidence. What brings you here?"

Xu Ran clasped his hands and bowed in greeting. Then, he simply stared at the man with a deadpan expression, saying nothing.

After a long moment, Flowing Clouds Master could no longer stand it. He reached up to wipe his forehead, then spoke in a low, gruff voice.

"Fine, I’ll just say it. This old man cares about his pride. I failed to do what I promised, and I feel utterly humiliated. You brat, don’t you have any sense at all? You saw this old man running away, yet you still chased me down and called out to me. Can’t you spare a thought for this old man’s feelings?"

Hearing this, Xu Ran nodded slightly. This was the Flowing Clouds Master he remembered—someone whose speech carried a hint of worldly honor, a bit like one of the righteous heroes of the greenwood.

Life could be strange sometimes. Xu Ran felt guilty because Flowing Clouds Master had lost a leg while trying to find him a Dao Companion, and he had been weighed down by it ever since.

Meanwhile, Flowing Clouds Master felt he had lost all face because he had failed to deliver on his promise.

If not for this chance encounter, they likely would have avoided each other for a long time to come over this very issue.

It just goes to show how subtle the ways of the world are. Sometimes, a trivial, insignificant matter can cause two very close people to drift apart and become strangers.

Xu Ran sighed helplessly. "With your Cultivation Realm and life experience, do you really still care about a little bit of pride?"

Hearing this, Flowing Clouds Master’s eyes bulged, and he retorted irritably, "It’s precisely because of my current Cultivation Realm and status that I care about my pride! Go and ask around! When this old man was young, I was just a ruffian. When did I ever give a damn about pride?"

"Well..." Xu Ran fell silent, at a loss for words. On second thought, it did seem to make a certain kind of sense. Perhaps it was his status as a Golden Core Stage cultivator and the Grand Elder of Celestial Sea Peak that made someone like Flowing Clouds Master, who normally had the demeanor of a fierce brigand, develop such concerns.

He fell silent for a moment. Then, thinking of Flowing Clouds Master’s usual disposition, he looked at him and suggested hesitantly, "In that case... how about we have a drink or two?"

The moment Flowing Clouds Master heard this, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes. He swung his crutch with great flair and shouted with heroic bravado, "Let’s go!"

For a man who loves to drink, nothing is more important than having someone willing to drink with him.

After a few bowls of Spirit Wine went down and the atmosphere had warmed up, Xu Ran finally asked, "Elder, this injury of yours... is there no way to recover from it?"

Flowing Clouds Master fell silent for a moment before shaking his head. "It’s only possible if I can slowly purge the Dao marks left by my opponent."

Xu Ran was silent for another moment before changing the subject. "How did you end up on Qing Xuan Peak?"

Flowing Clouds Master reached out and patted the crutch beside him. "Do you even have to ask?"

Xu Ran’s expression froze as he instantly understood. Qing Xuan Peak took in the families of disciples who died on the battlefield, as well as those who retired due to injury. Flowing Clouds Master was now one of the injured retirees.

Seeing Xu Ran’s reaction, Flowing Clouds Master waved his hand dismissively. "Don’t you worry about it. This has nothing to do with you. To this old man, this injury is nothing. After all... my grandson is Zhang Zhentian."

A proud expression appeared on his face as he said with immense pride, "With such a fine grandson, what more could this old man ask for?"

As he spoke, he turned his head to look at Xu Ran. "You deserve some of the credit for this, too. This old man has been thinking about how to repay you. I was originally thinking of snatching a girl from the Evil Demon Race or the Phoenix Race for you, but... alas."

Flowing Clouds Master sighed in resignation and shook his head.

Xu Ran quickly waved his hands. "Now, about testing Junior Brother Zhang... that was your and Teacher Qing Xuan’s idea from the start. I just happened to be involved. I can’t possibly take credit for it."

Flowing Clouds Master waved his hand. "Anyone else wouldn’t have achieved the same results you did. And it’s not just about that. I heard from the boy that he was only able to comprehend the True Will of Life and Death Reincarnation because you tempered him with your Death Realm."

As he said this, he suddenly balanced on his one foot and stood up with a grave expression. He bowed deeply to Xu Ran and said in a solemn tone, "On behalf of my grandson, this old man thanks you."

Startled by this gesture, Xu Ran quickly moved aside. "Elder, you mustn’t do that!"

But Flowing Clouds Master glared, his expression firm. "Right now, I am not some Golden Core Master, nor am I the former Grand Elder of Celestial Sea Peak. I am simply Zhang Zhentian’s grandfather. Why would it be improper?"

"Don’t you dare move, you brat," he threatened. "Or else, this old man will kneel before you."

Xu Ran was utterly exasperated. It was the first time he had ever heard someone use kneeling as a threat. He had no choice but to stand there quietly and silently accept Flowing Clouds Master’s bow.

After finishing his bow, Flowing Clouds Master gave him a knowing wink. "So, how did it feel? Having a Golden Core Master perform a formal bow to you. Pretty great, wasn’t it?"

Xu Ran merely lifted his eyelids and shrugged, saying nothing.

"How dull." Seeing his reaction, Flowing Clouds Master pouted, then pulled out a jug of wine, slammed it on the table, and said, "Come on, drink up."

"Let me tell you, when my grandson faced the people of the Evil Demon and Phoenix Races for the first time on the battlefield, his sheer presence..."

Flowing Clouds Master had completely transformed from the hot-tempered Grand Elder of Celestial Sea Peak into an ordinary old man who did nothing but boast about his grandson.

From then on, every other word out of his mouth was "my grandson, Zhang Zhentian." His tone was incredibly proud, and he exhausted every possible term of praise, stopping just short of declaring outright that his grandson was capable of becoming a True Immortal.

This made Xu Ran feel a bit wistful. Back then, Zhang Zhentian had just been a problem child who gave Flowing Clouds Master constant headaches. Despite his decent talent, he was arrogant, lazy in his Cultivation, and spent all day messing around with a group of other second-generation kids from the Sect’s leadership.

That was why Flowing Clouds Master had to entrust him to Qing Xuan Master, who was renowned for his strictness. The two of them had conspired to put Zhang Zhentian through all sorts of scenarios, constantly tempering them.

Perhaps Flowing Clouds Master’s initial hope for Zhang Zhentian was simply that he would grow out of his bratty nature and become an ordinary, moderately talented heir. That would have been enough.

Who could have imagined that Zhang Zhentian’s growth would far exceed his expectations, transforming him into the current Evergreen Sword Saint, whose fame resounded throughout the Cultivation Realm. It was no wonder the old man had become like this, unable to go more than a few sentences without bringing up Zhang Zhentian.

This couldn’t help but remind Xu Ran of the time Zhang Zhentian had gone to the Instructor Hall to fill in for Qing Xuan Master. He recalled what Zhang Zhentian had said to the disciples of Spirit Stream Peak: "Right now, I take pride in my grandfather. In the future, my grandfather will be proud of me."

Judging by Flowing Clouds Master’s current behavior, Zhang Zhentian had truly fulfilled his promise. ’He’d probably be very happy to see his grandfather acting like this,’ Xu Ran thought.

Throughout their drinking, Flowing Clouds Master never stopped boasting about Zhang Zhentian. It was fine at first, but after a while, Xu Ran started to get annoyed. At last, he couldn’t hold back any longer.

"My disciple, Xiyue, is no slouch either."

"Can your disciple even compare to my grandson?"

"I had a hand in your grandson turning out this way."

"That’s still because my grandson is amazing."

"My disciple is just as good as him."

"Hmph. This old man doesn’t believe it. Who could possibly be better than this old man’s grandson?"

"Believe it or not. In any case, my disciple Xiyue is just that amazing."