Chapter 144 - 106: Remnant (Part 2)
"You’re keeping the fish away, yet you’re sitting here fishing with me?"
"The point of fishing is to cultivate the heart. What does that have to do with fish?"
The old man spoke slowly, revealing the two or three large, yellow teeth he had left:
"You youngsters are still a bit green. You need to cultivate your heart."
"Cultivate my heart?"
Jiang Ran glanced at the old man.
"How does one do that?"
"To cultivate the heart, one must first question the heart."
The old man extended a finger and pointed at Jiang Ran’s heart.
"Ask what’s in here... who are you?"
"Who am I?"
Jiang Ran smiled. "Do I really need to ask my heart that question?"
"Sometimes, you might not even understand yourself."
The old man shifted his posture to get more comfortable, his body swaying gently.
"Are you kind, or are you malicious.
"Are you clever, or are you foolish.
"Are you a god, or are you a demon...
"How many of these questions can you truly answer?"
"I have a question of my own, and I don’t need to ask my heart for the answer."
Jiang Ran glanced at the old man and said, enunciating each word:
"Sir, have you ever heard of the Celestial Demon’s Great Liberation?"
The moment Jiang Ran spoke, the water of the entire river seemed to freeze for an instant.
Standing to the side, before Ye Jingshuang’s expression could even change, her body swayed. She was about to collapse, but Jiang Ran had already caught her in his arms.
He looked up at the old man, his expression darkening.
"What did you do?"
A thought flashed through his mind, and he prepared to use the Heart-Rectifying Finger.
But the old man spoke first:
"That’s a dangerous topic you’ve brought up. If she heard it, she’d have to be silenced.
"Making her faint for a bit is for her own good."
Jiang Ran stared at the old man for a long moment before finally letting out a breath. He gently placed Ye Jingshuang on the stool, letting her lean against him.
"You still haven’t answered my question."
"It is a supreme art."
A hint of nostalgia flickered in the old man’s eyes.
"A pity that no one in this world can attain it."
"So you really are a remnant of the Demon Sect."
Jiang Ran’s brow furrowed. "Why does the old drunkard know you? What is his relationship with the Tang family? And where is the Young Manor Lord now?"
’At this point, how could he not know? This was the man who had met the old drunkard in Benma County.’
’No wonder no one could track him afterward. If a man of his caliber didn’t want to be found, no amount of effort would unearth a single trace.’
Upon hearing this, the old man glanced at him and grinned, once again revealing his few remaining teeth.
"I’ve told you already, you need to cultivate your heart.
"You shouldn’t ask questions one after another like that. The moment you ask, you expose what you desire to everyone.
"A person who truly wants to achieve a goal would never be this direct.
"Because when others know what you seek, they will obstruct you. The more direct you are, the more detours you will have to take.
"What you did back in Benma County wasn’t half bad.
"Hiding your true objective and making those fools run around in circles... though it took some effort and your methods were a bit crude.
"But... I suppose it was a passable effort.
"So why is it that now, when it concerns that old codger you mentioned, your heart is in such disarray?"
Jiang Ran’s eyes narrowed, and a faint hum, like the ringing of a saber, emanated from him.
"The Nine Shocking God Sabers, ah."
The old man sighed.
"It’s been a long time since I’ve seen them. To think that fellow who once dared to charge into our headquarters with nothing but a big chopper...
"...now has a young one to protect him.
"Is this how he’s repaid for twenty years of raising you?
"How enviable..."
Hearing this, Jiang Ran took a deep breath, and the saber’s hum around him subsided.
He broke into a grin.
"Old-timer, judging by your tone, you seem pretty familiar with that old bastard of mine, eh?"
"Familiar? Very familiar."
The old man nodded repeatedly, glanced at Jiang Ran, and said with a smile:
"What do you want to know?"
Jiang Ran smiled.
"In that case, we’re hardly strangers, are we?"
"Of course."
The old man said with a smile:
"Given my age, it’d only be natural for him to call me ’Father’ and for you to call me ’Grandpa’."
"..."
’This old bastard really knows how to take an inch and run a mile.’
Jiang Ran was silent for a moment, then asked:
"Where is he?"
The old man smiled at Jiang Ran.
"I’m not telling you."
Jiang Ran chuckled, not taking offense.
"Then what can you tell me?"
"I don’t know either. I’ll tell you what I feel like telling you, and I won’t tell you what I don’t."
The old man said with a smile:
"It depends on what you ask."
"Why are you fishing here?"
"To wait for someone."
"Waiting for me?"
"Waiting for Heterodox Manor."
"What for?"
"To give them the token."
"You gave it to them?"
"I did."
"What’s the token?"
"This."
The old man took out a Jade Pendant from his robes.
Engraved on the Jade Pendant was a single word: "Sovereign."
"...Didn’t you say you already gave it to them?"
"Who said there’s only one token?"
"What about the Young Manor Lord?"
"He went where he was supposed to go."
"Where?"
"I’m not telling you."
Jiang Ran’s brow furrowed.
"What exactly is the relationship between that old drunkard of mine and the Demon Sect?"
"Now that’s a long story."
The old man suddenly became animated.
"Back in the day, our Demon Sect had a Saintess... Her beauty was beyond description.
"What was even rarer was that not only was she beautiful, but her aptitude was extremely high.
"She could master any martial art with just a glance...
"Have you heard of the Eighteen Celestial Demon Records?"
"I’ve heard of them."
"She studied the Eighteen Celestial Demon Records, one volume a year. As she learned each one, she mastered it.
"After five or six years, she decided she didn’t want to learn anymore. That’s why she never mastered the rest of the Eighteen Celestial Demon Records."