Chapter 20: Elder Sun

After leaving the Scripture Repository, the morning mountain wind blew away the last trace of drowsiness from Lu Fengmian.

Standing on his flying sword, he looked down over the sect’s scenery—the pavilions and halls faintly appearing and disappearing amid the rolling clouds and mist—and let out a sigh.

Sleeping in was now completely impossible. There was no point in returning to Luo Xia Peak, so he might as well…

A thought arose in his heart, and he changed direction. Instead of returning directly to the peak, he began carrying out his routine inspection along the mountain paths and temple complexes of the main peak and its major subsidiary peaks.

This was one of his everyday duties as senior brother: checking whether the various departments of the sect were operating normally, identifying any safety hazards, and ensuring that the disciples’ cultivation and daily lives were in proper order.

Although the small competition had just ended and conditions in most places should have been fairly stable, who knew? He treated it as a walk to clear his head.

He leisurely rode his sword, his gaze slowly sweeping over the training grounds, lecture halls, and mission hall.

In the morning light, Lingyun Sect had lost the clamor of the small competition, replaced instead by a fairyland-like peace and order.

Occasionally, some early-rising disciples cultivating or carrying out tasks encountered him and stopped to salute. He nodded back to them one by one.

Just as he reached the fork in the mountain road leading to the Spirit Beast Garden, a somewhat hurried streak of spiritual light flew from that direction and stopped not far in front of him, revealing a beautiful young female cultivator in a pale green robe.

The moment she saw Lu Fengmian, her eyes lit up, and she quickly stepped forward to salute. “Senior Brother Lu! What a coincidence—I was just on my way to Luo Xia Peak to find you.”

Lu Fengmian halted his flying sword and smiled. “So it is Junior Sister Jin Le. What do you need me for?”

He recognized her as Jin Le, Elder Sun’s eldest disciple in the Spirit Beast Garden. She handled matters carefully and steadily, had inherited much of Elder Sun’s teaching, and was especially skilled at caring for spirit beasts.

An apologetic look appeared on Jin Le’s face as she briefly explained, “Master sent me. He has already returned and very much wishes to see you. Could Senior Brother Lu come with me to the Spirit Beast Garden?”

Elder Sun had returned?

Lu Fengmian’s heart stirred slightly.

Calculating the time, that person should have been away attending the “Myriad Beasts Reverence Sect Conference” of the Beast Taming Sect, and should not have returned for a few more days. Why had he come back early? And why was he in such a hurry to see him?

“Of course. Since Elder Sun has summoned me, how could I delay?” Lu Fengmian nodded, signaling Jin Le to lead the way.

The two of them rode their swords side by side toward Spirit Beast Peak.

Along the way, Jin Le briefly explained the reason.

“The conference hasn’t ended yet. Two days ago, one of the disciples on duty accidentally let slip in a routine report that Lord Fuzhu had gotten angry because his spiritual form cultivation had not gone smoothly.”

A bit of helplessness also appeared on Jin Le’s face. “The moment Master heard this, he immediately became anxious. Lord Fuzhu has a special status and a very particular temperament. If something had gone wrong, the consequences would have been unthinkable. He at once apologized to the conference host and then hurried back with me.”

“Only after returning to the garden did he learn that Senior Brother Lu had already properly resolved everything. Not only was Lord Fuzhu safe and sound, his spiritual energy circulation was smooth, but even Lord Luwu has been in a very good mood these past few days.” Jin Le turned to look at Lu Fengmian.

“Only then did Master finally relax, repeatedly saying that all of this was thanks to Senior Brother Lu. The moment he settled down, he immediately sent me to invite you, saying that he wanted to personally thank you properly.”

So that was it

—Lu Fengmian understood.

Elder Sun treated the spirit beasts as though they were his own children, especially those ancient guardian spirit beasts. It was only natural that he would panic and rush back after hearing such news.

For the disciple who had accidentally let it slip, and for Steward Li Quan, who had been helpless at the time, this had truly been unfortunate.

While speaking, they landed at the entrance to the Spirit Beast Garden.

Outside the garden gates stood an elderly man with white hair but vigorous spirit, his face flushed red with anxiety, his hands clasped behind his back as he paced back and forth, stretching his neck from time to time to look down the mountain road.

It was indeed Elder Sun of the Spirit Beast Garden.

Behind him, Steward Li Quan stood with his head lowered and hands hanging at his sides, his face filled with the dejection of “I was wrong” and “I’m finished.” Even his shoulders were drooping.

The moment Elder Sun saw Lu Fengmian, it was as though he had seen a savior. His eyes went wide, and in three steps he rushed forward, grabbed Lu Fengmian’s hand, and shook it forcefully.

“Martial Nephew Lu! You’ve finally come! Ah, this time it was really all thanks to you! All thanks to you!”

Elder Sun’s grip was strong, and with all that shaking, Lu Fengmian nearly lost his balance.

He quickly steadied himself and said with a smile, “Martial Uncle Sun, you’re overstating it. This was merely my duty; it’s nothing worth mentioning.”

“What do you mean, duty! That wasn’t an ordinary spirit beast—that was Lord Fuzhu!” Elder Sun was so agitated that even his beard stood on end, and his voice rose an entire octave.

“This Li Quan!” He suddenly turned his head and glared fiercely at Steward Li Quan, who was shrinking backward.

“He couldn’t even handle the most basic spiritual pattern cultivation properly! So clumsy—he nearly caused a disaster! If Martial Nephew Lu hadn’t shown up in time to soothe Lord Fuzhu, by the time I got back, this Spirit Beast Garden probably would’ve already been washed away by a flood!”

Steward Li Quan lowered his head even further, almost burying it in his chest. His body trembled slightly as he shot Lu Fengmian a pleading look.

Standing behind Elder Sun, Jin Le kept her eyes on her nose and her nose on her heart, pretending she had heard nothing at all.

Seeing Elder Sun grow angrier and angrier as he spoke, as though he were about to hand down some severe punishment like “exile to the back mountain to mine for a hundred years,” Lu Fengmian quickly cleared his throat and gently persuaded him.

“Martial Uncle Sun, there is no need to be anxious. Steward Li was indeed acting under orders at the time; he simply had not expected Lord Fuzhu’s condition to change that day, and his slow response truly was his oversight. Afterward, however, he reflected deeply and immediately came to find me to make up for it. Since his intentions were good and no great loss was caused, perhaps a small warning will suffice, and we can observe how he conducts himself in the future.”

He spoke very tactfully, pointing out Steward Li Quan’s error while also affirming his attitude in admitting fault and the effort he had made to correct it, thus giving Elder Sun a way to step back.

Elder Sun was still furious, but he had to give Lu Fengmian face.

This Martial Nephew Lu had not only helped him resolve a major problem, but reportedly had even won the regard of several guardian spirit beasts. Whether out of reason or emotion, he had to remain courteous.

He took several deep breaths, glared fiercely at Steward Li Quan once more, and then unwillingly said:

“Hmph! Since Martial Nephew Lu is pleading for you, I’ll spare you from death, but you won’t escape punishment! I’ll dock six months of your monthly pay and send you to the ‘Beast-Raising Valley’ in the back mountain to care for those newly born low-rank spirit beast cubs for three months! Learn properly what patience and meticulousness mean!”

Hearing this, although his pay was gone and work in Beast-Raising Valley was filthy and exhausting, it was still far better than the severe punishment he had imagined!

He hurriedly bowed, his tone full of gratitude. “Yes, yes, yes! Thank you for Elder’s mercy! Thank you, Martial Nephew Lu! I will certainly do my utmost and make amends for my mistakes through my service!”

After speaking, he shot Lu Fengmian another grateful look.

Only then did Elder Sun feel his anger subside, and he turned back to Lu Fengmian with a smile and said, “Martial Nephew Lu, I will remember this favor of yours. If you need any help in the Spirit Beast Garden in the future, just come find me—or Jin Le will do as well!”

Jin Le also stepped forward at the proper moment and saluted Lu Fengmian once more. “Thank you, Senior Brother Lu, for resolving this matter. If you encounter any further issues involving spirit beasts in the future, please do not hesitate.”

Lu Fengmian returned the salute modestly. “Martial Uncle Sun and Junior Sister Jin Le are too kind. Helping fellow disciples is only natural.”

He was just about to leave and continue his inspection when he saw Elder Sun stroking his beard, his eyes bright as he looked Lu Fengmian up and down, as though he had suddenly remembered something.