"We're here."

"We've arrived…"

Sitting in the carriage, the Third Elder hadn't even seen the mountain gates of the Ten Cauldrons Sect, yet his palm grew slick with sweat. He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"Young man, would you be so kind as to announce our arrival…"

Su Xuan vaulted from the carriage, landing lightly on his feet. He walked over to the disciple guarding the mountain gate and handed him the visitation card the Third Elder had prepared long ago.

"Please wait a moment, Young Master."

Seeing that Su Xuan was so handsome it was startling, the guard disciple was unprecedentedly courteous. He took the visitation card from Su Xuan with both hands and passed it up through the ranks.

Su Xuan couldn't help but click his tongue in admiration. Never mind the disciple's polite attitude, even his attire was impressive. The quality of the fabric was clearly not cheap; it still glistened under the afternoon sun as it began sinking in the west.

If a mere guard disciple is like this, the sect itself must be even more so.

「...」

"A-Lian, it's your turn."

In an elegant pavilion within the Ten Cauldrons Sect, Sect Leader Fu Yong lifted his gaze to the woman seated across from him.

Although no longer in her youth, the woman was well-preserved and still quite alluring. Yet, for some unknown reason, her eyes held an indescribably peculiar look, and her expression was somewhat dazed.

Between them lay a chessboard with only a few pieces on it.

"Hmm…" The woman named A-Lian picked up a stone and pondered. "I don't know what my next move should be. I concede this game."

"Hahaha!" Fu Yong laughed. "We've only played a few moves, and you're already conceding?"

His expression suddenly darkened. "You've been so absent-minded today. What's on your mind?"

"Nothing."

A-Lian shook her head.

Her husband was petty and overly suspicious, so much so that he would only be at ease if he kept her locked away in a cage like a bird. Everyone around her was a female disciple; any remotely attractive male disciple was forbidden from getting close. But he hadn't been like this when he was courting her. He was so open-minded, so witty... That was why she had chosen him over the other man, one highly accomplished in Dan Art. That man was a bit too dull and would even stammer when he spoke to her.

"I think you do have something on your mind."

"I really don't."

"Yesterday, you went to admire the lotuses at Three Clear Pond at the foot of the mountain. Did you meet someone?"

"No. I planted those lotuses myself. I just went to check on them, as always!"

"Then continue the game!"

"Alright."

The woman thought for a moment before placing a stone on the board. In the man's eyes, however, she had made the move perfunctorily.

"Sect Leader, a rather interesting matter has come up. Would you care to hear about it?"

Just then, an elder approached and addressed Fu Yong.

"Elder You, I'm in the middle of a game with my wife. Say what you have to say." Fu Yong glanced up at the elder, his gaze filled with a trace of confusion.

This old man is acting strangely today, he thought. An interesting matter? Every day is the same. What could possibly be interesting?

"Sect Leader, have a look." Elder You placed a visitation card in front of Fu Yong. "An old friend has come to visit!"

"Eh?"

Fu Yong's eyes widened as he picked up the card. "Interesting, truly interesting!"

Then, he offered the card to his wife. "A-Lian, you'll never guess who's here."

The woman reached for the visitation card.

"Forget it." Fu Yong pulled his hand back. "It's better if you don't know."

The woman lowered her hand, her expression conveying that if he wouldn't let her see, she wouldn't look; she had no interest anyway.

But Fu Yong offered the card to her again. "Is the reason you're so distracted today because you knew he was coming?"

The woman remained silent as she took the card and opened it. When she saw the signature at the bottom, her hand trembled uncontrollably.

It was a name both familiar and strange. Familiar, because seeing it instantly brought a man's face to mind. Strange, because that face was like a reflection in a dusty mirror. Ah, what a distant memory.

"When you went to admire the lotuses, were you secretly exchanging messages with him?" the man demanded, having observed her subtlest movements. "Is that why he's here? Is he pretending to visit me when he's really here to see you for a secret rendezvous?"

"Don't let him come," the woman said with a frown, placing the visitation card on the chessboard. "Send him away at once. It will keep you from getting these wild ideas."

"Send him away?" Her husband's lips curled into a smirk as he stared directly into her eyes. "If I send him away, wouldn't that be letting him off too easily? Are you worried I'll embarrass him?"

"Sect Leader, please listen to your wife and send him away!" Elder You said after a moment's thought, having observed Fu Yong's words and actions. "Back then, he publicly criticized your Dan Art. For him to have the cheek to visit you now, he must want something. Why don't we give him the cold shoulder and make his trip a waste of time?"

Fu Yong's eyes narrowed into slits. Staring at his wife, he repeated the words to himself, "Must want something… must want something!"

Seeing this, Elder You's mouth twitched.

There it is, he thought. My good intentions just made things worse.

Suddenly, Fu Yong swept his arm across the chessboard, sending all the pieces scattering to the floor. He shot a glare at Elder You and fumed, "I know what you're all thinking. You're just afraid I'll mess with him, aren't you? Don't worry, I won't mess with him. I'll treat him with the utmost hospitality! The renowned Third Elder of the Nine Cauldrons Sect is worthy of my hospitality! In fact, I just happen to have some questions about Dan Art to ask him!"

The woman bent down and began picking up the scattered pieces one by one.

Her husband kicked a few of them away.

The woman dropped the pieces she had gathered, stood up, and walked away.

Seeing this, Elder You simply shook his head and also left.

"Young Master, our Sect Leader has agreed to see you. Please head directly inside; someone will guide you."

At the mountain gate, the guard disciple let Su Xuan pass, but the carriage was not allowed in.

As Su Xuan pretended to help the Third Elder down from the carriage, his pupils suddenly constricted. He saw that the Third Elder looked a full size smaller. It turned out the Third Elder had cinched his belt another notch tighter, so much so that the veins on his neck were bulging.

"Third Elder, why torture yourself like this?" Su Xuan asked, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"This is the Ten Cauldrons Sect, the one that claims to have crushed our Nine Cauldrons Sect! We have to mind our image," the Third Elder said, holding his breath. "We can't let them look down on us!"

Su Xuan said, "But you're already flattened."

Third Elder: "..."

With that, the two of them straightened their backs and walked through the mountain gates of the Ten Cauldrons Sect. They had only taken a few steps inside when a female disciple came to greet them. She wore a green skirt, her hair was styled in twin buns, and she looked like a little fairy.

Neither of them expected that their simple objective for this trip would lead them to unwittingly stumble into a considerable vortex...

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