Eunuch Liu watched Guo Wei and said,
"This matter between my son and me has nothing to do with Lin Guang."
Guo Wei gave a noncommittal nod.
Chu Lingguang had already helped him achieve the rank of Grandmaster. As for rescuing Guo Xiaotian, Guo Wei planned to handle it all by himself, without any of his disciples getting involved.
"The world thinks Master Guo has found a fine disciple, but I’ve now come to realize that it is Chu Lingguang who has found a fine master."
Eunuch Liu raised his cup.
"You flatter me."
The two clinked their cups and downed the contents in one go.
’When Guo Xiaotian was imprisoned all those years ago, Guo Wei went to the Turkic territory all by himself. He stood guard outside the Andre Mansion for over two months without asking a single disciple for help. So many years have passed, and he still hasn’t shed that stubborn pride. I truly don’t know whether to envy Chu Lingguang or to pity him for it.’
In the training ground, the Seventh Prince tossed Guo Wei’s file onto the table.
To win over Chu Lingguang, he’d had his men work through the night investigating everything about him and Guo Wei. He learned that both master and disciple were men of great loyalty and integrity. He had thought success was certain, but to his surprise, Guo Wei had rejected him flat out.
"How about we grant him this favor as a gesture of goodwill?"
Grand Protector Yan suggested.
The Seventh Prince fell silent for a long time before finally rapping the table. "Fine. We’ll consider it a favor done for Guo Wei. We will not interfere with Chu Lingguang’s future plans."
"Given their characters, the more nonchalant we appear, the more they’ll feel indebted to us,"
Grand Protector Yan said.
"You’re right, Teacher. Unless their integrity is just a pretense."
The Seventh Prince nodded.
A personal guard rushed in just as the Seventh Prince was about to proceed with his plan to rescue Guo Xiaotian and put Guo Wei in his debt. "Your Highness, Lord Yu, the Imperial Censor from the Inspectorate, just received a verbal decree from the palace. He is now on his way to Liu Mansion."
’My Imperial Father wishes to summon Eunuch Liu?’
’No, if it were a summons, why would he send an Imperial Censor?’
’Besides, hasn’t Eunuch Liu been on sick leave for two years?’
The Seventh Prince was baffled.
After losing all of his power, Eunuch Liu had taken sick leave to recuperate at home and had seldom been seen in the palace.
"Perhaps the Holy Emperor’s verbal decree is intended for Guo Wei."
Grand Protector Yan saw a familiar name in Guo Wei’s file: Imperial Censor Yu Wanshao.
’Could it be...’
The Seventh Prince froze. It was Imperial Censor Yu Wanshao who had gone to Baiyang County to investigate Guo Wei, confirmed his reputation was well-deserved, and secured him his title from the Court.
「Liu Mansion.」
Guo Wei, Chu Lingguang, Eunuch Liu, and the others were all kneeling in the Central Courtyard, listening as Imperial Censor Yu Wanshao announced the Emperor’s verbal decree.
"We are mindful of Master Guo’s advanced age and cannot bear to see father and son separated. Effective immediately, Guo Xiaotian is granted a special pardon. We trust that Master Guo will discipline him more strictly in the future to ensure he does not repeat his past mistakes!"
Yu Wanshao said.
"Thank you for Your Grace, Holy Emperor! Long live His Majesty, for ten thousand years!"
Guo Wei could hardly believe his ears. His temples gray with age, he kowtowed, his body trembling with emotion.
’Imperial Father pardoned Guo Xiaotian?’
Back in the training ground, the Seventh Prince quickly learned the contents of the verbal decree.
"It seems word of what happened at the Hunting Ground has already reached the Holy Emperor,"
Grand Protector Yan said.
"Imperial Father personally pardoned Guo Xiaotian. Could it be that His Majesty has also taken a liking to Chu Lingguang?"
the Seventh Prince said.
"Heaven favors the loyal and righteous. Perhaps this is Chu Lingguang’s destiny,"
Grand Protector Yan said.
"I’m just afraid Imperial Father moved to pardon Guo Xiaotian first because of me. Teacher, were we too hasty?"
the Seventh Prince said worriedly.
"Chu Lingguang is exceptionally talented, loyal, and righteous. Who wouldn’t admire a man like that? The Holy Emperor will only see it as a sign of Your Highness’s good judgment that you associate with him. You need not worry,"
Grand Protector Yan comforted him.
"I used my mother’s influence to try and save Guo Xiaotian. Imperial Father may have already noticed. Effective immediately, I will see no one for three months. I will focus solely on my Martial Arts cultivation."
The Seventh Prince was clearly rattled.
"Yes. In three months, the Palace Examination will be over, and Chu Lingguang will have taken up his post."
Grand Protector Yan nodded.
「Liu Mansion.」
Everyone was congratulating Guo Wei.
Guo Wei’s eyes welled with tears, as if he were still in a dream. After seeing his friends off, he said to Chu Lingguang, "Lin Guang, you’re the one who saved Tian. Your master doesn’t know how to thank you."
"Master, my martial brother’s affairs are my own. Please, don’t speak of thanks."
Chu Lingguang had never seen Guo Wei as emotional as he was now.
Earlier, seeing that Eunuch Liu and Guo Wei had private matters to discuss, he had excused himself. But the more he thought about it, the more something felt wrong. He used the Celestial Master Technique to attune himself to the entire Liu Mansion.
Then he used his powerful Spiritual Power to cover the entire Liu Mansion.
With the Celestial Master Technique masking his presence, neither Guo Wei nor Eunuch Liu noticed his Spiritual Sense Fluctuation. He heard every word of their conversation in the study.
’At that moment, his feelings were a tangled mess. He had wanted to run over and tell Guo Wei that he wasn’t afraid of political strife or of being used by the Seventh Prince—all that mattered was rescuing Guo Xiaotian first.’
But he never expected things to take such a swift turn.
The Emperor had actually pardoned Guo Xiaotian, allowing father and son to reunite.
"Regardless, your master must thank you on Tian’s behalf,"
Guo Wei said, patting Chu Lingguang’s shoulder.
He had already taught Chu Lingguang everything he knew, even gifting him the Lightning Spear and his sect’s secret manual. He had nothing else of true value left to give.
But as soon as he said this,
a line of text materialized before Chu Lingguang’s eyes.
[Helped Guo Wei rescue Guo Xiaotian. Gained 38,911 Favor Points.]
’Clearly, Guo Wei’s gratitude was sincere. A full hundred percent return on Favor Points. Even without a physical gift, the system acknowledged the sentiment.’
"Master, I’ll wait for you to bring my martial brother to the Imperial City. Together, you can watch me compete in the martial section of the Palace Examination,"
Chu Lingguang said with a smile.
"Yes, of course. Of course."
Guo Wei cried tears of joy. He packed his things overnight and set off the next day for Wolf Valley Pass to bring Guo Xiaotian back.
The next day, Chu Lingguang, Yan Zhen, and Qin Yu returned to Mountain Rain Peak. The three of them were to spend a month at the Imperial City Academy, training under an expert from Yuanchu Mountain.
Before he left, Chu Lingguang checked his status panel.
Favors: 80,003
Mixed Element Skill (0/10,000)
Mental Realm Evolution Technique (46,292/100,000)
(Remaining Lifespan: 191 years)
’Master’s thanks gave me another thirty-thousand-plus Favor Points. It seems the Emperor’s pardon for my martial brother really was because of me.’
’But I don’t know if the Emperor did this simply to protect me, or if he feels my master has now atoned for all his past crimes.’
Chu Lingguang was filled with questions.
He could only be certain that the Emperor’s pardon of Guo Xiaotian had something to do with him; the Emperor’s true motive, however, remained a mystery.
Only time would tell.
Previously, he hadn’t had enough Favor Points to spend them recklessly. But now, having accumulated over 80,000, he decided to level his Mental Realm Evolution Technique to Perfection.
He was filled with anticipation.
He was eager to see what level his Mental Realm would reach once the technique reached Perfection.
The Mental Realm had a total of ten levels.
Unity of Heart and Body was only the third level, yet Chu Lingguang had already spent over forty thousand Favor Points to reach it. Although the value ticked up slightly each day, his actual Mental Realm level hadn’t changed in some time.
Chu Lingguang estimated that even if he cultivated the Mental Realm Evolution Technique to its absolute limit, the transformation would probably take him no higher than the fifth level—it might even stop at the fourth.
He figured that no matter how generous the Court was, they would never give away a Cultivation Technique capable of taking one’s Mental Realm to the tenth level. A technique like that could surely only be found at Yuanchu Mountain.
Fortunately, he would be meeting a true expert from Yuanchu Mountain tomorrow, and he couldn’t help but feel a little excited.
The status panel changed.
Favors: 26,295
Mixed Element Skill (0/10,000)
Mental Realm Evolution Technique (100,000/100,000)
(Remaining Lifespan: 191 years)
Early the next morning, Chu Lingguang and Guo Wei left Liu Mansion at the same time. Master and disciple bid each other farewell at the gate, one rushing toward Wolf Valley Pass, the other toward Mountain Rain Peak.
Back at Mountain Rain Peak, Chu Lingguang ascended the mountain with Yan Zhen and Qin Yu. This time, none of them were affected by the power fluctuations on the path. They reached the summit with ease and arrived at the academy entrance.
"You three, come with me!"
The person greeting them at the entrance was, surprisingly, Yun Hong. He was dressed in the robes of a Yuanchu Mountain Outer Disciple. Though he was only a few years their senior, Yan Zhen, Qin Yu, and Chu Lingguang all felt that Yun Hong was completely unbeatable—as if he were the prophesied expert from Yuanchu Mountain himself.