Jiang Chen had never taken care of himself.
During Mu Kui’s absence from the sect, he continued to work hard, but all he reaped were misunderstandings.
Even so, he never gave up.
Years later, Jiang Chen had been expelled when Mu Kui finally returned to the sect.
According to the rules, Lin Mubai, the second true disciple, should have taken his place.
But Xiao Hongyi was unwilling to accept this.
When Mu Kui returned to the sect, Xiao Hongyi was standing in front of Jiang Chen’s former residence while lost in thought.
Having not seen her for a long time, Xiao Hongyi had become much haggard.
It was said that since Jiang Chen was expelled, she rarely went out, spending almost every day in the Peak Master’s hall and occasionally coming to Jiang Chen’s former residence to daydream.
“Master…”Mu Kui wanted to comfort her but didn’t know what to say.
“Mu Kui, what do you think Jiang Chen is doing now?”
Xiao Hongyi murmured, her back to Mu Kui. “He must hate his master, right? I always said that as master and disciple, we would never abandon each other, yet I expelled him from the sect.”
“Master, is Eldest Senior Brother really so unforgivable?” Mu Kui asked uncertainly.
“It’s not him who’s unforgivable. It’s me,” Xiao Hongyi shook her head and replied.
“It’s because I didn’t teach him well, because I was too incompetent, that he kept making big mistakes, it’s me…”
She kept murmuring, her voice getting softer.
By the end, it was clear she was crying.
Mu Kui’s heart ached as he listened and he quickly tried to persuade her, “If Master misses Eldest Senior Brother so much, why not bring him back? Shall I go for you?”
“No.”
Xiao Hongyi refused and murmured again, “Mu Kui, I’ve been reflecting recently. In the end, I realized that it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Jiang Chen smile. He…”
Her voice choked up again as she said, “Perhaps my eldest disciple, your Eldest Senior Brother, Jiang Chen… he wasn’t happy here at Jiuyan Sect.”
Mu Kui fell silent.
He might not have noticed if Xiao Hongyi hadn’t pointed it out.
Indeed. Since Qingning had grown up, he might not have seen Jiang Chen smile for a long time.
“Hey, Mu Kui. If Jiang Chen likes to do evil, why isn’t he happy?” Xiao Hongyi asked again.
Mu Kui didn’t know the answer to this question either.
Yes. They say Jiang Chen’s nature is hard to change, causing trouble for the Ninth Peak and the sect.
Then, shouldn’t such a free-spirited person be the most unrestrained and carefree in the world?
But why had Jiang Chen never smiled?
Mu Kui, not one for deep thought, could only shake his head.
Not wanting to disturb Xiao Hongyi any further, he went to the stele.
Underneath it, a girl holding a wine jug passed out on a large White Tiger.
“Third Senior Sister, you’ve drunk too much,” Mu Kui approached to console her.
Qingning didn’t respond, only cried.
Mu Kui tried to take the wine jug from her arms, but Xiaobai bared its teeth and threatened him.
“What’s wrong with Qingning drinking? What’s wrong with her crying? I don’t care who that Jiang Chen is. I only know that Qingning is very upset right now!” Xiaobai said.
Mu Kui was left speechless by the retort.
Helpless, he took out a jug of wine and joined Qingning in her sorrowful drinking.
After three rounds of drinks, Qingning’s pretty face was full of drunkenness.
“Why.”
“Why.”
“Why.”
She looked up at the sky, repeating the same phrase over and over.
“What ‘why’?” Mu Kui didn’t understand.
“Why won’t Eldest Senior Brother take me with him?”
Qingning was puzzled while murmuring continuously, “All he needed to do was give me a look, a bit of confidence, to tell me he still cared about me, and I would have been willing to leave with him. But he…”
“But he wouldn’t even glance at me!”
“Whether he was caught doing something wrong or at the moment he was expelled from the sect, he wouldn’t look at me!”
“When we were children, he clearly told me.”
“No matter what happens, I will always be his Junior Sister! That will never change!”
“Even if it was a lie.”
“I just needed one word from him, one affirming look, one gesture.”
“I would have followed him to the ends of the world.”
“I would have walked with him, whether it was the path of righteousness or evil.”
“But I’m not in his eyes… he really doesn’t care about me…”
These words caused Mu Kui great distress.
But now that Jiang Chen had been expelled from the sect, what could he do?
Even if he went to find Jiang Chen and pleaded with Xiao Hongyi to rescind the order, could the damage that had been done be repaired?
Furthermore, would the Jiuyan Sect ever accept Jiang Chen again?
The answer was no.
So now, all Mu Kui could do was keep drinking with Qingning.
He didn’t know how long they had been drinking, but he too was becoming drunk.
He remembered the scene before he left the sect, everyone drinking silently under the stele. It was a scene that warmed the heart despite the silence.
He also remembered what he had said to Jiang Chen before leaving.
“Eldest Senior Brother, take care of yourself too.”
Take care?
At this moment, a question emerged in Mu Kui’s mind.
Had his Eldest Senior Brother ever really taken care of himself? He was ‘unrestrained’, but was he happy?
Mu Kui didn’t understand.
Maybe he couldn’t find the answer, but he could ponder more about it than others because he was a person who defied the heavens and has a natural repulsionn for the ways of the world.
It was this repulsion that allowed him to see ponder things differently.
Soon, Qingning was completely drunk.
Though unconscious and senseless, she still repeated that “why”
After making sure Xiaobai took good care of her, Mu Kui shook his head and left.
He went to the sparring platform.
Perhaps influenced by the spiritual liquor, he saw himself and Jiang Chen sparring there.
He went to the ancient forest on the mountainside.
Between the ancient trees, there seemed to be a white figure kneeling on one knee with blood staining the white clothes.
He then went to the foot of Ninth Peak.
The words Jiang Chen said when he first joined Ninth Peak came to mind.
“Mu Kui, I am your Eldest Senior Brother, and from now on, you are the fourth true disciple of Ninth Peak!”
Suddenly, Mu Kui stood still.
Because he remembered Jiang Chen was smiling that day.
A smile so hearty, clean, and refreshing.
After coming back to his senses, he hurriedly ran off.
First, he found Qingning and asked if Jiang Chen had smiled when she joined the sect.
Though drunk, she still nodded incessantly.
He then found Lin Mubai and Jiang Lianyue and asked them the same question.
“Yes, he smiled,” Lin Mubai recalled after a moment’s thought.
“When I first became joined the sect, Jiang Chen… he really had a smile that was comforting, a smile I remember to this day.”
Seeing Mu Kui looking at her, Jiang Lianyue also said, “At that time, I was even baffled at how someone could smile like that.”
“Fourth Junior Brother, why do you ask these questions?” Lin Mubai was puzzled.
Mu Kui was startled again.
He didn’t know why he was asking these questions. It’s a doubt that had just surfaced in his mind.
Jiang Chen never smiled when he did evil.
But when each Senior Brother or Junior Sister joined the sect, he smiled.
Why was that?
Mu Kui didn’t understand, but he felt a headache coming on.
“Ninth Peak has become a lot quieter without Eldest Senior Brother,” Lin Mubai suddenly said.
“It’s not just quiet, it’s lost its vitality. Huh, I wonder why is that?” Jiang Lianyue added, puzzled.
Mu Kui heard their sentiments.
A question arose in his mind.
Was Jiang Chen, the Eldest Senior Brother of Ninth Peak, really that bad?
But the answer to this question was well known.
After all, Jiang Chen’s misdeeds were all backed by solid evidence, and many were witnessed by all.
Regardless, Mu Kui disliked the current atmosphere of Ninth Peak.
Not long after returning to the sect, he left again.
And this time, his departure was destined to be very, very long.
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