"Cousin Qingchan…"
As Ye Fan watched Ye Qingchan walk past him, a flicker of pain crossed his eyes. Ye Qingchan only paused to glance at him, her face still wearing a polite smile. "Cousin Ye Fan, is there something you need?"
"Is there something?!"
Ye Fan felt a surge of utter despair. He couldn't understand—why had Ye Qingchan seemed like a completely different person after just a few years apart? Had she forgotten the promise she'd made to him that rainy night? She had explicitly said she would wait for him at the Xuanjian Sect! To Ye Fan, that had been an oath of their love. How could she now be so cold to him?
It must be Ling Xiao! It must be this damned Young Master from Shengzhou who's forcing Qingchan!
At this moment, Ye Fan refused to believe that Ye Qingchan would betray him. In his heart, Ye Qingchan was flawless and inviolable—even he himself would never dare to doubt her! So the fault must lie with someone else.
Ling Xiao, this is not my doing. You brought this on yourself. Anyone who dares to hurt Cousin Qingchan must die!!
Ye Fan shook his head gently, his expression calm. "Nothing. If you have time later, come find me in the backyard. It's been so long since we last met—I have a lot I want to talk to you about."
Truly, Ye Fan had hidden his true thoughts for over a decade. No matter how much hatred burned in his heart, not a single trace of it showed on his face.
"Alright, I'll come find you later."
Ye Qingchan didn't think twice about it. Back then, she had stood up for Ye Fan simply because she felt sorry for her cousin's miserable circumstances. And that promise to "wait for him at the Xuanjian Sect" had been nothing more than encouragement. She never could have imagined that to a young man who had lived in humiliation for so long, the word "wait" would be taken as a vow.
How many people had ruined their entire lives because of this single word "wait"?
Of course, Ye Qingchan also never suspected that Ye Fan would disregard the ethics of their cousinhood and harbor romantic feelings for her.
"I'll be waiting."
Ye Fan smiled, deliberately emphasizing the word "waiting." Ye Qingchan only nodded, then hurried after Ling Xiao as he left the Ye family residence.
It wasn't until their figures disappeared that the members of the Ye family finally dispersed. And thanks to Ye Qingchan's connection to Ling Xiao, Ye Fan was, for once, not harassed by anyone—a rare reprieve.
"It seems I need to break through to the Awakened Spirit Realm soon. Only then can I control the demons sealed in the first layer of the Eight Desolations Glazed Pagoda."
Ye Fan cast a grim glance toward the gate, then turned and walked back to his small courtyard.
…"Wait for me, Young Master!"
On the other side, Ye Qingchan trotted to catch up with Ling Xiao. But when she reached him, she found him looking at her with a meaningful expression.
"W-What's wrong?"
Ye Qingchan felt a twinge of nervousness. Whenever Ling Xiao wore this look, he was definitely hatching some mischief.
"Your cousin Ye Fan seems to care a great deal about you."
A smile tugged at the corner of Ling Xiao's lips, and Feng Jiao'er also covered her mouth and giggled.
"That's right," Feng Jiao'er chimed in. "Ever since Ye Fan walked in, his eyes have been fixed on you, Miss Qingchan."
"What are you talking about? We're cousins! Aren't you both being a little too…"
A blush spread across Ye Qingchan's face, and she shot Ling Xiao a sharp glare.
"Young Master Ye Sheng."
Ling Xiao didn't tease Ye Qingchan further. He could tell that the girl truly had no romantic feelings for Ye Fan—Ye Fan was just indulging in wishful thinking. The emotional bond between them had barely begun to form before he'd cut it off.
"Ah! Young Master Ling Xiao, what do you command?"
Being addressed as "Young Master" filled Ye Sheng with both awe and honor. He quickly bowed to Ling Xiao at a ninety-degree angle, his body trembling with nervousness—even his voice shook. After all, this was a man whom even his Third Uncle Ye Liuyun had to serve with extreme caution. He was terrified that one wrong word would get his head blown off on the spot.
"Don't be nervous. This is just casual talk. Young Master Ye, are you twenty years old yet?"
Ling Xiao wasn't just idly chatting with Ye Sheng. He wanted to subtly pry out information about Ye Fan from him. After all, Ling Xiao's purpose in coming to the Ye family was far from simple. Even though Ye Fan was bullied everywhere in the Ye family, if Ling Xiao acted too directly, he might arouse the vigilance of this Child of Destiny.
"Young Master… I just turned twenty this year."
Young Master Ling Xiao actually wants to chat with me?!
Ye Sheng looked up at Ling Xiao in disbelief, then quickly lowered his head again, still overwhelmed with awe.
"Hm, not bad. Reaching the Peak of the Void Spirit Realm at twenty—you have quite the talent."
Of course, Ling Xiao had noticed the faint spiritual energy fluctuations on Ye Fan's body. Ye Fan might have hidden his cultivation, but he could never fool Ling Xiao's eyes.
"Young M-Master, you flatter me!!"
Ye Sheng felt lightheaded, as if he were floating on air. If he hadn't been in front of Ling Xiao, he would have probably done a backflip on the spot. Young Master Ling Xiao had actually praised him! What an honor that was!
After all, even Xiao Yan, the Crown Prince of the Great Yan Dynasty, had to bring gifts and make an appointment in advance just to meet Ling Xiao. Ye Sheng felt that his life had finally reached its peak—all thanks to Ling Xiao's arrival.
"Young Master Ye, how many brothers and sisters do you have?"
Next, Ling Xiao asked Ye Sheng about the Ye family's affairs, and finally steered the conversation to Ye Fan as naturally as possible.
"That Ye Fan we saw earlier—he doesn't seem to have any cultivation. I heard from Qingchan before that he was born with useless meridians?"
"That's correct," Ye Sheng replied. "Ye Fan has never been able to cultivate since he was a child. After more than ten years, he still hasn't even entered the True Essence Realm. Everyone in Qingfeng City knows that."
Ye Sheng shot a subtle glance at Feng Jiao'er. Hadn't the Saintess of the Qianmei Sect broken off her engagement with Ye Fan precisely because of this? However, Ye Fan had been sensible today—he hadn't even glanced at Feng Jiao'er. If he had annoyed Young Master Ling Xiao, the entire Ye family would have suffered along with him.
"Oh? He still hasn't entered the True Essence Realm?" Ling Xiao feigned a frown. "But I thought I sensed a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy on him."
"Spiritual energy fluctuation?"
Ye Sheng looked clearly confused. Ling Xiao only shook his head and smiled. "Perhaps I was mistaken."
It seemed Ye Fan had hidden his strength well. It appeared that no one in the Ye family knew his cultivation was already on par with Ye Sheng's. But the deeper he hid, the greater his ambitions must be—and the more astonishing the secrets he held.
"Young Master Ling Xiao!!!"
In the distance, a grand procession of elegantly dressed young men and women came approaching. Leading them was a handsome young man in a red robe inlaid with gold, wearing a purple-gold crown on his head.
"Who is this…" Ye Qingchan whispered.
"Young Master Ling Xiao," the young man said, stepping forward and bowing respectfully. "I am Xiao Yan, Crown Prince of the Great Yan Dynasty. I visited the Ye family earlier. Would you honor me by joining us for a gathering at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion?"
Even as a crown prince, Xiao Yan bowed respectfully to Ling Xiao.
"Young Master Ye Sheng, we meet again!"
Ye Sheng stood beside Ling Xiao, openly accepting Xiao Yan's greeting. He could feel that his life had truly reached its peak—all because of Young Master Ling Xiao! After all, this was Xiao Yan, one of the most dazzling prodigies in the Northern Wilderness! Normally, he wouldn't even spare a glance at a noble family from Qingfeng City, but now he was greeting Ye Sheng politely.