Old Master, Times Have Changed - Chapter 722 (Patreon)

Chapter 722: Mindful, But Accepting

Ning Ruo had always been the type to say exactly what was on her mind.

“...”

Xu Xing fell silent for a long while. After swallowing the fruit in his mouth, he slowly began.

“Some things, actually...”

But he had only gotten halfway through the sentence when Ning Ruo cut him off.

“I know.” She smiled.

“I’ve waited all these years already. Waiting a few more won’t make a difference.”

“Time doesn’t mean much to us in the first place.”

Back in those years when everyone kept telling her “the bigger picture comes first,” it was Big Brother Xu who paid the price for her.

And it was only after that that she understood: when someone tells you to put the bigger picture first, more often than not, you’re the price.

How could she not like him?

“You know, Big Brother Xu, sometimes I really think you’re pretty contradictory,” Ning Ruo went on.

“Hm?” Xu Xing didn’t quite get it. “How so?”

“Back then, when you saved me, you told me to live for myself. You said I didn’t owe anyone anything anymore.”

“Emm... what does that have to do with this?”

“But all these years... how many times have you actually lived for yourself?”

“...” Xu Xing froze for a moment, then shook his head with a smile. “It’s different. You were born with your ending already decided. After you escaped back then, you truly didn’t owe anyone anything.”

In a sense, Ning Ruo’s situation back then was actually very similar to Meizu’s.

The difference was that before she had even been born into the world, her final fate had already been set.

Even after she grew up, she accepted the final ending the whole city had arranged for her.

After all, the bigger picture came first.

“But I’m different. On this road, there are a lot of people I’ve wronged—too many. Too many people who trusted me, and I let down their expectations.”

When he first arrived in the Tai Xuan Realm, he suffered a lot of malice from the world and struggled just to survive.

Yet precisely when he was wrestling at death’s edge day after day, many people showed him kindness and trust.

His senior sister. His master. Lord Hong. And Daoist Yuanjun’s father...

But he never answered his master’s expectations. And he never got the chance to repay the kindness of Lord Hong and Daoist Yuanjun’s father.

So many things—there was no longer any way to make up for them.

He felt he owed them for all of it.

All he could do was change this world little by little, turning it into what they had hoped for, what he himself had hoped for.

“Sounds kind of melodramatic,” Xu Xing mocked himself. “That’s why I usually don’t like talking about this.”

Maybe a lot of people thought that everything he’d done from the beginning until now was because he “cared about all living beings,” some noble reason like that.

But in truth, the reason he’d made it this far was simply that he “couldn’t stand it,” and because he wanted to answer the expectations of certain people.

“So... is this one of those ‘not usual’ times?” Ning Ruo asked.

Xu Xing: “...”

Your focus is really in the wrong place.

“I’m very happy you’re willing to tell me these things, Big Brother Xu.”

Ning Ruo stood up and walked in front of Xu Xing, staring straight at him.

“No matter what they think, once everything settles and the day comes for you to make a choice... no matter what the result is, I’ll accept it.”

As she spoke, a smile surfaced on her face again.

“Even if it’s ‘all of them.’”

Xu Xing’s expression stiffened.

Looking into her clear, black-and-white eyes, he finally couldn’t help asking:

“You... don’t mind?”

“I mind,” Ning Ruo answered without hesitation.

She minded—but she accepted it.

…

…

On the other side, at the Sword Sect.

Outer Sect.

The daylight was bright.

Inside the “Autumn View Park” of the “Four Seasons” scenic area,

withered yellow leaves had already piled into a thick layer, even covering several benches by the path.

Only a few dead leaves remained on the branches of the trees on both sides, not yet fallen.

It was early autumn. The season matched the park’s mood, so many Sword Sect disciples who cultivated the Flowing Seasons Sword Canon came here to comprehend its intent and push their mastery further.

In one corner of the park, a tall girl in the black fitted uniform of the Sword Enforcement Hall sat on a bench, a sword resting across her knees.

Her features were sharp and delicate, her hair simply tied into a high ponytail.

A black headband was wrapped around her forehead, making her tender skin look even fairer. Her eyes were lively, full of youthful energy.

Ye Zhiwei.

Ye Zhiwei’s younger sister, one of the Sword Enforcement Hall’s key disciples—and Zhao Ruoming’s online girlfriend.

Because of her striking looks and temperament, quite a few people nearby kept sneaking glances at her.

Some of them knew the inside story and recognized who she was. Their hearts jumped.

After all, there had already been rumors that the current acting head of the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall—the so-called Cangfeng Sword Master—was preparing to take Ye Zhiwei as a disciple!

That was a Soul Transformation Sword Master!

For a rumor like that to spread through the Sword Sect at all meant it had a certain degree of credibility.

Before long, Ye Zhiwei lifted her head.

She saw a leisurely figure seated atop a cyan-gold longsword, wobbling closer as if strolling through the air.

Ye Zhiwei stood up and smiled.

“Jiu Yu-jie.”

That’s right!

The newcomer was Chi Jiuyu.

She lightly hopped down. The longsword circled the Autumn View Park once, then landed in her hand and turned into a streak of cyan light before vanishing.

“Long time no see, Little-Little Ye!”

After a month of recuperation—plus taking the pills Ye Zhiwei mailed her on time every day—Chi Jiuyu was fully revived.

She swept her gaze around.

The people who had just been peeking immediately looked away and pretended to be interested in other things.

See?!

This was the prestige of Ancestor Jiu Yu!

“I heard you got a Rededge Medal, Jiu Yu-jie?” Ye Zhiwei said, not waiting for Chi Jiuyu to fish for compliments with roundabout hints.

“Huh? You already know?” Chi Jiuyu blinked.

“Yeah. My sister already told me.”

In truth, Ye Zhiwei’s sister told her to be careful: last time she’d missed the mission, and with Chi Jiuyu’s personality, she’d definitely come back to show off.

She specifically told Ye Zhiwei not to take Chi Jiuyu’s bait, and not to mention anything about “medals.”

But...

As the saying goes: when your little sister is out, your big sister’s orders don’t count!

“Over the years, it feels like there haven’t been many people in the entire Sword Sect who earned that kind of honor at your age, right?” Ye Zhiwei continued.

Not only would she bring it up—she’d bring it up a lot.

Compared to those deep-minded high-level cultivators, she preferred spending time with someone like Jiu Yu-jie.

“There are still a few,” Chi Jiuyu put on a thoughtful act for a moment, then suddenly looked enlightened. “Nineteen. Right, right! Besides me, there were nineteen more!”

Sigh.

Little-Little Ye really knew how to talk. Unlike her sister, Little Ye, who always splashed cold water on her.

“Seriously amazing...” Ye Zhiwei said, full of admiration.

That was completely sincere.

Chi Jiuyu loved showing off in front of people, and she yelled all day about being the next sect master.

But as a person, she really was impressive—and every time she “showed off,” she had the ability to back it up. Nobody in the entire Sword Sect could refute that.

“Eh! For that medal, I was laid up for a whole month,” Chi Jiuyu said with a sigh. “If your sister hadn’t refined pills for me, I probably would’ve been stuck in bed for another month.”

To be fair, the pills Little Ye sent her were bitter as hell, but the effect was absolutely insane.

That dumbass Pill Cauldron Pavilion even said standard treatment would take nearly two months!

Pah!

When she became sect master, she’d definitely lead the Pill Cauldron Pavilion to catch up with...

No, wait!

To surpass Jishi Valley!

“By the way, isn’t your sister in seclusion? When will she come out?” Chi Jiuyu asked.

She had already squeezed information out of Little Xuanxuan: the bitterness of pills could be removed. Making them that bitter was purely to mess with people.

And after a month of recovery, she’d gained new insights into the Sword of Annihilation. She wouldn’t end up half-dead after a single slash like before.

Ancestor Jiu Yu’s divine art was complete!

Little Ye had been so “good” to her—how could she not “repay” her properly?

O(￣▽￣)ブ!

“Not sure,” Ye Zhiwei gently shook her head. “This time, the pills my sister is researching are very complicated. It probably won’t be finished anytime soon.”

“Ah...” Chi Jiuyu looked a little regretful.

Looks like she could only save this opportunity for Little Zhao.

Last time, she’d looked utterly crushed—unwilling yet jealous. She was probably holding back a lot of frustration.

Mm!

She’d ask when she got back.

After lying around for a month, she felt like the Sword Bone in her whole body was about to rust!

…

…

At dusk, in front of the Sword Sovereign Hall of the Sword Sect.

Zhang Yunlu stood in the afterglow of the setting sun, staring at the storage ring in her hand and falling into deep thought.

She had just been sent by Bie Xuening to pick up Xu Xing. This was what Xu Xing had given her.

Sensing the mountain-like pile of spirit stones inside, as well as the four boxes of Xuan Candle Fruit...

But she had only stood at the entrance for a moment, hadn’t she?

At that instant, Zhang Yunlu finally understood why her senior sister had looked so full of regret when she heard that their martial uncle was visiting the various immortal sects.

“Martial Uncle really spends big...”

Just as she was marveling inwardly—

“Yo? You bought a new storage ring?”

She looked up.

It was Chi Jiuyu, who had just gone out wearing her Third-Class Rededge Medal for a stroll and returned in a great mood.

“This style’s kind of old. Which shop did you buy it from?”

“It’s not that,” Zhang Yunlu said, taking out two boxes of Xuan Candle Fruit and handing them over. “Martial Uncle just gave this to me.”

When Martial Uncle gave her the storage ring, he told her to keep the spirit stones, and to split the Xuan Candle Fruit—two boxes for her senior sister.

“Hm?”

Chi Jiuyu reflexively accepted them, lowered her head, and looked at the Xuan Candle Fruit inside, glowing faintly.

For a moment, she didn’t react.

“Martial Uncle?”

“Yeah,” Zhang Yunlu explained. “Didn’t Master just ask in the group chat if we had time?”

Chi Jiuyu: “...”

That did happen.

Back then, she was thinking about going out to show off to Little-Little Ye, so she said she had something to do, and Master didn’t press it...

“So Master asked if we had time... actually because she wanted me to go pick up Martial Uncle?”

“More precisely, to ‘welcome’ Martial Uncle. Just stand at the entrance for a bit and you’re done.”

“So this storage ring of yours...”

“Martial Uncle gave it to me.”

Martial Uncle gave it to her...

Martial Uncle gave...

“There are still a lot of spirit stones inside. Later I—”

“No! Keep it for yourself!” Chi Jiuyu blurted out immediately.

A senior sister taking her junior sister’s spirit stones...

What kind of disgrace would that be?!

Ahhh!

She wailed inside, miserable with regret, endlessly regretting that she hadn’t asked a couple more questions back then.

After all, “showing off” could happen any day—but Martial Uncle handing out red packets was definitely not an everyday event!

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