Chapter 61: Is This Seat Taken?

The brothers ceased their playful scuffle and both stood up.

The man before them exuded an air of great solemnity. Xue Meng was momentarily stunned before he nodded, saying, "Mm. You have a point. Who are you?"

He had been spoiled since childhood, and despite Madame Wang's repeated teachings on etiquette, he had never taken them to heart. Hence, his asking for someone's name without using a respectful title or introducing himself first was extremely impolite.

However, Mo Ran knew that this person would not hold it against Xue Meng. After all, he was...

"I am Ye Wangxi, a disciple of the Confucian Wind Sect," the youth replied calmly, unperturbed. Under his dark, sword-like brows, his eyes shimmered like stardust, sharp and brilliant. "May I ask for your esteemed surname?"

"Ye Wangxi?" Xue Meng frowned, muttering, "Never heard of him. No reputation."

Although his mutterings were soft, if the other party had good hearing, they would definitely hear them. Thus, Mo Ran tugged at Xue Meng's sleeve discreetly, signaling for him to behave, before hiding his emotions behind a slight smile. "I am Mo Ran from the Summit of Life and Death, and this is my younger brother, Xue Meng."

Xue Meng shrugged off his hand and glared at him.

"Don't touch me. Who are you to call me your brother?"

"Ai, Xue Meng, you…" Mo Ran sighed, then his eyes curved into a smile as he turned to Ye Wangxi. "My younger brother is mischievous; I'm sure Brother Ye has had a good laugh."

It wasn't that Mo Ran had suddenly become polite towards Xue Meng. It was just that Ye Wangxi was an exceptional figure among people. Although he was unknown at this point, in his previous life, he was the second strongest cultivator after Chu Wanning.

Heaven only knew how much trouble Mo Ran had gone through at Ye Wangxi's hands in his past life. Reborn, Mo Ran didn't want to make an enemy out of this sharp and noble hero again. He already had enough on his plate with Chu Wanning; adding Ye Wangxi to the mix would mean no more peaceful days.

Ye Wangxi was a man of few words. After exchanging a few polite remarks, he returned to his room.

As soon as Ye Wangxi left, Mo Ran's grin returned, and he nudged Xue Meng with his elbow, asking with a chuckle, "So, what do you think?"

"What do I think about what?"

"About him," Mo Ran said. "Do you like him? Isn't he handsome?"

"..." Xue Meng gave him a confused look before cursing, "Crazy."

Mo Ran laughed heartily. "The four of us will be living under the same roof now, constantly running into each other. You should be grateful it's him living with us."

Xue Meng asked curiously, "From the sound of your voice, do you know him?"

Mo Ran, of course, couldn't tell the truth, so he jokingly replied, "I don't, but I judge people solely by their looks. I found him attractive and felt quite pleased."

Xue Meng cursed, "Disgusting!"

Mo Ran chuckled and turned away, waving his hand before making a cursing gesture behind his back. Then, he lazily returned to his small stone house, locking the door with a thud, leaving Xue Meng's insults outside.

The next morning, Mo Ran woke up early.

To help them acclimate to life in the Peach Blossom Paradise, the Feathered people had delayed their cultivation for three days. After finishing his grooming, Mo Ran noticed that Ye Wangxi had already left, while the other two were still asleep. Thus, he strolled around the streets on his own.

In the early morning mist, many Immortal Sect swordsmen moved gracefully, floating past as they hurried to their individual practice spots.

Passing by a breakfast stall, Mo Ran saw freshly cooked steamed buns and remembered that his junior disciple was still ill. He walked over and said, "Madam, I'll take eight steamed buns and a bowl of sweet porridge to go, please."

The Feathered vendor didn't even look up and replied, "Give me six feathers."

Mo Ran was taken aback. "Six what?"

"Six feathers, huh."

"...So do I need to go find a chicken and pluck some now?"

The Feathered being rolled their eyes at him. "Want food without feathers? Scram."

Mo Ran was both annoyed and amused. Just as he was about to ask more questions, a familiar voice sounded from behind, followed by a hand wrapped in bandages reaching out, holding six shimmering golden feathers between its fingers.

"Lady Boss, give us the porridge. I'll pay for it."

Taking the feathers, the Feathered being didn't bother with further chatter and turned to pack the breakfast. Mo Ran turned his head and saw Ye Wangxi standing beside him, looking handsome and refined.

"Thanks a lot." Holding the steaming fried buns and sweet porridge, Mo Ran walked alongside Ye Wangxi. "If we hadn't run into you today, we'd probably be starving."

"It's no big deal," Ye Wangxi said. "Miss Eighteen has a bad memory and often forgets to give new arrivals feathers. I just happened to pass by and it was a simple gesture. You don't have to be so polite."

Mo Ran asked, "In Peach Blossom Land, do all transactions require feathers as currency?"

"Indeed."

"Where did those feathers come from?"

Ye Wangxi replied, "They were plucked."

"Plucked... plucked..." Mo Ran was taken aback. Were they really taken from birds? Wouldn't the birds here be completely plucked bald?

Seeing his astonishment, Ye Wangxi glanced at him with a hint of amusement. "What are you thinking? This Peach Blossom Land has an Ancestral Abyss. It's said to be where the Divine Phoenix ascended to the heavens. At the bottom of the abyss lies a sea of scarlet flames, so scorching that no grass can grow and no beasts can survive."

Upon hearing this description, Mo Ran immediately recalled the blood-red sky he had seen on the outskirts of the city the previous day. "Is that abyss located near the northern part of the city?"

"You're correct."

"But what does that have to do with the feathers?"

Ye Wangxi explained, "Well, although no other living creatures can survive near the Ancestral Abyss, it is home to a flock of enraged owls. They build their nests with true fire and are active only at night. Their feathers can aid in the cultivation of Feathered beings."

"I see," Mo Ran chuckled. "No wonder they use feathers as currency."

"Mm-hmm. But you should take note that their feathers become indistinguishable from ordinary owl feathers during the night. Even if you manage to catch one, it would be useless. Only when the sun rises each day do the enraged owls return to the Ancestral Abyss in flocks. Right before they enter the abyss, their wings regain their golden hue. That's the time to pluck them."

"Haha, wouldn't that be like practicing light body techniques? If your skills aren't up to par, you'd end up as roasted meat if you fell. But if you don't go and pick them, you'll starve to death." Mo Ran couldn't help but click his tongue. "That's truly vexing."

Ye Wangxi asked, "Are you not proficient in light body techniques?"

Mo Ran chuckled. "Just average."

"That won't do," Ye Wangxi said. "Furious Owls are swift and agile, not inferior to hawks or falcons. If you don't practice diligently, you'll be starving within a few days."

"Like this, huh..."

Seeing Mo Ran lost in thought, Ye Wangxi sighed. "I have quite a number of feathers, so I'm not lacking for now. If the three of you need any, just ask me first."

Mo Ran waved his hands repeatedly and smiled. "How can I accept that? Consider these six feathers borrowed from you. I'll go back and eat first. If I manage to pluck any feathers tomorrow, I'll return them to you. Thank you very much."

After bidding farewell to Ye Wangxi, Mo Ran returned to the annex with his porridge and steamed buns.

Xue Meng's room was empty; he had probably woken up and wandered off aimlessly. So Mo Ran headed to Chu Wanning's bamboo house.

Chu Wanning was still asleep. Mo Ran placed the porridge and fried buns on the table and went to his bedside, looking down at him.

Suddenly, a familiar sensation stirred in his heart.

This junior apprentice brother... Why did he look so much like someone else when he slept?

But he couldn't quite place who it was. There was just a vague memory of someone who would curl up into a ball whenever they lay in bed, their hand pillowed beside their face. Who was it?

Just as he was lost in thought, Chu Wanning stirred awake.

"Mm..." Rolling over, Chu Wanning caught sight of the person by his bedside and his eyes widened in surprise. "Mo Ran?"

"For the last time, call me senior apprentice brother," Mo Ran said, ruffling his hair before feeling his forehead. "Your fever's gone down. Come on, get up and eat something."

"Eat something..." The child on the bed echoed blankly, his disheveled hair accentuating the tenderness of his face.

"See how much your senior apprentice brother cares for you. I bought breakfast early this morning. Eat while it's still hot."

Chu Wanning, dressed in a pristine inner robe, got out of bed and walked to the dining table. Laid out on it was a fresh lotus leaf wrapping a crisp, pan-fried bun with a flaky bottom, sprinkled with green scallions and black sesame seeds. Beside it was a small bowl of longan and osmanthus porridge, cooked to a soft, glutinous consistency and steaming with warmth.

The usually dominant Elder Yu Heng felt a hint of uncertainty. "For me?"

"Huh?"

"Are… all of these for me?"

Mo Ran was taken aback for a moment before answering, "Yes."

Looking at Chu Wanning's hesitant expression, he pondered for a moment and said with a smile, "Hurry up and eat before it gets cold."

During his years atop the Summit of Life and Death, although people respected Chu Wanning, his stubborn and aloof personality made few willing to share meals with him, let alone prepare breakfast for him. Sometimes, when he saw his disciples looking out for one another, he wouldn't admit it aloud, but secretly envied their camaraderie. Thus, he gazed silently at the bowl of porridge and steamed buns for a long time, reluctant to partake.

Seeing Chu Wanning sitting on the small stool, staring at the food without touching his chopsticks, Mo Ran assumed it didn't suit his taste and asked, "What's wrong? Is it too greasy?"

"..."

Chu Wanning turned to look at him, shook his head, then picked up the spoon to scoop a spoonful of porridge. He blew on it to cool it down and cautiously took a sip.

If he were still the elegant and distant Master Chu of old, this manner of sipping porridge would only accentuate his refined grace.

But on a child, it appeared somewhat clumsy and pitiful.

Misunderstanding, Mo Ran said to him, "Do you not like longan? You can pick them out and discard them; it's no big deal."

"No," the junior disciple replied, his face not showing much emotion, but when he looked back at Mo Ran, his dark eyes were gentle. "I like them."

"Oh... Haha, that's good then. I thought you didn't care for them."

Lowering his thick eyelashes, Chu Wanning repeated softly, "I like them. No one has ever treated me like this before."

As he spoke, he lifted his gaze to look at Mo Ran earnestly.

"Thank you, Senior Apprentice Brother."

Mo Ran was taken aback that he would say such a thing and froze.

He wasn't an inherently kind person, nor did he particularly like children. The reason he was nice to Xia Sini was that he found it impressive that someone so young had such exceptional skills, making him a promising young man worth befriending.

But despite his selfish intentions, the junior disciple had responded with sincerity. Mo Ran felt a little embarrassed, but also found it odd, so after waving his hand to dismiss Chu Wanning's thanks, he asked, "Has no one ever bought breakfast for you before?"

Chu Wanning nodded, his expression unchanged.

"Surely the disciples under Elder Xuan Ji take care of one another?"

Chu Wanning replied, "I don't often spend time with them."

"What about before you entered the sect? When you were still living in the secular world, your parents..." But halfway through his sentence, Mo Ran paused.

His junior apprentice brother was so delicate and pure, like fine jade. Which parent could bear to leave him on a mountain to cultivate, without even a single visit to the sect? Presumably, his story was similar to Shi Mo's and his own.

Indeed, Chu Wanning answered calmly, "My parents abandoned me, and I had no other relatives to look after me."

Silent for a long moment, Mo Ran let out a deep sigh. He thought to himself: I befriended this child because of his exceptional cultivation and his calm demeanor, unlike other noisy children. Now it turns out that we share the same background.

As he looked at his junior apprentice brother, he couldn't help but recall his own bitter childhood. A surge of empathy and affection welled up within him. Suddenly, he said, "No one took care of you before, but there will be someone from now on. Since you call me Senior Apprentice Brother, I'll look after you from now on."

Chu Wanning seemed surprised by these words, but after a while, he slowly formed a smile. "You want to take care of me?"

"Mm. Follow me from now on, and I'll teach you cultivation techniques and swordplay."

Chu Wanning's smile grew wider. "You want to teach me cultivation techniques and swordplay?"

Misinterpreting the expression, Mo Ran scratched his head and said, "Don't laugh at me. I know your cultivation is quite good, but you're still young, and there's much more to learn. Elder Xuan Ji has many disciples; he won't be able to take care of you. What's wrong with learning from me? At least I still possess divine weapons."

Chu Wanning fell silent for a long while before responding, "I wasn't laughing at you. I... think you're great."

In the past, he would never have said such a thing, but after shrinking in size, it seemed that his temperament had softened as well. It was like hiding in the shadows, allowing him to finally remove his stiff facade.

For Mo Ran, who had lived two lifetimes, this was the first time someone had praised him as "great," even if it was just a child. He was so flustered and pleasantly surprised that his usually thick skin flushed red as he stuttered, repeating, "I... I, I'm great... Am I really?"

Suddenly, he vaguely recalled a time when he genuinely wanted to be a good person.

But that humble yet gentle aspiration, like wanting to marry Aunty Li from the cosmetics shop when he grew up, earning enough money to buy steamed buns every day, or hoping for two servings of braised pork in every meal instead of being a god, had all become distant memories, scattered by the winds and snow.