My Best Friend Said He Loves Me - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“You’re not shocked at all?”

Liu Cong casually cast a soundproofing spell, covering only the two of them. She stroked her chin and said, “Never mind, if I ask, you’ll definitely say something like, ‘To each their own, I respect it but don’t understand it.'”

“So, are you going to the wedding banquet?”

Shen Yunjian looked at her in surprise: “What would I do there? Be the officiant? I don’t even know the two who are entering the contract at the Dream-Plucking Tower.”

“Wait…” He observed the expression on Liu Cong’s face and understood a little: “Elder Sister wants to go see it?”

“I want to join the excitement,” Liu Cong corrected him with a grin, “Every time you return to the sect, you only stay for a day or two before running off to the four cardinal directions to slay demons again, missing out on so many interesting stories!”

“Oh?” Shen Yunjian put on an expression of listening intently.

“The two male cultivators from the Dream-Plucking Tower who are preparing to enter a contract were originally master and disciple.”

“Hiss!” The first sentence made Shen Yunjian gasp: “Those two are separated by a thousand-plus years!?” His eyebrows knitted together, greatly puzzled: “Do they even have anything to talk about normally?”

“Aiya, how would an outsider like me know what a master and disciple talk about? Don’t interrupt!”

Liu Cong glared at Shen Yunjian in dissatisfaction. Seeing him make a “quiet and shut up” gesture, she continued with the gossip she had heard over the year: “The disciple secretly loved his master. One day, he discovered that his master, after entering the Cycle Mirror, was going to stay with a mortal man.”

“The disciple then felt, ‘Why can a mortal man do it, but I can’t?’ So, he modified the array of the Cycle Mirror and replaced the mortal man, becoming his master’s fated lover.”

Shen Yunjian’s expression was complicated and hard to describe, looking like he had a lot to say.

Liu Cong saw it but intentionally ignored him to maintain the coherence of the story: “The Cycle Mirror was originally a cultivation artifact for every disciple of the Dream-Plucking Tower to examine their heart and eliminate distracting thoughts. Instead, after completing the Cycle Mirror experience, the master was plagued with distracting thoughts and almost regressed in cultivation.”

“Although his cultivation was fine afterward, his state of mind was severely damaged, and he had no choice but to recuperate.”

“They practice cultivation separately at the Dream-Plucking Tower and don’t interfere with each other, so no one discovered that the unfilial disciple had imprisoned his master for five years.”

“Wait a moment!” The story grew increasingly absurd, and Shen Yunjian finally couldn’t help but interject: “What is the difference in realm between these two? How can a disciple imprison his master? This master in the story is failing miserably!”

“Oh, I forgot you know very little about other Immortal Sects.”

Liu Cong patiently explained: “The cultivators of the Dream-Plucking Tower are different from us. They cultivate arrays and are called Array Cultivators. Array Cultivation relies heavily on innate talent. A person with exceptional talent can achieve in one day of enlightenment what others achieve in a hundred years of arduous practice. The difference in spiritual energy only affects how long they can maintain an array.”

Shen Yunjian grudgingly accepted this explanation: “And then?”

“And then? Then the disciple’s actions were discovered a year ago. When the disciples in their sect were gossiping, they mentioned it vaguely in the spirit report, and someone dug up the whole story.”

“The elders of the Dream-Plucking Tower originally intended to directly activate the array to summon heavenly lightning to scatter the soul of this ‘violator of morals and evil entity.’ I need to clarify that ‘violator of morals and evil entity’ is not my appraisal! Their elder said it so loudly that it spread after being overheard by disciples of other sects lurking outside the sect.”

“How did the disciple survive the heavenly lightning array?”

“The Dao Ancestor of the Dream-Plucking Tower intervened to protect the disciple.”

“And why is that?”

“I heard that the Dao Ancestor of the Dream-Plucking Tower once cut off a part of his soul to create three thousand avatars. The disciple was one of his avatars, but by chance, a new soul was born within him, making him essentially another person. So, after the Dao Ancestor recalled his avatars, this one didn’t dissipate.”

Such a complicated relationship.

Shen Yunjian had a lot he wanted to say but held his tongue.

“Later, after some chasing and fleeing, heavenly lightning proving the heart, and so on, the master accepted the disciple, and the two decided to enter a contract.”

“Surely a lot of twists and turns were omitted in between? How did it suddenly reach the contract stage?”

Shen Yunjian’s pupils trembled: “I said that while same-s3x marriage is rare, it’s not unprecedented. Why did the crowd react so strangely? It turns out there’s such a complicated backstory.”

Liu Cong struck while the iron was hot, persuading him: “That’s why I want you to go! If you go to the wedding banquet, it will definitely make it even livelier! Junior Brother Shen, aren’t you curious why they invited you?”

“I am curious.” Although Shen Yunjian was greatly shocked, the twisted romance of the Dream-Plucking Tower master and disciple was, after all, “someone else’s” story. He felt no emotional resonance, only the interest in exploring the end of the story, sparked by the convoluted process.

“The wedding banquet is in three days…”

He pondered for a moment. His eyebrows raised. In the end, his curiosity to see the excitement prevailed. A boyish playfulness, fitting his age, appeared in his pale golden eyes: “It’s not like I have anything else to do; going once won’t hurt. It sounds much more interesting than arduous cultivation in the sect.”

The two exchanged a smile, hitting it off instantly.

“After I report the situation in the Demon Abyssal Pit, I’ll go back to the Outer Peak and ask if anyone else is interested. Remember to bring Qingyu along. He’s been cooped up inside every day. If he doesn’t go out soon, he’ll be pickled into wood. Take him to join the fun too!”

“Don’t worry, Elder Sister! I guarantee I’ll drag that kid out.”

With the soundproofing spell in place, the crowd couldn’t hear what they were saying, only seeing the two of them with the same bright, excited look on their faces after the conversation ended.

What kind of expression is that…?

Excitement… anticipation?

Some pondered in secret; others followed their gaze until the welcoming golden cloud completely disappeared into the dense fog that obscured outsiders’ view of the Immortal Dwelling Sect. Only then did the bustle on the Path of Immortals gradually cease.

The disciples from other immortal sects, regretting that they couldn’t see how the matter would unfold, didn’t sit idle. They sent out spiritual messages everywhere, exaggerating the scene that had just taken place. “Will Immortal Lord Shen attend the Dream-Plucking Tower’s wedding banquet?” instantly became the focus of debate in today’s spirit reports.

On the other side, Shen Yunjian, the focal point, was completely unaware of this. He was currently in the Sword-Severing Hall, meeting the four elders of the Saint Realm First Stage one by one and responding to their concern.

He then brought up the anomalies in the Demon Abyssal Pit.

“When Yunjian was in the Demon Abyssal Pit, he found that many demon beasts broke through three realms in just one year. The Great Calamity that Elder Sister Liu Cong led the team to kill this time was one such case.”

“Moreover, its core demonic energy moved from the original single eye to its back, and its intelligence has also increased. It will likely be even harder to deal with in the future.”

“Hmm…”

Venerable Huading, with white whiskers and a youthful face, stood opposite him and frowned: “This matter is not trivial. I will inform the various factions at the Daoist Convention in three months.”

“It seems something has gone wrong in the four cardinal directions of the world.” Venerable Changxi, whose voice was ethereal, gazed at the sky, then shook his head: “I cannot divine it; the four directions are all shrouded in mist.”

“Aiya, Yunjian has returned after a long time; let’s not make the atmosphere so heavy!” Venerable Pingyan said, chuckling: “Even if there’s a problem in the four cardinal directions, we old bones will handle it.”

“Let’s talk about happy things.”

“Yunjian’s eighteenth birthday is coming soon. What kind of birthday gift do you want, Yunjian?”

“Let’s not discuss that,” Venerable Mingdu, whose entire body was wrapped in mist, came closer and nodded: “Yunjian, it is time for you to rest well.”

Understanding that Venerable Pingyan and Venerable Mingdu didn’t want him to worry too much, Shen Yunjian changed the topic as requested: “The eighteenth birthday should be the same as in previous years. Age holds no special significance for Yunjian.”

“How can that be! You are the Dao Son of the Immortal Dwelling Sect.” Venerable Pingyan interrupted him. Seeing his nonchalance, he sighed: “Your eighteenth birthday banquet must be celebrated properly. This is also the intention of Dao Ancestor Miaozhen Chongning.”

“My Master…” Shen Yunjian was about to speak but was cut off.

“Your Master cares about you a lot! You’re the only one in the entire Immortal Dwelling Sect who doesn’t care about their own affairs. Leave the birthday banquet to us; we guarantee to give you a memorable birthday!”

“Alright, alright, don’t stay here any longer. Hurry back and rest!”

He didn’t get a chance to speak again.

Venerable Pingyan waved his hand, sweeping his whisk. Shen Yunjian’s vision blurred, and he was sent out of the palace.

“…They won’t make the birthday banquet too grand, will they?”

Shen Yunjian stood on the white jade steps, muttering the words that were interrupted.

“Forget it, let Master and the Elders handle it.”

Shen Yunjian cast his worries aside. Although he disliked trouble, he wouldn’t turn down the kind intentions of those close to him for that reason.

Having some free time now, he lit a wisp of blue spiritual energy to sense the location of its owner.

“Cangfeng Peak?”

“Zhou Qingyu was on Cangfeng Peak before I left, and he’s still on Cangfeng Peak after I returned! That guy couldn’t have stayed inside for three months, could he!”

Shen Yunjian frowned, summoned cloud energy to form a sword, leaped onto it, and shot towards Cangfeng Peak.

*

Cangfeng Peak.

Amidst coiling clouds and water, a patch of triple-petaled Moon-Knot Flowers bloomed. A courtyard, more exquisite and beautiful than the residences of mortal nobles, with rock gardens and high walls, was situated beside the sea of Moon-Knot Flowers, silent and secluded.

Shen Yunjian did not hesitate, flying straight in on his sword. Just as he was about to collide with the protective spiritual barrier, he casually pressed the wisp of blue spiritual energy he held at his fingertips onto the barrier.

Dong.

Silent ripples spread out. Shen Yunjian passed through the barrier like a fish entering water.

As he was about to land, he dispersed the sword formed by cloud energy, his foot lightly touching the ground.

This courtyard looked large, but in fact, only Zhou Qingyu lived here.

Shen Yunjian familiarized himself with the winding corridors, walked to the door of the room deep inside the residence, and heard a familiar voice saying something inside. He pushed the door open directly and announced:

“What ‘the plot begins’… what ‘the protagonist’… what ‘white moonlight’…”

Shen Yunjian’s beautiful pale golden pupils met another pair of gentle eyes with a hint of surprise. He questioned oddly:

“Zhou Qingyu, the newly prominent head of the Zhou family! If other disciples hadn’t mentioned it, I wouldn’t even know you’ve become so famous recently!”

“And you stay on Cangfeng Peak every day, having time to read storybooks written by mortals, but no time to reply to my spiritual messages, is that it!”

The man being questioned by Shen Yunjian was between a teenager and a young man. His ink-black hair was partially tied up, his features were gentle and handsome, his face like white jade, and his thin lips were slightly pursed. He looked as relaxed and detached as a cloud, yet he had a pair of expressive eyes.

His shimmering eyes instantly made his entire person feel vividly alive.

Zhou Qingyu wasn’t angered by Shen Yunjian’s string of questions. He discreetly tucked a scroll on his hand to the side, then curved his lips into a smile that could rival the moonlight: “Yunjian, welcome back.”

All of Shen Yunjian’s accumulated annoyance dissipated in his light voice, but he still said:

“I won’t let you off this easily.”

He leaned against the door, crossing his arms, looking down: “Explain yourself.”

“Why didn’t you reply to my spiritual messages for these three months?”