I Returned to the Immortal’s Youth — Chapter 25: Driftform I

“And I was flaunting myself as your old friend. Who cares?”

Yan Qing muttered to himself, holding a plum branch he had casually plucked as he walked outside.

He had been staying in Jadeclear Peak for the last few days, ever since he arrived at Desireless Sect. Now that he had obtained his disciple token, he could finally leave.

Desireless Sect was vast. Tianshu was the lord of Birdturn Peak, one of the three hundred outer peaks.

When Tianshu learned that Yan Qing was coming to visit, he happened to be refining pills. He shook so hard he blew up his pill furnace. So when Yan Qing arrived at Birdturn Peak, he saw Tianshu with torn clothes, messy hair and a face covered in soot.

This scene stunned Yan Qing. He hesitated for a moment before saying with a forced smile, "Elder Tianshu, I know you're happy to see me, but you don't have to be this happy."

Tianshu's face was full of "happiness." "Young Master Yan, why did you suddenly think of coming to see me? Didn't you come to Desireless Sect to marry Venerable Duwei and become his Dao companion?"

Yan Qing thought it over for a while and came up with a reason that would convince Tianshu. "I wanted to, but Venerable Duwei doesn't like me. What should I do?"

Tianshu's reaction was just as he expected. He sighed heavily. "Forget it, come with me. For now, I’ll register you under my name, and I'll be your nominal master."

Yan Qing: "Okay. Thank you, Elder."

When they went to get his disciple robes and his sword, Tianshu told him, "All new disciples must go to Driftform Hall for one year of cultivation. Driftform Hall is divided into four classrooms: heaven, earth, black and yellow. With your aptitude, you should only be able to enter the yellow-level classroom."

Yan Qing asked curiously, "Then who are the teachers?"

Tianshu said irritably, "Who else? It's more than enough for the Nascent Soul stage senior disciples in the sect to teach you."

Yan Qing obediently said, "Yes, Elder."

Tianshu patiently instructed him, "In Driftform Hall, besides daily cultivation, you will also be go down the mountain to eliminate demons from time to time. Your cultivation level is low, so just hide behind your senior disciples and don't hurt yourself."

Yan Qing: "Yes, Elder."

Tianshu suddenly remembered something: "Speaking of which, it's quite a coincidence that your headmaster at Driftform Hall this time is Hengbai."

Yan Qing couldn't help but laugh out loud and said meaningfully, "Oh, that's a real coincidence."

Tianshu looked at him wordlessly. He had him get his things, then told him to leave quickly. However, since this boy was now his own disciple, before Yan Qing left Birdturn Peak, Tianshu repeatedly and earnestly instructed him, "Yan Qing, remember, you must speak according to your circumstances in the future, and never speak without thinking!"

"Yes, Elder. Thank you, Elder." Yan Qing changed his clothes, played with the token in his hand and walked towards Driftform Hall.

There was a reason why Driftform Hall was named Driftform Hall. It stood in an open space surrounded by several mountain peaks, like a floating island, filled with spiritual flowers and lush bamboo.

When Yan Qing walked over, Hengbai happened to be teaching a class.

After he left Jadeclear Peak, it was as if spring had returned to the earth. He strode from the depths of winter into the middle of spring in a single step. The windows of the hall were bright and clean, and the sunlight filtered through the verdant bamboo leaves, shining brightly on the white stone steps.

Hengbai's measured voice came from inside. "As yin and yang divided, they formed fifty images. Of these fifty, only forty-nine can be used. Original chaos divided itself into two concepts. Taken along with the whole, these two concepts became three.”

Yan Qing walked up and casually knocked on the door.

As the lord of a peak and a Great Ascension cultivator, Hengbai was assigned to Driftform Hall as head teacher because he was young and inexperienced. He was reluctant to take on the role, so his teaching was monotonous and repetitive, following the textbook word for word.

Hearing a knock on the door, Hengbai frowned deeply and said unpleasantly, "Who is it?"

Yan Qing pushed the door open and said with a smile, "Elder Hengbai, I'm a new disciple entering the sect. I'm here to report my attendance."

Hengbai was about to roll his eyes skyward, but when he turned to see Yan Qing's face, his eyes froze in that position. He almost knocked himself out by rolling his eyes too hard.

Yan Qing held back his laughter and called out to him again, "Elder?"

Hengbai finally looked back at him and raised his voice, "Yan Qing?!"

Yan Qing nodded solemnly, "Yes, that's right, it's me."

Hengbai: "..." He really wanted to throw the book he was holding at Yan Qing’s face.

The students sitting quietly in the classroom looked up in surprise. They saw a young man at the door, wearing the white and blue robes of their sect, with a jade crown on his head. Red threads were tied around his wrists, and a black bat was perched on his shoulder. He made for a strange sight.

But this man had fair skin, curved lips and peach blossom eyes that held a smile. He had an indescribable air of nonchalant charm. The bamboo leaves around him rustled and fell, casting golden sunlight into his eyes, as if the colors of spring spread around him. He was the picture of elegance.

Hengbai's teeth ached when he saw Yan Qing. He said with a cold face, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Jadeclear—" He bit his tongue and changed his words. "In any case, you shouldn't be here."

Yan Qing waved his disciple token and said, "Elder Hengbai, as a new disciple entering Desireless Sect, why shouldn’t I be here?"

Hengbai was wary. "New disciple? Which peak did you join?"

Yan Qing: "Birdturn Peak."

Hengbai: "..." Sooner or later, he would die because of Tianshu, the most famous good-natured old man in Desireless Sect!

Yan Qing looked inside and said, "There are so many people here. Elder Hengbai, why can’t you let in a new disciple?"

Hengbai was so angry that he couldn't even read from the textbook anymore. "Come in, shut up and listen to the lesson!"

Yan Qing: "Oh, okay."

The disciples in the classroom: "..."

The students stared at this handsome new disciple as he entered the classroom, their expressions almost bordering on terror.

Yan Qing was no stranger to school life, having studied at Divinification Pavilion for a period of time in his previous life. As luck would have it, he and Xie Shiyi had sat in the back corner of the classroom back then, and now he found himself in the same spot once again.

Trouble flew to the windowsill as soon as Yan Qing entered the room, perching himself there with great self-awareness. As Yan Qing sat down, a bamboo leaf from outside fluttered onto the table. He picked it up gently with his fingers and smiled faintly, feeling as if time had slowed down for a moment.

Hengbai read from the textbook for a while, but finding it impossible to concentrate with Yan Qing in the room, he simply closed the book and addressed the class. "Go back and prepare yourselves thoroughly over the next two days. The sect will assign tasks requiring you to go down the mountain the day after that. As cultivators, our duty is to eliminate demons and uphold the righteous path. However, when demonseeds awaken, they are exceptionally ferocious, so you must also take care to protect yourselves. The sect will provide you with protective talismans when the time comes. If you encounter danger, activate them."

The news that they were going down the mountain immediately overshadowed the shock caused by Yan Qing's arrival.

The students in the classroom buzzed with excitement, their eyes filled with anticipation.

One of them asked, "Elder, where are we going this time?"

Hengbai replied casually, "I don't know. The sect will notify you when the time comes."

The tasks the Central Hall assigned to these new disciples were mostly basic missions with low difficulty, assigned simply to give them some experience. A peak lord like Hengbai would only scoff at such tasks.

Yan Qing had never expected to receive a mission before even attending a few classes. After class, his classmates came over to greet him.

The students were pretty enthusiastic. "Where are you from, Yan-xiong?"

Yan Qing answered truthfully, "Springturn Sect."

The students: "..." Ah, Springturn Sect? What kind of place was that? Was there even a sect with that name in the upper realm?

The students could only manage awkward but polite smiles, saying, "Oh, oh, Springturn Sect. Springturn Sect is great, great."

The students pressed on, "What’s your cultivation level, Yan-xiong?"

Yan Qing continued to be honest. "I’ve just reached the Foundation Building stage."

The students: "..."

The students continued to smile awkwardly but politely. "Oh, Foundation Building, that's not bad. Foundation Building is fine, just fine."

Hengbai listened to their conversation and couldn't stand it any longer. "What are you still doing here in the classroom? Go back and prepare for the mission two days later! Yan Qing, stay behind!"

The students looked at each other and dispersed like fleeing deer.

After the disciples left, Hengbai dropped his pretenses and rose from his chair. He walked over to Yan Qing, rolled his eyes and said with disdain, "So, Xie Shishi kicked you out of Jadeclear Peak?"

Yan Qing showed concern for his teacher. "Elder Hengbai, you should stop rolling your eyes. If you’re unable to roll them back down, like just now, it'll be embarrassing."

Hengbai's face contorted in anger. "Yan Qing, since you've joined our sect, the first thing you should do is learn to respect your teachers!"

Yan Qing said sincerely, "Oh, okay."

Hengbai was infuriated by his unresponsive attitude. "What kind of tone are you using? No wonder Xie Shishi kicked you out of Jadeclear Peak!"

Hengbai said coldly, "I know you come from a humble background and don't have much talent. You were only able to join Desireless Sect because Xie-shixiong favors you. But I advise you not to push your luck. Since Xie-shixiong kicked you out of Jadeclear Peak, I advise you to let your idea of getting engaged to him rot in your stomach!"

Yan Qing showed respect for his teacher. "Aren't you tired, standing there, Elder? Why don't you sit down and take your time talking to me?"

Hengbai wanted to roll his eyes again, but then he remembered Yan Qing's words, and halfway through rolling them upwards, he rolled them back down again, leaving his face expressionless. He sat down across from Yan Qing.

Yan Qing stared at him for a while and laughed. "Elder, you look like a maid for one of those rich and powerful families in the mortal world."

Hengbai slammed his fist on the table. "What did you say?!"

Yan Qing continued slowly, "And your Xie-shixiong is the young mistress of that wealthy family."

Hengbai: "..."

Hengbai's veins bulged, and he said coldly, "Yan Qing, are you tired of living?!"

Yan Qing: "Doesn't it seem that way? Look at your Xie-shixiong. With his status, appearance, and reputation, he's the perfect example of a beauty from a noble family, pure as jade." Then he pointed at himself meaningfully. "As for me, I’m the son-in-law your young mistress has brought home."

Hengbai was so angry that he lost his ability to form words. "..."

When Yan Qing was in Springturn Sect, he thought that he was living in a story where the noble ruler returned to his rightful place. Now it turned out to be the story of a useless husband. He laughed. This was fun too.

The more he thought about it, the more sense it made. "I bewitched your sect's young mistress, and she insisted on marrying me. Then all of you maids and servants looked down on me, despised me, and insulted me. But you don't realize that actually..." He lowered his voice. "I, the useless husband, am a peerless genius."

Hengbai: "..." He flew into a rage. "Yan Qing!"

Yan Qing pushed Trouble’s head down to avoid Hengbai's rage, and chuckled. "Just kidding."

Hengbai told himself to calm down. He gritted his teeth, saying word by word, "Alright, genius. During the sect mission two days from now, don't let the demonseeds scare you out of your wits."

Yan Qing watched Hengbai's furious figure retreating, tugged onTrouble's wings, smiled and murmured, "I've never been afraid of demonseeds in my life."

It was usually the demonseeds who were afraid of him.

His soul threads were the natural nemesis of phantasms.

Speaking of phantasms, one had to think of the demon god.

The demon god was both male and female, born from chaos. However, the two most common forms they used were an old man and a young woman. In their long-term contact with Yan Qing, they used the most suitable form, an old woman hidden in the fog, wearing a silver robe. Half of her face was only bone, and her red lips were as red as blood. The demon god's most unique feature were their eyes, the purest green in the world, with vertical pupils that seemed to see through the soul. Their appearance was ferocious and sinister, like a nightmare from which one could not escape.

Two days later, the sect finally issued the mission.

At the same time, Yan Qing received his first monthly stipend. The number one sect in the world was indeed generous. New outer sect disciples received a hundred top-grade spirit stones per month.

Trouble was so stunned that he snatched Yan Qing's pouch. He bit each stone with his teeth, sighing, "My goodness, no wonder everyone wants to join Desireless Sect."

Yan Qing read the task written on a jade slip. In Clearcheer City of the Southluster continent, a bride murdered a young nobleman on their wedding night. She peeled off his skin and dismembered his bones. There was blood splattered on the ceiling beams. The bride fled through the window, her whereabouts unknown. But judging by her cannibalistic practices, she must be a demonseed.

For new disciples entering the sect, their first encounter with demonseeds would not be too difficult.

Even if the phantasm in the bride's body had fully awakened, she was still a mortal, after all.

Yan Qing put away the jade slip, taking this mission to be a trip down the mountain for fun.

Trouble only reluctantly returned the spirit stones to Yan Qing after biting them until his teeth were sore. He said, "Is this the treatment that a useless husband receives?"

Yan Qing burst out laughing. "Do you know what a useless husband is?"

Trouble flapped its wings, quite smug. "Of course I know, I've read a lot of novels. It's a pretty boy."

Yan Qing shook his head in denial. "No, it’s a pretty boy who lives on the generosity of his wife’s family. I'm not that kind of man."

Trouble: "Ah?"

Yan Qing thought it over and said, “My cultivation isn’t great, neither is my aptitude, I do nothing all day long and I live on the hundred spirit stones that the sect distributes every month. But I’m not a kept man."

Trouble: "Why?"

Yan Qing said, "I have dignity."

Trouble: "..."

Halfway through his walk, Yan Qing ran into Mingze again.

Mingze was an inner sect disciple, and they were not in the same class at Driftform Hall. Mingze was in the sky-level classroom.

Mingze took the initiative to greet him, and his eyes fell on the jade slip in Yan Qing's hand. He said happily, "Yan Qing-xiong, are you also taking on the Clearcheer City mission this time?"

Yan Qing nodded and at the same time expressed his confusion. "Mingze-xiong, I'm a bit curious. Clearcheer City is a town inhabited by mortals, right? Why was the mission given to Desireless Sect?"

Mingze smiled and said, "Yan-daoyou, you may not know this, but the mortal towns of the Southluster continent are all under the jurisdiction of the nine major sects. Moreover, the identity of the deceased man this time is rather special. The deceased is a member of the Sun family. The Sun family is the number one family in Clearcheer City, and one of their ancestors was extremely talented, and is now an elder of Driftflower Sect."

Yan Qing: "An elder of Driftflower Sect?"

Mingze nodded and said, "That's right, Driftflower Sect."

Yan Qing smiled, thinking to himself that he really had a deep connection with Driftflower Sect.

After returning to Jadeclear Peak, Yan Qing told Xie Shiyi about this matter.

"This time the sect forced me to go down the mountain, so it doesn't count as breaking the contract, right?"

Xie Shiyi looked down and said calmly, "Do you want to go?"

Yan Qing said firmly, "I want to go."

Xie Shiyi stared at him intently, his eyes dark and bright, showing a hint of purple under the candlelight.

Yan Qing said earnestly, "Xie-shixiong, eliminating demons and upholding the righteous path is our duty. We shouldn’t neglect doing even the smallest of good deeds."

Xie Shiyi asked indifferently, "What is the mission?"

Yan Qing repeated, "There was a bride in Clearcheer City who killed her groom on their wedding night, when the phantasm in her body awakened. The mission this time is to capture her."

Xie Shiyi didn't even comment on this matter, just asked, "What is your cultivation level now?"

Yan Qing said, "Golden Core..." Yan Qing felt a little ashamed of his negligence in cultivation, and looking into Xie Shiyi's eyes, he added, "The peak of Golden Core."

Xie Shiyi was a little surprised. "You’re about to break through to Nascent Soul?"

Yan Qing: "Yeah, soon."

Xie Shiyi frowned almost imperceptibly. "I'll talk to the sect leader for you. This time..."

Yan Qing said without hesitation, "No, I need to experience this."

Xie Shiyi looked at him, was silent for a long time, then said lightly, "I'll go with you."

Yan Qing: "..."

Yan Qing: "?"

Yan Qing was stunned for a moment, and then almost burst out laughing. "You're going with me? Xie Shiyi, you're going with me to Clearcheer City to exterminate this bride?!"

Out of the entire cultivation world, there were few people that Xie Shiyi would personally kill.

How lucky this demonseed was to have the leader of the Immortal Alliance personally take action.

Seeing him laughing, Xie Shiyi's tone was extremely cold and detached. "This is your mission, I won't take part."

"Oh." Yan Qing finished laughing and asked a serious question. "How are you going to accompany me?"

With Xie Shiyi's current status, if he were to appear in Clearcheer City, what would be the point of their mission?

"The bride, the bride," Yan Qing muttered, and suddenly a smile appeared in his eyes, "Yaoyao, do you remember our time at Blackwater Lake?"

Xie Shiyi looked at him coldly.

Yan Qing swallowed the words "Maybe you can pretend to be the bride this time, that way both of us will have done it." He coughed lightly, sat up straight and said, "Xie Shiyi, have you ever worn the clothes of an outer sect disciple of Desireless Sect?"

Xie Shiyi didn't speak. He became the peak master of Jadeclear Peak as soon as he entered the sect. In name, he was the chief disciple, but in reality, he had an extremely high status. He had never been to Driftform Hall, and he probably didn't even bother to set foot in the three hundred outer peaks. Naturally, he hadn’t started as an outer sect disciple like Yan Qing.

Yan Qing said firmly again, "Then it's settled! Let's go down the mountain together tomorrow and form a team to slay the demonseed!"

Xie Shiyi smiled lightly, his tone full of scorn: "Demonseed?"

Yan Qing blinked and said, "Don't you think your Jadeclear Peak is cold? After a hundred years of seclusion, it's time for you to take a break, Immortal Venerable. Why don't you go out for a walk too?"

Xie Shiyi lowered his eyes to look at his fingertips, his expression indistinct in the light and shadows.

On the second day, Yan Qing managed to persuade Xie Shiyi.

In fact, seeing Xie Shiyi again after a hundred years, he always had a feeling of unreality.

Xie Shiyi seemed to carry the snow and wind that had not dissipated from Jadeclear Palace for ten thousand years. His appearance became more and more outstanding, and his temperament became colder and colder.

He asked Xie Shiyi to disguise himself as a young man. The moment Xie Shiyi raised his head quietly in the snow-covered and plum blossom-filled corridor of Jadeclear Peak, Yan Qing fell into a trance for a long while.

Xie Shiyi held a wooden sword, his black hair falling down to his waist, as graceful as a tree carved of jade. The clothes of the outer sect disciples of Desireless Sect were plain white and blue, simple and elegant, completely different from the cold nobility of brocade and silk. It was as if Xie Shiyi had stepped down from his altar, losing some distance.

The moment he raised his eyes, it seemed as if time had passed in an instant. They returned to two hundred years ago, when all the quarrels and separations had not yet happened.

Yan Qing laughed, his voice very light, and called out, "Xie Shiyi."

The people of Tenside City always described Yan Qing with words like "fickle," "erratic" and "cruel." They said he enjoyed knocking on skulls to hear the sound.

The truth was, Yan Qing didn’t like skulls or the sound they made.

It all went back to when he first entered the demonic realm. Alone and afraid to sleep, he sat on a pile of corpses in Thousandghost Cave. Tapping his fingers on a white skull, he discovered a sound – light and clear, strangely similar to the bells hanging under his eaves when he was fifteen.

And so, on countless sleepless nights, Yan Qing would sit barefoot atop the mountain of bones, letting the blood-stained red threads trail from his fingertips into the wilderness that teemed with poisonous snakes. His red robes billowed and his black hair cascaded down his back. With his pale index finger, he'd tap on the white skulls, eyelashes lowered, listening to the sound one by one, until daybreak.

***

Author's Notes:

I used a specific example to showcase the main conflict in the world. (This foreshadows the contrast between Yan Qing's true nature and his public perception.)

To celebrate the release of this chapter, I'll be giving away 100 random red envelopes to readers who leave comments. 

I know the cover art doesn't quite capture my vision of Yan Qing, the young city lord. I think he should be a great beauty, despite his current lack of such qualities. However, I assure you that Yan Qing wasn’t necessarily miserable when he was in Tenside City. He was a peculiar mix of crazy and funny, living a life that could be considered a series of funny anecdotes. Since his arrival, the people of Shifang City had their lives turned upside down!

I'm a big believer in maintaining balance in my storytelling.

Let me explain my decision to make the Demon God a gender-neutral deity. Aside from being a plot point, it's also because Yan Qing's experiences in Tenside City could easily be misinterpreted to be various cults. Since the demonic god seems like the ultimate villain, I chose to avoid the typical portrayal of a powerful being as an old man or woman.

The demonic god is intricately linked to the overall plot, but has no connection to the romantic subplot.

I hope you enjoy the story!

***

cela’s notes: 

Around two hours.

Seeing as a translator named Jade Petals has taken over this story, I’m dropping it. No, they did not communicate with me at all over this. I was going to stay, but now I’m done. 

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