After The Aloof Long Aotian Became Jealous Of Me - Chapter 4

On the way there, Bai Yi thought the matter over.

This banquet was a victory celebration held by the immortal sects to commemorate the devastating blow dealt to the demon race. Representatives from all the major immortal sects would attend. As the main force behind the demon race’s defeat and a model of the righteous path, Rong Zhenlü would naturally be present.

The original novel had described the banquet in considerable detail.

During the celebration, Long Aotian would brush past the disguised Saintess. From an outsider’s perspective, the brief encounter carried a faintly ambiguous air.

More importantly, after the banquet, Long Aotian would accidentally notice that the shoulder of a newly accepted direct disciple bore an embroidered fragment of the pattern on the jade pendant inside his body.

The earlier scene in which he brushed past the Saintess had nothing to do with Bai Yi.

The jade-pendant pattern afterward, however, was extremely important.

In the original novel, Long Aotian had discovered it himself. It was the first clue concerning his origins that he had encountered thus far.

With the original story as a reference, Bai Yi felt that he could find a way to guide Long Aotian’s attention toward it ahead of time and prove that he was useful.

Only by showing Long Aotian that he had some value would Bai Yi have any chance of remaining for a while longer after the secret realm ended.

While he was thinking, the two of them arrived relatively late. The grand competition was already about to begin.

Naturally, Long Aotian’s entrance was spectacular beyond belief.

He was so striking that even Bai Yi, standing within his shadow, experienced firsthand what it meant to borrow another’s power and bask in reflected glory.

Everyone present was either an elder or peak master from one of the immortal sects, or an outstanding disciple fortunate enough to participate in the victory celebration.

Yet the moment the two of them appeared, even Bai Yi, who was only at the third level of Qi Refining, could clearly hear the commotion around them.

People from the other immortal sects might not have known, but many within the Gongxian Sect had already heard that Zhaoye Peak had taken in a disciple.

Although he was a mortal, anyone whom Senior Brother Zhenlü personally allowed to remain must surely be extraordinary. By now, everyone’s speculation about him had already been exaggerated beyond measure.

Even so, seeing him in person still left them stunned.

For once, Immortal Lord Zhenlü had withdrawn the icy lightning surrounding him—the barrier that normally made it impossible for anyone to approach.

At last, everyone’s vision became clear.

Standing slightly behind him was a young man even more dazzling than the ice and lightning themselves.

He possessed an excessively enchanting face capable of bringing disaster upon a nation, beautiful as a shadow glimpsed in a dream. Had they not seen him with their own eyes, they could never have imagined that someone could be even more beautiful than Senior Brother Rong Zhenlü.

In stark contrast to his appearance, the young man stood with lowered eyes, obedient and meek, as though he would allow anyone to arrange him however they wished.

Even the tightly fastened, proper collar rising high around his neck could not completely conceal the snowy-white skin beneath it.

Senior Brother Rong Zhenlü was like the moon in the heavens—visible yet untouchable, too distant for anyone to dare covet.

But a single glance at this young man struck with such force that an intense, almost uncontrollable desire rose within them.

They wanted to—

Ah.

How terrifying.

Before that desire could fully emerge, it was frozen solid by Senior Brother Zhenlü’s icy aura.

The condensed lightning transformed into sheets of ice, surrounding the two as they took their seats. It stood like a folding screen, blocking everyone’s view.

Even a single glance seemed capable of inflicting frostbite.

Many people finally remembered in a daze that this young man had clearly been a mortal at first.

Yet now, in such a short time, he had already reached the third level of Qi Refining.

His talent must be unfathomable.

No wonder Senior Brother Zhenlü had made an exception and accepted him.

The prying gazes immediately withdrew one after another, though the praises whispered around them did not stop.

Bai Yi sat cross-legged at an angle behind Rong Zhenlü’s seat, looking honest and dutiful.

He kept his gaze straight ahead, acting like an underling who possessed little ability yet still fulfilled his responsibilities as a guard.

Gradually, however, as he listened to so many people praising him, even Bai Yi—who had been complimented since childhood and had long since grown accustomed to it—could not help becoming embarrassed.

Hahaha.

He probably was not that good-looking.

Bai Yi suppressed the corners of his mouth as they threatened to rise.

It was only natural that he felt a little pleased.

For the first time, he discovered that the banquets Long Aotian usually could not be bothered to attend were actually quite enjoyable.

Especially since, as Long Aotian’s underling, the only task Bai Yi needed to perform was following behind him while eating and drinking for free.

He did not need to do anything throughout the entire banquet, and he could even enjoy everyone else’s compliments and flattery.

There ought to be more banquets like this.

Before long, the dishes began arriving one after another.

The portions were small but exquisitely prepared, and the fragrance of immortal cuisine filled the air.

It was far better than the food on Zhaoye Peak.

Bai Yi was nearly drooling, but he calmly lowered his eyes while his peripheral vision wandered across the banquet.

According to the original novel, that disciple was a new direct disciple accepted by the Master of Baiye Peak.

The seats nearby belonged to the Gongxian Sect’s various peak masters and elders, so they should not be far from Long Aotian.

Bai Yi looked left and right but failed to spot them.

His heart sank.

Long Aotian was seated in the first row, which meant the Master of Baiye Peak was most likely somewhere in the second or third row behind them.

Long Aotian was outrageously arrogant and could not be bothered to look at anyone else, much less turn his head around.

In the novel, he had only noticed the pattern because, after the banquet ended, the Master of Baiye Peak had brought the disciple over to strike up a conversation.

Only then had Long Aotian seen it.

As restrained and calculating as Long Aotian was, he had remained calm after noticing the pattern and continued conversing as usual.

Fortunately, now that Bai Yi was here, making Long Aotian see the person ahead of time would not be too difficult.

Bai Yi was seated slightly behind and to Rong Zhenlü’s right.

As his attendant, it was natural for the two of them to sit close together.

Later, Bai Yi could find an excuse to speak to him. The moment Rong Zhenlü turned around, he might notice the disciple.

Reassured, Bai Yi waited until the sect masters finally finished their lengthy introductions before picking up his chopsticks.

Everyone around him was chatting and sampling immortal wine.

Hardly anyone was actually eating.

They were all unbelievably refined.

Each person had only three small dishes and a single pot of wine on their table.

Bai Yi finished all three dishes in several bites, licked his lips, and remained hungry.

He could have asked an attendant for another serving.

However, Long Aotian was sitting right beside him and cared deeply about proper behavior.

This was Bai Yi’s first time accompanying him outside. He needed to leave the impression of an excellent and capable underling.

He could not make Rong Zhenlü think he was troublesome.

Therefore, Bai Yi put down his chopsticks and sat up straight, trying to remain inconspicuous.

A clear and pleasant voice suddenly sounded beside him.

“Bring two more servings.”

The immortal attendant passing by visibly froze.

He had clearly never imagined that Immortal Lord Zhenlü would speak to him voluntarily. His face immediately flushed as he hurriedly nodded.

“Y-yes, Immortal Lord.”

Bai Yi was also stunned and looked up in surprise.

Rong Zhenlü happened to turn toward him.

This time, he finally did not avoid Bai Yi’s gaze.

His golden lashes merely fluttered continuously beneath the sunlight. His cold, pale cheeks seemed faintly reddened by the reflected glow, making him appear slightly less unapproachable.

“You’re hungry, aren’t you? The food on the mountain isn’t good.”

Huh?

Was Long Aotian voluntarily speaking to him?

Bai Yi wondered whether hunger had caused him to hallucinate.

Was Rong Zhenlü speaking sarcastically?

Did he think Bai Yi had embarrassed him by finishing all the food?

Or did he also believe the food on the mountain was terrible?

Bai Yi could not determine what he meant.

However, although Long Aotian’s sense of taste had been affected by years of refining pills and tasting medicinal ingredients, preventing him from detecting many flavors, he probably could not tolerate strawberry-and-fish dumplings either.

If Bai Yi lied, Rong Zhenlü would only become even more displeased.

Therefore, he nodded.

Perhaps it was merely Bai Yi’s imagination, but Rong Zhenlü seemed to smile faintly.

When he turned back around, his robes fluttered like shattered icicles, carrying an unmelting chill beneath the sunlight.

A jade token suddenly appeared on Bai Yi’s table.

He picked it up and discovered that it was a Gongxian Sect disciple identity token.

More importantly, it was the version personally bestowed by a peak master.

This item was extremely valuable.

With it, Bai Yi could freely enter the inner sect’s various cultivation grounds and dining halls.

The immortal cuisine there was renowned and could even benefit cultivation.

His eyes lit up, and he accepted it without the slightest hesitation.

Suddenly, he remembered that Long Aotian had attended this banquet alone in the original novel, without bringing any of his underlings.

Bai Yi had originally assumed that when Rong Zhenlü activated the water mirror, he had intended to contact the immortal crane.

Judging by the current situation, could it be that he had planned to bring Bai Yi to the banquet from the very beginning?

Sure enough, being Long Aotian’s underling and being his enemy were two completely different experiences.

Bai Yi marveled inwardly.

Even if Long Aotian harbored resentment toward him and behaved somewhat awkwardly, he still provided the treatment his underlings deserved.

At the very least, he could not allow his other followers to become disheartened.

Wonderful.

This was absolutely wonderful.

Bai Yi truly wanted to remain here and enjoy himself for several more days.

Unfortunately, earning merit was far too difficult.

Long Aotian had clearly turned around just now, yet he seemed not to have noticed the disciple behind them at all.

Honestly, it was ridiculous.

The pattern was embroidered so prominently on the person’s shoulder.

For Long Aotian, it had existed inside his body since birth and should have been engraved deeply within his memory.

Had he not noticed it instantly in the original novel?

Yet just now, he had completely overlooked it.

Bai Yi would have to find a way to make him turn around again later.

While he was struggling with the problem, the additional dishes arrived.

Bai Yi ate while considering possible solutions, failing to notice that a passerby’s robes nearly caught the edge of his table and knocked it over.

“I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”

A gentle, clear female voice sounded above him.

As a modern person with ingrained habits of politeness, Bai Yi instinctively looked up and curved his lips into a courteous, radiant smile.

“It’s all right.”

When he raised his head, he saw a female cultivator wearing a white hood that concealed her face.

However, her figure was tall and graceful. Anyone could tell she was a great beauty.

The female cultivator met his eyes and immediately smiled.

Behind the hood, her beautiful eyes sparkled.

“Fellow Daoist, you are truly handsome, and your temperament is so kind. As expected of a disciple from the Gongxian Sect.”

“May I ask your name?”

Although Bai Yi had been praised since childhood, being complimented so directly still embarrassed him slightly.

He could only wave his hand and tell her that his name was Bai Yi.

The female cultivator softly repeated his name before smiling and walking away.

Bai Yi did not give the brief interruption much thought.

However, the moment the woman turned her back, his smile froze.

The hood appeared understated, but its rear edge was inlaid with a ring of silver patterns, and a sea-blue, high-grade whale stone hung from it.

It was practically the most exquisitely crafted hood in existence.

Bai Yi knew its details so clearly because this outfit unmistakably belonged to the disguised Saintess.

Had Long Aotian just witnessed the Saintess praising him?

It was over.

Bai Yi abruptly looked up toward the front.

At the head of the bustling banquet, the young Immortal Lord’s lashes cast pale blue shadows over his face.

His peerlessly handsome features seemed carved from frost and snow.

He lifted a cup of immortal wine, carrying the graceful bearing of a crane and the steadfast elegance of a pine.

He was so lofty and cold.

His attitude toward everything was arrogant and detached, as though none of the people surrounding him mattered.

Bai Yi felt that he was overthinking things.

At this point, the Saintess had not begun pursuing Long Aotian.

She had not even revealed her face.

Rong Zhenlü might not have paid any attention to her at all.

Furthermore, because of that brief interruption, the two of them had not even managed to share their supposedly ambiguous encounter.

Bai Yi nodded to himself.

He ought to learn how to remain calm.

Now that he had finally begun following Long Aotian, he should observe and imitate this transcendent attitude.

No wonder the other disciples said that Long Aotian possessed the bearing of a true immortal.

Just as Bai Yi was about to look away, his gaze abruptly stopped.

At some point, the wine cup in Rong Zhenlü’s hand had become covered in cracks.

It appeared to have been crushed long ago, only for terrifying spiritual power to forcibly restore it beneath Bai Yi’s widening eyes.

A moment later, it shattered again.

His translucent jade-like fingers did not appear to be exerting any strength.

Yet veins gradually rose along the back of his hand, while the clear immortal wine inside the cup shook violently as though boiling.

Without question, Rong Zhenlü was angry.

Extremely angry.

After reaching adulthood, the Rong Zhenlü of the original novel had never been this furious.

Was it because of the Saintess’s compliment?

Bai Yi’s heart sank.

Then he heard the endless quiet discussions around them.

Gazes repeatedly focused upon him, surging like waves.

In the novel, Long Aotian was always the center of everyone’s attention.

Yet now, the person attracting everyone’s gaze seemed to have become Bai Yi.

Perhaps jealousy truly distorted a person’s face.

Long Aotian’s natural presence was already cold. With his expression now rigid, he looked even more frightening.

Very few people dared openly discuss him.

Bai Yi, on the other hand, appeared far more approachable—or rather, everyone dared to talk about him.

As a result, it looked as though he were more popular than Rong Zhenlü.

Almost every remark Bai Yi could hear was praising him.

Bai Yi felt as though his body were floating.

At last, he realized the magnitude of his mistake.

How could he have stolen Long Aotian’s spotlight in public?

So when Long Aotian had ordered two more servings for him, his pride must already have been wounded.

Yet Bai Yi had failed to read the situation and genuinely eaten them.

Now the Saintess’s praise had become the final straw.

Long Aotian’s jealousy had erupted with terrifying force.

Bai Yi desperately hoped that Rong Zhenlü would not expel him the moment they returned.

At present, Bai Yi had saved only one spirit stone.

Where else could he possibly find such easy employment?

Most tasks in the cultivation world were exhausting, miserable, and life-threatening.

The chopsticks in his hand slipped and struck the table with a clatter.

Rong Zhenlü turned around.

Beneath the sunlight, his handsome face was breathtaking.

At that moment, he looked perfectly composed, showing no sign of anger whatsoever.

He even leaned slightly closer, his voice filled with a tenderness and concern that even Bai Yi could clearly hear.

“What’s wrong?”

As Rong Zhenlü approached, a cool fragrance brushed across Bai Yi’s face.

The surrounding crowd immediately released a wave of barely suppressed exclamations, as though they were witnessing an unimaginably beautiful scene.

Even Bai Yi almost wondered whether his eyes were deceiving him.

What a gentle and considerate superior, warmly caring for his subordinate.

He had never heard Long Aotian speak in such a mild voice before.

However, the moment Rong Zhenlü drew closer, a chill that only Bai Yi could perceive swept over him.

The man stood against the light, and his shadow fell across the table before them, thick and dark as though it were twisting.

Bai Yi understood.

Long Aotian was exceptionally skilled at restraint.

He was probably the type whose expression became gentler the angrier he felt inside.

Bai Yi needed to calm him down immediately.

First, he absolutely could not expose the fact that Rong Zhenlü was angry.

He was pretending to be indifferent precisely because he did not want others to realize that he cared about something so petty.

Second, this was no longer an appropriate moment to make Long Aotian notice the pattern and claim merit for it.

The man’s twisted thoughts were entirely consumed by jealousy.

His eyes were fixed solely on Bai Yi, without the slightest attention left for anything else.

Trying to make him notice the disciple now would be far too obvious.

Long Aotian was suspicious by nature.

The pattern concerned his most deeply concealed secret.

Bai Yi could not allow him to suspect that he knew anything.

Otherwise, being expelled would become the least of his problems.

Bai Yi lowered his head and stopped looking at the shattered cup.

He searched desperately through his memories of the original novel, trying to find a method capable of quickly calming Long Aotian.

Preferably something that would work with only a few sentences.

Three seconds later—

Bai Yi gave up.

Hahaha.

Forget it.

Nothing existed.

Calming Long Aotian with words?

How could that possibly work?

This man normally calmed himself by killing people.

Rong Zhenlü asked once more what was wrong and even appeared ready to move closer.

Bai Yi completely prepared himself to be thrown out.

Too tired to continue thinking, he noticed that the immortal wine on the table remained untouched.

Following his principle of never wasting even the smallest benefit, he tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

The wine was rather strong.

A drunken flush spread across his face, staining it a hazy red.

His smoky-violet eyes became misty from the alcohol. When his enchanting upturned gaze drifted toward Rong Zhenlü, a single glance seemed capable of stealing the soul.

However, now that Bai Yi was facing Long Aotian’s gentle fury at such close range, he felt he ought to soothe him at least a little.

Hopefully, Rong Zhenlü would throw him more gently later.

Hearing everyone around them repeatedly sigh that the Immortal Lord was so captivating, Bai Yi casually echoed their words.

“Mm, it’s nothing. I was simply mesmerized by the Immortal Lord.”

After speaking, he continued eating.

Then he heard something fall to the ground.

Bai Yi raised his head in confusion.

Immortal Lord Zhenlü stood there, his presence eclipsing the radiance of the sun and moon.

His head was lowered, revealing the tips of his ears, which had turned so red that blood almost seemed ready to drip from them.

The wine cup in his hand had shattered completely.

Crimson wine soaked the exposed bones of his fingers, resembling streaks of blasphemous markings that violently tore apart his cold and untouchable image.