To Raise a Soul 54.2

Feng Yuan lamented internally until he noticed that quite some time had passed and Yin Yan would be back soon. After some hesitation, he declared, “I will boldly ask one question. I see that Yin Yan’s energy is quite strange. Is he… special in any way?”

The alarm in Yu Zhen’s heart rang loudly, but he put in great effort to maintain his calm expression. He shook his head, “Other than his fate being a little peculiar, there isn’t anything particularly unique about him.” 

It was the same as their previous conclusion.

Feng Yuan frowned in deep contemplation. He mulled over the details and clues, trying to grasp at the narrative which tied everything together.

Seeing his reaction, Yu Zhen couldn’t relax. Afraid that he couldn’t hide the truth if they continued to talk about the same topic, he hurriedly directed their conversation down another path. “But at his maternal grandfather’s home, I discovered a baby spirit and a vengeful ghost. I also found the evil cultivator who had helped his grandfather. Rather than the yet-to-be-confirmed person of great evil, the type I despise more is an evil cultivator who helps ordinary people to break laws and commit crimes.”

Feng Yuan returned from his mulling. Shaking his head, he sighed. “I had heard about the issue with the Qiu family. We had overlooked the situation. The evil cultivator had managed to carry out his evil deeds under our noses for many years.”

He looked at Yu Zhen’s face and, once again, felt that Yu Zhen was a responsible and aspirational cultivator who kept the big picture in mind. As his appreciation for Yu Zhen rose another notch, he fished out a card and pushed it over to him. “This is the place where everyone gathers to discuss matters. If you have the time, you’re welcome to visit.”

“I will definitely visit when I have the time.” Yu Zhen accepted the card using both hands. Seeing that he no longer spoke about Yin Yan, Yu Zhen relaxed. Unbeknownst to him, that card was the ticket into the National Studies Circle that everyone in the business circle was clamoring for.

As their conversation reached a temporary end, Yin Yan arrived with the drinks. Following that, everyone continued to tour the leisure center while displaying a friendly atmosphere between them.

After seeing off Feng Yuan, Yu Zhen climbed into their car, laid down in front of the air conditioning, and remained unmoving as if he had been paralyzed. Silently, he sorted out the information he had taken in over the course of the afternoon.

Yin Yan took his seat beside Yu Zhen, then he unscrewed the lid of a bottle and passed the water over. 

Yu Zhen sat up and asked, “Did you hear my conversation with Feng Lao?” 

Nodding, Yin Yan praised, “You answered him well.”

Yu Zhen accepted the bottle and took a swig of it. He collapsed back onto his seat in a daze. Then he turned sideways, leaning his shoulder on the seat, and said, “Yin Yan, my grandpa is Qing Xu Zi. He seems to be a really powerful Taoist priest. And he knew Feng Lao and the others.”

Yin Yan listened quietly, understanding that he wanted to vent his thoughts rather than have a conversation. 

“It turns out that my grandpa is Qing Xu Zi… So Shi Qingyuan’s words last time were to get close to me? Grandpa had unexpectedly saved him before.” Yu Zhen turned back over, once again laying on his back with a blank expression.

Qing Xu Zi, Qing Xu.

A powerful Taoist who likes to tell scary stories.

A bustling old foggy who said I would be reborn as a domestic animal. He squandered his cultivation while he racked his brains to create an opportunity for me to live. 

“He’s my grandpa.” He drew in a long breath and then turned to Yin Yan with a smile. “No matter what his identity was, what his past was, or however many words of truth or lies he had said to scare and tease me, he’s my grandpa.”

My favorite grandpa. My grandpa forever.

“En.” Yin Yan tousled his hair, comforting him without any words.

Transferring the plants to their new location was a quick task, but taking care of them after that was more difficult.

For that problem, Department Head Liu suggested that Yu Zhen could find a specialized gardener to look after them. However, Yu Zhen rejected the idea. He continued to employ the veterans who had done the planting and even rented a gymnasium to give the veterans a few lectures on the basics of looking after flowers and other plants.

Department Head Liu almost exploded with rage from Yu Zhen’s stubbornness and naivety, but he begrudgingly swallowed down his anger as Yin Yan said that so long as the budget wasn’t exceeded, Yu Zhen could do as he wished. 

After a spell of heavy rain, the weather quickly turned hot again. Yu Zhen finally got to enjoy a particular perk of being a cultivator – not having to fear the heat!

Although he did feel the heat when the weather was hot, his body’s tolerance had improved so he would only sweat a little. He wouldn’t be like his past self, who’d have felt like a dying dog that was unable to continue living without air conditioning.

The college entrance examinations started amidst this summer heat which had set in earlier than usual.

Qiu Feiqian asked for leave and booked a hotel suite near the examination hall. The whole family stayed there and accompanied Yin Le as he took his exams. Yin Hexiang wanted to be there, but he, unfortunately, had to carry out activities abroad. Unable to avoid them, he could only regretfully give up on the family excursion.

Yu Zhen woke up early and began preparing. He was even more nervous than the exam candidate himself and had repeatedly checked Yin Le’s bag to make sure nothing was missing.

Yin Le was both irritated and warmed by his actions. Taking advantage of his temporary position at the top of the food chain, he even dared to provoke Yin Yan.

“Da-ge, I heard that Yu Ge’s recent summer outfits were personally designed by you? And you then had them made to order? Tsk, tsk, tsk. I could never have imagined you were both a master at love and a talent in fashion design.”

Yin Yan looked up from his documents and did not say anything.  

Yin Le naturally felt fear, but thinking of his status as an examinee, his courage grew again and he raised his chin. “What are you looking at me for? What? You can do the deed but I can’t talk about it? You always have this expression on your face, be careful that Yu Ge doesn’t start disliking you for it.”

Yin Yan looked him up and down, put down the documents, and called out to Yu Zhen. 

Yu Zhen, who was helping Qiu Feiqian organize a few things, immediately put down what he was working on and then made his way over and asked, “What is it?”

Yin Yan didn’t reply. He pulled Yu Zhen closer, hooked a hand around his neck, then kissed his forehead. “Nothing, I just wanted to kiss you.”

Blushing, he stood up straight. He glanced at YIn Le and whispered, “Yin Le’s still here, don’t mess around.” Embarrassed, he walked away.

Yin Yan shook out his documents and insipidly asked, “Have you seen enough?”

Yin Le who had been force-fed dog food at close range: “…”

Hoodlum Da-ge! You’re not human!

Filled with bitterness in his heart, Yin Le stepped into the examination hall vigorously. He deliberately kept Yu Zhen’s peach wood sword gift on him, using the “present which was made lovingly by Yu Ge” to provoke Yin Yan. 

A short, pagoda tower, which was modeled after flower buds, hung at Yin Yan’s wrist. He touched the gift he had received a few days earlier, and his heart was not the slightest bit affected by Yin Le.

In the blink of an eye, two days had passed and Yin Le was in very good condition. His grades were quite good and everyone was relieved. Immediately, everyone went back to working on their own thing and Yin Le was once again dropped to the bottom of the totem pole

A day later, Yin Le returned to the school dormitory to pack up the remaining things he had left behind. He was alone and dejected.

It was an ordinary summer afternoon. Yu Zhen, who rarely had the chance to visit the plant nursery, went and loosened up the soil around the rose trees. In the middle of his work, his hands began to tremble and he dropped his trowel. His heart beat irregularly and his awareness was overwhelmed by it.

In a daze, he stood up and walked towards Yin Yan who sat at a spot not far away.

The indescribable feelings which manifested in cultivators were warning signs and guides. The heart palpitations he experienced were odd. I’m with Yin Yan and nothing was happening, so our emotions weren’t affecting each other. That means there’s only one explanation. Someone else in the family had an accident.

Yin Yan stood up and slightly frowned. He probed the feeling for a moment and said, “It’s Yin Le.”

Without another word, Yu Zhen took off his hat and work clothes. In his hurry and worry, his forehead was covered with sweat. 

His heart palpitations earlier were intense, leaving him very afraid.

Xiao Le went out alone today. What if – what if…

“Don’t worry, it’s not a big issue.” Yin Yan moved closer to Yu Zhen and took out his phone at the same time. He calmly waited for a few seconds and a call from Bu Lian arrived. 

He gently squeezed Yu Zhen’s shoulder and accepted the call. 

“Hello?”

“Yan Ge! Hurry! Come to school! Yin Le is fighting with someone! I can’t hold him back! And there’s blood! Yan Ge! Come quickly!”

Bu Lian’s voice trembled slightly on the phone and it sounded as if she was crying. The background was full of noise. Faintly in the background, Yin Le shouted words like “give it back” and “that’s mine”.

“Notify the teachers and the school guards. I’ll head over right now.” Yin Yan gave his instructions calmly and then hung up. Still with his arm around Yu Zhen’s shoulder, he used Reduction to One Inch and brought them to the entrance of the plant nursery, right beside their car. He reassured, “Don’t worry. It’s just students fighting. It’s not a big deal.”

“But Xiao Lian said there was blood.”

Yu Zhen was still worried. His heart palpitations didn’t ease off, instead, they grew more intense. It felt as if the blood in his veins were surging, urging him to rush to Yin Le’s side.