With the grey-haired lady already sat, the elderly man and the radiant phoenix-eyed lady walked to the seats that were next to them.
Yang Qing did all he could to stop himself from laughing at Fan Cai’s current display. Fan Cai was a mash-up of countless emotions all vying for dominance which created quite the picture. He was nervous, excited, ashad, excited once more, nervous, a little bit bold, conflicted, relieved, anxious once more and it was all there for all to see.
Though not a minute later it stopped, and all he had was apprehension and a little of embarrassnt.
With the embarrassed look he had on, Yang Qing figured his mother had sothing to do with it.
Yang Qing stood up and poured tea for them, Yu Gen before finally finishing with himself.
"I guess introductions are in order as we wait for the rest. As I ntioned before my na is Yang Qing, a palace court judge, and on my left is my colleague Yu Gen, who you know already.
I will leave the rest for you to decide on the order in which you want to start and thank you all for availing yourselves on such short notice," said Yang Qing as he cupped his fist.
The trio cupped their fists in return before exchanging glances with each other before finally, the radiant phoenix-eyed lady took the lead.
Thanks to Yu Gen, Yang Qing already knew their identities without needing them to do it, but there was a process to be followed and introductions were part of it.
"My na is Xie Yuan and I am the sect master of the Starlight Lake Sect. Thank you," the radiant phoenix-eyed lady said as she respectfully cupped her fists once more with Yang Qing nodding in acknowledgnt.
With her at the helm, Yang Qing could see how the Starlight Lake Sect still managed to stand strong amongst its peers even with just four ’known’ palace realm experts. She was graceful in her bearing and conduct, which matched perfectly with her soft but firm tone. Her gaze was calm, matching her still deanor.
She was as tranquil and as vast as a clear night sky but within that calmness, if one was keen enough, one would sense vast power as that of the stars which looked tiny and negligible from a distance. It was only when one was close to them that they realized how terrifying and filled with power they were.
Sect master Xie Yuan had the sa presence about her. A calm that hid terrifying undercurrents within. While Yang Qing couldn’t fully gauge her abilities, from the little he could sense, he could already tell how firm her foundations were. She had refined her power to the tip and given enough ti, Yang Qing believed she was likely to step into the late stages of the palace realm.
After her, the elderly man followed. Of those present, other than Yang Qing, he was the one who seed most carefree and relaxed. Yang Qing could guess why, having sensed sothing from him, which was further supported by the compassionate and sorrowful looks the two ladies threw his way from ti to ti, especially Fan Cai’s mother.
Their interaction and the elderly man’s state answered so of the major questions Yang Qing had about the case.
"This old man’s na is ng Jiayi, a retired old tir mooching off his sect and great go player and a wine enthusiast," the elderly man with a light chuckle as he threw a knowing look toward Yang Qing.
"Forgive my carelessness," Yang Qing answered with a knowing smile as a wine jar instantly appeared in his hands. He quickly poured a cup for the elderly man, leaving the rest of the jar on the table.
"Don’t be polite, senior ng Jiayi, I have about a thousand more of them,"
ng Jiayi’s eyes instantly widened, before breaking out into a joyous laugher.
"Then this old man will not hold back," he said as he took a small sip gently savoring the taste of the wine. His eyes opened an instant later.
"What great wine!" he said as he hurriedly took another sip.
"I am glad you like it," said Yang Qing with a smile.
"Please don’t overindulge, sect master," Xie Yuan said, with a gentle tone like that of a daughter addressing their aging father.
"I am no longer the sect master, Yuan’er," ng Jiayi said with a rare air of seriousness before it turned back to that of a blissful drunk.
"We just like mortals have finite lifespans, 1000 years, 100 years, 10 years, it is all the sa in the end. As long as ti continues to flow, it all ends at so point be it today, tomorrow, or a thousand years from now. We might as well make the most of now," ng Jiayi wistfully said as he looked at the reflection of his face from the wine in his cup.
"That for is enjoying this wine," he added as licked his lips, taking another smile.
"Just let him be, sister Yuan," softly interrupted Fan Cai’s mother, who had the sa lancholic look as Xie Yuan. Xie Yuan softly nodded her head, casting a deep look at ng Jiayi as he drank. It seed like she was trying to immortalize the image of the elderly man.
As for why she would do that, it may have sothing to do with ng Jiayi being close to death. From the mont he walked in through those doors, Yang Qing could already tell he didn’t have much ti left. He had five years left at least, or ten at the most.
From the clues guided by the faint fluctuations coming from his body, Yang Qing surmised part of the reason ng Jiayi had so little lifespan left was the injury to his core. While he was indeed old, by Yang Qing’s rough estimates, if it wasn’t for that injury, he would have likely lived for at least two to three thousand years instead of the five or fifteen he had estimated.
"For such an injury, it’s likely to have been backlash from a breakthrough failure," thought Yang Qing. Injuries that ruined soone’s core like his was, were usually from failing a breakthrough in the minor realms like moving from the middle stages to the late stages.
ng Jiayi had likely experienced a major setback trying to breakthrough to the seventh stage of the palace realm.
"It seems my earlier guesses had been true,"
The ng Jiayi before him was none other than the ng Jiayi who was listed in the contract and was the previous sect master before Xie Yuan.
He had been missing from the sect’s known experts, his status unknown. Yang Qing had assud he had either died, or he was in death seclusion to breakthrough or he had broken through and the sect was purposefully concealing all information about him so others could assu he was dead.
The third guess proved to be the correct one, seeing how the sect master had moved from the fourth stage to the sixth stage of the palace realm, and with it ca a boost of five thousand years to his lifespan.
But with his current state, the first guess would soon be turned to reality provided they didn’t find a way to heal his core injury. That was easier said than done as an injury like that would need an ascendant-grade natural treasure suitable for nding foundations.
Yang Qing was pulled from his thoughts when Fan Cai’s mother began her introductions.
"My na is Fan Ha, guardian of the Starlight Lake Sect and..." she paused briefly as her gaze fell on Fan Cai. Her gaze though calm, flashed with tenderness for a brief mont.
"And his mother.." she added.
"I would also like to apologize on his behalf. He should not have troubled you. Please forgive him, and pardon my insolence, but I don’t think a diation is needed," said Fan Ha.
"Mo.." Fan Cai was well on his way to saying sothing before he paused when he saw the glare from his mother.
"Haven’t you created enough trouble?" she coldly said.
"You’re still the sa," Fan Cai softly said, with a pained look.
"Sister Fan, your son did the right thing. You’re the trouble maker here," ng Jiayi said as he sighed.
"Jie’er would have wanted you to leave," he added, with a sorrowful look coloring his face.
"He is not here, so I will do as I want. It is my life," Fan Ha stubbornly said, her eyes flashing with complex emotions.
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