All of the Elders had their eyes on the two boys below them, yet most of the eyes were looking curiously at Jin Yahui.
As Jin Yahui returned the Elder's stare with one of his own, he felt as if the Elders were hiding something from him; almost as if they were expectant of something, yet he had no idea what that something was.
The silence stretched for quite a while and it took all of what Jin Yahui had to remain composed via keeping the polite smile on his face. However, only he knew that he was sweating buckets. It hit him at this moment.
Here he was, standing in front of old men that could have been his grandfather's or even great grandfather's or even great great grandfathers... holy f*ck. He glanced up at the Elder that was one minute shy of passing away. This man could have lived for hundreds of years.
Hot diggity d*mn. This truly was a new world... just by standing there he was able to feel the weight of the wisdom and might of all twelve of these Elders. Thinking back to the tasks the system had given him, Jin Yahui could feel despair nibble at the edges of his sanity. He needed to get back to the real world as fast as possible, but considering how strong these elders are and his task of ruling the world... hah. Who knows how long that'll take? Or if he could even do it in the first place... Jin Yahui sighed and glanced at his Junior brother next to him.
Junior brother noticed Jin Yahui's gaze, but he cooly ignored him before taking a slight step forward in acknowledgement of the Elder's question. He slightly bowed again before returning back to a neutral position. Then, he called out to the Elders with a respectful tone, "Yes, Elders."
The Elder that was to the left of the empty thirteenth seat grunted in satisfaction before he lifted a hand to point at Jin Yahui. "Now, young disciple-"
"Jin Yahui, Elder," Yahui smiled gracefully. What? Thought it was a stupid idea to confront the Elders this early? Well, yeah that may be true. However, considering the way most reincarnation novels go plus to keep his own life, he decided that this was the best way to satisfy both conditions.
Yahui turned his attention back to the old Elder and noticed that the old Elder coughed to cover his mistake.
See? He had dealt with this type every time he visited the hospital. If he had backed down there, then he would always be seen as someone below their status. Plus, from his previous conjectures, this Wuxia Jin Yahui must be some kind of big shot or else why would all the other disciples come up to him with such admiration in their eyes? He can't act too out-of-character or else he'll be in trouble. He could already imagine what could happen... such as him being killed for being possessed by an "evil demon".
Jin Yahui shivered before he tuned back to the conversation.
"Disciple Yahui, of course." The old Elder looked around before he returned his gaze to the young disciple before him. "You came from the Rising Dragons Sect, did you not?"
'You tell me, Elder,' Jin Yahui thought internally. However, he hid his bewilderment well as he simply smiled as an answer.
"Elder," Junior Brother raised one of his hands in front of him, catching the Elders' attention. "Senior Brother seemed to have left the Rising Dragons Sect before he joined our sect."
"Really?" the old Elder raised one of his bushy, white eyebrows, intrigued. He turned his attention back to Yahui. "Is what Disciple Zhou says correct?"
A million thoughts went through Jin Yahui's head, yet one specific thought prevailed all of them: why the h*ll did he not have the old Jin Yahui's memories? It would solve all of this, and he didn't need to worry to the point of having a head full of white hair! He needed to have a stern talking to the system later. Especially about the whole 'will grant one wish of the Master'. If that were true, then maybe he could save-
"Disciple Yahui?"
The old Elder's voice brought Jin Yahui back to the present moment, and he decided what to do in an instant. "Yes, Elder." Jin Yahui respectfully bowed once again. "I have left the Rising Dragons Sect of my own accord."
A furor went across the twelve Elders sitting high above Jin Yahui, and it took a while before the uproar settled down. Finally, the old Elder shook his head. "Are you willing to tell this Elder why?"
The f*ck if he knew. Jin Yahui couldn't help but internally sigh. He really wanted to know the reason why as well. Instead... Jin Yahui sighed again. He was going to have to pull something out of nowhere, but at the same time, he needed to be careful as to not offend any of the big bosses in here.
His heart was crying as he snuck a glance at his 'Junior Brother'. In fact, he was sure that this Junior Brother of his was actually acting the oriole to catch the praying mantis... and the praying mantis was him!
"I apologize, Elder." Jin Yahui bowed his head and went down on one knee. "I am afraid that I must take that information with me to the grave, despite my wishes." Obviously because I probably won't know until I enter the grave! And... if I put it that way, Jin Yahui thought, then that would mean that it isn't my intentions to hide the reason why I left the whatever Dragons sect.
"A pity," the old Elder shook his head and stayed silent for a few seconds. Then, he slightly shook his head and broke out into a smile. "But all that matters not, Disciple Yahui! What matters is that the Scarlet Phoenix sect has another outstanding disciple join!"
Jin Yahui performed a martial arts salute in gratitude. He stole a glance at Junior Brother and noticed that the boy was indifferent to the joyous mood felt by the other Elders. Ha, he knew it. The other didn't want him to be here, since it obviously seemed as if this Junior Brother of his dislikes this Senior Brother... Jin Yahui thought. He sighed and mentally added another objective that he had to complete.
[What are those objectives, Master?]
The screen popped up just as suddenly as it had appeared, and Jin Yahui couldn't help but throw a string of curses within his mind.
Of course the system only opens at the most convenient time for it and not for him!
Jin Yahui lightly shook his head, mindful of the way he looked in front of the Elders and Junior Brother. He allowed the Elders to continue to celebrate for a few more minutes before he decided to break the atmosphere. "Elders," he respectfully called out.
Immediately, the old Elder stopped his conversation with another Elder to his right. "Yes, Disciple?"
"May this lowly Disciple leave?" Jin Yahui smiled.
"Oh! Of course," instead of gesturing for Jin Yahui to leave, however, the Elder pointed towards Junior Brother. "Have Disciple Zhou send Disciple Yahui to his resting quarters."
Jin Yahui and Junior Brother exchanged glances before they saluted in sync. They exited the temple with the merriment of the Elders sounding behind them.
Immediately after they had crossed the dark boundary and the Elder's voices could no longer be heard, Junior Brother unsheathed his sword and pointed its edge towards Jin Yahui's throat.
F*ck! Jin Yahui thought. His legs turned to jelly and a thousand mud horses raced through his heart. However, he forced himself to stay straight and to look Junior Brother in the eye.
The silence was palpable until it was broken by Junior Brother. "What are your intentions, Senior brother?" Junior Brother asked, his tone sarcastic.
Intentions? Pah! The only intentions I have right now is to leave this place and return back to the hospital! Surely Xiao Meimei is waiting for me...
Unfortunately, just as that thought crossed Jin Yahui's mind, Junior Brother's sword slashed and almost pierced his jugular vein. With the reflexes of a cat, he dodged, and the sword sliced through thin air instead.
'F*ck!' Jin Yahui couldn't help but swear. 'What the h*ll is this, Mortal K*mbat?!?'
Junior brother stood before Jin Yahui, his sword still extended towards his Senior Brother's neck. He no longer hid his suspicions with a mask. "Why don't you unsheath your sword, Senior Brother? It won't be a proper duel if you don't."
The f*ck!? What is with this development? This went from 0 to 100 too quick! Another million thoughts went through Jin Yahui's mind as he tried to pinpoint the exact moment that everything had gone wrong...
What could it be? Him calling me to go to the sect? The walk to the sect? The conversation with the Elders...?
Oh f*ck!
Remembering his previous nonchalant attitude made Jin Yahui wish to curse at his past self. He had even felt proud that he was able to use what he experienced in his past life during this life! He really needed to slap this unfaithful mouth of his.
Now look at what he's done!
He went ahead and pissed off another Great Ancestor!
Arrrgh! Who the f*ck goes in front of people that can obviously squish you into a puddle of slime and berate them about their name? Heck, Jin Yahui decided, they could even call him pineapple, just as long as he's able to survive and get back to the real world! So please, Junior Brother! Let's fight with tofu instead, okay? I'll even let you have the first punch!
Junior brother took a step forward, and it almost seemed as if the sword let out a sound effect as the blade reflected the light of the sun. Jin Yahui couldn't help but gulp audibly before he decided to try out one of the 32 stratagems of Sun Tzu: running away!
He turned and dug his heel into the ground, creating the momentum that he would need in order to escape. Unfortunately, it seemed as if even that wasn't enough as Disciple Fang arrived mere seconds after he had moved!
Disciple Fang swung the sword within his hands without the slightest bit of mercy, the edge aimed for Jin Yahui's heart.
The sword neared closer and closer and Jin Yahui couldn't think due to his fear. It was at this moment that he heard a 'ding!' and a bright pink screen popped up before his very eyes.
Jin Yahui couldn't believe his eyes. In an extremely cliche development, everything around him had paused- even the sword that was mere inches away from his heart had paused, allowing Jin Yahui to heave a huge sigh of relief.
Unfortunately, even Jin Yahui was frozen at this moment, so the only thing he could do was read the bright pink letters of the bright pink screen of his f*cking System.
He read the message quickly, his lips forming each word. It seemed as if he still retained his ability to speak. So, should he change the System configurations?
Of. F*cking. Course!
"Yes!"
"Just change them! I can't die here! I have someplace I need to be!"
< Understood. System undergoing configurations to downgrade.>
Eh?
< Downgrading 50% >
Holy sh*t! Wait! If you're going to downgrade, don't fricking change the configurations!
< Downgrading 75%>
Isn't this too fast?!? You didn't explain this to me first, System! Oiiiiii!
< Downgrading 98% >
Jin Yahui glanced back at the very, very, veerrrryyyy sharp blade that at the next second could pierce his chest before he looked back at the screen.
< Downgrade complete! Congrats! *throws confetti* System has officially been downgraded! >
Mommy.