I wondered where Ruan Yanjun had been getting his information, and why had he never discussed all those things with me. He'd been wasting his time teasing me instead.
Ruan Yanjun sighed. "The Light Sect Alliance leader favors your sect greatly that he'd even given you a position in the alliance despite you not being a grandmaster, and he was also the one who pushed for your disciple to be the new Divine Mage then."
That was true. At that time, I did not feel like I deserved to be the Divine Mage. I was only twenty-three then.
Han Xi, the current leader of the Sacred Sphere Sect and officially recognized as the number one cultivator in the martial arts community had been a homeless child and had been taken in by the former Chief of the Ethereal Frost. He had become a disciple of the former Chief and had developed a friendship with Wei Yusheng. After the former Chief's death, Wei Yusheng had taken over the position and Han Xi had to bid his farewell to return to his hometown in Silang Empire, where he founded his own sect, the Sacred Sphere Sect. That was the reason why he had always placed the Ethereal Frost Sect on a pedestal despite lacking in achievements compared to other sects.
"By now, Han Xi should already know that Wei Fan still lives," Ruan Yanjun continued. "Eventually, he'll also find out that the childhood friend he had grieved for, who's supposed to be dead, is in fact very much alive… You can't hide forever. Sooner or later, the rest of the world will find out the truth. Your beloved Ethereal Frost sect, known for its modesty and virtue, will crumble in disgrace… Can you handle that?"
Wei Yusheng remained silent.
"Wei Yusheng," Ruan Yanjun said, breaking the long silence. "If the truth leaks out, the emperor and the crown prince will come out clean. You will take all the blame instead. What's the use of keeping your family alive if they have to live in shame for what you've done?"
"If you were in my situation, how would you have dealt with it?" my master asked a long moment later.
Ruan Yanjun smirked. "None of that would have happened to me. Before any of my disciples surpassed me, I would have gotten way ahead already. You are way much older than your disciple. You're one of the few who've reached the fourth level at such a young age. I had to admit that even I thought so highly of you then. Who would have thought that you would reach the level of your competence so soon, that the sixth level was all that you could achieve in your whole lifetime."
"It's because of an injury that has stopped my progress."
"Do not blame your incompetence on an injury. If you are really that great, no injury can stop you from achieving a higher level. Admit the truth that you simply do not have the talent to move further. Just like the emperor, you are simply inadequate, yet you overly value yourself that you thought you could do better than the late Emperor Xin could."
Wei Yusheng was dead silent and it made me suspicious, especially that Ruan Yanjun had put emphasis on the name of the deceased emperor.
Does my master have to do with the assassination of the former emperor of Kan Empire?
I had heard of that rumor before but I had ignored it because, at that time, there was no way I would see my master in that light. But now that some hidden things had revealed themselves, it was highly probable, especially that every attempt to investigate the assassination of the former emperor had produced very little result, and the current emperor did not seem bothered by the inaction.
"Sect Leader Ruan," my master said. "Let's not drag the former emperor's name in this subject. Let him rest in peace."
"Rest in peace? How can he rest in peace while his murderers hunt down his descendant like an animal? Or are you afraid that his descendant will know and will seek justice from those who have caused his father's death?"
My master was silent while I sat there pondering.
Does the late Emperor Xin have a descendant? Rumor said that he only had one son and had also been killed on the night of the murder. Unless he had another child from one of his concubines, or an illegitimate child somewhere else.
The more I heard, the more that I was confused. Politics was indeed a very complicated matter. I thought I had learned much already listening to Ruan Yanjun's lectures, but my knowledge was still far too little.
"Don't you have anything else to say?" Ruan Yanjun asked.
"That is as far as my knowledge is concerned."
"Isn't there… a far deeper reason why simply nullifying the Divine Mage's wugong is not enough? That they had to get rid of him?"
"If there are, only those people concerned can tell."
"Are you saying you're not one of those people concerned? Are you saying, you haven't noticed the familiar face before you?" Ruan Yanjun paused and slowly leaned toward my master. "Doesn't that pretty face remind you of someone else?" he whispered.
My master gasped in surprise.
I could not comprehend what they were talking about, whether they were referring to me or someone else. I was not one to interrupt the elderly's conversation, but this time, I could not help it.
"Do I look like someone else?" I asked.
They both turned to me.
"Why don't you refer that question to your master?" Ruan Yanjun returned.
I turned to my master.
Wei Yusheng sighed. "There's no one."
Ruan Yanjun chortled. "Don't that pair of eyes that glitter despite a heavy load of grief look familiar?"
"Lord Ruan, that's enough."
"Don't they look beautiful? Because if you ask me, I find them really alluring."
"Please leave."
I stiffened. I knew my master too well. He rarely showed anger, but I knew if he was at his limit, and this was one of those rare instances.
"Fine, we will leave. But regardless if you don't speak, your disciple will eventually know everything, and when he does, you'd better be prepared to face retribution. You might as well warn your brother and your nephew about it."
"If I did, they'd stop at nothing to kill Fan."
"So you'd rather keep it to yourself, is that what you intend to do?"
Wei Yusheng did not answer.
"And I thought you were loyal to the emperor." Ruan Yanjun sighed. "Regardless, even if you tell them, you think that anyone could dare lay a finger on my A-Fan with me around him?"
"Your A-Fan?"
I thought I had to explain to my master so he would not have the wrong idea. "Lord Ruan has his own way of teasing me. It does not mean anything."
Ruan Yanjun laughed. "As you can see, your disciple is that naïve he still doesn't realize that I had laid my claim over him. As his closest kin, do you give your blessing?"
"That's just not possible."
"After what you've done to your disciple, do you think you're still worthy to be his master?"
My master turned away.
"Prince Wei, you have lost the right to call yourself a master, but apparently, since he has found out that you're still alive, your disciple still sees you as his master and has traveled for thousands of miles just to see you. You have to release him or he will be forever bound to you and will never move on from your betrayal."
I held my breath, waiting for my master's answer.
"Are you asking me to release him so you can take him in?" my master asked.