Chapter 4600 — Running Home to Complain

For someone like Wei Zhao, fighting above one's level was nothing unusual—but crossing a whole major realm to take on an opponent was still well-nigh impossible.

"Ah, that wretch slipped right past us—how cunning!" Shangguan Lan'er was briefly taken aback, then flew into a rage. That scoundrel Ma Dangfeng had dared to slander her grandfather in public, and she had been all set to make the man pay dearly for it—yet the fellow had tossed off a couple of face-saving platitudes and sauntered off without a scratch. Infuriating!

"Miss Shangguan, Ma Dangfeng may look arrogant and overbearing, but he's no fool. Besides, now that he's framed it that way, even if only for the sake of Lord Shangguan's reputation, you can't very well move against him." Lu Bianren sighed from the sidelines.

"I know that—that's why I called him cunning. He got away with it! Otherwise I'd have had him seized and punished roundly!" Shangguan Lan'er shrugged in helpless fury. It was a habit she'd picked up from Wei Zhao—since growing close to him, she'd absorbed it without even noticing.

Lu Bianren smiled and said nothing. He'd nearly been throttled to death by Ma Dangfeng just moments ago; if anyone present had reason to hate the man most, it was surely him. Yet just now he behaved as though nothing had happened.

Since there was no dealing with the man for the time being, anger was good for nothing. Better to set vengeance aside for now—a gentleman may wait ten years for his revenge.

"By the way, have any of you heard from our young junior brother?" After stomping her feet in a fit of pique for a while, Shangguan Lan'er suddenly changed the subject. The whole reason she'd come today was to ask about this. Wei Zhao had been gone for over a year, and not a single word had come from him the entire time. No one fretted over him more than she, his young senior sister.

"Not yet. The last word we had of Junior Brother Lin was his doings at the Southern Continent Escort Gathering. He was being hunted by a heretic cultivator from something called the Old Sect of the Western Hills—said to be a founding-stage titan of the Western Hills heretical faction. After that, there's been nothing." Lu Bianren sighed.

"So even you haven't received any message from him? Ai, that junior brother of ours is really too much—he can't even spare a thought for those of us who worry about him..." Shangguan Lan'er shook her head in disappointment.

Yet for all her words, a sliver of gladness stirred secretly in her heart. If Wei Zhao had sent word to the likes of Lu Bianren but not to her, wouldn't that mean her place in his heart as his young senior sister ranked below Lu Bianren and the rest? Shangguan Lan'er had always regarded Wei Zhao as her dearest friend in the Tri-Layered Pavilion—if that were truly so, she'd have good reason to grieve.

"Miss Shangguan, you can't fault Junior Brother Lin for this. In truth, it's not that he doesn't wish to send us word—it's simply that the Southern Continent is far away, and finding someone to carry a letter is no easy matter. Besides, with a powerful heretic cultivator from the Old Sect of the Western Hills in relentless pursuit, he couldn't risk seeking a messenger even if he had the chance. It might expose his whereabouts." Lu Bianren reasoned.

"Mm, that's true enough. Then I'll be off." Since there was no news of Wei Zhao, Shangguan Lan'er naturally wouldn't linger at the Azure Cloud Pavilion. After a brief farewell she turned and left with Little Curly Bear—though just before departing she suddenly looked back and added, "If any of you hear from our junior brother, tell me straightaway, all right?"

"Of course. Take care, Miss Shangguan." Lu Bianren nodded, watching her bouncing, skipping figure recede, and couldn't help a faint smile. An odd thought rose unbidden: this little princess of the Soaring Heavens Pavilion and Junior Brother Lin would truly make a fine match—and surely Lord Shangguan would be glad to see it too.

He stood frozen in place for a good while before suddenly coming to his senses and hurrying off. Ma Dangfeng had declared he'd go to the Southern Continent to teach Wei Zhao a lesson, and it didn't look like mere talk. He had to get word to the others at once and gather everyone to discuss countermeasures.

Back at the Hua Lan Residence, the first thing Shangguan Lan'er did was charge into the study. Snatching the brush from Shangguan Tianxia's hand, she announced with the gravest solemnity, "Grandfather! How can you be in the mood to write at a time like this? Something terrible has happened!"

"What's happened, that even my little Lan'er is in such a tearing hurry?" Shangguan Tianxia chuckled, glancing sidelong at the ancient stele inscription he'd completed to ninety percent, the corner of his mouth twitching despite himself.

This was a birthday gift he'd specially prepared for a certain great personage of the Eastern Continent. To that end he'd brought out an ancient stele inscription he'd collected for many years—one widely rumored to have long since vanished from the world. Naturally, the original could never be given away, so Shangguan Tianxia had resolved to copy it out himself. After all, he was a calligraphy master of note across all five islands of the Earth Tier; any casual piece of his writing could fetch a sky-high price. Whoever received this gift would find it sincere indeed.

It had taken him a full ten days to bring the copy to a bare ninety percent—and now, just as he was about to finish, Shangguan Lan'er had snatched the brush from his hand and left a long trail of ink across it, wiping out ten days of labor in an instant.

Anyone else might have burst into tears, but Shangguan Tianxia merely chuckled. Ruined was ruined; at worst he'd spend a little time copying it again. There was still plenty of time, after all—and besides, in his eyes nothing in the world mattered more than his granddaughter.

"Someone slandered you in public, Grandfather—said you had eyes but couldn't see. Isn't that a terrible thing?" Shangguan Lan'er fumed.

"Said I had eyes but couldn't see?" Shangguan Tianxia was briefly startled, then shook his head with a smile. "I wouldn't call that slander. I'm getting on in years, after all—a bit of dimness of sight now and then is only natural. A few words from someone hardly matters."

"Hardly matters? Grandfather, you're the Lord of the Soaring Heavens Pavilion! To say you have eyes but can't see is to say you hold your post without earning it, that you're unfit to command our Soaring Heavens Pavilion! This is a serious matter—Grandfather, would you please be serious!" Shangguan Lan'er said, her little face drawn tight.

Words like "getting on in years" and "dimness of sight" were perfectly ordinary when applied to common folk, but applied to cultivators they were sheer comedy—one might as well call them old and cunning. Especially for a top-tier expert of Shangguan Tianxia's caliber: if even he was dim of sight, then everyone on this Cloud Tier Island must be blind.

"All right, all right. Then tell me, little Lan'er—what should your grandfather do?" Shangguan Tianxia regarded his puffed-up granddaughter with an indulgent smile.

"Punish him, of course! Otherwise anyone can slander you as they please from now on. A thousand-mile dike is ruined by an ant-hole—there'll be chaos! The Lord's dignity must not be violated; he must be made an example!" Shangguan Lan'er declared, prim and proper. (To be continued.)