Should I Know You?
Only when Feng Qi stepped onto the white jade platform did Ji Chaoyun seem to awaken from a dream.
That face was clearly identical to the one in his memories, yet apart from that, there was not the slightest resemblance.
That person would never look at him this way.
The turmoil in Ji Chaoyun’s heart gradually cooled. He watched as the other man stopped before him, gave his right wrist a slight shake, and let the red-gold bracelet fastened around it fall loose and transform into a long whip.
The golden spiritual light upon the whip rapidly faded, revealing a slender whip body wound with golden threads.
“I-I didn’t...”
Ji Chaoyun’s eyes shifted slightly. He had just begun to explain when the golden gong rang, signaling the start of the third arena match.
Before he could react, a sharp gust of force swept straight toward him.
Years of martial training made Ji Chaoyun instinctively raise his sword to block. The whip slid tightly along the length of the blade, and dazzling sparks burst where the two weapons met. Ji Chaoyun staggered two hurried steps backward, and an unusual surge of energy immediately churned within his chest.
This man’s strength was worlds apart from the previous two.
Ji Chaoyun closed his eyes and did his utmost to calm himself.
This could not continue.
If it did, he truly will be sent away.
He had to enter Hongmeng Academy.
Ji Chaoyun drew a deep breath. When he opened his eyes again, the aura around him had already changed.
The sword point that had been knocked aside forcibly reversed direction. Without the slightest hesitation, it thrust straight toward Feng Qi.
Ji Chaoyun had already fought two consecutive matches, one of them against the academy’s tenth-ranked expert. The amount of stamina he had expended was easy to imagine.
Only now did the spectators below the platform realize that this man had not used his full strength at all in the earlier matches!
The sword edge cut through the air with a sharp whistle. Ji Chaoyun’s sword techniques were even swifter than before, and in the blink of an eye, he had already closed in at Feng Qi’s side.
Everyone watching below felt their hearts tighten, yet Feng Qi merely took half a step to the side at an unhurried pace and gathered the long whip close to protect himself, skillfully dissolving the ferocity of the incoming strike.
Afterward, Feng Qi abandoned his earlier aggression and defended without attacking, retreating step by step under Ji Chaoyun’s pressure.
Someone below the platform suddenly called out teasingly, “Second Highness Feng, aren’t you making it a little too obvious that you’re going easy on him?”
The joking tone made it clear that the speaker was one of the disciples who had followed Feng Qi down from Ascending Cloud Tower earlier.
These people usually stayed by Feng Qi’s side and were not as afraid of him as everyone else. One after another, they began teasing him.
“Since when did Your Highness learn to cherish a delicate beauty? This may not be a Heavenly Ranking competition, but losing would still look bad. Don’t be impulsive.”
“First he defeats Jiang Cheng, then he defeats Feng Qi. Why not simply hand Ascending Cloud Tower over to this little newcomer while you’re at it?”
“All of you, shut up!”
Ji Chaoyun had already been forced to use his full strength. Faced with such sharp and rapid sword attacks, Feng Qi still had enough attention to spare to turn his head and curse jokingly at the people below the platform.
At the very moment he looked away, Ji Chaoyun’s sword had already reached his side and was about to pierce Feng Qi’s neck.
Ji Chaoyun’s eyes flickered.
The sword point abruptly stopped!
In a duel at this level, even the slightest opening or hesitation could prove fatal.
In the next instant, Feng Qi swung the long whip in his hand and wound it tightly around Ji Chaoyun’s sword.
“If you hadn’t hesitated, that might have been your only chance to win just now.”
Feng Qi spoke, a hint of regret appearing in his eyes. “Considering you haven’t even entered the academy yet, I yielded nine moves to you. Unfortunately... I still have important matters to attend to. My apologies.”
The moment Feng Qi finished speaking, the whip abruptly twisted tight around the sword.
Before Ji Chaoyun could react, a sharp pain suddenly shot through the back of his hand.
The long whip in Feng Qi’s hand appeared soft, but it was actually forged from some kind of extremely fiery spiritual iron and was extraordinarily tough.
After taking that blow, cold sweat immediately broke out across Ji Chaoyun’s back from the pain, and his sword flew from his grasp.
He instinctively leaned forward after it, only for Feng Qi to sweep out with the force of his palm and drive him several hurried steps backward.
Behind him was the edge of the arena!
Ji Chaoyun lost his balance and fell rapidly, moments from tumbling off the high platform.
A hand suddenly reached out and caught his arm firmly.
The other man’s palm was warm and dry. At such close distance, Ji Chaoyun could clearly see the faint smile that had never left the depths of Feng Qi’s eyes.
His face was strikingly handsome, and when he smiled, it carried an even more captivating quality.
Yet that smile did not make him seem approachable in the slightest. Quite the opposite. The unmistakable unfamiliarity and indifference in his eyes were so glaring that Ji Chaoyun could scarcely breathe.
Feng Qi looked down at him from above and said quietly, “You lost.”
At the same time, Ji Chaoyun’s sword struck the ground, producing a crisp sound that echoed across the silent white jade platform.
His body had left the arena, and his weapon had fallen to the ground.
By the rules he himself had set, there was no question that he had lost.
“Your movement techniques are good. It’s a pity you faced me.” Feng Qi raised a hand. A wisp of green smoke lifted the fallen sword into the air and returned it to him.
He took the sword by the hilt with a reverse grip and offered it to Ji Chaoyun. “Come back in a hundred years.”
Ji Chaoyun accepted his sword.
The man before him showed not the slightest reluctance to leave and turned toward the steps below the platform.
Ji Chaoyun hurried after him. “You... you’re from the Phoenix Clan?”
Feng Qi stopped and looked back. “I am. What of it?”
“Then you...” Ji Chaoyun stared at that unbearably familiar face, his voice trembling faintly. “You don’t recognize me?”
Feng Qi looked him over for a moment and asked in return, “Should I know you?”
“I...”
While the two of them spoke, the crowd had already gathered around.
Feng Qi glanced around and laughed lightly. “It matters not. You’re not the first person who’s tried to strike up a conversation with me. At the very least... you could have chosen an excuse that wasn’t so stale.”
“...Everyone knows the Dragon and Phoenix Clans have held a grudge against each other for ages. Members of the Phoenix Clan are forbidden from privately associating with any dragon. Little yao dragon, don’t get me into trouble.”
Ji Chaoyun’s voice caught in his throat. “Feng...”
Feng Qi paid him no further attention and turned to walk down the steps.
“Chaoyun, Chaoyun? Are you all right?!” Ye Chenxing squeezed through the crowd and came to Ji Chaoyun’s side, his eyes filled with concern. “Why do you look so pale? Are you hurt? I’ll take you back to rest.”
“No need.” Ji Chaoyun pushed Ye Chenxing’s hand away, his gaze still fixed firmly into the distance. “You all continue... I-I’ll go first.”
“But—”
Ye Chenxing was about to say more when the attendant disciple on the high platform called out his name.
He was the next newcomer up for trial.
Ye Chenxing clicked his tongue and turned to shout after Ji Chaoyun, “Chaoyun, go back to Changqing Court and wait for me! I’ll come find you once I finish my trial!”
Ji Chaoyun did not answer and left the arena without looking back.
The trial arena had been set up in the open square on Hongmeng Academy’s front mountain. At the far end of the square were the ten thousand stone steps leading to the mountain gate.
Ji Chaoyun hurried out of the crowd, yet no matter where he looked, he could not find that pale-gold figure from moments ago.
In the distance, the golden gong rang again. Amid the clamor of voices, another round of trials began upon the white jade platform.
Behind the arena, a vast palace carved from white jade stood atop the mountain. Several peaks curved around it like an embrace, quietly suspended beside the main peak.
Looking out across the distance, the entirety of Hongmeng Mountain was shrouded in clouds and mist, as though it rested among the clouds themselves.
Ji Chaoyun slipped a hand into his robes and took out the sachet.
The sachet containing the golden phoenix feather still gave off a faint warmth, yet apart from that, there was no reaction at all.
It really wasn’t him.
Ji Chaoyun had lived through two lifetimes.
In his previous life, he had remained in the mortal realm according to the promise he had made with that person and waited for him to return.
Three hundred years passed in the blink of an eye. The person he had been waiting for never came. Instead, what eventually awaited him was a calamity that took his life.
The golden phoenix feather was an extraordinarily rare treasure in this world, and it had also been the cause of his death.
Fortunately, through a twist of fate, he had been reborn a hundred years into the past.
In this life, he cultivated diligently. It took him a hundred years to shed his demon form and ascend as an immortal, finally reaching Hongmeng Academy.
Unfortunately, he had still fallen short at the final step.
Ji Chaoyun’s fingers slowly tightened until pain came from his right hand.
He looked down. A bloody mark stretched from the back of his hand to the bones of his wrist, and the injury had already begun to swell and redden.
The sharp pain seemed to spread all the way into his chest.
Ji Chaoyun stared at the swollen wound, gritted his teeth, and at last his eyes gradually reddened.
He didn’t notice the figure standing not far behind him, beneath an old pine tree, watching quietly in his direction.
Feng Qi stared at that slender figure and was just about to step forward when a voice came from behind him.
“Your Highness, the Immortal Venerable’s Council has finished their discussion and asked you to go see them. What are you... looking at?”
Feng Qi abruptly withdrew his gaze and said evenly, “Nothing.”
The person beside him followed his line of sight and exclaimed, “Isn’t that the Ji fellow...”
Feng Qi turned and walked away.
The other man seemed to realize something and chased after him with a grin. “That boy really is quite good-looking. If you’ve taken a fancy to him too, why did you strike so hard? You could’ve just let him enter the academy.”
“Get lost. Do you really think this Prince is like the rest of you, taking interest in men and women alike?” Feng Qi cursed with a laugh and continued forward without looking back.
“...Besides, that one is a yao dragon.”
☁︎
It was not until the sun had sunk toward the western horizon that Ji Chaoyun returned to Changqing Court.
The examination had already ended completely.
Within Changqing Court, some rejoiced while others despaired. The wandering immortals who had passed had already been issued passage tokens granting access through the various barriers of Hongmeng Academy and had gone to report for admission.
Those who had failed were gradually packing their belongings and heading down the mountain.
Ji Chaoyun lowered his eyes as he passed through the noisy crowd. He was just about to enter his room when someone called out from behind him.
“Chaoyun!”
Ye Chenxing hurried toward him. Ji Chaoyun turned and immediately noticed the additional passage token hanging at his waist.
He had passed the final trial.
Ji Chaoyun curved his lips and said sincerely, “Congratulations.”
“You should be congratulated too.” Ye Chenxing familiarly wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pushed him toward the room. “Where did you run off to? I looked for you for ages. Immortal Lord Yaoguang came by earlier to distribute the passage tokens and was looking for you too. Since you still hadn’t returned, he gave yours to me instead. Here, this is yours.”
He took a passage token from inside his robes and handed it to Ji Chaoyun.
Ji Chaoyun froze and reached out to take it.
Hongmeng Academy’s passage token was made from translucent jade and faintly contained spiritual power.
Ji Chaoyun turned it over. Sure enough, his name was engraved on the back.
How could this be...
Wasn’t it stipulated that only someone who won all three matches consecutively could enter the academy?
“You fought so well today. It would’ve been truly unfair if they refused to let you enter the academy. Immortal Lord Yaoguang said that because your performance in the arena was outstanding, the academy made an exception and allowed you to enter.” Seeing what he was thinking, Ye Chenxing explained, “I asked around. Hongmeng Academy’s disciples are divided into four ranks: Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow. Normally, the disciples assigned to test newcomers should have been those of the lowest Yellow rank. Yet all three people you fought today were Heaven-rank disciples. How could anyone bully someone like that?”
At this point, he lowered his voice slightly. “Besides, if you hadn’t gone up against that flower peacock, you wouldn’t have lost your last match either.”
“...Flower peacock?”
“That’s what everyone calls him.” Ye Chenxing said, “His name is Feng Qi. I heard he’s the Phoenix Clan’s Second Prince and has held first place on the Heavenly Rankings for fifty consecutive years. Forget you. Even if all of us joined forces, we still might not be able to defeat him.”
“So his name is Feng Qi...”
“Phoenix, my foot. Where does he resemble the Phoenix Clan from the legends? He spends every day flaunting himself everywhere. Calling him a flower peacock is exactly right.” Ye Chenxing waved a hand. “Enough. It’s getting late. Hurry and pack your things so we can head up the mountain. Everyone’s waiting on you.”
Ji Chaoyun had not brought much with him in the first place.
The two packed quickly, climbed the ten thousand stone steps, and arrived at the square where they had taken the trials earlier.
They had been delayed for some time that the registration was almost over.
Most of the noisy crowd in the square had already dispersed. Before the white jade platform, only two attendant disciples remained waiting, one tall and one short, both responsible for registration.
Ji Chaoyun stepped forward, only for his eyelid to twitch.
Earlier, these two had followed Jiang Cheng everywhere.
They were clearly on Jiang Cheng’s side.
The two disciples, however, showed nothing unusual. They nodded to Ji Chaoyun and Ye Chenxing and calmly explained several matters that required attention after enrollment.
Afterward, the taller disciple picked up a bamboo lot cylinder beside him and held it out before them.
Only two bamboo slips remained inside.
This disciple was named Xu Zixing. He explained at an unhurried pace, “According to Hongmeng Academy’s rules, new students must draw lots to determine which disciple courtyard they’ll be assigned to. You two came late. All the others have already been drawn, so only these two remain.”
Ji Chaoyun and Ye Chenxing exchanged a glance and saw the same hesitation in each other’s eyes.
Ji Chaoyun gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, then reached out first and chose one of the bamboo slips.
“Courtyard Twelve, Pojun Peak. Chaoyun, what did you get?” Ye Chenxing drew the final lot and immediately turned to ask after reading it.
Ji Chaoyun opened the bamboo slip in his hand.
It was completely blank.
Ye Chenxing frowned and was about to say something when Ji Chaoyun stopped him.
Ji Chaoyun looked at the two disciples and asked calmly, “What does this mean?”
“You drew the blank lot?” Xu Zixing showed no surprise and explained with a smile, “Twenty-seven students enrolled this year. Two students are assigned to each courtyard, so one person was bound to be left without a partner and would have to live with an unpaired disciple from a previous year.”
He waved his hand. The bamboo slips in Ji Chaoyun and Ye Chenxing’s hands transformed into faint streaks of light and sank into the jade tokens at their waists.
“...You may now enter the teleportation formation beside you. It will take you to your respective residences.”
“You—”
“Ye Chenxing.” Ji Chaoyun lowered his eyes. “Forget it.”
“How can I forget it?” Ye Chenxing refused to let the matter go. “There wasn’t anything written on your lot. Who knows where the hell they’re sending you? Where is Immortal Lord Yaoguang? I want to see him!”
“The Immortal Venerable is occupied with important matters. Why would he have time to meet a new student?” Xu Zixing said. “Now that you’ve entered the gates of Hongmeng Academy, you must follow our rules. If you’re unwilling to go, leave your passage token behind and depart from Hongmeng Academy.”
“You—”
Ji Chaoyun interrupted him. “It’s fine. I’ll go.”
“Chaoyun!”
“Being granted admission is already fortunate enough. It makes no difference where I live.” Ji Chaoyun said to Ye Chenxing, “We’ve only just entered the academy. Don’t cause trouble. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
After saying this, he looked up and gave the two disciples a meaningful glance before stepping into the teleportation formation.
Ye Chenxing gave a cold snort and followed him into the formation.
Only after the two figures disappeared did the disciple who had remained silent the entire time speak with lingering apprehension.
“Senior Brother Xu, don’t you think this might be a little too vicious? What if we anger that person...”
“Senior Brother Jiang is here. What are you afraid of? That Ji fellow chose to oppose Senior Brother Jiang, so he deserves it. Now there’ll be something good to watch.”
Xu Zixing sat back down smugly and stretched. “It’s finally all over. We can... Ow!”
“F*ck, what the hell bit me?!”
“What could there be? There’s nothing here.”
“My clothes! It crawled inside my clothes! Ah, it bit me again!”
“Don’t move, don’t move. Let me see...”
☁︎
When Ji Chaoyun opened his eyes again, the scenery around him was completely different from before.
The frost and snow on Hongmeng Academy’s front mountain never melted throughout the year, yet the climate here was mild, nourishing the trees along both sides of the road until they grew lush and verdant.
It was dusk. The horizon had been dyed red by the setting sun, and its remaining light spilled between the trees, unexpectedly giving the place some of the long-unseen scenery of the mortal world’s mountain wilderness.
Ji Chaoyun had lived in the mortal realm for many years and had not returned since ascending.
Seeing such scenery again without warning filled him with a hint of nostalgia.
Still... why had he been transported here?
Judging by the attitude of those two disciples earlier, even if Ji Chaoyun had stepped through the teleportation formation and found himself before a crude, dilapidated thatched hut, he would not have found it strange.
There was no reason for it to be somewhere this pleasant.
Ji Chaoyun continued along the mountain path until he reached a grove of green bamboo.
The bamboo had only just put forth new shoots, and the fresh fragrance of bamboo leaves greeted him.
Deep within the grove stood a quiet courtyard.
Outside the courtyard gate, several large characters were written across a wooden plaque in a bold, unrestrained hand: “Courtyard One, Wenqu Peak.”
This really was a disciple courtyard?
Ji Chaoyun pushed open the half-closed courtyard gate and walked inside.
It was said to be a disciple residence, yet it looked more like the estate of a wealthy household in the mortal realm.
Flowers and plants flourished throughout the courtyard. A parasol tree stood in the center, while tall shrubs spread dense shade around it.
Beneath the parasol tree, a bamboo couch rested at an angle beside a lotus pond. On the small table beside it sat a pot of wine that was still being kept warm.
Not a single corner of the place carried any sense of Hongmeng Academy’s austere and bitter cultivation life.
The owner of the courtyard did not seem to be home.
Ji Chaoyun stopped beside the stone bridge and waited quietly.
The gold-tailed koi in the pond had never seen an outsider before and curiously poked their heads above the surface.
Ji Chaoyun had always been especially fond of aquatic creatures. He grabbed a handful of feed from beside the stone bridge and tossed it into the water.
Even the fish feed used by the owner of this place consisted of the freshest small fish, shrimp, and pine nuts, stir-fried with special spices until the aroma was rich and appetizing.
Ji Chaoyun crouched beside the bridge and looked down at the feed in his hand.
He swallowed unconsciously.
A school of carp ate better than he did.
Ji Chaoyun struggled fiercely with himself for a moment. At last, he steeled his heart and scattered all the remaining feed into the pond, finally avoiding the disgraceful act of fighting the koi for food.
He stood up, only to hear the faint sound of running water coming from behind the residence.
Ji Chaoyun followed the sound and walked around the buildings at the front of the courtyard.
Behind them, a quiet path stretched deep into the woods.
The farther he walked along the path, the heavier the moisture in the air became. Only then did Ji Chaoyun belatedly realize that a hot spring lay deep along the trail.
He was just about to retreat when the splash of water suddenly came from ahead.
“Who’s there?”
The familiar voice left Ji Chaoyun’s mind blank for an instant.
He instinctively looked up.
Beyond overlapping rocks and orchids, a man sat in the spring with his back toward him. His lean, powerful back formed smooth, defined lines.
The man turned his head, revealing an exceedingly handsome profile.
Ji Chaoyun’s breath caught.
It was Feng Qi.
☁︎₊˚⊹ The Author’s Jade-Slip Aside ⊹˚₊☁︎
Phoenix: I, Feng Qi, could starve to death, die outside, or jump straight off Wenqu Peak, and I still would never be interested in a dragon.
...So fragrant.
————
This novel isn’t particularly short. The setting and events of the previous life will be revealed gradually, so give me a little time and don’t be anxious. The main storyline is basically everyone fooling around, fighting, and falling in love inside the academy, interspersed with turning the tables, face-slapping, and leveling up. I personally really like this story, and I hope you’ll like it too. Bowing.
Still giving out red packets for this chapter. Throw your comments at me!
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