Chapter 7.1

From the moment Lin SuCi appeared until he sat down next to Yan BoShen, all eyes in the main hall had been bouncing around him, Qing Fou and Yan BoShen. This was especially so with the head of Mysterious Heart Sect and Dingye, who exchanged a look with each other.

Wang Lichen, who was sitting at the disciples area, was stunned when he saw Lin SuCi. After studying those ears and tail for a long while, he slowly matched Lin SuCi with the little kitty. His eyes brightening, he immediately shot Lin SuCi a grin.

Lin SuCi did not see it.

At that moment, he was looking down, sitting properly. His knees were together, his hands overlapping his knees, and his head was bowed down slightly. Only Yan BoShen’s thigh was within his vision.

This quiet image of the kitten was very deceiving. With that appealing and polite look, no one could have guessed this was a kitten who had just learnt to transform his appearance only a few days ago.

Yan BoShen shot a look at him.

The mouth of the cat-boy sitting next to him was curved up slightly. His eyes were lowered, and they glinted with warmth, and his face was tinted a shy pink.

This obedient look was very different from his usual vivaciousness in Cardinal Sect. Yan BoShen had never seen Lin SuCi with this manner before, and he could not help taking another look at him.

Lin SuCi’s long eyelashes fluttered. In the next moment, he seemed to feel something, and with a shiver, his eyes slowly looked up. His jade-green eyes met the eyes of Yan BoShen, and Yan BoShen’s face was distinctly reflected in those clear animal pupils.

Yan BoShen was slightly stunned, and his eyes turned away to avoid directly looking at Lin SuCi.

Lin SuCi watched him and kept silent.

There were too many people in the main hall. It was also someone else’s territory, not Cardinal Sect where he could be as unbridled as he liked. Lin SuCi could distinguish the appropriateness of the situation, so he only looked down, seemingly motionless. However, his hand, that was covered by his wide sleeve, secretly reached out to touch Yan BoShen’s palm and clutched it.

Yan BoShen’s hand froze, and he instantly looked at Lin SuCi.

Lin SuCi still maintained his obedient look, and under the table where no one could see, he persistently pulled Yan BoShen’s hand over to his arms.

Yan BoShen stiffened for a moment, then gradually stopped resisting, allowing Lin SuCi to drag his hand over.

“Is this Senior Uncle’s new disciple? How cute he looks!” As the focus of the celebration banquet, Dingye complimented Lin SuCi. Then, he changed his tone and chuckled, “However, he seems to not have… learnt the fundamentals of the sect?”

Lin SuCi kept that obedient smile on his face, and after hearing Dingye’s words, he gave a shy expression and slightly lowered his head. Still grabbing onto Yan BoShen’s hand, he spread his palm open and took the opportunity to draw some words on his hand.

Qing Fou replied lightly, “My disciple can already transform his appearance when he’s less than three months old. There’s still a long time before he’ll learn the fundamentals or other things.”

Dingye was slightly stunned. “… No wonder the little Junior looks so childlike and innocent. So he’s still a little baby animal. In this case, congratulations, Senior Uncle, little Junior is really talented.”

Qing Fou returned a few polite remarks, and from Lin SuCi, the head of the sect also started praising the other disciples of Cardinal Sect.

Lin SuCi did not care for their words, and busied himself with writing. The place where he was holding on to Yan BoShen had already heated up, and he even felt that the skin of Yan BoShen’s palm was about to be rubbed raw with his writing.

Finally drawing the last stroke of the character, Lin SuCi turned his head towards Yan BoShen and raised his brow.

Yan BoShen gave him a penetrating look. He slowly clenched his spread open hand into a fist, shaking his sleeve over it, then looked up. His sharp eyes fell onto the head of the sect, as well as Dingye who was still warmly engaged in small talk with Qing Fou.

With a look, Lin SuCi knew that Yan BoShen had understood what he wrote on his palm. Only then did he take his time and slowly let go of Yan BoShen’s hand. Looking around at his surroundings, he peeled a fruit and started eating it.

Qing Fou was an elder, no matter how the head of Mysterious Heart Sect and Dingye tried to flatter and coax him to speak, he continued his steadiness, only nodding and acknowledging them with short replies. From time to time, he even gave them a kind look that was befitting of an elder, and caused the head of the sect to be stuck, only wiping his face and unable to continue those flowery words.

In the main hall, Qing Fou was the elder with the most seniority, and so other disciples did not have the rights to interrupt. They could only eat as they studied the three people from Cardinal Sect. Most of the young disciples only paid attention to Lin SuCi, and there was one who secretly folded a paper charm into the shape of the crane and sneakily flew it along the floor towards Lin SuCi.

Lin SuCi was buried in his food, and did not notice it at all.

Yan BoShen immediately noticed it, together with the wicked smile on that Mysterious Heart Sect disciple who released the crane. His hand, hidden in his sleeve, flicked, and in the next moment, the trajectory of the paper crane changed and flew back to that disciple. With a bang, the crane exploded, and the pit of the fruit that was wrapped in it also blew up in the disciple’s face.

“What happened?”

The commotion at the junior disciples’ table had attracted Dingye’s attention.

With a glance, he instantly recognised that dirty-faced disciple. His eyes flashed and scolded laughingly, “What are you playing with? Only knowing how to fool around each time you juniors hang out together.”

Then, he smiled at Qing Fou. “I’m ashamed to say, I have many disciples under me, but they’re all naughty and playful. None of them are worth looking at, sorry to have let Senior Uncle see these jokers.”

Qing Fou did not see the situation at all, but only with a sweep of his eyes, he looked at the muddled Lin SuCi, then at Yan BoShen who had his eyes lowered and was drinking the wine, and immediately guessed what had happened.

He put down his chopsticks, with seeming earnestness, “Your disciples are really playful. Junior Nephew, if the disciple’s character is bad, just throw him out. Even if you keep him, he’ll amount to nothing. If his character is good, but under your hand, he still becomes like this, then, you’ll need to reflect on yourself.”

The smile on Dingye’s face froze, and he gritted, “… Senior Uncle’s teachings make sense.”

The head of the sect smiled, “Senior Dingye has devoted himself to practice, and cultivated his golden core in a very short time. He really did neglect his disciples, unlike his Senior Uncle who has taken good care of his own. All of your disciples are still naive and frank.”

“Speaking about it, they might be a little too frank,” After the head of the sect spoke for him, the colour of Dingye’s face improved. He immediately continued, “Isn’t Junior Huilian overly frank, from the hands of my disciple he… borrowed 3000 spiritual gems.”

His tone and pauses all brought a feeling that there was a big problem with Huilian’s actions.

The head of the sect pretended to be curious. “3000 spiritual gems? This is not a small sum, can Junior Huilian pay it back?”

Busy eating, Lin SuCi paused. He bowed his head and his mouth curved up, his eyes filled with irrepressible laughter.

Yan BoShen registered his reaction, and combined it with what Lin SuCi wrote on his palm, becoming thoughtful.

“Umm…” Dingye slowly glanced at Qing Fou, as though a little embarrassed. “Junior Huilian has been focused on cultivating, and might not pay much attention to such worldly things.”

“But that’s 3000 spiritual gems. No matter what, it shouldn’t be dragged on for so long…” The head of the sect seemed to look reproachfully at Qing Fou.

Lin SuCi sat up straight, a cup of hot tea in his hand. He looked up in interest how the head of the sect and Dingye chimed together in agreement. Deeply impressed by their acting skills, he really wanted to put down his cup and applaud and cheer on the two of them.

Qing Fou was not affected by their words. “Was there something like this? How come I didn’t know about it?”

The head of the sect who was ready to answer, “…”

Dingye, “…”

Lin SuCi nearly clapped for Qing Fou.

He pinched his thigh, suppressing his laughter and leaned towards Yan BoShen. Covering his mouth with his hand, he whispered, “I think your master will win.”

Qing Fou completely did not have the self-awareness to maintain the dignity of being a senior in front of his juniors. Once he acted shamelessly, no matter how many tricks the other party had prepared, they would not be able to use them.

Lin SuCi leaned over, and rested himself directly on Yan BoShen’s arm. The body temperature of a cub was high, through a thin layer of clothings, it heated up Yan BoShen’s skin.

This intimacy made Yan BoShen stiffen for a moment. His hand lifted up and hesitated for a little while, but did not push him away.

“I’m afraid it might be difficult.”

His voice was as slight as a piece of thread, and went directly into Lin SuCi’s ears.

Lin SuCi’s ears trembled.