Danfeng City

“Hmm, school starts?”

Mù Qīngyǔ, chewing on bread, was startled. She never expected to hear such a familiar phrase.

“Master doesn’t know?” Xǔ Tiānlí was also somewhat surprised. He had thought that since she knew so many unknown secrets, she would naturally know he was a student.

In just a few seconds, Mù Qīngyǔ pieced together the situation.

Xǔ Tiānlí was eighteen, indeed of university age. They had first met in July, right at the beginning of summer break.

Now two months had passed. The sweltering August was over, and it was September, the start of the school season.

Speaking of school, it was actually quite nostalgic.

Although as a student she always complained about too much homework and academic pressure, feeling trapped every day in a cage called “school” without freedom.

But only after truly stepping into society did she understand the good of student days—not so many worries, not so much pressure from life.

After finishing the bread Xǔ Tiānlí bought, Mù Qīngyǔ almost instinctively licked her fingers. Remembering there was a pair of eyes watching her, she hurriedly wiped them with a tissue instead.

Xǔ Tiānlí was eighteen, a freshman… After summer break, he should be a sophomore.

“Of course I know you’re a college student,” she said. “I just don’t understand the modern school holiday schedule.”

“Oh, I see.”

Xǔ Tiānlí didn’t doubt this explanation at all. Even if his master knew, it would be from many years ago, vastly different from the current holiday system.

“School starts, so what? It’s not like I’ll forbid you from going.” Mù Qīngyǔ shrugged, indicating she had no objections.

If Xǔ Tiānlí went to school, she would have more personal time, no longer needing to deal with his overflowing energy every day.

“Then, Master, how about we set off tomorrow?”

“Isn’t your school in Wufeng City?”

“I got into a university in another city.” Xǔ Tiānlí scratched the bridge of his nose.

Wufeng City had its own local universities, but the teaching quality was said to be average, and they were private schools with annual tuition fees of at least tens of thousands.

Xǔ Tiānlí had known from a young age that his father worked hard to earn money. So through three years of high school, he buried himself in studies, even if he couldn’t compete with the top students, he did his best to get into his ideal university.

“It’s Danfeng Academy in neighboring Danfeng City.”

“Danfeng?”

Hearing that word, Mù Qīngyǔ felt a bit dazed. It was a very familiar term.

She remembered Qiao Yíng had mentioned that the Return to the Void One-Strike Decapitation originated from Danfeng City.

Even that crooked blacksmith had hinted that the black longsword Xǔ Tiānlí now used also came from that city.

At first, Mù Qīngyǔ thought it was just a toy sword that would soon be broken by Xǔ Tiānlí. But not only did it survive the life-or-death battle at the Heaven’s Will Bureau branch, it remained intact even under his intense use.

Looking back, the decision wasn’t too bad. This black longsword wasn’t as ordinary as it seemed.

Could it be that Danfeng City was rich in treasures?

Mù Qīngyǔ grew a bit interested. As they set off for Danfeng City, she subtly probed Xǔ Tiānlí for information about the city.

Danfeng City and Wufeng City were adjacent, but their scales of development were completely different. The former thoroughly trounced the latter.

Not only did Danfeng City have a nationally renowned university, the branches of the Heaven’s Will Bureau and the Martial Alliance there were far larger than those in Wufeng City. It even had a branch of the Alchemical Pact, which Wufeng City lacked.

This indirectly indicated that the number of Spirit Wielders in Danfeng City far exceeded that in Wufeng City. Otherwise, such large-scale supernatural powers wouldn’t have taken root there.

“Speaking of which, does Master have an old friend in Danfeng City?”

“Huh?”

While waiting for the train in the waiting room, Xǔ Tiānlí suddenly asked this question.

Mù Qīngyǔ thought he was trying to trap her, but after thinking for a long time, she couldn’t figure out where the trap was. In the end, she could only frown and ask him why he thought that.

“Actually, it’s because of the legend of Danfeng City.”

Thinking she was angry, Xǔ Tiānlí could only explain awkwardly.

“The legendary hero of Danfeng City—I thought Master might have some connection to that person.”

Perhaps because Danfeng City and Wufeng City were adjacent, both cities shared similar legends.

It was said that the name “Danfeng” came from a high-tier Spirit Wielder from long ago. He saved the city from the brink of destruction by otherworldly demons, was revered as the city’s protector, and the city was even named after his alias.

To commemorate that great hero, the most famous landmark in Danfeng City was “Hero Square” in the city center. At the center of the square stood a huge statue, said to have been carved in the hero’s likeness.

Wufeng City also had a legend of a “reclusive master,” but to ordinary people, it was too elusive and was told as a bedtime story for children.

But the legend of Danfeng City was different. That great hero was a real person. Although his whereabouts were unknown, given the longevity of high-tier Spirit Wielders, many still believed he was alive somewhere in the world.

In the past, Xǔ Tiānlí would have just made a joke about it. But now, standing beside him was the legendary master of Wufeng City, so naturally, he would connect her with the one from Danfeng City.

Since the two cities were so close, Xǔ Tiānlí wondered if the two might have been good friends or something.

‘What do you take me for? If my social circle really had that kind of quality, why would I bother posing as a master?’

The corner of Mù Qīngyǔ’s mouth twitched. Expressionless, she spoke:

“About this, you better know less. Otherwise, it might bring deadly trouble.”

“Oh, okay.”

Xǔ Tiānlí obediently shut his mouth, but his mind was racing.

‘Master doesn’t want me to know more. Could there be some earth-shattering secret?’

He didn’t think his master was a bad person. So the problem must be with that great hero.

‘Could it be that the disappearance of Danfeng City’s great hero hid a hidden story, and my master was a witness, even a participant?’

Hiss, he really wanted to dig deeper.

But Xǔ Tiānlí held himself back. Since his master didn’t want to talk, he wouldn’t ask more. At least he could wait until he was strong enough to handle the “deadly trouble” his master mentioned.

Xǔ Tiānlí became even more curious about Qín Yuè’s identity. Before she secluded herself in Wufeng City, what had she done that would leave a name in history?

No high-tier Spirit Wielder of that name appeared in history, but Xǔ Tiānlí was certain that his master had a place there. She just had experienced too much and only wanted a peaceful life.

And he, Xǔ Tiānlí, was the first lucky person Qín Yuè encountered after her re-emergence.