Lán WàngJī versus Alcohol: Chapter 16

One of the eight leaders of the major branches watched in terror as Jiāng Chéng, expressionless, turned around with his sword in hand.

“Don’t… don’t come any closer!” he cried. “Everyone, I’m afraid Jiāng Zōng-zhǔ has lost his mind. We can’t let him have his way.”

One after another, they drew their swords and quickly surrounded him. The guards also rushed forward en masse.

An elder hurriedly said, “Jiāng Zōng-zhǔ, please calm down. Jīn Zōng-zhǔ might still be alive…”

“Shut your mouth!” Jiāng Chéng shouted. As soon as he spoke, he lashed out with the lightning whip, sending those who had been approaching him flying.

“A whole day and night had already passed!” Jiāng Chéng thundered. “A whole day and night had passed since A-Líng* went missing! How else are you going to answer for it but with your lives?”

*Adding ‘A’ before the given name shows a close relationship (often addressed to a blood relative).

“Quick! Someone must go and launch the signal flare!” one of the leaders exclaimed.

Then, in a defiant tone, he said, “Jiāng WǎnYín, you’re the one who has initiated this conflict. Don’t blame us for being ruthless!”

“If Jiāng WǎnYín is eliminated,” he thought, “with the young Sect Leader probably murdered by now, the Lánlíng territory will fall under our control quite naturally.”

Another leader rushed outside to set off the flare but was suddenly struck by a sword light. Unable to dodge in time, he was knocked to the ground.

Outraged that someone had dared attack him, the leader turned his head and saw a huge creature leap towards him with its jaws wide open.

Then an angry voice rang out, “Xiānzǐ, bite him to death!”

Xiānzǐ carried out the command at once, and people inside the main hall could hear fierce barking followed by cries of pain.

Everyone in the hall was startled. Jiāng Chéng’s entire body trembled violently. He slowly turned his head and saw a young man, with his clothes covered in dust and his sword in hand, hurrying towards him.

Sweat beaded on the youngster’s forehead, indicating that he had hastened to get there. Although he looked somewhat dishevelled, his clothes were not tattered. He had handsome, lively features with a red dot on his forehead between his eyebrows. The young man was none other than Jīn Líng.

Upon entering the main hall, Jīn Líng was taken aback by the scene before him–his expression was a mixture of surprise and bewilderment. When he saw Jīn Mǐn’s corpse, he was stunned for a moment before giving a cold snort, just like his uncle.

Among the branch leaders, not a single one mocked him for not arriving on time or for failing to behave like a sect leader should.

Seeing a group of old geezers and guards, almost in tears, staring at him as though they had never seen him before, Jīn Líng curled his lips in disgust.

He then dusted off his clothes with a look of disdain and inwardly cursed Wèi WúXiàn to the core.

“He told me not to worry and to leave everything to him,” Jīn Líng thought. “But in the end, he made me do all the work under the guise of letting me gain some experience.”

At the same time, Jīn Líng felt satisfied knowing that Jīn Chǎn was now in Wèi WúXiàn’s hands. In addition, he had learned a few fighting tricks, so it was a win-win situation for him.

Since the matter was almost resolved, the perpetrators had been caught, and everyone who ought to be present was in the main hall, Jīn Líng walked in with light steps, intending to sort things out.

Everyone quickly made way for Jīn Líng as he strode up to Jiāng Chéng.

The moment he saw Jiāng Chéng’s dazed expression and red-rimmed eyes, Jīn Líng froze in shock. He hurried over, took Jiāng Chéng’s hand and asked, “Uncle, what’s wrong?”

Jiāng Chéng just stared at him blankly, his lips trembling slightly.

To Jīn Líng’s utter astonishment, his uncle’s hand, which had always felt warm–a familiar comfort since childhood–now felt ice-cold.

Recalling what he had overheard earlier about the signal flare and about dealing with Jiāng WǎnYín, Jīn Líng became so enraged that his whole body began to tremble.

Ignoring the usual respect owed to his elders, he spun round, put his hands on his hips and roared, “How dare you bully my uncle?!”

Everyone in the main hall couldn’t bring themselves to agree with Jīn Líng that they had been bullying his uncle–quite the opposite.

As he watched the strange expressions on their faces and thought about how they had all surrounded his uncle earlier, Jīn Líng grew furious. Just as he was about to explode with anger, he was suddenly pulled backwards into an embrace.

Jīn Líng was a little bit confused and unsure how to react. He could feel his uncle’s racing heartbeat against his chest. It took him a moment to realise he was being hugged.

Then he became even more dumbfounded. “A hug from my uncle? Impossible!” he exclaimed inwardly.

As far as he could remember, Jīn Líng had no recollection of ever being hugged.

Now that he had grown into an upright young man and become the head of the sect, he found himself being held tightly in someone’s arms in front of everyone.

On top of that, the one embracing him was Jiāng Chéng, the very person who often scolded him for not behaving like a sect leader.

Jiāng Chéng, the Sect Leader of YúnmèngJiāng, possessed extraordinary cultivation. He had single-handedly restored his family’s honour and earned widespread praise for punishing his own kin during the purge of the Burial Mound.

Unlike the previous head of the family–his father, Jiāng Fēngmián, whose demeanour had been gentle yet firm–Jiāng Chéng had a stern, cold appearance.

Despite his youth, Jiāng Chéng was ruthless and decisive. Averse to underhanded dealings, he was known for his fierce temper, which made him a feared figure and kept sycophants at a distance.

Others regarded Jiāng Chéng as disciplined, sharp-tongued and difficult to deal with.

Jīn Líng’s impression of Jiāng Chéng was much the same. However, compared to Jīn GuāngYáo, who was always smiling and got along with everyone, Jīn Líng still preferred Jiāng Chéng.

Most of the major sects, back then, had suffered heavy losses during their confrontation with Yílíng Lǎozǔ, followed by his death and the dissipation of his soul.

Afterwards, Jiāng Chéng found himself spread too thin, patrolling the Burial Mound, arranging his sister Jiāng YànLí’s funeral, and reorganising the sect’s affairs.

Unlike other sects, the LánlíngJīn Sect–which had been the first to call for war against Yílíng Lǎozǔ–had suffered no significant casualties or losses.

Since he had been orphaned at a young age and was the direct descendant of the Jīn family, Jīn Líng remained at Jīnlíntái, where there were many women to look after him. Jīn GuāngYáo was responsible for providing for Jīn Líng’s daily needs.

Jīn GuāngYáo was meticulous, thoughtful and seemingly flawless in every way, yet Jīn Líng found it hard to hide his disappointment.

The reason was that whenever Jīn Líng became the subject of the gossip or was bullied by children from collateral branches of the family, Jīn GuāngYáo would always arrive too late to help him.

Feeling guilty about his tardiness, Jīn GuāngYáo would apologise with such sincerity that Jīn Líng found himself unable to blame him.

Eventually, after the same pattern had repeated itself time and again, Jīn Líng gave up hoping things would change. The only thing that truly made him happy was the puppy Jīn GuāngYáo gave him.

The little dog was well-behaved, and when Jīn Líng held it, its fur felt soft and warm. From then on, the puppy became more precious to him than any of the other luxurious gifts he had received.

Time passed, yet the intimidation and gossip surrounding Jīn Líng had not died down, leaving him with no choice but to learn to live with them.

However, Jīn Líng’s innate pride would not tolerate such treatment, even when he had been beaten to the ground as he was now.

As though it were not enough to see him lying helpless on the ground, one of the naughty brats raised his foot to stamp on Jīn Líng.

Knowing that no one would come to help him, Jīn Líng looked powerlessly at the rascal wearing a smug grin. Before the boy’s foot could come down on Jīn Líng’s face, the little devil was lifted into the air amid gasps of surprise from other children present.

Bewildered, Jīn Líng looked up but could not make out the newcomer’s face clearly. All he could see was a flash of purple clothing–the sunlight was too dazzling.

Making eye contact with Jiāng Chéng at such close quarters was definitely not a pleasant experience for the rascal. The rest of the children, who had been so cocky only moments before, now trembled in fear at the overwhelming aura emanating from Jiāng Chéng’s body.

Jīn Líng’s eyes lit up as he finally saw his uncle’s face.

Gritting his teeth, Jiāng Chéng loomed over him and shouted, “Get up!”

Jīn Líng immediately jumped to his feet, and the bruises on his legs throbbed. Instead of letting out a groan, he bit his lip to stifle it. He didn’t want his uncle to look down on him.

A flurry of hurried footsteps approached from a distance, and without turning his head, Jīn Líng knew it was the ever-busy Jīn GuāngYáo hurrying over.

Completely taken by surprise at the sight of Jiāng Chéng, Jīn GuāngYáo’s expression stiffened. He quickly composed himself, walked to Jīn Líng and asked with concern, “A-ling, are you all right?”

Jiāng Chéng narrowed his eyes, set the brat down and shouted at all of them, “Get lost!”

They ran off at once, scattering in all directions like mice.

Jīn GuāngYáo’s expression remained calm. He performed the fist-and-palm salute and said, “I’ve failed in my duty to discipline them properly. Jiāng Zōng-zhǔ, please forgive me. Those children are from the collateral branches of the family and like to play around here, so it was inevitable that they’d run into one another and come to blows over some minor disagreement.”

“It’s just as well,” Jiāng Chéng said, glancing at him sidelong. “With so many people about, it’s rather inconvenient. A-Ling will live at Lotus Piers from now on.”

Jīn GuāngYáo awkwardly began, “This…”

“What’s the matter?” Jiāng Chéng asked. “Is there anything wrong with me taking my nephew to stay with me for a while?”

Jīn GuāngYáo could not see anything wrong with it, so from then on, Jīn Líng spent most of his time living with Jiāng Chéng.

More than a decade had passed since then, and in Jīn Líng’s memory, Jiāng Chéng always wore a stern expression, never said a kind word to him, and made him cultivate all day long.

However, wherever Jīn Líng went or whatever he did, Jiāng Chéng was always there to protect him, as well as to teach him a lesson so that Jīn Líng would learn from his mistakes.

That same Jiāng Chéng was now burying his head in Jīn Líng’s shoulder, slumped against his nephew, his whole body trembling.

The last time Jīn Líng had seen Jiāng Chéng lose control of himself was when Wèi WúXiàn returned.

“If Uncle knew that I’d spent the whole of last night with Wèi WúXiàn, he might carry out his usual empty threat of breaking my legs,” Jīn Líng thought.

He couldn’t help shuddering at the thought. He wanted to struggle out of Jiāng Chéng’s embrace, but before he could, Jiāng Chéng suddenly let go of him.

Jīn Líng raised his head to look at him, but his face was immediately covered by Jiāng Chéng’s purple sleeve.

Having regained his self-control, Jiāng Chéng began rubbing the dust from Jīn Líng’s face, venting his frustration in the process.

“Uncle, what are you doing?” Jīn Líng protested.

Jiāng Chéng scolded him. “Be quiet! Have you looked in the mirror? Just look at the state of you!”

After enduring it for a while, Jīn Líng could no longer contain himself. “Uncle, that’s enough!” he exclaimed. “Are you trying to wipe off my red dot or what?”

Gritting his teeth, Jiāng Chéng replied, “So what if I wipe it off? What’s so special about it anyway?”

Glancing disdainfully at each person present in the main hall, Jiāng Chéng said flatly, “I killed Jīn Mǐn.”

Jīn Líng raised his eyebrows and said calmly, “Never mind that.”

Immediately, the remaining branch leaders grew restless. One of them quickly asked, “Jīn Zōng-zhǔ, what do you mean by that?”

Jīn Líng waved his hand to signal for him to be quiet. He then looked towards the seat of honour, adjusted his attire and walked over.

They all watched quietly as Jīn Líng sat down. Jiāng Chéng didn’t move, sizing up his nephew, who was gradually becoming an adult.

Jīn Líng beckoned, and immediately two disciples entered the main hall carrying a box containing several pieces of evidence.

He then said, “Elders and qiánbèi*, I apologise for keeping you waiting. You must have heard about the recent incidents that occurred in the Lánlíng and Yúnmèng territories.”

*Jīn Líng uses ‘qiánbèi’ (seniors), a polite title, to address the branch leaders.

After a brief pause, he continued, “Now that all the details have been sorted out, I’ve called you all here today to explain the matter. Before I do, please open that box and take a look at its contents.”

The two disciples placed the box in front of the elders and branch leaders, who stepped forward and picked up several ledgers and notebooks. After examining them carefully, they were shocked.

An elder exclaimed, “This… this is actually…”

“Indeed,” Jīn Líng said. “As you can see, Jīn Mǐn has long coveted the position of head of the sect. In order to gain control of the entire sect, he secretly had his son, Jīn Chǎn, raise a monster capable of manipulating people’s minds by following the instructions written in those notebooks.”

He went on, “The monster possessed an evil spirit, and Jīn Chǎn didn’t have the same ability as Yílíng Lǎozǔ to control or subdue it. Eventually, it escaped.”

“The monster was skilled at making wine,” Jīn Líng continued, “and used it to confuse people. It first fled to Yúnmèng. After being spotted and pursued by Jiāng Zōng-zhǔ, it fled back to the vicinity of Lánlíng. A few days ago, the monster and its offspring were all wiped out by HánGuāng-Jūn.”

“As for those ledgers…” Jīn Líng paused.