Zhong Michu left Gu Fuyou and went to the study. Ji Chaoling was reading a book. Zhong Michu said, "Master."
Ji Chaoling said, "Come on, sit down."
Zhong Michu walked to the desk and sat down. Ji Chaoling looked her up and down for a long while and said, "Did you go to Tongchen Palace to see her yesterday? What did you say to her?"
Zhong Michu said bluntly: "Master, she told me everything."
Ji Chaoling paced back and forth in front of the desk, tapping his palms with the book rolled up, and said, "Yesterday Dongli came to tell me that you looked different after returning from outside, so I guessed something..."
Zhong Michu looked gloomy: "She didn't want me, it was Master who came and saved me."
"Mi Chu." Ji Chaoling stared at her and said solemnly: "Everyone in the world can say that she is cruel, but you can't."
Zhong Michu replied softly: "I know."
Ji Chaoling was silent for a while. The animal head incense burner on the table lit incense. A wisp of smoke was like a thread, with a light and elegant fragrance that soothed the heart. Ji Chaoling sighed, "You came to ask me yesterday, but I didn't tell you. I never thought that you would turn around and go to her palace."
Zhong Michu lowered his head slightly, as if he was listening to a lecture: "... I want to know, but I've been thinking about it for too long."
Ji Chaoling said: "Master said that he would tell you one day."
"But I don't know when?"
"When you grow up."
Zhong Michu shook his head: "Master, I am already grown up."
Ji Chaoling smiled, and after a moment, he changed the subject and said, "Mi Chu, you have changed."
Ji Chaoling put the book in his hand on the table. It was the book "New Interpretation of Formation" that Gu Fuyou gave to Zhong Michu. He said, "You never asked more questions before. You just do whatever the master tells you to do."
Ji Chaoling asked, "Is it because of Gu Fuyou?"
Zhong Michu looked at the bright sky outside, and after a moment, she said, "She taught me a lot."
Ji Chaoling was stunned for a long while when he heard her words. When he came back to his senses, he groaned with a feeling of regret and relief. He said, "Mi Chu, when I rescued you from your mother, I actually hesitated."
Zhong Michu's expression froze, her eyes filled with pain. She whispered, "Master, you too..."
Ji Chaoling held the book, one hand behind his back, and looked up into space: "It's not what you think. She doesn't want to see you, partly because she's afraid you'll become like your father. I don't want to send you back to the Dragon Clan, and partly because of this."
"Possessiveness and the law of the jungle are the characteristics of the dragon race. However, unrestrained desires will eventually lead to lawlessness, egocentrism, wanton plunder and occupation; the end of the law of the jungle is that all living beings are worthless, and there is no mercy at all."
"I have met your father once. He is a handsome and heroic man, cheerful and unrestrained. He has his own set of standards. I think, in his eyes, or in the eyes of the Four Seas Dragon Clan, everything he did to your mother is not a sin, because that is what he was taught, and he has always lived this way. I am afraid that after you return to the Dragon Clan and grow up in a place like that, you will become like him."
Zhong Michu said: "Master..."
"Mi Chu, I think that although you have his blood in your bones, you will definitely be different from him if you are guided correctly." Ji Chaoling said: "That's why I was particularly strict when teaching you. I wanted to use benevolence, righteousness and morality to restrain the arrogance in your blood. I hope you will become a decent and polite person with a compassionate heart. I am afraid that one day you will know the truth and suffer unbearably. I also hope that you will be indifferent to emotions and give up love/desire, so that you can cut off worldly thoughts and only think about cultivating immortality."
Ji Chaoling shook his head and said with a bitter smile: "But I was wrong. If you don't know how to behave, how can you become an immortal? Without emotions/desires, how can you be kind? I woke up too late. Although you have grown up as I imagined, you are not angry. I can't help but wonder, is this really what you want now?"
"From the moment you promised Gu Fuyou that you were willing to respond to her call, I thought that perhaps deep down in your heart you were a little tired of the scenery of Jingdu Mountain and the unchanging tranquility of the four seasons, and you wanted something different."
Zhong Michu was silent for a while, then asked, "When I was young, Master didn't let me go down Valley God Peak. Was it also to suppress my dragon race's habits?"
Ji Chaoling said sternly: "No. Mi Chu, this is another thing I want to tell you today."
Zhong Michu: “…”
Ji Chaoling said: "Ninety-eight years ago, a huge tsunami occurred in the East China Sea, almost flooding the entire edge of Dongzhou."
Zhong Michu was stunned for a moment, remembering what the boss Biao had said when they were walking around the city gate. She said, "I seem to have heard of it."
Ji Chaoling said: "That was done by your grandfather."
Zhong Michu frowned slightly. Ji Chaoling said, "He sensed your father's death and was so angry that he shook the East China Sea and flooded three thousand miles. Your father was his only son, and the Dragon Clan always protects its people. If you are sent back, he will investigate the cause of your father's death and get to the bottom of it. It is hard to guarantee that he will not find your mother. That is why I took you back to the sect and raised you in secret to prevent your identity from being exposed."
Ji Chaoling sighed: "So, Mi Chu, you exposed your identity while wandering around the city gate. If you attract the attention of the dragon clan, they will find this place sooner or later and endanger her."
Zhong Michu stood up suddenly. Ji Chaoling said, "It's not your fault. I warned you not to reveal your identity easily, but I never told you why. But Michu, now you know everything you should know. I told you everything I kept secret so that you can distinguish right from wrong. If the dragon clan comes to ask your mother to pay for her life, are you willing to protect her?"
"Of course I am willing to do so."
Ji Chaoling said, "Well, this is the second thing I want to tell you. I want you to leave the sect and go to the Xuji Mountain in Beizhou to practice in seclusion. There is a cave where your master practiced in seclusion. Even if the dragon clan finds Xuanmiao Sect, without you, they will not be able to verify whether you are Di Wujiang's daughter, let alone the cause of Di Wujiang's death. Your mother will be able to live in peace for a while. Until you can stand on your own and cannot be discovered by the dragon clan."
Zhong Michu hesitated for a while, but finally nodded and said, "Okay. When do we set off?"
Ji Chaoling said: "The sooner the better."
Zhong Michu was not a person who would procrastinate. She said, "Then tomorrow." After a pause, she said, "Master, I want to go and say goodbye to Gu Fuyou."
Ji Chaoling's expression became much gentler after hearing her say this, and the smile on his face was like the smile of an old father looking at his daughter who had just grown up. He said, "She has a contract with you, and they are afraid that the dragons will get to her and use her to find you. Hmm..." He pondered for a while, and said teasingly, "I'll go and discuss with City Lord Gu. It would be better to let his precious daughter go with him. First, she can practice in seclusion and calm her temper. Second, you won't be too bored alone. What do you think?"
Zhong Michu said helplessly: "Master."
"I'm not kidding you."
Just then, a breeze blew into the hall, rustling the curtains. Zhong Michu stared out the window for a moment. If he was really with her, Qing Xiu seemed to be very interested. "I... go ask her what she thinks first."
Ji Chaoling just smiled and said nothing. Zhong Michu walked into the room, but stopped at the door. He turned back and asked Ji Chaoling, "Master, is there any other reason why I can't leave Valley God Peak?"
Ji Chaoling said: "Yes. To prevent discordant voices in the sect."
Ji Chaoling looked at Zhong Michu's expression and smiled gently: "You don't understand the ways of the world." When he looked away, his eyes were slightly cold: "This Xuanmiao Sect appears to be peaceful and loving, but it is not a monolithic society. If other people in the sect knew about your existence, I'm afraid everyone would have different ideas on how to deal with you, whether to keep you, send you away, educate you, or treat you as a resource. Therefore, Master can only raise you in secret and not let you go down the mountain until you have the power to protect yourself and can control your body freely. The only ones who know your identity in the sect are me, her, and Dongli..."
"Oh." Ji Chaoling suddenly realized, "Now I'm afraid we have to add Gu Fuyou."
Zhong Michu: “…”
Ji Chaoling smiled and said, "Okay, okay, let's go ask her."
Zhong Michu said goodbye to Ji Chaoling and left. Ji Chaoling looked in the direction she left, sighed for a long while, and murmured to himself: "Michu, you have changed, Master is very happy."
Zhong Michu returned to the room. The person on the bed seemed to be asleep. She walked over and stood by her side, quietly watching her sleeping face for a while. Ah Fu saw her coming and hummed softly. Zhong Michu was unable to stop it, and it woke up Gu Fuyou.
Gu Fuyou groaned and looked at her with hazy eyes: "Senior Sister Zhong?"
Zhong Michu sat down beside the bed and said, "I'm sorry to have woken you up."
Gu Fuyou sat up and rubbed her eyes. She asked, "Have you finished talking to the headmaster?"
"Yeah." Zhong Michu tucked back a strand of unruly hair beside her ear: "I came to say goodbye to you."
Before Gu Fuyou could even think about her action, he was completely sober after hearing these words: "Saying goodbye?! Where are you going?"
Zhong Michu only said that she had to leave Xuanmiao Sect and go to Xuji Mountain to practice in seclusion in order to avoid the dragon clan. Seeing that she didn't say much, Gu Fuyou didn't ask much, but she understood a little bit in her heart. She felt depressed and said, "Is it because of the speed race..."
Zhong Michu shook his head and interrupted her: "It's none of your business."
Gu Fuyou said: "Then I won't be able to see you in the future, and I won't be able to summon you. If you stay in seclusion for decades at least, or even hundreds of years at most, I..." She felt bitter: "We may never see each other again."
"Then you..." Zhong Michu looked at her deeply, his light-colored eyes glowing with a different light: "Do you want to go with me?"
Gu Fuyou asked in surprise: "Can I go?"
"Yeah. But..." Zhong Michu said, "The days of seclusion may be boring."
Gu Fuyou showed hesitation. Zhong Michu's heart sank, thinking that kind of life was indeed too restrictive for her.
Gu Fuyou asked, "When you are in seclusion, do I have to stay there alone? At that time, can I go back to Xiaoyao City to see Gu Huaiyou and the others?"
Zhong Michu was stunned for a moment, then nodded. Gu Fuyou shouted, "Really?! I'll go, I want to go too!"
Zhong Michu was still a little worried and said lightly: "But... it will be very boring."
"What's the big deal? I can read books and play with formations all day long. How can I be worse than He Chenxuan?" Gu Fuyou crossed his arms and snorted: "Compared to being taught in the sect, I would rather come to He Chenxuan."
Zhong Michu looked at her gestures and smiled faintly. Gu Fuyou asked, "When are you leaving?"
"tomorrow."
"So urgent?"
"You don't have to come with me. Come over after Master has discussed it with your father."
"No. I will take you there tomorrow. When I know the way by myself, the headmaster has already told my father about it when I come back. I will come back to find you after I pack my luggage."
"good."