Shortly after seeing both Yang and Moxie pass the admission test, Feng Lei finally let go of the breath he didn't know he was holding.
"Whoo! That was so cool, wasn't it, Feng-gongzi? Knowing that those people will soon be our fellow sect disciples sure does make ones body tingle in excitement! What do you think, Feng gongzi? ..,Feng gongzi?" Tianbei turned around and saw Feng Lei standing up at walking towards the edge of the viewing platform.
"Feng gongzi, what are-" Clueless about what Feng Lei was planning to do, Tianbei was just about to ask she Feng Lei suddenly jumped down and plummeted straight towards the ground which was nearly three stories in height. "Feng gongzi?!"
Contrary to what one might expect, Feng Lei actually landed neatly on both feet and even dusted the imaginary dust off of his shoulders as if nothing had happened, which surprised most of the people currently at the arena as they had witnessed the entire thing happen in front of their eyes. The only thing giving away that something in fact had happened was the young boy leaning dangerously off the viewing platform's rails, asking loudly if the boy who jumped off was fine.
Suddenly, silence enveloped the previously loud arena as people began to realize who both of the young boys were as they looked closer. It took another moment before hushed whispers spread around, with people gossiping with each other in excitement.
As if he didn't notice the people around him, Feng Lei began walking towards the place where the children who passed the assessment stood at in a leisurely pace. Unknowingly, the untouchable aura he exuded, along with the faint chill coming from his body, spread towards the nearby people, making them unconsciously make way for him as he walked.
"Hey, isn't that the rumored Ice Demon from the Feng clan?" A young maiden asked the lad standing beside her as Feng Lei walked past. "You mean the youngest to have been taken in by the emperor? The one who made the entire court shut up in his first presentation?! That prodigy?!" The lad exclaimed in excitement. "Shh!!!"
Pretending as if he hadn't heard anything, Feng Lei continued on his way.
Ice demon, was it? How accurate.
[It would be even more accurate if they added black-belly to it. Then it would become Black-belly Ice Demon which is just perfect for you.]
Fuck you.
[I know. I would fuck me too but, I'm not bent. Sorry.]
You don't even have genitals!
"Psh! What prodigy? Those are probably just rumors the Feng clan spread around for their own convenience! For all I know, even his recommendation letter was most likely just obtained through connections. You really can't trust anything those vile nobles do nowadays." A dark haired boy spoke from the crowd, not even trying to conceal the disdain he felt towards Feng Lei, or to be exact, all of the nobles.
"Brother, don't-" A young girl with seven to eight points of similarity with the boy tried to stop him but was cut off.
"Don't what? I'm not wrong! Don't tell me I can't even speak out else I'll be killed?!" Hearing the words the boy said, many of the nobles that attended the assessment or were watching from the sidelines underwent varying changes in complexions, wanting to teach the boy a lesson but were unable to due to the presence of the academy instructors.
The only noble who was able to stay calm at the moment was none other than Feng Lei who, ironically, was the main focus of the boy's mocking.
Feng Lei paused his steps and glanced at the boy. "You are...?" He asked calmly. "Wu Jie! My name is Wu Jie! You better remember it, noble!" The boy replied in a steadfast manner despite being surprised for a moment.
"En. I've taken note of it, Wu Ji." "It's Wu Jie!" Not paying attention to the boy anymore, Feng Lei turned around and continued on his way.
"Jeez! Brother, do you even know who you've offended this time?!" The young girl asked her brother anxiously. "No clue." The boy replied casually, thinking it was no big deal.
"That's Feng Lei! The second young master of the Feng clan! They're one of the top families in the entire Empire! How do you not know?" The girl told her brother in a panicked matter, yet, seeing her brother not have a look of regret but instead was even grinning in excitement at the thought of finally having found a challenging enemy to defeat, she couldn't help but panic more. "We're dead. We are so dead this time."
[Your ability to make people curse you to death never ceases to amaze me.]
That was an accident.
[As if anyone would believe that obvious lie.]
....
[Seriously?]
Despite that one hiccup along his way, the rest of the time he was walking was spent leisurely as no one else had the courage to bother him.
Finally having arrived at his destination, Feng Lei couldn't help but look at the boy in front of him with deep emotions. "Yang..."
Despite being called out, the white haired boy just responded with silence, calmly gazing at Feng Lei, creating a sombre atmosphere that enveloped only the two of them.
From the very beginning, since Feng Lei had jumped down from the platform towards the arena and walked all the way towards the spot he was standing on at this very moment, those calm eyes just looked at him steadily, not averting at the slightest.
This... He's not responding. Did he break? Wait, his head did not get hit while he was fighting, right? Is he... Is he sulking? I did made them leave secretly which made it look like I was abandoning them but,... Is he really sulking right now?
Being stared at for quite some time made Feng Lei feel slightly uncomfortable.
Haha... It's probably just my imagination.
Unknown to Feng Lei, Yang was actually silent because he had long since wanted to just run up to Feng Lei and take him into his arms and never let go but restrained himself in fear of scaring the boy away and never seeing him again for good. He had come to the conclusion that gaining the boy's acceptance will have to be done one step at a time.
Surprisingly, the one who broke the atmosphere was neither Feng Lei nor Yang. It was actually Moxie, who finally couldn't stand the silence and being left out.
"Young master, don't you mean Yang and Moxie?! I'm also here, ah!" Moxie whined like a puppy begging for attention.
"En. You're here as well." Unfortunately, the puppy was ignored.
"Instructor Liang, I'll be taking these two with me. Please don't mind and continue with the procedures." Feng Lei said as if it was no big deal and directly dragged the two other boys with him and left as quickly as he came.
In the end, the arena was left in total silence, with the instructor standing on the stage in shock and the contestants with their mouths agape. "Eh?"
Only after arriving at a scenic location which strangely had no visitors or even any passerby did Feng Lei stop walking and let go of both Yang and Moxie.
He stood underneath a peach blossom tree in silence, as if appreciating the scenery but was actually contemplating about how he would approach the subject.
Ai... No use thinking about it. I'll just say it as straightforwardly as I can.
With a heavy sigh, Feng Lei turned around to face the two boys who just followed him silently and spoke. "Do you both want to die?"
"...eh?!!"
Shit! That was too straightforward.
[Kill yourself.]
"I misspoke. What I meant was, do you plan on throwing your life away."
"W-what..?!"
Feng Lei tried to clarify himself but was obviously failing. His attempts just made Moxie let out unintelligent surprised sounds and even Yang couldn't help but crease his eyebrows in confusion.
"This isn't working out. Let's do it this way." Feng Lei massaged his temples in frustration. "I have obviously sent you both away out of good intentions, right? I even gave you both a pouch of gold each to help you get by. So, why are you both suddenly here? Do you both just want to needlessly throw your lives away with me?"
After hearing Feng Lei's clarifications, both Yang and Moxie finally understood.
"Young master, it's not that we want to needlessly die. It's just that, the both of us have decided that, no matter what, we would stand by young master's side. Even if it may eventually lead to our deaths, at least we would die knowing that we had stood with the young master unwaveringly till the end. No matter where young master wishes to go, we will both follow you." Moxie said resolutely. It seemed that he had already gotten over the death of his mother and his father's unknown whereabouts and, through this experience, had matured noticeably.
Despite feeling helpless about their choice, Feng Lei couldn't help but feel reassured deep inside. "Your chains to the Feng clan have been broken already. I am no longer your master."
"My chains to the Feng clan may have broken, but, I have decided to firmly chain myself to you, young master. You have no choice but to accept me." Moxie grinned mischievously, to which, Feng Lei just outright ignored.
Crack!
A certain someone just accidentally broke the scabbard of his sword from the extreme pressure of his grip.
Never mind my previous thoughts. This guy is still the same.
"And you!" Feng Lei suddenly turned towards the silently fuming Yang and was surprised about how chilly the atmosphere around him was. "What the fuck is wrong with you? Wait. No. I meant are you planning on committing triple suicide too?"
Although he didn't quite understand what Feng Lei said, he still had a gist of what it may mean so he just nodded slightly and started glaring daggers at Moxie who was suddenly covered in cold sweat and fidgeted uncomfortably.
Despite being uncomfortable, Moxie didn't forget to yell out. "Don't even try to secretly get rid of us again, young master! It won't work!"
"En. I know." Feng Lei replied calmly.
"No matter what- eh?!" Just as he was about to continue, Moxie was surprised as his brain began to register what Feng Lei said. "You're not going to stop us?"
"En. I've decided that I don't care anymore. I'll just take it easy for a while, until the right time for me to make a move comes. Let nature take its course. So, whatever you two have decided to do has nothing to do with me anymore." Feng Lei told them leisurely, with his hands behind his back, standing in a relaxed manner underneath the fragrant peach blossom tree, he appeared to be like a monk who had attained enlightenment.
Yang momentarily paused at this moment and gazed dazedly at Feng Lei, seeming to have remembered a long faded memory. But he shook his head and returned to glaring daggers at Moxie the next moment.
Seeing the interaction of his two companions, Feng couldn't help but worry for their future.
Ai.... Is this really the correct choice? I seem to see my peaceful life waving goodbye at me from a distance.
[Heh! What peaceful life? I see none!]