An Qinghe knew that his parents and grandfather would be very much against him going, especially for fear that someone would be like the immortal, seeing through his physique with a single glance. So, currently, An Qinghe was in the midst of a large argument with his parents and grandfather for the first time in his life. That being said, it actually didn’t take long for them to give into his request, truly being a family that loved him a bit too much, unable to deny one of his very rare requests.

So, An Qinghe ended up setting off for the capital of Soaring Cloud Kingdom, to observe (note: only observe) the recruitment process of the great sects. Of course, he would not be joining, only observing! This was something that had been continuously hammered into An Qinghe’s head multiple times before he had left, to the point where he really felt a bit helpless, only able to smile wryly over the excessive worry that his mother, father, and grandfather had showed him. The next two weeks passed by uneventfully, and they smoothly found a good hotel to stay at before the recruitment would begin in another five days.

In the meanwhile, An Qinghe went out, accompanied by a servant and two guards, along with another two of his hidden guards, to tour the capital and do some shopping. An Qinghe had been to the capital once before with his father when he was still young, before he had gone blind. He still recalled even now the majestic buildings and bustling streets, the scent of food and perfumes lingering in the air. To be honest, although his young self back then had been struck with awe, he currently was in a slightly bad mood, his head hurting.

For a blind person, in placement of their missing sense of sight, all their other senses became much stronger and more sensitive. As a result, what had once been the delicious smell of street food had now become the thick stench of sweat, oil, and rotting sewage. What had once been the sound of people bustling about, was now like an intense out of harmony symphony playing right by his ear, and he was feeling sick to the stomach as a result of it.

He was guided by the hand by his personal servant, Lu Chen, and they made their way slowly through the crowd. They were currently headed to the capital’s number one pill and herb store, Eternal Pill Pavilion. His grandfather, due to An Qinghe’s weak heart, had always been a frequent customer and was well acquainted with the people there and close friends with the Elder in charge. Of course, now that An Qinghe was visiting the capital, he would make sure to pay them a visit to gift them some things and also intending to replenish his stock of Heart Stabilizing pills as well as buy some things for his aging grandfather.

Reaching the Eternal Pill Pavilion, one could tell with a single glance that it was the number one pill and herb store of the capital, looking extremely prestigious and suffused with an almost mystical aura, having a sort of heavy and stern dignity to it. There weren’t many people here, as not everyone could, firstly, afford the goods inside, and secondly, have the chance to obtain the membership to the store.

Entering, An Qinghe was immediately greeted by a store employee, who had on a polite expression as he bowed respectfully while the young man flashed the store badge, its pale blue glow indicating his VIP status. The employee widened his eyes in surprise and became even more respectful, almost to the point where he couldn’t bow any deeper. “Please, please, come in Young Master. Would you like to enter the VIP room?”

“Mm,” An Qinghe nodded. “I’d like an audience with Grandpa Mu,” he also said, as he followed the server deeper inside.

“Of course, of course,” it turns out that it was possible to bow even deeper, as the server proceeded to do so, completely filled with respect. What sort of person could call the overseeing Elder of the Eternal Pill Pavilion as grandpa!? Not even the princes of the kingdom dared to do something so overfamiliar!

As An Qinghe was guided to the VIP room, he passed by two men, one with a serene and honorable appearance, his handsome face radiating a heroic aura, while the other appeared almost as if he was a part of the background, cleverness flashing through his eyes. “Hm? Who was that, being treated so respectfully? I don’t think I’ve seen him before,” the handsome man said, his eyes following An Qinghe for a slight moment as he appeared intrigued.

“Your Highness, I think that should be the only son of the An family. It’s well known that his grandfather is old friends with Elder Mu.” The servant beside him replied respectfully, also turning to look at the gentle young man who soon disappeared into the inner parts of the building.

“... An Qinghe?” The man, Yun Lu, had on an odd expression, but the servant took it as him not knowing who An Qinghe was.

“Yes, this An family is an extremely successful merchant family based in Silent Jade City. This An Qinghe, there are quite a few rumors about him. Because he was born with a weak heart, and even later became blinded at the age of eight, his parents and grandfather are extremely overprotective and spoil him quite a bit and he never leaves the An family’s main estate in Silent Jade City since he went blind. I’m surprised that he would come out to the capital, it can’t be to test into one of the great sects? But, from just now it could be seen he is only on the first level of Body Refinement, this is just way too…” The servant, Yang Ming, suddenly had on an odd expression.

“No, wait, there were sayings that his parents and grandfather didn’t want him to cultivate, so he had never cultivated since young… could it be that he only recently started cultivating? For what reason…” At this moment, he realized that he was being rude to his Master and quickly apologized.

“It’s fine, I am quite amused.” Yun Lu replied with an amused smirk, waving his hand. “It is true that this is odd, though.” Actually, Yun Lu was quite familiar with An Qinghe, his expression turning slightly heavy. He didn’t know that An Qinghe had gone blind… But, that could also be considered his own fault. He was 11 when he had met the 7 year old An Qinghe back then, and they had made a promise to meet once a year. Who knew that An Qinghe would not come the next year, or the year after that, or even the year after that?

At that time, Yun Lu was a very prideful and easily angered young boy, and in his anger, had simply not questioned a thing about why An Qinghe would no longer come to meet him. He would occasionally still think about him, but because it had already been so long, he had nearly forgotten about An Qinghe, this person.

Yun Lu shook his head. In the end, this was a story from almost 11 years ago, already something of the past. An Qinghe had probably already completely forgotten him. Thinking up to here, Yun Lu said in a wistful voice, “Let’s go,” his eyes continuing to linger on the door that An Qinghe had disappeared through. He turned around, beginning to walk out.

“Eh? Your Highness, wait, what about the pills you were going to buy for His Majesty??” Yang Ming exclaimed in confusion, hurriedly catching up to his master, who soon stopped in his place.

“Ah… I almost forgot. Yang Ming, hurry up and buy them.” He said, his voice domineering. Sigh, in the end, he was still someone who had once been this arrogant, don’t look at his honorable and heroic expressions and appearance now, people really don’t easily change…

Meanwhile, An Qinghe was currently seated in one of Eternal Pill Pavilion’s VIP rooms, the inside decorated even more luxuriously than the outside, yet still remaining elegant and not gaudy at all. He picked up the tea cup, lifting the lid to inhale the flowery fragrance. Perhaps because the server had seen that he was blind, he had taken care to choose a tea that didn’t have an overly strong fragrance, and An Qinghe could feel his body relaxing as he took a sip. Mm, it was actually spirit tea, as expected of the Eternal Pill Pavilion! This spirit tea was something really good, not even his own family had much of it, steeped with tiered herbs, a burst of Qi flowing through his body.

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“Little Qinghe!” A boisterous voice soon said, the door opening and a middle aged man walked in. Although he looked the same age as An Qinghe’s father, he was actually already a hundred and fifty years old, more than twice the age of An Guang.

“Grandpa Mu,” An Qinghe said respectfully, but there was a bright smile on his face.

“Hahaha, it seems that you’re doing well. Good, good, good!” He repeated “good” three times, just that happy. He hadn’t seen An Qinghe since he was a small little bun, but his grandfather, in the manner of a true doting grandparent, would spend at least 70% of the time when they met boasting about his beloved grandson. As a result, Elder Mu couldn’t help but feel very familiar with An Qinghe, as if he was his own flesh and blood.

“Grandpa Mu, grandfather had entrusted me with some gifts, wants me to ask you to take care of me while I’m here,” An Qinghe said, immediately placing his hand on his storage ring and bringing out the gifts. To be honest, these little things really couldn’t catch the eyes of Elder Mu, whose fortune could only ever exceed the An family’s, but as they say, it was the thought that counted. The items were a variety of trinkets, from Elder Mu’s favorite Rain Chrysanthemum Tea and Osmanthus Cake to some ancient texts and paintings.

“What are you doing, there’s no need for all this, your grandfather and I are old friends, no need to stand on ceremony!” Elder Mu said in an angry voice, but his face was clearly one of happiness, showing that he truly wasn’t angry. “Even if you didn’t ask me, of course I would take care of you while you’re in the capital, this is truly a rare occasion. I am surprised that overprotective grandpa of yours would actually let you come here all by yourself.”

An Qinghe smiled. Although he didn’t insist that Elder Mu take the gifts, he also didn’t take them back, simply leaving them there on the table as he spoke, “Indeed, it was a bit hard convincing grandfather. I am only here to watch the recruitment of the great sects, not staying for too long before heading back.”

“You little kid, you never showed interest in cultivation even since young, what’s got you so interested now?” The middle aged man’s eyes swept across An Qinghe’s body, and he let out a sound of disbelief. “You’re also at Body Refinement level 1? I can’t believe your family would actually let you cultivate.”

An Qinghe seemed to think for a moment, before deciding not to say anything about the immortal. Even though he really did think of Elder Mu like his second grandpa, he was wary about telling him of the immortal. This was because to An Qinghe it was clear that the immortal didn’t want others finding out of his identity or the fact that he was heavily injured. If he told Elder Mu and the immortal found out, then wouldn’t they both be screwed? As for how the immortal would find out, how would he know? The man was an immortal, mysterious in his ways. An Qinghe before this was only a simple mortal, and in his heart, he still thought of high ranked cultivators as godly beings, able to see through all and overturn the heavens with a single hand. Although An Qinghe tended to see the good in people and was a kindhearted young man, he still understood that even an immortal was still once human, and he understood that humans were not all kind and forgiving people.

So, when he spoke, he purposely made his wording vague and slightly misleading. “I had a fortunate encounter, leading me to obtain a cultivation technique. Since my grandfather and father thought it was suitable for me, they allowed me to practice it. I am simply cultivating a little in my free time, nothing major.” To be honest, what he said really couldn’t be considered a lie, but it was obviously not the truth either.

Elder Mu, as an old cultivator who was the head of the Eternal Pill Pavilion and an elder with some pull in the Soaring Qilin Sect, how could he not realize that An Qinghe was avoiding answering his question properly? He understood that it must be something that had some danger to it for him to not elaborate, so he didn’t say too much, just congratulating An Qinghe and giving him a few pointers for when he was cultivating.

“Ah, this is just perfect,” Elder Mu suddenly said, his expression happy, “I always had a technique here that I thought would suit you very much, but never gave it to you since you never had an interest in cultivation. I will give it to you now.” He quickly ordered a servant on standby, who soon returned with a jade slip, which was handed over to An Qinghe.

An Qinghe read the title of the technique, eyes widening. “This is… Song Compilation of the Hundred Worlds…?” He appeared slightly confused, but at the same time happy. He was happy because it was clearly a music based technique, and confused because he couldn’t be sure what sort of technique it actually was.

“Now, now, just go ahead and read it first.” Elder Mu said, his expression one of confidence as he was sure that An Qinghe would like it, no matter how indifferent he was to cultivation.

An Qinghe obediently did as Elder Mu said, continued to read it. Afterwards, he had on an amazed expression. “This is truly an amazing technique!”

“Hahaha, that’s right! This technique is one from the Painting Pavilion, don’t underestimate this old man, I pulled quite a few favors - ah,” he paused, seeming to notice that he probably said too much, turning embarrassed.

“Grandpa Mu, how could you carelessly give something so precious to me! Painting Pavilion, this is one of the nine great sects! You are only an elder of the Soaring Qilin Sect, you must have sacrificed a lot to obtain this!” An Qinghe said, feeling touched, frustrated, and slightly angry all at the same time.

“This, Little Qinghe, it’s fine, it’s fine. You know that I like collecting all sorts of techniques, but giving it to you to use is better than just letting it gather dust in my collection room, right?” Elder Mu said in a slightly coercive tone, trying to calm down An Qinghe like he would a small child throwing a tantrum.

At this moment, An Qinghe could only sigh and reluctantly accept Elder Mu’s kindness. After all, he liked this skill just that much. Like it’s name, it was actually simply a record of all the songs that had appeared in the Hundred Worlds, continuously evolving and noting down new songs. Only, it also provided a unique method in turning each song into a separate technique, useable with any instrument. An Qinghe thought that if Elder Mu acquired this, it must be a fairly minor technique from the Painting Pavilion, but even a great sect’s minor technique was this amazing? He sighed inwardly from wonder. The great sects truly were different!

Hmm, shouldn’t he take this chance to buy a new guzheng? Ah, but a guzheng might be a bit troublesome to transport, it might be better to go with a qin… But wait, he also quite liked the dizi… Ai, who knew that shopping would be so troublesome? Might as well just buy all of them!