CHAPTER

11

Past and Present

I

His past wasn’t something Tian Jin had shared with anyone before. At first, that was because everyone he knew had known him since he was a child, so there wasn’t anything he could tell them that they didn’t already know. Later on, that was because there wasn’t anyone that he trusted enough to share his past with.

Ever since joining the Blazing Light Sect, Tian Jin had kept his past and background a secret. He had refused to share even the smallest of details with anyone, out of fear that they’d be able to use whatever he told them to somehow find out what he didn’t tell them and realize just who exactly he was.

That was why, when Hao Zhen had guessed that he was from a clan, Tian Jin had been alarmed, doubting Hao Zhen’s identity. Shortly afterward, it had become clear that Hao Zhen had merely been making an educated guess, which was obvious in hindsight. And in reacting so strongly to what had originally been but an innocent guess on Hao Zhen’s part, Tian Jin had effectively given away that there was something about his past that he really didn’t want others to know. That didn’t mean, however, that he owed Hao Zhen the truth, that he needed to tell the other boy anything. Tian Jin could easily refuse to divulge any details about his past, and he was fairly certain that Hao Zhen would understand or at least respect his need for secrecy.

Up to this moment, Tian Jin had never considered himself a paranoid person, but now he was forced to reevaluate that. He took a moment to ponder how much of a bad idea sharing his past with someone else actually was. Even if others found out about his secret, what exactly could they do with that information?

The more he thought about it, the more it became clear to him that others knowing his secret wouldn't be as much of a problem as he had originally assumed. His enemies were too far away and had no idea where he was, and he doubted anyone in the Blazing Light Sect, save for those at the higher echelons, would even have the means of contacting his enemies. More importantly, Tian Jin doubted his enemies were even still on his trail. It had already been over a year since the incident.

Tian Jin was also tired of living in a state of fear, afraid that someone would discover the events of the previous year that had led him to join the Blazing Light Sect. He needed someone he could confide in, and the more he thought about it, the more Hao Zhen looked like the right person for that. Tian Jin knew that he wasn’t the best judge of character—the incident with Ke Li being a perfect example of that—but he was fairly certain that Hao Zhen was someone he could trust.

Originally, he had completely overlooked the other boy, believing him to be just another outer disciple, but the events following Ke Li’s assassination attempt had shown Tian Jin he couldn’t have been more wrong. Hao Zhen was intelligent, quick on his feet, and highly perceptive—even if prone to overthinking and excessively cautious. Admittedly, it was rather odd how Hao Zhen’s personality had undergone a complete change literally overnight, but he had seen odder things in the past.

The two of them were in the same boat, with Du Qing as a common enemy, and so far Hao Zhen had been doing his best to help them deal with the situation.

That settled it, Tian Jin decided. He took in a deep breath, setting his jaw. Across him, he saw Hao Zhen lean forward, the other boy’s gaze intent.

Tian Jin didn’t know whether he was making the right decision, whether this wasn’t something he would come to regret further down the line, but at least at the moment, he felt that it was the right decision.

“All right,” Tian Jin said, his voice firm. “I’ll tell you.”

He didn’t start telling his story immediately, however. He first considered where exactly to begin. After all, this was his first time telling someone else about this. What would be the right place to start at? His birth? A few years after that? Or maybe the day of the incident?

Then the answer came to him: Hao Zhen was from a mundane background. That meant that before he could actually start telling his story, Tian Jin first needed to explain some things to him that he was most likely unfamiliar with.

“I’m not sure if you know this,” Tian Jin said, “but we live on an island.”

At that, Hao Zhen blinked, giving him a puzzled look. Clearly, that wasn’t what he had been expecting to hear. “What?”

“We live on an island. The Resplendent Gleam Island,” Tian Jin said. Soon Hao Zhen would understand what he was getting at. “In the island, there are over a hundred red-grade organizations, about a dozen orange-grade organizations, and a single yellow-grade organization.”

“By orange-grade and yellow-grade, you mean…” Hao Zhen trailed off.

“Organizations with cultivators at the Orange Spiritual Realm and at the Yellow Spiritual Realm, yes,” Tian Jin said. “The Blazing Light Sect is merely a red-grade organization. We’re in the southern region of the island. I was born in the northern region, and I was a member of the Tian Clan, which was also a red-grade organization.”

After the Red Spiritual Realm was the Orange Spiritual Realm, and after that, in sequence, were the Yellow Spiritual Realm, the Green Spiritual Realm, the Blue Spiritual Realm, and the Violet Spiritual Realm. The spiritual realms were named according to the color a cultivator’s soul turned into when it became spiritual matter of a higher grade.

“All right,” Hao Zhen said, slowly, nodding his head. “I really didn’t know any of that.” He looked contemplative.

Tian Jin had figured as much. Mundanes didn’t usually know much more beyond the affairs of their town or city, in Tian Jin’s experience, and even though Hao Zhen was now a cultivator, he had only been one for about two months now, and Tian Jin doubted he had had the chance to come across this sort of information yet.

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Hao Zhen’s contemplative expression then became a hesitant one, as if he was unsure whether to say something. Tian Jin waited to see if he’d speak his thoughts, but the other boy ultimately said nothing, so Tian Jin decided to continue with his story. In any case, he already had a pretty good idea of what Hao Zhen wanted to say.

“I was the son of the clan leader. Almost a year ago, the Tian Clan was destroyed by another clan, the Chi Clan.” Tian Jin took in a deep breath, trying to settle his nerves. Just thinking about that night… “The Tian Clan and the Chi Clan had been at odds for centuries,” he explained. “The two clans were based in the same city, Shimmering Path City. My clan was regarded as the strongest organization in the city, with the Chi Clan being second to us. One night, however, the leader of the Chi Clan, Chi Huo, infiltrated the Tian Clan at night, and he had brought with him an Orange Spiritual Realm cultivator. We… We stood no chance. After killing my parents, Chi Huo tried to kill me, too, but that was when my master saved me, taking me away from the clan and from the city, all the way to the opposite side of the island.”

The difference in power between cultivators of different realms was practically insurmountable. Even dozens of cultivators at the eleventh level of a realm would have a hard time putting up a fight against a single cultivator at the first level of the next realm.

As a result, the members of the Tian Clan were slaughtered like cattle by the orangesoul Chi Huo had somehow recruited. Chi Huo himself had also participated, using an orange-grade magical artifact to overpower the other members of the clan and personally kill his father and mother.

He had been able to do nothing but watch, helpless, as Chi Huo killed his parents before making his way over to him. Had it not been for his master…

Hao Zhen’s expression was a solemn one. He opened his mouth, then closed it again after hesitating, as if unsure of what to say. Finally, he said, “Your master?”

“Tian Qi,” Tian Jin said, frowning at the memory of the ancient man. “I used to think he was just a protector of the clan,” he admitted. “But that night, I think it only took him a couple of seconds to fly us to the other side of the island." Seeing Hao Zhen's blank expression, Tian Jin added, "As far as I know, even a yellowsoul isn’t that fast.”

Hao Zhen creased his brow, his expression thoughtful, but not all that surprised, much to Tian Jin’s confusion. He had been expecting a bigger reaction to that revelation, but Hao Zhen looked almost as if he had been expecting something like this. Did he not understand what exactly it meant for his master to be above a Yellow Spiritual Realm cultivator?

Tian Jin blinked. Yes, that was likely the case. Hao Zhen probably had no idea just what kind of existence cultivators at the Green Spiritual Realm and above were. Even he only had a vague impression of what it meant to be a cultivator of that realm, and he was the son of a clan leader.

“Your master, I’m assuming he’s no longer with you?” Hao Zhen suddenly asked.

Once again, Hao Zhen caught him by surprise. “How did you know?”

“I was just guessing,” Hao Zhen said, shrugging. Tian Jin wasn’t sure he believed him. “What exactly happened?”

Feeling slightly unsure now, Tian Jin hesitated for a moment before continuing. “My master was old. Very old. I also think he was injured in the past. All I know is that, after he used his spiritual power that night to fly over to this side of the island, he… We landed on a small village in the countryside. He was too tired, too exhausted, and he tried to tell me something, but he was too weak to speak, so all he did was give me his ring. Then… Then he passed away.”

Tian Jin clearly remembered that night, his robes already soaked in his parents’ blood, as he knelt beside his master, trying to do something for him, to keep him from dying, but to no avail. His master had then tried to speak, but no sounds came out of his mouth. In the end, all his master managed to do was use his spiritual power to remove the ring from his finger and slide it into Tian Jin’s finger. The next moment, his master had taken his last breath.

Hao Zhen glanced at Tian Jin's right hand, where the ring his master had given could be found on his index finger, right next to the spatial ring he wore on his middle finger.

“I don’t suppose you know why your master gave you that ring, or whether it has any special properties?”

“I…” Now Tian Jin was really confused. Just how could Hao Zhen simply tell all of this? “You’re right. I have no idea. As far as I can tell, it’s just a normal ring, not even a magical artifact.”

“I see,” Hao Zhen said, simply. He then went silent for a few moments before asking, “After your master died, what happened next?”

“I stayed there for a few weeks,” Tian Jin said, deciding to simply focus on his story for now. He could question Hao Zhen later. “One of the families there ended up taking me in and caring for me after finding me the next morning beside my master’s corpse. I stayed with them until I was…”—he hesitated, recalling those days and the state he had been in—“better, then I set off toward the nearest city to look for information on the magical organizations of the region. As I was only fifteen at the time, I hadn’t started cultivating yet, so I didn’t know any cultivation methods. That meant the only way I could become a cultivator was to join a magical organization."

Tian Jin sighed. “The nearest city happened to be Drifting Clouds City, where I then found out that out of all the nearby magical organizations, the one that would be holding its entrance examinations the soonest was the Blazing Light Sect. So I got myself a job in an inn and worked there until the day the sect’s entrance examinations started. The rest, I believe you already know.”

As usual, Hao Zhen didn’t say anything at first, taking his time to think. Tian Jin waited, wondering what he’d say. At the same time, he couldn’t help but feel… lighter, freer. He had finally told someone his story, what he had been through, and it felt… nice. It was liberating, in a way.

“Regarding your plans for the future,” Hao Zhen finally said, looking at him intently, staring straight into his eyes, “I take it you’re planning on taking revenge on this Chi Huo?”

“The Chi Clan will pay,” Tian Jin said, simply, keeping his expression stony, his jaw clenched. Now was not the time to give in to his emotions. There would be time for that, later. He took a deep breath in an attempt to relieve himself of the tension.

Hao Zhen stared at him a little longer, then nodded his head. “I understand,” he said, solemn. He didn’t ask any more questions, nor did he say anything else, and for that, Tian Jin was grateful. He didn’t need or want anyone telling him what to do right now—not regarding this matter.

Deciding that it’d be for the best to end this particular conversation at this point, Tian Jin changed the subject, addressing a question he had had for a while now, but hadn’t gotten an opportunity to ask yet.

“There’s something I want to ask you, too,” he said, and Hao Zhen blinked in surprise, before giving him a nod. “Please don’t take this the wrong way, but lately, you have been acting rather—”

“What are you two talking about?” a voice cut in.

They both turned toward the door Duo Lan had walked through earlier, finding the tall girl standing right in front of it and looking at the two of them inquisitively, her arms crossed over her chest. She had changed clothes, now wearing luxurious violet robes. Besides that, she looked about the same as she had before, though more relaxed.

“Just casual conversation,” Hao Zhen quickly said.

“Hmmm.” Duo Lan walked over, eying them with suspicion as she did so, before finally shrugging and sitting down on one of the chairs, choosing one that stood roughly between the two couches they were on. She then leaned back on the chair, crossed her legs, and said, “Well, let’s get on with it. We need to discuss what to do about Du Qing, right?”

Deciding to leave his question for later, Tian Jin nodded his head. For now, Du Qing was the priority.

With that, their conversation about their future plans started in earnest.