“Bai Yunfei from the Crafting School!!”
Qin Hu and Qin Shouhao cried out together, “What is he here for?”
Qin Hu had a solemn look on his face. “Rumors say Bai Yunfei became a Mid-stage Soul King two days ago in Mo City. I wonder if those rumors have any credence to them. But…if he’s here with Tang Xinyun, it won’t be for something as simple as a customary visit.”
“I’ve heard he’s not thirty years old yet, how was he able to become a Mid-stage Soul King? I find it hard to believe it…” Qin Shouhao shook his head.
“Second uncle went with little Feng to the Crafting School a while ago, didn’t they say they met him then? I distinctly remember second uncle saying his strength was stronger than his peers, but that he was still a Peak Late-stage Soul Exalt. How is so much progress possible in just less than a month’s time?”
“Seeing is believing. We cannot say whether the rumors are true or not until we see for ourselves. The rumors came from the Tianhun School, their information is usually reliable. Whichever the case, we can see for ourselves since he is here. The most important thing is to find out what purpose he is here for…”
The matter with Tang Xinyun’s kidnapping wasn’t known to many people outside of the Tang. And the fact that Bai Yunfei killed so many strong Soul Kings was known to even less. Both was possible due to the Tang carefully controlling the amount of information being disseminated.
But if there was one thing that was impossible to curtail the spread of knowledge of, it was the fact that Bai Yunfei became a Mid-stage Soul King in the middle of Mo City. The events surrounding that event was far too eye-catching for people not to notice. The other Soul Kings were quick to pass on this information to others in their circles, but there were people like Qin Shoufeng—who only knew how to eat and drink all day—who didn’t manage to hear the news. Otherwise, Qin Shoufeng never would’ve dared to act the way he did to Bai Yunfei in the restaurant.
“I’ve heard that Bai Yunfei and Tang Xinyun get along very well…do you think their visit is because of the betrothment between little Feng and Tang Xinyun?”
Qin Shouhao was a perceptive person. He was quick to deduce a plausible explanation on why Bai Yunfei was here.
Qin Hu grew silent for two seconds. “No matter the case, they are already outside our doors. Invite them in and go fetch your father.”
Qin Shouhao nodded before going off to do as his uncle asked.
……
Bai Yunfei and Tang Xinyun allowed themselves to be led by an elderly housekeeper through the halls of the Qin to a room where four figures were already sitting.
Aside from Qin Shouhao and Qin Shu, there was also the same elder Bai Yunfei saw before on the airship, Qin Pingzhi. There was also a dignified-looking middle-aged man in golden robes seated with them. He was the current head of the Qin, Qin Long.
Qin Shouhao immediately rose up to greet the two when Bai Yunfei and Tang Xinyun came in. “Haha, welcome to our Qin. Please, take a seat. This one is Qin Shouhao, you must be Tang Xinyun? You were so small when I last saw you, so you probably don’t remember me. I’m Shoufeng’s older brother.”
“Hello, brother Qin.” Tang Xinyun nodded politely.
Then to Qin Long and the others, Tang Xinyun gave each of them a respectful bow. “Xinyun pays her respects to uncle Qin, second uncle Qin, and grandfather Qin.”
“Haha, so you still recognize us, I take it?” Qin Long gave her a warm smile. “It’s been many years, you’ve grown up to be so beautiful and elegant. A completely different woman than the girl many years ago, haha…”
“Thank you for your compliments, uncle Qin.” Tang Xinyun smiled, “My father passes on his hopes that you are well.”
“Ah, it’s been some time since I’ve seen brother Tang,” Qin Long nodded, “Is he still well?”
“Father is still healthy and well, thank you for your concern, uncle Qin.”
Now that Xinyun was done with her introductions, Bai Yunfei stepped forward to give them a bow of his own. “This junior is Bai Yunfei, here to pay my respects to seniors.”
“Bai Yunfei…” Qin Long murmured. His attention had been primarily on Bai Yunfei ever since he watched him step into the room. Surprised by what he was seeing, he sighed out loud, “The Crafting School having a true genius in their ranks holds true, it seems. Young and yet already a Mid-stage Soul King. That is an unparalleled feat in your generation. Even we elders cannot help but feel shame in our insufficiencies…”
Now seated back next to Qin Long, Qin Shouhao’s eyes widened a fractioned at the words of his father. He wasn’t able to see how strong Bai Yunfei was, so he wasn’t very sure if the rumors were true. If his father was saying these words now then, then it essentially meant those rumors were confirmed and Bai Yunfei was truly a Mid-stage Soul King.
Bai Yunfei was younger than him and yet was able to reach a height he himself was unable to reach. This was a blow to his confidence, as he always thought himself as being quite talented.
Bai Yunfei gave a modest smile. “You are too kind, senior. I am only a person of fortunate happenstance.”
Idle conversation was made for a little longer before Bai Yunfei finally decided to cut to the chase.
“Senior Qin, Xinyun and I came here today in regards to her betrothment to master Shoufeng.”
The abrupt topic change raised a few eyebrows from the audience there. “Oh? Nephew Bai, what brings you to such a topic? Is there a problem with the marriage alliance between the Tang and Qin?”
Bai Yunfei paused. Saying they wanted to cancel the betrothment outright didn’t seem like too good of an idea, so he first took out a letter from his space ring. “Lord Tang entrusted a letter to me for senior Qin. Please, take a look.”
Qin Long took the letter and carefully opened it up to begin to read. Everyone else watched with bated breaths as the man read the letter. Bai Yunfei knew that Tang Qianlei would definitely make the matter of the betrothment clear in the letter, so it was just a matter of seeing how the other party would react.
The longer time went on, the heavier the atmosphere in the room became. Qin Long’s face was getting progressively darker, and the soulforce in his body was starting to fluctuate a bit. Qin Pingzhi and the other two members were starting to realize what the matter was.
The letter was finally put down after Qin Long was done reading. By that time, the room was practically suffocating with how heavy the atmosphere was. Not even a cricket would dare to make a sound.
The light in Qin Long’s eyes was flashing dangerously now. He stared impassively at Bai Yunfei for a while before finally speaking, “You are asking for my permission to rescind the betrothment between Shoufeng and Tang Xinyun?”
Bai Yunfei raised an eyebrow. There was a noticeable amount of pressure pressing onto him now the matter was being said aloud, but he made sure to hide any signs of discomfort away from his face.
“That is correct. I am sure lord Tang’s letter was quite clear. The betrothment between Xinyun and master Shoufeng was something said in jest. It was never meant to be serious and is unfair to Xinyun. I sincerely request senior Qin to rescind the betrothment and allow the younger generation to seek their own happiness.”
“Rescind the betrothment!!”
Qin Pingzhi and Qin Hu both had incredulous looks on their face, but it was Qin Shouhao that looked angry. “The betrothment may have been unofficial, but not a word was said elsewise about it until now when we started sending over gifts. And now you come running over here to talk about rescinding the betrothment? What is the meaning of this?!”
Qin Long held a hand up to stop Qin Shouhao from saying anything more, “Rescinding the betrothment is something that isn’t insignificant, but also not significant either. What reason do you have for this?”
Bai Yunfei didn’t avert his eyes away from Qin Long. “Lord Tang has agreed to allow Xinyun to be betrothed to me, so I came here today to ask that senior Qin will rescind the betrothment. The Tang has treated the Qin poorly in this matter, and this junior will like to apologize on their behalf and make things whole!
“Make things whole? The way I see it, you’re just flaunting things here by humiliating my brother and the Qin!” Qin Shouhao sneered, “No wonder they were in such a rush to cancel the betrothment. The Crafting School is one of the Ten Great Schools, how could our tiny Qin ever compare? How cunning of the Tang…”
“Quiet, Shouhao!!” Qin Long barked, furious now by his outburst.
“Where will our face be if we agree to rescind this marriage?” He sent a second glance over to Bai Yunfei.
“Is that not an issue to worry about?” Bai Yunfei smiled. “According to what I know, the betrothment was never made public. Even if it was rescinded, no one will know, and the Qin will remain unhurt.
“I do know that senior Qin and lord Tang have been friends for a long time. I don’t wish to be the one to put a crack in this friendship, and so I sincerely wish to make things right. This junior came here with two gifts in hopes that they are to your liking, senior Qin. Hopefully, these gifts will be enough to make amends…”
Qin Long’s eyes widened at the last sentence Bai Yunfei spoke. Bai Yunfei waved his hand once so that an orange broadsword and an azure longsword materialized in front of him before floating to Qin Long to take a look at.
The auras of the two soul armaments made themselves known to everyone in the room almost immediately.
“Heaven-tier soul armaments!” Qin Shouhao gasped.