Villainous Junior Chapter 32
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 32: Xianle
The reason Xianle City was a city that only cultivators could enter was because it was built upon the clouds.
The disciples of Taixuan Sect arrived on their flying swords outside the city gates. Looking at the magnificent and splendid city before them, even though they had been here before, their faces still showed expressions of amazement.
"I've always been curious, how can such a large city float in the clouds?"
"I heard it's supported by millions of levitation spirit stones."
"M-millions!?"
"Yes, just hearing that number makes my legs go weak, let alone seeing it..."
While marveling at City Lord Li's immense wealth, the disciples put away their swords and landed on the welcoming path paved with auspicious clouds outside the city gate. From here, they could already hear the beautiful and pleasing sounds of immortal music. It turned out that women on both sides of the city gate were playing welcome tunes on konghou harps. Each of them had snow-white skin and flower-like beauty, with red smiling lips and cloud-like hair piled high. Colorful ribbons were wrapped around their jade-like arms. Their slender jade fingers plucked the strings casually, producing clear and gentle music from the konghou that lingered in the clear sky, echoing endlessly.
Although there were female cultivators on Cuixia Peak in their sect, the senior and junior sisters there fought even more fiercely than the male disciples. This was the first time the disciples had seen such otherworldly beauties. They were all quite captivated, and couldn't help but steal glances at the pretty ladies, then look again.
Even Meng Chen glanced over. By chance, a woman in a goose-yellow gauze skirt met his gaze. Perhaps seeing how handsome he was, her nimble fingers played a crisp and pleasant melody. Her eyes sparkled as she gave him a shy, faint smile, her peach-like cheeks blushing.
Xue Lang was beside him. Seeing the two exchanging glances and subtle flirtations from afar, a string of sparks exploded in his mind. He said somewhat sarcastically. "Pretty nice looking, huh?"
Meng Chen: "Mm."
Xue Lang: "..."
You just say "mm"!?
Xue Lang secretly gritted his teeth and looked down at himself. He had put on new clothes to go out and play today too. Why didn't Meng Chen look at him more?
Just as he was feeling sour and aggrieved, he heard Meng Chen say, "They look like ordinary women, but the konghou sounds deeply resonant. Observing their cultivation, they are at least at the Golden Core realm. It seems this Xianle City is not only extravagant on the surface, but also filled with talent within."
(TL: konghou=an ancient plucked stringed instrument)
Xue Lang was stunned. "...You were looking at their cultivation level?"
"Mm." Meng Chen turned to look at him. "What's wrong?"
Xue Lang immediately turned his head away. "Nothing!"
Besides the Taixuan Sect disciples, there were countless cultivators from all over coming to visit Xianle City. Meng Chen and Xue Lang followed the surging crowd into the city. Their vision suddenly became expansive, and the scene before them became incredibly majestic.
Two golden-red birds with splendid tail feathers soared side by side in the sky, leaving two intertwining trails of dazzling golden light behind them. On one side of the sky, the morning glow was bright and beautiful, while on the other side, a silver moon hung high, with a sparkling, flickering Milky Way set behind it. An ice-blue unicorn pulling a carriage woven from flower petals ran across the clouds. A woman with a veil of cloud-like gauze sat in the carriage, casually scattering a handful of colorful candies, causing children to laugh and jump excitedly as they reached out to catch them. The roads were lined with all sorts of exquisite and marvelous buildings: "Xianlai Inn", "Tianlai Pavilion", "Drunken Immortal Tower", "Battle Intent Manor", "Thrilling Island", "Sweet Peach Blossom Spring"...
Although each building had a distinctive sign, apart from obvious ones like "Xianlai Inn", most of them left people puzzled.
"That 'Battle Intent Manor'," Xue Lang pointed at a tall building and asked Meng Chen, "what's it for?"
Meng Chen looked at it for a moment. "I don't know."
Although the trip to Xianle City was organized every year, during Meng Chen's first few years in the sect, he had been solely focused on cultivation and had no one to accompany him, so he had never come here before. Later, he came once with Pei Yuze and Yin Chi, but Xianle City was really too big. He heard that many new places were built every year, so Meng Chen didn't have any impression of many places.
"Battle Intent Manor is a place to experience virtual combat," a soft and clear female voice sounded beside them. Xue Lang turned his head to look and was surprised to see it was the yellow-dressed girl they had seen at the city gate earlier. She smiled at the two of them and continued, "Many cultivators often struggle to find their ideal opponents. In Battle Intent Manor, they can set up their opponent's cultivation level, sect, techniques, weapons, and even appearance, then have a satisfying battle."
Indeed, every cultivator yearned to fight against strong opponents, but strong ones, especially those above the God Transformation realm, were elders, protectors, and sect leaders in their sects, not people you could meet whenever you wanted. Moreover, many famous experts had secluded themselves in mountains and forests, unwilling to come out into the world, and their whereabouts were completely unknown. But in Battle Intent Manor, you could set these people as your opponents and fight for as long as you wanted. Just thinking about it was enough to make some martial-obsessed cultivators boil with excitement!
Xue Lang nodded in understanding and asked again, "Then what about Thrilling Island?"
"That's a place full of thrills and excitement," the yellow-dressed girl said with a smile. "It's not recommended for the faint-hearted."
Xue Lang wasn't timid, but he wasn't particularly interested in experiencing thrills either. The girl looked at the two of them and said considerately. "If you two are new here and don't know what to do, I recommend you take a stroll in 'Sweet Peach Blossom Spring'."
Meng Chen and Xue Lang looked up and saw that "Sweet Peach Blossom Spring" was a building with alternating pink and white colors, decorated elegantly. The color scheme indeed looked very soothing, but the "Sweet" part... somehow felt a bit strange.
Meng Chen asked, "What's that place for?"
"Peach Blossom Spring is naturally a place to relax," the girl said with a smile. "You two look like sect disciples. Your usual cultivation life must be austere, so now that you've finally come out to play, you should naturally enjoy yourselves. Peach Blossom Spring has beautiful scenery and the most realistic immersive experience. There are unimaginable adventures and destined encounters waiting for you ahead. It's one of the most highly praised places by immortal guests in our Xianle City!"
The two originally had no particular destination in mind, so hearing the girl's heartfelt recommendation, they nodded and thanked her, then stepped together into the pink and white building.
The owner in the entrance hall saw the newcomers, his eyes lit up, and he immediately approached them with a face full of smiles. "Welcome, immortal friends! What kind of roles would you like to play? What kind of adventure would you like to experience?"
Meng Chen and Xue Lang blinked, their expressions equally bewildered.
"Oh, this must be your first time here, immortal friends!" The owner immediately understood and said with a smile, "Don't worry, for first-time visitors to Peach Blossom Spring, we prefer to maintain some mystery. I'll take care of the basic settings for you!"
As he spoke, the owner turned and took a few small wooden tags from the wall behind him.
Meng Chen and Xue Lang noticed that the wall was neatly covered with small wooden tags, each carved with words like "Wealthy Family", "Passionate Love", "Broken Mirror Reunited", "Past Life and Present"... all sorts of things they couldn't understand. The owner handed the tags to two servants, who then led the two to separate small compartments. Meng Chen entered the compartment and saw a full-length mirror-like object. Inside the mirror swirled a hazy white mist. The servant threw the wooden tags into the mist and made a "please" gesture to Meng Chen. "Immortal friend, you can start your experience by entering."
Although this thing looked very mysterious, since they had already come, there was no harm in trying it out. Meng Chen nodded in thanks to the servant, then stepped into the mist in the mirror.
When he opened his eyes again, the world had completely changed.
There were flowing streams and delicate pavilions, lush trees and brilliant flowers. He stood on a small white jade bridge, under which was emerald-green lake water with a few red carp swimming leisurely.
Looking down at his reflection in the water, he saw himself in a moonlight-colored brocade robe with a white jade crown, holding a folding fan. Even his attire had changed.
As he was pondering the purpose of this illusion, an elder entered through an arched moon gate. Dressed in luxurious clothes with an extraordinary bearing, Meng Chen was slightly surprised and cupped his hands in greeting. "Sect Leader?"
Had the Sect Leader also come toXianle City?
"What Sect Leader?" The Taixuan Sect Leader looked at him in bewilderment, "Chen'er, are you still confused from sleep? I'm your father!"
Meng Chen: "..."
This truly was an adventure.
"Don't just stand there, the Crown Prince has been waiting in the front hall for a long time. Come with me quickly to meet him." The Sect Leader walked to Meng Chen's side, looked at him with a complex expression for a while, and patted his shoulder, "Chen'er, I know you don't like the Crown Prince, but he is after all from the royal family, and I'm just a small Minister of Rites. We really can't afford to offend him."
Meng Chen: "..."
Seeing his complicated expression, the Sect Leader put on a serious face and said, "But Chen'er, don't worry, I will never sell my son for glory. I will definitely betroth you to someone you truly like!"
Meng Chen... Meng Chen now really wanted to know what those small wooden tags the owner had chosen for him were.
Even for a novel, this plot development was truly strange.
But now he understood what the yellow-dressed girl meant by "the most realistic immersive experience". Although the people appearing in this illusion were familiar to him, they were not their true selves, and had been given different identities. To leave this place, he probably had to experience the entire plot.
He had no choice but to follow the Sect Leader to the front hall to meet the "Crown Prince", and then he saw Yin Chi's face.
He sighed softly in his heart, somewhat regretting entering this "Peach Blossom Spring".
"Senior Brother!" Yin Chi was overjoyed to see him and immediately ran over affectionately. He was wearing a black brocade robe with gold trim, his appearance bright and naturally noble, unexpectedly fitting this identity well.
Meng Chen frowned, his sharp gaze examining him for a moment. After confirming that this "Yin Chi" was also not real, he asked, "Why do you call me that?"
Since one was a prince and the other the son of a minister, there shouldn't be a senior-junior relationship between them.
Yin Chi was stunned and asked in confusion, "Senior Brother, what's wrong with you? We've both been taught by the Grand Preceptor, and I've been calling you this for many years."
Meng Chen: "."
So this illusion wasn't entirely a virtual construct, but would to some extent align with reality...
Yin Chi looked at him and suddenly seemed to think of something, saying joyfully, "Senior Brother, you... do you not want me to call you that anymore? What I told you last time, have you considered it?"
Meng Chen didn't want to know what he had said last time, but Yin Chi had already excitedly repeated it, "I've already reported to Father Emperor, I want to marry you as the Crown Prince Consort! Father Emperor has agreed, as long as you nod, I'll immediately send betrothal gifts to the Minister's mansion—"
"I'm afraid His Highness the Crown Prince's words are somewhat presumptuous," a gentle voice sounded in the hall. A person approached gracefully, dressed in brocade robes with a jade belt, his demeanor noble. The servants standing in the hall bowed in salute. "Greetings to Prince Duan."
Yin Chi's face darkened. "Pei Yuze, what are you doing here?"
"If you can come, why can't I?" Pei Yuze's gaze turned to Meng Chen, his expression suddenly becoming gentle, "Ah Chen, I sent you a message yesterday inviting you to play chess at my mansion, you haven't replied yet."
Meng Chen stood expressionlessly to the side, letting the characters in the illusion diligently play out their roles, just wanting to get through this quickly and leave.
Seeing Meng Chen's silent response, Yin Chi sneered, "I think you're the presumptuous one. Senior Brother has no feelings for you at all, I advise you to give up early."
Pei Yuze's expression remained gentle, but his gaze towards Yin Chi turned cold, "My affairs with Ah Chen are none of His Highness Crown Prince's concern. I advise Your Highness to understand early that you are at most just a 'junior brother' in Ah Chen's heart. It's better to dispel unrealistic thoughts early."
Yin Chi's gaze suddenly turned sinister, even carrying a hint of killing intent.
The servants in the hall trembled on the side. Their Young Master Meng, of noble character and vast knowledge, was the most renowned young gentleman in the capital, who had captured the hearts of countless young ladies. Yet he had been targeted by the cruel Prince Pei and the tyrannical Crown Prince, who had repeatedly tried to forcibly take him. It was truly heartbreaking!
Just as the atmosphere in the hall was becoming increasingly tense, a young servant came to report. "Young Master Meng, the Grand Preceptor has returned and wishes to see you."
The Grand Preceptor Zhongli Jing, knowledgeable in ancient and modern matters and unparalleled in talent, disliked worldly glory. He had refused the Emperor's offer to be made a marquis or prime minister, only accepting the position of Grand Preceptor, while also teaching the Crown Prince. By chance, he had met Meng Chen from the Minister's mansion, felt a connection with him, and also took him as a disciple.
Although Grand Preceptor Zhongli often wandered outside, he had a very high reputation. Even Pei Yuze and Yin Chi dared not question his orders, so they could only watch helplessly as Meng Chen followed the young servant.
Zhongli Jing was waiting for him in the back courtroom. His attire was not much different from outside the illusion, still a white robe with a jade crown, aloof and detached.
He said indifferently, "Sit."
Meng Chen could only try his best to calm down and sit.
"I heard from Minister Li that both the Crown Prince and Prince Duan have proposed marriage to you," Zhongli Jing asked indifferently, "Do you have someone in mind?"
Meng Chen: "..."
Although he knew the person was fake, hearing these words from Zhongli Jing's mouth still gave Meng Chen a sense of disillusionment.
This story, this setting, was really too frighteningly absurd.
His heart was full of the word "preposterous", but he could only helplessly choose to follow the plot. "No."
Zhongli Jing nodded, the cold light in his eyes seeming to warm slightly. "Although those two hold high positions, they are not good people and cannot be entrusted with your future."
Though the plot was distressing, this assessment was not wrong.
He could only stiffen his face and give an "Mm" in response.
"I went south of Daze River some days ago. The customs and people there are completely different from the capital," Zhongli Jing said, gazing at Meng Chen. "If you find the capital boring, would you be willing to travel with me?"
Meng Chen: "..."
Which was better? Staying here and being harassed daily by the Crown Prince and the Prince, or leaving here but spending every day with Zhongli Jing?
Meng Chen thought about it and felt he didn't want to choose either option.
Zhongli Jing sensed his hesitation and said, "I will stay in the capital for a few days. You can give me your answer after you've considered it."
After leaving Zhongli Jing, Meng Chen pressed his temples and sighed with a headache. Before entering, the yellow-dressed girl who had enthusiastically recommended this place had said that Peach Blossom Spring was "a good place to relax". Now thinking about it, he felt that Xianle City urgently needed to improve its customer service in terms of honesty.
Just as he was worrying about how to get out of this absurd illusion, two servants came running in a panic. They said to Meng Chen. "Young Master, the Master instructed us to tell you to stay in the mansion for the next couple of days. You must not leave the city under any circumstances!"
Meng Chen: "... What happened?"
The servant looked terrified. "According to the news just received, that bandit chief surnamed Xue from Black Wind Mountain outside the city has come down the mountain to pillage and plunder again!!"
Meng Chen: "......"
