Chapter 4047 — True Intentions
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
No sooner had the two fugitives made their escape than Shangguan Tianxia and Wei Zhao descended from the sky. Had Kang Jingming and his companion tarried even half a moment longer, they would never have gotten away.
With his formidable powers of perception, Shangguan Tianxia had already pinpointed his precious granddaughter's location while still aloft. The two of them strode straight into the ruined training ground, and at the sight of them Shangguan Lan'er cried out joyfully, "Grandfather! Little Junior Brother! You've finally come to rescue me!"
Though she had been kidnapped, she had not suffered any real hardship from beginning to end, and she could tell that the abductors had some ulterior purpose and did not dare do her true harm. Even so, being caught in such peril—especially at the very start—had frightened her badly enough; otherwise Wei Zhao could never have sensed her position through the mother-and-child necklace.
Seeing that Shangguan Lan'er was unharmed, Shangguan Tianxia's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled. He turned to Wei Zhao and asked in puzzlement, "How did you know where little Lan'er was?"
In all the Triple Stack Pavilion of the Northern Island, Shangguan Tianxia's strength was unmatched, and the reach of his spiritual sense was vast beyond measure—yet even he had been unable to pinpoint Shangguan Lan'er's location once she had been carried so far away.
Wei Zhao, meanwhile, was loosening the bonds of sea-beast sinew around Shangguan Lan'er as he smiled and said, "A few days ago, this disciple happened to forge two mother-and-child necklaces. I gave one of them to my young senior sister. In times of danger they resonate with each other's true qi, and that is how I knew."
Shangguan Tianxia clicked his tongue in wonder. "I had heard before that you were an alchemist, but I never imagined you were also an artificer. To wear so many hats as a newcomer—you must count as a rare prodigy of the Triple Stack Pavilion!"
"The Pavilion Master flatters me. This disciple has only a smattering of such arts," Wei Zhao said with a modest smile.
"Neither arrogant nor rash—truly rare. Still, artificers are scarce even in our Skyward Pavilion, and to forge such a wondrous necklace is rarer still!" Shangguan Tianxia nodded in approval, then suddenly asked with a glint of amusement, "Only, I have heard tell that such mother-and-child necklaces have always been gifts between lovers. What did you mean by giving one to little Lan'er?"
"That..." Wei Zhao was instantly at a loss, not knowing what to say.
To claim he harbored not a single thought for this young senior sister of his would plainly be self-deception—otherwise he would never have given her such a necklace. Yet to say he truly had designs on Shangguan Lan'er was not quite the truth either; he simply felt a certain fondness for her, and beyond that they were merely good friends.
At that moment Shangguan Lan'er stepped forward and, clinging to Shangguan Tianxia's arm, said, "Oh, Grandfather, Little Junior Brother and I share a bond as close as siblings—far closer than any lovers! We're comrades who have faced life and death together!"
Hearing this, Shangguan Tianxia burst into hearty laughter. "Haha, very good..."
Yet even as he laughed, he still cast Wei Zhao a look laden with meaning. Some things he simply left unsaid.
Wei Zhao responded with a bitter smile. From the Pavilion Master's expression, it seemed he had been mistaken for something after all.
But such matters could hardly be explained to his face. Any attempt at explanation would likely be taken for concealment and only muddy the waters further, so he could do nothing but hold his tongue.
"Little Lan'er, did you get a clear look at the faces of those kidnappers?" Shangguan Tianxia asked.
Shangguan Lan'er shook her head. "No. They were all in black with their faces masked, covered up so tightly you couldn't see what they looked like at all."