“The assembly hall is just ahead. You can go by yourself, fellow cultivator,” Wen Qiwu said, pointing towards the hall that was already visible. At this close distance, not even a child would get lost.
Zuo Lan walked behind her, her fox-like eyes filled with grievance. A suspicious red mark could be seen on the back of her fair hand, as if she had been struck.
She had initially thought this was a cute and gentle girl, but she hadn’t expected being hit like that to hurt. Zuo Lan rubbed her reddened hand and pondered.
If her senses weren’t deceiving her, the girl before her should only be at the Void Refining stage, a whole major realm lower than herself. Yet, she hadn’t been able to dodge when the girl had struck her earlier? And her strength was too great; a gentle pat had made her, a cultivator at the Dao Integration stage, feel pain. Could she be a body cultivator?
It was just that her spiritual sense was a bit weak, otherwise, she wouldn’t have been affected by Zuo Lan’s bell.
“I have matters to attend to, I’ll take my leave now,” Wen Qiwu pretended not to see the hint of melancholy in Zuo Lan’s eyes. The other party had suspiciously gotten too close earlier, and she had merely batted her away with her hand instead of piercing her hand with an arrow, which was already quite restrained.
“Fellow cultivator, please wait!” Zuo Lan suddenly blocked Wen Qiwu with a smile. “We’ve walked quite a distance, and I still don’t know your name.”
“…My surname is Wen,” Wen Qiwu retreated a small step warily, like a small herbivore spotting a cunning fox approaching.
“So, Fellow Cultivator Wen. Coincidentally, my master just sent a message saying the assembly hall hasn’t reached an agreement for now. But it’s getting late, and the elders have decided to continue tomorrow, so I don’t need to go anymore~” Even though she saw a faint wariness rise in Wen Qiwu’s eyes, Zuo Lan still took a step forward, her eyes as sly as a fox’s.
“This is my first time visiting the Wen Shen Sect. If it’s convenient, could Fellow Cultivator Wen take me to Cloud Mist Mountain? I’ve heard for a long time that the scenery of Cloud Mist Mountain is exceptionally beautiful…”
However, no matter how beautiful the scenery was, it was still inanimate, merely serving as a backdrop. Zuo Lan considered herself knowledgeable about the Wen Shen Sect but had never seen such a beauty at the Void Refining stage hidden within it.
This reminded her of a rumor, and driven by curiosity, Zuo Lan decided to probe her. The reaction of this green-robed girl was indeed adorable, which was why Zuo Lan couldn’t help but indulge her “old habit.”
[Saintess! Put your hand down quickly!]
Zuo Lan suddenly heard a familiar telepathic message. Sensing danger, she immediately took a step back, and without forgetting, she retorted telepathically with a sweet tone: [I just wanted to help her remove a leaf stuck to her clothes. Don’t be so fierce.]
[Heh.]
Zuo Lan quickly understood what that cold scoff meant. She rubbed her arms; thin ice seemed to form on the surrounding grass, and she, a cultivator at the Dao Integration stage, actually felt a chill.
At some unknown moment, a woman in white had appeared before her. The faint dao patterns on her robes represented her status as the Sect Master of the Wen Shen Sect. Zuo Lan only dared to glance up at her subtly. Upon seeing the beauty’s eyes, which were indifferent and devoid of any emotional fluctuation, she immediately lowered her head.
“Greetings, Immortal Venerable Yun Heng,” Zuo Lan immediately became polite and proper. After all, there were a few existences in the Cangwang Realm that she couldn’t afford to offend, and the one before her was one of them.
“Qiwu, let’s go.” Yun Heng merely glanced at Zuo Lan indifferently before shifting her gaze.
Is Senior Sister’s mood a little off?
“Okay.” Wen Qiwu quickly strode two steps forward to keep pace with her Senior Sister.
As the Immortal Venerable departed, Zuo Lan, who remained in her spot, could finally breathe. The moment she looked up, she met her elder’s scrutinizing gaze.
“Saintess… next time you see that person, just walk around her.” Xiao Tong, an elder from the Yu Xi Sect, had accompanied Yun Heng. She had intended to find an opportunity to discuss the Solar Eclipse Secret Realm with the Immortal Venerable, but then she saw her own Saintess “getting close” to another girl again. She had almost thought the Immortal Venerable was about to draw her sword!
“I’ve long heard that Immortal Venerable Yun Heng seems to have a frail younger sister who has been raised within the sect since childhood and rarely appears in public. Junior Elder, is that Fellow Cultivator Wen Yun Heng Immortal Venerable’s sister?” Zuo Lan tugged at Xiao Tong’s sleeve, her tone showing no intention of restraint and instead conveying even more interest.
“My surname is Xiao, not Junior… That person is indeed Immortal Venerable Yun Heng’s junior sister, so no matter how many mischievous ideas you have brewing, you better keep them all to yourself!” Xiao Tong, who was usually as quiet as a wooden stump, spoke so much in one go for the first time.
But when she looked at the Saintess, she found her eyes lighting up.
“Elder, I want to…”
“No, you don’t,” Xiao Tong interrupted her directly.
“Let me finish. If I can build a good relationship with Fellow Cultivator Wen, perhaps Immortal Venerable Yun Heng will agree to cooperate with us on this Solar Eclipse Secret Realm trip~”
After hearing this, Xiao Tong turned and left.
“Elder? Why are you leaving? Our accommodation is behind us, why are you walking towards the main gate of the Wen Shen Sect?”
Xiao Tong sighed, “I plan to return to the sect first. It’s better than being caught in the crossfire when the Immortal Venerable makes a move.”
“…I’m just making friends! Elder, where are you going with that? Besides, she already has someone in her heart.”
Xiao Tong looked at Zuo Lan with some suspicion. “You could tell she has someone in her heart on your first meeting?”
Zuo Lan let out a soft laugh, but the smile in her eyes faded slightly. “You wooden heads wouldn’t understand even if I explained it to you.”
“It’s just a shame…” The Saintess saw a shadow of her past self in the other woman. Such nascent emotions given so wholeheartedly to that kind of person. Fellow Cultivator Wen would likely suffer quite a bit in the future.
Meanwhile, Yun Heng had already brought Wen Qiwu to Myriad Elixir Mountain. Myriad Elixir Mountain was filled with spiritual energy and enjoyed spring all year round, making it a place very suitable for recuperation.
Yun Heng had remained silent throughout their journey. Although she wasn’t one for much talking, Wen Qiwu sensed a hint of displeasure in her Senior Sister’s silence this time.
“Senior Sister…”
Yun Heng suddenly felt her right pinky finger being touched with a light force. She turned her head and saw her junior sister’s worried, yet seemingly nervous, expression.
Yun Heng’s gaze softened. Her earlier temper was solely directed at the people from the Yu Xi Sect. Her junior sister was obedient and pure; that Saintess should stay away from Qiwu.
The Yu Xi Sect had come with a request, hoping that the encounter between her junior sister and that Saintess was a mere coincidence, not something deliberately orchestrated.
“Did that Saintess from the Yu Xi Sect trouble you?” Yun Heng was somewhat worried that her junior sister would suffer at the hands of that fox.
“No, no, she was lost earlier and asked me to guide her to the assembly hall,” Wen Qiwu shook her head.
“Lost?” A cultivator at the Dao Integration stage could get lost on a mountain? Was her spiritual sense a mere decoration?
“If she comes looking for you again, you don’t have to pay her any mind,” Yun Heng became even more certain that the other person’s intentions were not pure.
Wen Qiwu nodded absently, her thoughts drifting far away. Although this was her first time meeting Zuo Lan, it wasn’t her first time interacting with her. That Saintess probably didn’t know that she had exchanged letters with her several times before as pen pals.
She had been able to realize her feelings for her Senior Sister so quickly, and this Saintess had played a significant role.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Thinking about Zuo Lan…” Wen Qiwu’s heart trembled. She had been distracted, and the moment her Senior Sister asked, she had subconsciously spoken her mind. She quickly corrected herself, “Thinking about some rumors about her.”
Rumors…
Yun Heng frowned slightly.
“She… I heard she likes women and even pursued Immortal Lord Lin Shu of the Qian Yue Sword Sect, along with some other messy gossip, but that’s probably just hearsay…” Wen Qiwu naturally knew how much of those rumors were true and how much was false. However, seeing the displeasure in her Senior Sister’s eyes, her heart trembled, and she suddenly became hesitant to guess whether the rumors were the reason for her Senior Sister’s unhappiness.
“The rumors are true,” Yun Heng’s voice was a little stern. She rarely forbade Wen Qiwu from doing anything, but regarding the Saintess of the Yu Xi Sect, she subconsciously showed an unyielding attitude. “Stay far away from her, understand?”
A junior sister from Myriad Elixir Mountain had once said that person was a prime example of being passionate yet seemingly heartless.
As the words fell, Yun Heng felt the warm hand she was holding tremble slightly. She almost thought it was her imagination.
“Is my hand too cold?” Yun Heng softened her tone and prepared to let go, but Wen Qiwu actively tightened her grip, preventing her Senior Sister from withdrawing her hand.
“Not cold.” Wen Qiwu skillfully put on a smile, masking the bitterness in her heart.
“Chirp!” A white ball of fur with a hint of green suddenly descended from the sky, almost colliding with Yun Heng. But how could a bird that had just stabilized its spiritual state ambush True Immortal stage Yun Heng? Before it could even touch her, it was already caught in her hand.
The puffed-up bird chirped incessantly in her hand, but unfortunately, it wasn’t Wen Qiwu, so it wouldn’t elicit any sympathy from Yun Heng.
This bird was named Qing Tuan. It had flown in from outside the sect a long time ago and had stayed on Cloud Mist Mountain. Wen Qiwu had been pecked by it quite a few times when she was young, and often wouldn’t see hide nor hair of the bird for days.
“So that’s where you are.” Wen Qiwu had been looking for it for several days. Looking at it, she quietly reined in her emotions.
Yun Heng hadn’t noticed her junior sister’s abnormality. At this moment, she was looking down, taking out a birdcage she had newly refined from her storage bag, and then stuffing Qing Tuan inside. She handed the secured cage to Wen Qiwu.
“I promised to refine a birdcage for you earlier. It can contain any creature below the Golden Immortal stage.”
“Golden Immortal?” Wen Qiwu was a little surprised. “Qing Tuan is only at the Soul Observation stage. Isn’t using this as its birdcage a bit of a waste?”
“Not a waste. Think of it as an extra defensive artifact.” Yun Heng spoke as if she were talking about an extra toy. In fact, Wen Qiwu did indeed have many similar “toys,” and if others were to see them, they would likely be so jealous they would cry.
“I’ll teach you how to use it when we get back. Also, after I left, did Elder Lu snatch your chestnut cake?”
Wen Qiwu immediately nodded, complaining as if she were acting spoiled, “Elder Lu asked me to leave two more pieces for her.”
Yun Heng’s lips seemed to curve upward slightly, but it wasn’t very clear. “I’ll be going to the Solar Eclipse Secret Realm, and I won’t be back for a month. I’ll prepare more pastries in advance. You hide them and don’t let her find them.”
Her Senior Sister’s voice was extremely close. In her seemingly indifferent tone, there was a hidden concern that was only for her. Wen Qiwu’s fragile psychological defense, which she had finally managed to build, was once again breached, and her heart skipped a beat, losing its control once more.
Aww it’s starting
Good work 👏