Li Jin’an sneered: “With you three ‘divine’ disciples, how can I possibly be well?”
When she didn’t leave the sect, these three ‘divine’ individuals would fight with all their might. Even if they failed, they would fight with the bearing and proud spirit of a Sword Sovereign’s disciples, enduring for two hours, with victory and defeat hard to determine within a thousand moves; the little brats from the Dao Sect wouldn’t win easily. But the moment she left, these ‘divine’ individuals would start throwing matches, putting in minimal effort and just putting on a show for a quarter of an hour.
“‘Be well?’ Clearly ill-intentioned!”
“Here it comes again, here it comes again. Master is being sarcastic again.”
The three ‘divine’ individuals were not only unmoved but even wanted to pick their ears.
The second disciple, Tan Yanyi, walked at the back, already openly putting her hands in her sleeves and zoning out. She was likely thinking about the entertainment houses and fine wine and food outside, looking utterly thick-skinned and indifferent, like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water.
The third disciple, Ling Qiu, skipped at the very back, picking the prettiest and brightest little red flowers by the roadside and mercilessly plucking them. She intended to decorate her own room and kindly collected an extra bunch, preparing to give it to her senior sister as comfort.
Tan Yanyi leaned closer and nudged her with an elbow, winking and silently mouthing, ‘Not for me again? Favoritism!‘
Ling Qiu pouted and pushed her second senior sister away with a backhand. Saying nothing, she merely used her eyes to gesture towards Li Jin’an’s back ahead.
The meaning was simple: getting flowers wasn’t hard; she just needed to step forward and help senior sister bear the pressure, letting Master reprimand her alone.
Are these flowers being picked?
No.
It was clearly a commendation for sacrificing herself and the fearless spirit of dedicating herself to protect her junior sisters!
Senior sister could endure so long in Master’s storm of fury; she truly deserved a handful of flowers.
Tan Yanyi immediately retracted her ‘demonic claw’ reaching for the fresh flowers in Ling Qiu’s arms, shaking her head firmly and thinking with relief: Thankfully, she wasn’t the eldest sister anywhere. Otherwise, she’d really have to find a ragged strip of cloth and hang herself in front of the Dao Sect’s gates, bringing glory to their Jijin Peak and the Tan family in such an extreme way.
Li Jin’an couldn’t even be bothered to say anything about the two behind her who wouldn’t move forward even when pulled and would retreat when pushed. She looked with gratification at Qi Lingzi, who was a step behind her. Her eldest disciple, whom she had raised since childhood and was the first to join her peak, was still the most reliable.
It was fine if one’s innate talent wasn’t good; diligence could compensate for clumsiness later. It was also fine if their personality was a bit quiet; at least whatever Li Jin’an instructed, they would do it perfectly, without cutting corners, unlike the two behind, who would cut corners.
Li Jin’an’s conclusion, drawn from her own experience, was that while cultivators with exceptional talent and outgoing personalities might progress a thousand miles in a day in their cultivation, for a master, they might just end up with a troublesome troublemaker.
As the two in front fell silent, the faces of Tan Yanyi and Ling Qiu, who had been leisurely strolling behind, grew increasingly grave.
“Oh no.”
Master not speaking right now didn’t mean the matter was over; rather, she intended to save her strength for a big scolding.
Besides the four of them (master and disciples) at Jijin Peak, there were only plants and trees, and chore disciples doing odd jobs. Because Li Jin’an had over-fulfilled her disciple recruitment quota, the Sword Sect Leader knew that when her temper flared, she would get annoyed by people, so he didn’t arrange for outer sect disciples at Jijin Peak. The several rows of courtyards on the mountainside were all empty.
In fact, the Sect Leader didn’t need to be so considerate.
At this point, the disadvantage of having few people became apparent: there was no one to share the scolding and beating with. They had searched through all the nearby peaks, and now, no one in the Sword Sect was willing to take on a request from Jijin Peak. After all, finding an excuse to call away someone who was being scolded wasn’t an easy task.
Amidst Tan Yanyi’s and Ling Qiu’s increasingly heavy footsteps, they arrived at their destination—the study.
Li Jin’an leaned back in her chair, her gaze sharply sweeping over the three disciples standing in a row before her.
“‘Is there nothing you want to discuss with me? I am far more open-minded than your grandmaster. You can speak freely.'”
Ling Qiu raised her head and puffed out her chest, as if she had something to say, looking eagerly at her master.
“‘You don’t need to say anything about giving up antagonizing the Qingxiao lineage, as that wouldn’t be conducive to the stability and unity of Jijin Peak.'”
Ling Qiu’s head drooped. Tan Yanyi was also dejected, withered and limp like an eggplant hit by frost.
Clearly, the two of them had nothing more to say.
Li Jin’an then looked at her eldest disciple, who was committing to being taciturn. “Qi Lingzi, you speak.”
Qi Lingzi very skillfully applied the formula: “It is this disciple’s insufficient strength, and failing to lead my junior sisters to defeat Qingxiao Immortal Venerable’s disciples and bring you glory…”
This child, as usual, very honestly took all the blame upon herself, hoping to protect her two junior sisters behind her.
“‘Is this the time for you to be so righteous and noble?’ Listening to the same old excuses, Li Jin’an angrily slammed the table and stood up, making the stack of books on the desk tremble. ‘Cultivate diligently, strive upwards, and step on the Qingxiao lineage; isn’t that more useful than apologizing eight hundred times?! I’m not asking you to achieve great success in cultivation and ascend immediately! This is the only request your master has for you, and you can’t even achieve that?!'”
Now, even Qi Lingzi’s gaze wavered. The other two’s eyes darted around even more.
When they first entered Jijin Peak, Li Jin’an’s words were even more moving and inspiring than now. And then… there was no ‘then.’ What followed was entirely their arduous cultivation and fighting history.
Qi Lingzi was taciturn and wouldn’t speak ill of her master, nor was it good for her to spread the thousand-year-long grievances between Jijin Peak and the Qingxiao lineage of the Dao Sect. Thus, the two who joined the Sword Sect together later, unprepared, fell into the deep pit of Jijin Peak, from which they could never climb out.
To this day, they and Li Jin’an mutually tormented each other—oh, and also the Qingxiao lineage of the neighboring Dao Sect. It was king against king, general against general; everyone tormented each other.
Li Jin’an could anticipate Qi Lingzi’s next apologetic remark even with her eyes closed, and the three of them could also recite Li Jin’an’s sayings by heart. It was the pot calling the kettle black.
The atmosphere instantly became tense.
No problem. They had nothing to say, but Li Jin’an did.
“‘Three against two, and you only lasted for a quarter of an hour! Did you really not take Xie Huaixue’s spiritual stones?’ Li Jin’an issued a soul-searching question.”
Tan Yanyi scrunched up her face: “Master, you think too highly of us. With a group of Golden Core and Foundation Establishment junior disciples fighting, Qingxiao Immortal Venerable might not even know who we are.”
“‘That’s not necessarily true.’ Li Jin’an’s expression shifted for a moment, as if recalling some unbearable memory, her tone becoming somewhat gritted.”
Li Jin’an lost the mood to scold them. She sighed, “When will you stop disgracing me and bring me glory?”
The three exchanged glances and each took action: one massaging her back, one kneading her shoulders, one feeding her spirit fruits, each performing their respective duties.
Li Jin’an comfortably narrowed her phoenix eyes. The three of them had impeccable skills, instantly making her forget the topic of today’s meeting. It was a good while before she grumbled: “Strive for progress! Can you not strive for progress?! Our Jijin Peak can’t be suppressed by the Qingxiao lineage for an entire lifetime, can it? I haven’t given up, so why are you giving up the struggle so early? What’s that saying from the mortal world? ‘If you don’t steam buns, fight for a breath of air.’ Show some backbone!”
She had been fighting for over a thousand years, and wasn’t she doing fine? Why did these three children have no ambition?!
“‘Every time I lose to Xie Huaixue and her disciples, where do I put my face?!'”
Ling Qiu swiftly brought a spirit fruit to Li Jin’an’s mouth, and in the process of feeding, quietly mumbled: “We’re just learning from Master. Didn’t Grandmaster get used to you? Just as it’s our lineage’s custom to frequently provoke the Dao Sect, losing to the Immortal Lord’s disciples is also normal. This just proves we are all your direct disciples!”
?
Li Jin’an swallowed the spirit fruit without even chewing, looking suspiciously at this ‘rascal,’ and genuinely asked: “Then can’t you surpass your teachers, directly defeat Xie Huaixue, and surpass me, your master?”
Tan Yanyi gave Ling Qiu a look. The shoulder-massaging became even more soothing, and her tone turned flattering: “Master, please rest assured, this time was truly just an accident. Our morale as sisters hasn’t dropped. In the future, we will absolutely strive to improve ourselves, and work hard to severely defeat the Immortal Lord’s disciples, letting them know their place.”
They dared not boast about defeating Xie Huaixue, only aspiring to defeat the two little brats under Xie Huaixue.
Li Jin’an said faintly: “So, this ‘future’ is after I fall and my memorial tablet is enshrined in the Hall of Clarity?”
The Hall of Clarity was where the Sword Sect enshrined the memorial tablets of successive sect leaders, peak masters, and elders, as well as where disciples placed their life tablets when they first joined, continuously thriving amidst death and new life.
If Li Jin’an wanted to enter the Hall of Clarity again, it could only be as a memorial tablet.
Even coaxing her didn’t work anymore?
Qi Lingzi proactively spoke: “Master will not fall. She will only rise to the heavens, her immortal path prosperous, living forever.”
Her voice was firm, as if she was speaking an eternal truth.
Ling Qiu also quickly chimed in: “Exactly, exactly! Master, you are the Jijin Sword Sovereign who overwhelms all heroes in Lancang, with extraordinary strength! You definitely won’t fall! Pui, pui, pui, may bad luck not come true, and good luck prevail.”
“‘No matter who falls, you won’t fall,’ Tan Yanyi added, remedying the situation.”
Li Jin’an raised an eyebrow. “Who said my ‘Qilin child’ couldn’t speak? Aren’t they quite good at flattery?” Indeed, they lived up to the ‘Qilin’ moniker she had given them. The other two followed closely, their words sweet as well.
“‘It’s not that I’m worried about this,’ Li Jin’an said with a half-smile, arms crossed. ‘The cultivators capable of killing your master are, on the surface, no more than a handful. Your master is mainly worried about being angered to death by you all one day, dying such a pathetic death that my memorial tablet wouldn’t be allowed into the Hall of Clarity.'”
Tan Yanyi cleverly remarked: “Master, that won’t happen. At that time, your Blazing Radiance Sword will enter the Sword Mausoleum, and our sisters will definitely work hard to retrieve the Blazing Radiance Sword and revitalize Jijin Peak!”
This little rascal had been coveting the Blazing Radiance Sword for more than just a day or two.
She had even thought of revitalizing Jijin Peak; clearly, she had deeply considered it and had long premeditated it.
Li Jin’an squeezed out a fierce smile. These unfortunate disciples, who wouldn’t strive for progress, simply couldn’t be left alone.
The Blazing Radiance Sword suddenly appeared above the three’s heads, accompanied by Li Jin’an’s roar, tapping on the ‘elm wood’ heads of Jijin Peak like a wooden fish.
The force was just right: bewildering but not harming the brain.
Hearing the sound, one would know these few people’s heads were quite empty, a bunch of gourd-heads.
Not until classes began at the academy were the three disciples let off. Li Jin’an, sitting in her chair, could still hear Tan Yanyi’s and Ling Qiu’s grumbling outside, saying Master’s temper was getting more irritable, and that coaxing her no longer worked. They added that they wanted to see the Blazing Radiance Sword, but absolutely not in this manner…
Li Jin’an closed her eyes, truly doubting if Jijin Peak had poor feng shui, and if her three disciples also brought her bad luck.
She just missed seeing the ancient book on the desk, with a page gently turned open.
Thanks for the chapter