Spectating the Angsty Romance of the Master and Disciple from the Sect Next Door Chapter 167

“Wait!” Li Jin’an also roared.
Her shout startled Xie Wushen and Liu Xinshu, who darted behind Ming Gongyu, peeking out cautiously and very warily at her.
They resembled the ancestral immortal cranes raised by the Dao Sect: pure white and beautiful, yet extremely delicate. Any passing junior disciple could startle them, and if startled too badly, they would shed feathers pitifully and refuse to eat or drink, intending to starve themselves to death. The elders and disciples responsible for tending to the cranes constantly worried, losing their own hair in the process.
Yinyue Monarch’s preferences truly haven’t changed for a thousand years; she consistently likes pretty fools!
Whether it’s close friends or Dao companions, she picks fools. Perhaps this is common among smart people — they enjoy finding simple-minded fools, whose emotions are written all over their faces, to keep as eye candy while they plot against themselves and others.
Li Jin’an felt that Xie Wushen and Liu Xinshu peeking out looked familiar. Before she could ponder it, she had more important matters at hand and looked at Ming Gongyu with confusion.
“Yinyue Monarch, how did you guess I’m Xie Huaixue’s future Dao companion?”
Li Jin’an felt, at this moment, the immense gap in intellect among cultivators.
Here were sweet and naive people who handed over their brains to others, sword cultivators like herself who were cunning but usually couldn’t figure things out, and then there was Yinyue Monarch, whose wisdom was almost demonic, so brilliant she could see hundreds of years into the future.
Ming Gongyu met their three pairs of bright, curious eyes, a smile flashing in her own. She seriously answered their questions, “The outcome of Three Realms Mountain was either our complete annihilation, or me escaping with Huaixue, albeit injured. Since you appeared, it means the latter. Huaixue will be my only disciple, and Tan Yu is my Dao companion. Since you are her disciple, I would have planned some extra trump cards for Huaixue before my demise.”
“I am that trump card!” Li Jin’an’s lips curled upwards, unable to suppress her smile, looking as if she wanted to be reserved but simply couldn’t.
She didn’t feel there was anything wrong with Yinyue Monarch scheming against her this way. She was simply overjoyed that Yinyue Monarch called her Xie Huaixue’s trump card.
A parent’s love for their child plans far ahead. Not only was Xie Huaixue part of Yinyue Monarch’s schemes, but Li Jin’an was also involved from beginning to end.
Thus, Li Jin’an felt no jealousy whatsoever. She believed that little Jin’an was so adorable and clever that even Yinyue Monarch couldn’t resist her charm and would give little Jin’an and little Huaixue equal love.
Indeed, before everything concluded, Li Jin’an had no idea of Yinyue Monarch and Xie Huaixue’s true plan.
Honestly, sometimes I really wish these cunning people of the Dao Sect would rein in their overflowing affection and stop guarding me as if I were a newborn. The outside world really isn’t that dangerous. For the outside world, perhaps the more dangerous ones are us.
Ming Gongyu’s eyes were not only smiling this time, but her lips also curved with Li Jin’an’s, and her voice softened slightly, “Yes, and there’s one most important point.”
“What?” The three exclaimed simultaneously.
“You don’t seem like someone who would form a close friendship with others.”
Li Jin’an was speechless. She wanted to refute, but she truly couldn’t.
Though she had good relationships with Jiang Fengmian, Shang Dangge, and Jie Yunjin, in her eyes, those three weren’t her close friends. They were more like younger sisters she could casually boss around and needed her protection…
She simply didn’t need something like a close friend.
Xie Wushen tugged at Ming Gongyu’s sleeve, lifting her blood-stained face and smiling sweetly, “Liu Xinshu and I only have one close friend, and that’s Gongyu!”
Liu Xinshu nodded gravely, “That’s right.”
Li Jin’an sensed that the atmosphere was a little off. These two seemed to be stepping on her to curry favor with Yinyue Monarch, using her as a stark contrast…
She hadn’t felt wrong.
Those two sweet and naive ones were doing it on purpose.
How could they look at a savior and a daughter’s Dao companion the same way?!
Originally, they had deeply respected the red-clad person who saved them from dire straits, with a rebirth-like gratitude. They wished they could give her everything they owned and invite her to be a guest at the Dao Sect.
But it turned out the red-clad person was clearly here for their unborn child. Before their child was even born, they were told her future Dao companion had come knocking…
They hadn’t even met their daughter yet, and someone was already trying to snatch her away!
Even the sweetest and most naive parents could pull themselves together for their child. It was just that their methods were full of holes, and their attempts to belittle were clumsy.
It was Li Jin’an’s first time being schemed against and wanting to laugh so much, but she held back, fearing those two would be embarrassed into anger.
She would wait until they returned, then secretly mock them with Xie Huaixue.
Ming Gongyu gently rubbed Xie Wushen’s head nearby, smiling without speaking.
What she hadn’t finished saying was: from her understanding of sword cultivators, these people could go through life and death for friends, but they would only go to the ends of the earth for their Dao companions.
Simply put, sword cultivators could die for friends, but they wouldn’t go out of their way for troublesome matters. The only exception would be their Dao companions.
“Wait!” Xie Wushen lifted her head from Ming Gongyu’s hand, finally noticing an even bigger anomaly, her eyes widening. “Gongyu, when did you become Dao companions with Chixin Sword Lord of the Sword Sect?”
Liu Xinshu, a beat slower than his wife, also turned to Ming Gongyu in shock.
Li Jin’an’s mouth twitched as she held her sword. Suddenly, she wasn’t worried about her future affectionate life with Xie Huaixue anymore.
She could confidently say that with such sweet and naive people, tricking them one by one would be no problem for her!
Ming Gongyu naturally understood what kind of people her close friends were. She gently explained, “For now, it’s a fated connection. In the future, I probably won’t invite the Heavenly Dao or the Sect Ancestors to witness it, but we’ll simply refer to each other as Dao companions.”
Xie Wushen was about to ask why when she heard Ming Gongyu continue with a smile in her voice:
“But later on, it will be possible.”
Xie Wushen and Liu Xinshu followed her gaze, looking at the seemingly honest Li Jin’an.
Li Jin’an met their three gazes. She thought for a second, then decisively said, “Once I bring you back, you can then become true Dao companions with my master, witnessed by the Heavenly Dao and Sect Ancestors. Mother and Father can join too! Close friends becoming sworn partners on the same day would truly be a beautiful tale!”
“Xie Huaixue and I can also serve diligently for you, which would be a blessing.”
“That’s a good suggestion!” Liu Xinshu nodded excitedly.
Xie Wushen immediately looked at Ming Gongyu, her tone light, “Gongyu, do you want to join us?”
Ming Gongyu didn’t answer, looking at the cunning Li Jin’an with a half-smile.
Li Jin’an looked everywhere but at her. Those two sweet and naive ones could step on her, so what if she took the opportunity to call out to her mother and father? By the time they realized, it would be too late anyway.
Ming Gongyu first said “Good” to Xie Wushen and Liu Xinshu, then looked at Li Jin’an, “You shouldn’t stay in this timeline for too long. Do what needs to be done. As for the rest, there will always be a day for us to meet again.”
Li Jin’an became serious. “Yes.”
She then explained what they needed to do to Xie Wushen and Liu Xinshu, and briefly outlined what happened in the normal timeline.
Just like with space-time turbulence, the past was already settled and unchangeable. Only the present could be altered.
Otherwise, those with regrets would endlessly return to the past, and even the most solid timeline couldn’t withstand repeated impacts.
So, the outcome of two deaths and one severe injury on Three Realms Mountain was predetermined. But Li Jin’an could transport them from their destined point of death to the current timeline.
Li Jin’an took a deep breath and asked gravely, “Are you ready?”
Xie Wushen suddenly turned, as if realizing something, looking at Ming Gongyu not far away.
“Gongyu, aren’t you coming with us?”
They had heard about their destined death and instantly forgotten it, caring only that Ming Gongyu wouldn’t be accompanying them.
Ming Gongyu smiled and shook her head, “Don’t worry, it won’t be long before we meet again.”
Li Jin’an nodded vigorously at the side. After leaving this timeline, she would immediately go find Yinyue Monarch, ensuring Xie Huaixue and her newly recognized mothers and fathers wouldn’t wait too long.
“But… but…”
Xie Wushen kept saying “but…” for a long time, tears nearly spilling. Her hands rested unconsciously on her belly. Little Huaixue seemed to sense her mother’s excessive anxiety and raised a hand as if to comfort her. In that instant, Xie Wushen finally figured out how to express herself.
“But you’ve waited for us for hundreds of years.”
With that, tears immediately fell.
Even so, Xie Wushen kept her eyes fixed on Ming Gongyu, terrified she would vanish if she looked away.
Sometimes, death was a release. The one who lived on was the one who bore everything and walked alone.
Ming Gongyu sighed internally. She couldn’t bear to see her close friend looking so pitiful. She stepped forward, took out a handkerchief to wipe away her tears, and looked up at the helpless Li Jin’an and Liu Xinshu beside them. It was as if she saw many others through them. Her voice was light but carried great weight.
“My path is not lonely.” Ming Gongyu gave a gentle smile, her eyes bright and radiant. “You know, scheming and planning isn’t suffering for me; it’s quite interesting.”
To fight with people, to fight with Heaven, to fight with oneself – what joy!
“But…” Xie Wushen still wanted to say something.
Ming Gongyu gently pushed her hand away, saying softly yet firmly, “Wait for me in the future. Go see your daughter, my disciple.”
“Okay.” Xie Wushen wiped her tears and, along with Liu Xinshu, walked towards Li Jin’an, looking back every few steps.
Li Jin’an, finally having a purpose, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, Yinyue Monarch persuaded the two of them. If she had stepped in, a less than pleasant scene might have occurred.
Li Jin’an took out the formation plate Xie Huaixue and Jingting Dao Lord had carved beforehand and activated it. She then pulled out the black butterfly, now only a spiritual body, and placed it into the formation core.
The black butterfly’s main body was still in the time reversal formation on Qingxiao Peak; only a spiritual body accompanied Li Jin’an, but it was sufficient.
“Yinyue Monarch, see you again.”
Through the sparkling light clusters of the formation, Ming Gongyu gave a faint smile, her gaze gentle, and nodded at the three of them.
For some reason, seeing this scene, Li Jin’an, Xie Wushen, and Liu Xinshu felt a sudden pang of sadness.
The next instant.
The formation generated countless azure light particles, instantly engulfing them, severing the connection between the three and Ming Gongyu.
When Xie Wushen and Liu Xinshu regained consciousness, they found themselves and Li Jin’an floating in mid-air in the form of spiritual bodies, watching helplessly as the original timeline cruelly and mercilessly unfolded below.
Three Realms Mountain was besieged, trapped in a quagmire, unable to escape.
First, the heavily wounded Liu Xinshu self-detonated, buying a moment of respite. Ming Gongyu fiercely battled the demons. Xie Huaixue was born, giving only a tiny whimper.
Without even a moment to properly look at the daughter she had fought to give birth to, Xie Wushen resolutely went to hold back the Demon Lord’s advance.
Boom! Another massive explosion from a self-detonation.
Everything finally froze on Ming Gongyu’s figure, stumbling away with the swaddled infant in her arms.