Spectating the Angsty Romance of the Master and Disciple from the Sect Next Door Chapter 48

“Wha—what!? Xie Huaixue, how can you be so shameless?!” Jijin Sword Sovereign bristled, looking at Qingxiao Immortal Venerable opposite her in disbelief, no longer even caring about her own flushed cheeks and ears.
She had only one thought in her mind: Xie Huaixue admitted it! Admitted her covetousness towards her, admitted this improper love!
…Hmm, that word doesn’t seem to be used that way.
Never mind, as long as she herself understood that Xie Huaixue harbored ulterior motives towards her, that was enough.
Xie Huaixue lowered her gaze and asked softly, “If I refused to repay your kindness by offering myself in marriage, would you be angry? You know, I can’t fight you right now.”
Li Jin’an always felt these words were strange, as if Xie Huaixue’s perfunctory response was smeared on her face. But she still nodded and said very seriously, “I would be angry!”
Just thinking that she had saved Xie Huaixue’s life, yet Xie Huaixue was unwilling to offer herself in marriage, she couldn’t help but narrow her eyes.
She had long been used to Xie Huaixue ultimately agreeing to all her demands. Whether it was being unreasonable or acting spoiled, Xie Huaixue would always let her have her way.
Li Jin’an could always act recklessly around Xie Huaixue, possessing a unique confidence that had been established since childhood.
Anyway, Xie Huaixue wouldn’t bear to make her unhappy.
Of course, except for the matter of trying to break Xie Huaixue’s emotionless Dao in her youth—if it’s not good, then it’s not good, fine. Although it was a bit of a blow to her pride, she could barely accept it. After all, if someone tried to break her Jijin Sword Dao to defeat her, she wouldn’t just make things ‘not good’ for them; she’d also make sure their entire sect had a terrible time.
So even if Xie Huaixue refused her, Li Jin’an would still continue to seek her out to play next time, holding no grudges.
Li Jin’an nodded in self-affirmation, saying, “I would be angry, and I would think you ungrateful. But I’m not one to demand repayment for favors. If you really refuse me, could I possibly tie you back to Jijin Peak to be my bandit chief’s wife? Also, my fights are friendly sparring between cultivators, the kind where invitations are sent. Don’t make me sound like a despicable mortal who lays hands on his wife and children. I don’t just hit people randomly!”
—Except for wantonly beating the three scoundrels, but they weren’t really people anyway.
“Don’t ruin my reputation!”
Li Jin’an stared at Xie Huaixue suspiciously, trying to spot any flaws. She was suspicious of Xie Huaixue’s motives.
She had reason to suspect that Xie Huaixue wasn’t thinking of completely ruining her reputation, and then easily taking possession of her, right?!
As expected of Xie Huaixue, truly insidious!
At this moment, Li Jin’an completely forgot the fact that her reputation in the cultivation world had long since hit rock bottom, and remained full of self-confidence.
Xie Huaixue was speechless for a moment, looking at the vigilant Li Jin’an, and could only go along with her words. “Alright, I understand. You’re not one to demand repayment for favors, or act impulsively, nor will you tie me back to Jijin Peak. I won’t misunderstand you.”
Li Jin’an always felt something was off, but couldn’t pinpoint what it was. She always had the feeling that the boasts she had just uttered couldn’t be taken back.
In truth, she wasn’t that noble. Who didn’t know that Jijin Sword Sovereign was most vengeful and egocentric? Once someone provoked her, their entire family, old and young, could face retaliation. Refer to the old gossips who said Xie Huaixue’s fate was inauspicious; back then, Li Jin’an directly carried her sword to block their doors, insisting they deeply recognize their mistakes and express tearful repentance.
Perhaps she should just use her favor to tie Xie Huaixue back to Jijin Peak and make her the bandit chief’s wife. It would be perfect: after suppressing the three scoundrels, Xie Huaixue could come to Jijin Peak to teach her three little foolish disciples, to see if they could become smarter and more cunning, so they could support her and Xie Huaixue in their old age.
Now, great, Master Xie, who could be invited without spending spiritual stones, was gone!
This stubborn mouth and her acting-up brain were like east and west, poles apart! Couldn’t they just reach a consensus?!
Li Jin’an’s heart bled with regret, but on the surface, she nodded slightly with a satisfied expression and said calmly, “It’s enough that you realize your mistake; this Venerable won’t argue with you. As for the matter of repayment, there’s no need to tie you back to Jijin Peak. You know, I’ve always looked down on your three despicable, worse-than-dogs disciples. When I bully them, just watch; you’re not allowed to interfere.”
This was much like a childish kid seriously instructing the elder of another kid, telling them that their kids’ matters would be resolved by themselves, and adults shouldn’t interfere and disrupt the order.
The analogy wasn’t quite appropriate; the three scoundrels were not qualified to be compared to Li Jin’an, nor were they pure-minded children. But she just hoped Xie Huaixue wouldn’t get involved.
Li Jin’an casually played a little trick in front of Xie Huaixue. She hadn’t specified what kind of bullying it would be. Scolding the three scoundrels a few times was bullying, hitting them with a branch was bullying, and killing them was also bullying. All were cases of the strong bullying the weak. Why not just bully a big one instead!
She would give Xie Huaixue a warning first. Once the three scoundrels were truly dead and the air was clear, Li Jin’an would also have a way to defend herself.
If Xie Huaixue didn’t think of it, then it wasn’t her fault. After all, Xie Huaixue didn’t ask, and the scoundrels’ deaths would be in vain.
She didn’t know if Xie Huaixue genuinely hadn’t thought of it, or if she had thought of it but didn’t ask. She merely said with a smile, “To use such great kindness on this, Sword Sovereign, you’re truly at a loss. Before this, when you were teaching Lan Ci and the others, I never once showed favoritism towards them. Naturally, I won’t hinder you in the future either.”
Li Jin’an was so pained by her words she could barely breathe, as if watching dozens of spiritual veins fly away before her eyes. But she still waved her hand grandly. “That’s a separate matter. No matter how nicely you speak now, if you go back on your word later and feel that this Venerable is interfering with Qingxiao Peak’s internal affairs, then wouldn’t this Venerable be in an impossible position?”
As a mature Sword Sovereign, she certainly didn’t believe the pleasant words of her arch-enemy Immortal Venerable.
If it were before, Li Jin’an wouldn’t have cared whether Xie Huaixue agreed or not; she would have just recklessly charged forward anyway.
As long as she was happy, that was enough. She didn’t care much about Xie Huaixue’s thoughts, mainly because at that time, she thought her animosity towards Xie Huaixue was very strong.
All the variables were that cursed Heavenly Tome and the big idiot Heavenly Dao. Under their relentless comparison, she finally learned to feel sympathy for Xie Huaixue…
Li Jin’an promptly stopped her brain from acting up again. She didn’t admit that she felt sympathy for Xie Huaixue; she simply thought that no normal person should have to endure such a fate. She was just acting on seeing an injustice, wanting to uphold justice, that’s all.
She felt that eradicating the scoundrels was a great thing. If Xie Huaixue got angry about it and grew distant from her, then she would be too ungrateful!
Therefore, she had to have a definite answer.
Her pair of clear phoenix eyes, gleaming with warm, fiery light, stared intently at Xie Huaixue, determined to get a precise answer.
Xie Huaixue also looked at her, her tone serious, and slowly said, “Whether in the past or in the future, I will always be on your side.”
Just as Li Jin’an was about to smile and express her appreciation for Xie Huaixue’s sensible reply, she heard the latter half of Xie Huaixue’s unfinished sentence.
“Otherwise, if Sword Sovereign were to complain before Master’s soul lamp and memorial tablet, saying I favored others, Master would probably reprimand me even in my dreams.”
Li Jin’an’s little face immediately fell, her mouth twitched. She couldn’t help but look at Xie Huaixue with the whites of her eyes and gave a big eye-roll.
“I am one thousand two hundred and thirty-five years old this year, not five years old!” Li Jin’an emphasized her current age, trying to prove that she was no longer so childish, and said very reasonably, “If I were to go to the Dao Chanting Pavilion alone, the guarding elders might not necessarily allow me, a Sword Sect Peak Master, to enter such an important Dao Sect location. I wouldn’t even see the Monarch’s soul lamp and memorial tablet, so how could I complain!”
Even now, the over-thousand-year-old Sword Sovereign still adhered to one principle: she could complain, but Xie Huaixue couldn’t point out that she was complaining.
Xie Huaixue froze for a moment, her expression somewhat dazed. She suddenly sighed, “Speaking of which, we’ve known each other for one thousand two hundred and thirty-five years now.”
“Don’t change the topic. We’re talking about complaining now. When did I ever say I’d complain about you to Yinyue Monarch?” Li Jin’an was still engrossed in the previous topic, crossing her arms and glancing sideways at Xie Huaixue, and every time she thought about age, she couldn’t help but get angry. “When I had just opened my eyes, and you were half a year old, we couldn’t even speak. What kind of acquaintance is that?”
Clearly, cultivators’ infants were no different from mortal infants; they all had to follow the laws of infant growth.
Li Jin’an was genuinely annoyed by the couple who had thrown her into the mass grave. Fine, they threw her away, but couldn’t they have given birth to her half a year earlier? Now look: Chixin Sword Lord and Yinyue Monarch had even made her call Xie Huaixue “Elder Sister.” However, her will was firm, unmoved by external factors; she resolutely refused to call Xie Huaixue “Elder Sister!”
Don’t be fooled by how young she was then; she wasn’t stupid. She could still distinguish between temporary delicious food and being forever subordinate; she could still tell the difference!
And her Master, was she really that eager to share? As soon as she picked her up and brought her back to the Sword Sect, she eagerly brought her to show Yinyue Monarch. She couldn’t even be bothered to expose her Master’s little scheme.
Xie Huaixue shook her head with a wry smile. “Whether you’re five, one thousand two hundred and thirty-five, or three thousand five hundred years old, you can complain about me, or complain to me. I’ll always favor you.”
She repeated it again.
Li Jin’an paused for a moment and subconsciously asked, “What about when I’m three thousand five hundred and one? Can I not complain then?”
“Of course you can,” Xie Huaixue said, a smile blooming in her eyes as she looked directly into Li Jin’an’s.
For some reason, Li Jin’an felt a little uncomfortable. Xie Huaixue’s gaze seemed even more penetrating than her Jijin Sword Intent, looking straight into her heart, and the burgeoning smile stirred ripples within it.
She felt a bit fortunate that Xie Huaixue maintained a severe and imposing image in public, rarely smiling. Otherwise, if she were to smile casually, there might be more than just three troublesome creatures in the cultivation world. Fortunately, as long as the Heavenly Dao didn’t interfere by playing favorites, no matter how many troublesome creatures there were, they wouldn’t be able to get close to Xie Huaixue.
Li Jin’an controlled the urge to rub her ears, shifted her gaze away from Xie Huaixue’s, picked up the shoes from the ground, and put them on. She walked to the window with her hands behind her back, in the manner of a grand master, sighing softly to let her tense, unbalanced heart ease a little, before saying, “You performed well. I’ll credit you for it.”
The Immortal Venerable’s smile was too beautiful. It wasn’t very friendly to the Sword Sovereign’s heart.
Before Xie Huaixue could ask what this credit was for, Li Jin’an enthusiastically said, “This credit can be exchanged for me clearing the spiritual cold from your meridians, or it can offset one fight. Don’t you think you’ve made a huge profit?”
From behind her, Xie Huaixue’s gentle voice came, “Yes, Qingxiao thanks the Sword Sovereign for her generosity. I am endlessly grateful, truly without a way to repay you…”
Li Jin’an, who was still acting profound with her hands behind her back, immediately turned around and repeatedly declined, “If you have no way to repay me, then don’t. It’ll be endless if you keep trying. This Venerable is such a person of high virtue; you don’t need to take it to heart.”
What she was thinking was simple: just Xie Huaixue smiling at her made her heart so restless it wished to change its surname to Xie. If there were anything more than that, the three little fools from Jijin Peak would have to come to Qingxiao Peak to mourn her.
Besides, if she wanted to use this ‘debt of gratitude’ to do something to Xie Huaixue, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.
Don’t think she couldn’t tell. The main point was that Xie Huaixue wanted to use the excuse of ‘repaying a favor’ to do something to her!
She wasn’t really a fool. After vaguely guessing Xie Huaixue’s hidden desire for her, every word Xie Huaixue said was replayed in her mind multiple times. She repeatedly pondered and analyzed them. How could she not see Xie Huaixue’s intentions?
It’s just that, it’s just that… Li Jin’an couldn’t quite make sense of it. The moment she thought about it, her thoughts became like a tangled ball of yarn, impossible to untangle or straighten out.
Ignoring her completely uncontrollable heart, Li Jin’an felt that things were changing too fast. Not long ago, they were still sworn enemies. Suddenly, everything shifted dramatically. Her sworn enemy not only didn’t dislike her, but liked her…
Her short-circuiting brain was a little overwhelmed.
She needed to properly think about it, wrestle with her thoughts for a bit, revel in her smugness for a while, and then calm down. Only then could she calmly face Xie Huaixue’s gaze.
—Most importantly, she hadn’t yet savored the joy of Xie Huaixue liking her.
Moreover, she was the Jijin Sword Sovereign. She always charged forward and never admitted defeat. Losing a fight to Xie Huaixue was one thing, but how could she let Xie Huaixue take all the credit in this matter, making her seem not only bad at fighting but also foolish?!
The chance for Jijin Peak to make a huge comeback was right before her eyes!
Li Jin’an felt this idea made a lot of sense. She wouldn’t bicker with her short-circuiting brain this time.
Xie Huaixue walked to her side, her robes fluttering. She looked up at the unchanging scenery outside the window, without turning her gaze to the person beside her. She said airily, “The Sword Sovereign’s virtue is lofty and pure; Qingxiao feels unworthy in comparison.”
Alright, now Li Jin’an didn’t have to think about those annoying questions anymore. She tried hard to suppress the grin spreading on her lips, but it was still useless. Her flushed ear tips poked out, highlighting their presence; she couldn’t even pretend to be serious.
Li Jin’an’s face and ears didn’t gradually flush with color, but instantly flared up like a prairie fire, fiercely and suddenly spreading across her fair skin in an instant.
Referring to herself as Qingxiao was simply cheating!
Just now, when Xie Huaixue referred to herself as Qingxiao and said she had no way to repay, Li Jin’an was startled and so busy declining that she forgot to secretly gloat.
Now Xie Huaixue added to it, and the effect was doubled.
For a moment, the Jijin Sword Sovereign was so swayed that she thought it wouldn’t be bad to serve the Qingxiao Immortal Venerable wholeheartedly until death. At least the Qingxiao Immortal Venerable would praise her!
After sobering up, Li Jin’an secretly sighed, “The people of Qingxiao Peak are so good at flattering others. Is it just to deal with the inarticulate sword cultivators of our Jijin Peak?”
She had reason to suspect that Yinyue Monarch’s flattering skills were honed on her master, and then passed on to Xie Huaixue!
Ill-intentioned!
Since you’ve already praised me, why not praise a few more words?
Li Jin’an clenched a fist and pressed it against her lips, cleared her throat and coughed a few times. After suppressing the tickle that had spread from her heart to her throat, her gaze drifted aimlessly as she said, “This Venerable feels your sincerity. Keep up the good work.”
Xie Huaixue acknowledged with a hum, then turned her head to look at her.
Noticing a gaze from her side, Li Jin’an casually changed the subject: “How do you plan to use the credit I gave you?”
“Then I’ll trouble the Sword Sovereign to help me clear my meridians again.”
Li Jin’an calmly nodded, “No problem at all.”
…
Actually, it wasn’t ‘no problem at all’. When Li Jin’an emerged from Qingxiao Peak again, her face was pale, her steps were unsteady, and her eyes held a hint of terror. She didn’t even have the strength to summon her Blazing Radiance Sword.
Jiang Fengmian, whom she had called over, looked at her with great confusion. Had Qingxiao finally hardened her heart to punish Jijin?
After leaving Qingxiao Peak, Li Jin’an let out a huge sigh of relief. She decided to rest for a few days before boasting again; otherwise, there wouldn’t be a single trace of spiritual energy left in her Dantian!
Xie Huaixue was simply a spiritual energy glutton!
Yet, Li Jin’an only had herself to blame. She couldn’t blame anyone else.
When Xie Huaixue asked if she wanted to continue, she was too proud and stubbornly said yes, claiming, “This bit of spiritual cold is a trifle, no problem at all…”
And then it turned out like this.
Under Jiang Fengmian’s perplexed gaze, Li Jin’an looked up at the sky. She belatedly realized something: if she didn’t cultivate diligently and couldn’t break through her realm, she wouldn’t even be able to afford to ‘support’ Xie Huaixue!
Even the foolish Hero Li in the illusion knew not to use Scholar Xie’s ledger to earn money and support the family. Didn’t the Jijin Sword Sovereign outside the illusion know this principle?!
Li Jin’an glared at Jiang Fengmian, who was standing dumbfounded. “What are you standing there for? Take me back to Sword Sect!”