The smile vanished from Mu Yunran’s face. Lu Qingran’s sudden shifts in attitude left her bewildered.
Before Mu Yunran could say anything else, Lu Qingran turned, mounted her sword, and flew away with the speed of someone fleeing for her life. She did not dare look back. She was afraid she would see confusion and disappointment in the girl’s eyes, along with worry and sorrow.
Mu Yunran stared in the direction Lu Qingran had gone. Only after a long while did she lower her hand and put the little swallow away. She bowed her head as a rare surge of anger rose inside her.
Counting the years of her life in the modern world, she had lived for more than thirty years. Until today, she had never been angry. She had not grown angry when she learned that her parents had abandoned her, nor when other children bullied her. She had not even been angry when a reader, blinded by rage and mistaking her for Xie Tian, stabbed her to death.
Before meeting Lu Qingran, she had been rational enough to avoid unnecessary emotions, much less allow them to control her.
The system trembled as it hovered beside her, too frightened to speak. It was highly sensitive to emotions. When they first bonded, it had wondered why its host resembled a robot without human feelings or desires. Now it found itself missing that cold, emotionless host.
What angered Mu Yunran most was not Lu Qingran’s attitude. She did not know what had happened during their year apart, but she knew Lu Qingran. The gentle, approachable young woman who had been willing to help even strangers could only have become like this after someone hurt her deeply.
The original novel said nothing about it. She would have to investigate for herself.
Mu Yunran glanced at the sacred tree, then looked around. No one else was there.
“Sacred Tree, can you tell me why Qingran became like this?”
The tree did not answer directly. Instead, it kept her in suspense as a line of words appeared on its trunk:
*A kind heart was betrayed; an old wound has become a scar.*
The Cloudblossom Tree knew this answer would not satisfy the person below, so it shook more than a dozen leaves from its branches and delivered them into Mu Yunran’s hands.
Her mood did not improve. She gazed at the words with dark, brooding eyes.
After returning to her room, Mu Yunran exchanged all the leaves for mission points. Including what remained from before, she now had two thousand and ten points, which gave her far more choices.
Remembering Chiguzi’s advice, she bought a cultivation-concealing device without hesitation. She spent the remaining ten points on two Wind-Riding Talismans.
With the concealing device, no one at the ceremony in two days would see her true cultivation.
Mu Yunran did not remain idle during those two days. She watched when Chiguzi prepared medicinal meals and observed from the side when he refined pills. Chiguzi had no intention of keeping his knowledge secret. As long as she did not disturb him, she could watch as much as she wished.
During a quiet moment, he asked, “Good disciple, are you thinking of becoming an alchemist?”
Mu Yunran had fine aptitude. With his guidance, she might one day become an alchemist whom everyone respected and feared.
Mu Yunran shook her head. “The sacred tree told me to become a sword cultivator, and I’m personally more interested in swords. But knowing more skills can’t hurt. If you’re willing to teach me, Master, I’d like to try.”
Chiguzi laughed and scolded her. “What a greedy little thing you are. Aren’t you afraid of biting off more than you can chew and gaining nothing at all?”
Mu Yunran hurried behind him and began kneading his shoulders and pounding his back. “That’s why I have you, Master. You’re so capable. As your disciple, I can’t be too disappointing.”
“Little flatterer! Fine. Once the ceremony is over, I’ll teach you pill refining and medicinal cooking. But let me warn you: there’s a great deal to memorize for both, and you’ll have to practice constantly and improve your recipes. It won’t be any easier than practicing the sword.”
Mu Yunran was not afraid of hard work. She feared improving too slowly and being left behind. To escape her fate as cannon fodder, cultivation and status were equally important.
Two days later, Mu Yunran changed into a clean disciple uniform and went to the Ascension Grounds on the main peak.
The new disciples from every hall formed lines while inner disciples called the roll.
Sword Intent Hall and Sword Energy Hall stood closest to one another, so their lines were side by side. The elders and hall masters had not yet arrived. Aside from the new disciples, only the inner disciples maintaining order were present. They were fairly lenient as long as no one made too much noise, and many people chatted with those around them.
Shi Wan stood ahead of Mu Yunran. She did not know the people behind or to her right, while Long Aoxiang stood on her left.
Shi Wan had not seen Mu Yunran for several days. Now that they were together again, she began eagerly recounting everything she had experienced.
“The place where I live is quite nice. The senior and junior sisters sharing my quarters are all kind and take good care of me. One senior sister even knows how to make medicinal meals. They’re delicious and help with cultivation. I learned how to make them from her, so I’ll cook some for you when I have the chance.”
Shi Wan spoke softly, her voice filled with delight. This was her first taste of an “immortal’s” life, and everything fascinated her. In her eyes, Mu Yunran was the first friend she had made here, and she liked sharing her daily life with a friend.
After saying so much, Shi Wan realized Mu Yunran had not replied once. She grew embarrassed and fiddled with a loose strand of hair beside her temple, her cheeks reddening.
“Yunran, am I being too noisy?”
Mu Yunran shook her head. “I’m happy that you tell me these things. I’m not good with words, and I don’t have your gift for always noticing the beautiful parts of life, so I couldn’t make the past few days sound as detailed and interesting as you did.”
Shi Wan became shy at once. No one at home had ever praised her that way. Her father was always busy with official matters, while her mother had died long ago. The people she usually met only offered empty courtesies. Their praise was always the same handful of phrases, none of which had anything to do with who she truly was.
“That’s all right. You can tell me anything you like. As long as it has something to do with you, I won’t find it boring.”
Mu Yunran knew Shi Wan was innocent and merely wanted to understand her friend better, so she shared a few things. Her master also knew how to make medicinal meals, and she would learn from him and cook one for Shi Wan once she was skilled enough. She also mentioned that her master kept a piglet named Ahua. The little creature had a bad temper but was very fond of her.
Long Aoxiang secretly rolled his eyes. *Mu Yunran is quite the hypocrite, and that Shi Wan is a fool. She’ll say anything to someone else, even with people all around them.*
*What does she mean, she isn’t good with words? She can only fool the stupid woman in front of her.*
He had listened for so long without learning anything useful, and he curled his lip in irritation.
Through senior and junior brothers with whom he was on good terms, Long Aoxiang had learned most of what happened around Mu Yunran during the sect trial. Her apparently exceptional talent made him wary. Worse, the Immortal Qingran he admired seemed to have a good relationship with Mu Yunran, which made him instinctively dislike her.
He did not like anyone who entered the sect alongside him being stronger, nor did he like anyone else winning more of Qingran’s favor.
Mu Yunran ignored his hostile stare. Putting on an innocent, completely unguarded expression, she whispered, “Wanwan, listen. I can already draw spiritual energy into my body. Master tested me, and I’m at the second level of Spiritual Energy Refining!”
Shi Wan hurriedly covered Mu Yunran’s mouth and leaned close to her ear. “Yunran, you can’t casually tell people your cultivation level!”
Mu Yunran nodded blankly. She moved Shi Wan’s hand and said with confidence, “It’s fine. You’re the only one who heard.”
Long Aoxiang’s ears twitched. *So she’s a fool too. I heard everything!*
High above the clouds, Lu Qingran stared unblinkingly at Mu Yunran below. She saw Mu Yunran smiling faintly as she chatted with the girl in front of her. The girl named Shi Wan even covered Mu Yunran’s mouth and leaned close to whisper in her ear.
Mu Yunran had made a close friend. This was what Lu Qingran had wanted to see. Yet now that it was happening before her eyes, she found the sight strangely unpleasant.
The jade pendant on her chest grew hot. Lu Qingran thought the talisman poison must be affecting her emotions again. Otherwise, why would she think such a thing?
* * *
Late at night, Xie Tian sat at her computer. Her fingers struck the keyboard as she typed the final period. Then she copied the text, pasted it into the publishing window, and uploaded the latest chapter.
It was an extra—a story that gave the heroine, Lu Qingran, a different romantic partner.
The main story was not even finished, yet the author had written an extra that overturned what came before. Xie Tian could already guess how her readers would curse her this time.
“When they discover the heroine’s true partner is actually a nameless minor character who was sacrificed as cannon fodder—and that the male lead personally caused that character’s death—the looks on their faces will be priceless!”
In her notebook, Xie Tian wrote down the cannon-fodder first wife’s name.
Mu Yunran, my departed friend.
