The Young Lady Only Wants to Cultivate Immortality Chapter 19

The trial begins.

Longyin Town was called a town, but it wasn’t small at all. A’Ling had fled through the mortal realm as a child, so she knew how big a city usually was. This town was even larger than a mortal city.

Gu Jingyang knew she was going to buy things in the south, so she specially sent a carriage for her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t make it there before dark on her own two legs.

The town’s layout was very simple and straightforward. The east side was the rich residential area, filled with grand mansions; the west side was closest to the inner sect, with various immortal cultivation academies; the north side was the slum, inhabited by all sorts of people, perhaps even demons and monsters; and the south side was essentially the commercial market.

The carriage took A’Ling south, entering the commercial market on the town’s south side. The cries of vendors along the street were endless. A’Ling had the carriage wait outside the market. The truly good items were hidden deep within the alleys, where the carriage couldn’t enter.

Walking down the most bustling street, there were vendors selling elixirs, spell manuals, various protective talismans, rare beasts, and even ordinary clothing and daily necessities – everything imaginable. There were especially many elixir vendors. Aside from various established shops, there were also those who set up stalls with just a piece of cloth. As far as the eye could see, signs read ‘Core Formation Divine Elixir,’ ‘Foundation Establishment Advancement Must-Have Elixir,’ ‘Healing Holy Elixir,’ and ‘Elixirs Personally Crafted by Apothecary Yang Xia – Tenfold Compensation for Fakes.’ In front of each stall, two or three people, who looked like shills, were inquiring about prices.

A’Ling smiled as she walked past these shops that specialized in swindling newcomers. She headed towards a shop deeper inside, which had a long green and white banner hanging outside, inscribed with ‘Hundred Birds Garden.’

As she entered the shop, the welcoming birds chirped noisily. The owner, a woman with mottled white hair but a face that looked no older than thirty, lifted her head from behind the counter. Seeing a young girl like A’Ling, she merely assumed she was browsing, and her attitude wasn’t particularly enthusiastic.

“Feel free to look around. Call out if you need anything.”

A’Ling looked around curiously as she walked further in, until she reached the counter and stated what she wanted to buy: “I need two sound-eating birds and two sound-translating birds.”

Sound-eating birds were common and inexpensive, while sound-translating birds could record spoken words into text, making them rarer and more expensive. Hearing that A’Ling wanted not only sound-eating birds but also sound-translating birds, the owner was overjoyed. This was not a huge order, but it wasn’t small either, so she quickly got up from behind the counter. As she moved, the birds perched on her flew off, scattering to find new resting spots.

One fearless bird even flew and landed on A’Ling’s shoulder.

A’Ling turned her head to see a small, palm-sized bird. Its entire body was covered in dark blue feathers, but its eyes were silvery-red, making it look quite unique.

“Owner, what kind of bird is this?”

A’Ling reached out to pet it. After the bird rubbed against A’Ling’s hand, it tilted its head up, seemingly wanting A’Ling to stroke its neck.

How interesting. A’Ling stroked its feathers and gently scratched its neck. Its entire body trembled slightly, and its head swayed from side to side, looking very happy.

The owner emerged from the inner room, carrying two large birdcages. Along the way, she bumped into various horizontal bars and hooks, startling many birds, which flew off to find other perching spots.

“Owner, what kind of bird is this?”

A’Ling’s voice rang out again, repeating the earlier question.

A’Ling looked around, shocked and confused. She hadn’t spoken!

“Who’s imitating me?”

The owner walked up to her, placed the birdcages on the counter, then picked up the small bird from A’Ling’s shoulder, smiling. She said, “It’s this one. It’s a rabbit bird. It can mimic human speech, but this one is special. It can not only mimic words but also the speaker’s voice.” Seeing A’Ling seemed interested, the owner enthusiastically introduced it: “In the hundred years this shop has been open, this is the only rabbit bird with such an ability.”

A’Ling knew about rabbit birds; they were very similar to parrots. However, parrots needed to be trained by humans, whereas rabbit birds were born with the ability to mimic human speech. But A’Ling had never heard of a rabbit bird that could mimic voices so perfectly. Moreover, she remembered rabbit birds having white eyes, but this one’s were silvery-red, which was why she hadn’t recognized it earlier.

“This is indeed very special,” A’Ling murmured to herself.

The owner’s smile grew even more enthusiastic as she eagerly promoted it: “Indeed, rarity makes it valuable. How about it, young lady? Would you like to buy this rabbit bird as well?”

“This is indeed very special.” Suddenly, the rabbit bird in the owner’s hand mimicked A’Ling again.

A’Ling burst out laughing. Listening to the voice that sounded so much like her own, an idea sparked in her mind.

A’Ling stroked the rabbit bird and asked, “How many spiritual stones?”

The owner didn’t answer directly, instead asking A’Ling, “What grade of sound-eating birds and sound-translating birds do you want?”

A’Ling thought of Gu Jingyang’s talkative nature. “Alright, an ordinary grade for the sound-eating birds will do, but I want the highest grade for the sound-translating birds.”

The owner rejoiced inwardly, but maintained a calm expression. She merely nodded, then pulled out a golden abacus from her sleeve and swiftly calculated the cost for A’Ling.

“Two ordinary-grade sound-eating birds are sixty each, so one hundred and twenty. Two high-grade sound-translating birds are one hundred and fifty each, so three hundred. Add the one hundred and twenty, for a total of four hundred and twenty.” After calculating, the owner glanced at A’Ling, observing her. She didn’t look like a wealthy patron, and fearing she might scare her off, she didn’t dare to overcharge excessively. “Alright, young lady, including that rabbit bird, the total will be one thousand spiritual stones.”

After saying this, the owner still felt a little guilty. Ordinary rabbit birds were even cheaper than sound-eating birds, but she had just quoted a price over a hundred times higher. However, she saw A’Ling’s interest, and furthermore, her rabbit bird truly was very special. The owner had left room for a three hundred spiritual stone discount, waiting for A’Ling to haggle. She smiled amiably, secretly hoping A’Ling wouldn’t bargain too much.

A’Ling: “Deal.”

Owner: ???

A’Ling thoroughly enjoyed the owner’s astonished and then ecstatic expression. She pursed her lips, amused. She had a hundred thousand spiritual stones; why would she haggle? If she liked it, she’d buy it.

After confirming A’Ling wasn’t haggling, the owner was overcome with wild joy. How had she not realized earlier that this young girl came from a wealthy background? She quickly grabbed an empty birdcage, caught two beginner-grade sound-eating birds and two high-grade sound-translating birds, and put them inside, as if afraid A’Ling would change her mind. She then carefully reached out and picked up the rabbit bird from A’Ling’s shoulder, gifting her a separate small wicker birdcage. This little creature had been in the shop for over a year. Because it was special, she didn’t want to sell it cheaply, but ultimately, it wasn’t very useful, so it had just been wasting away in the shop, eating for free.

Now that it was finally sold, the owner happily snipped off the rabbit bird’s leg tag with a pair of scissors. Just as she was about to throw it away, A’Ling reached out and took it. “Give it to me.”

A’Ling glanced at the numbers on it: 868XXX023. As expected of a century-old shop; they must have sold tens of millions of birds by now. She stroked the rabbit bird’s head. “From now on, you’ll be called Ling Ersan.”

A’Ling promptly paid the spiritual stones. Then she went to the neighboring general store, bought a Universe pouch, and placed the birdcages inside. Thinking about it, with the sound-eating birds, sound-translating birds, and the rabbit bird, the pile of Phoenix Feather messages in her room would be perfectly handled. She could even let Gu Jingyang’s messages come more fiercely now!

She was so happy; A’Ling was truly impressed by her own cleverness. She smiled with a proud expression.

Having settled this matter, A’Ling walked with light steps. She then dived into shop after shop, searching for materials to refine the Wandering Amethyst Gold Whip. This time, A’Ling bought the best of all available materials; she wasn’t short on money anymore. Some special materials had to be pre-ordered, so she ordered them. For those not available, she added more money, and naturally, someone would take on the task of finding them for her.

This feeling of having money was truly wonderful. A’Ling thought to herself that her reincarnation wasn’t in vain; at the very least, she got to experience the joy of sudden wealth.

On the way back, A’Ling recalled how difficult it was to refine her Little Wandering in her previous life. Back then, she was penniless, relying entirely on gradual accumulation and doing odd jobs. Doing odd jobs meant working after dark. A’Ling thought about what she had done: pulling bellows in a weapon shop; grinding beans like a donkey in a tofu shop; rolling pills in an elixir shop… She’d work all night just for a paltry spiritual stone or two. She had no sleep at night and was exhausted during the day. Most of her cultivation time at the academy was spent catching up on sleep. A’Ling felt this was why her cultivation progress had been so slow in her previous life.

Upon reflection, A’Ling remembered that in her previous life, she had only managed to refine it just before Shi Qingqian went to the inner sect, which was still a few months away from now. In her previous life, she only gained the ability to protect herself in the Huo family after acquiring the Little Wandering. In truth, she didn’t know how she had stumbled upon refining the Little Wandering in her previous life. Not only was its combat power extraordinary, but it could even restrain Huo Zhen’s Crimson Lotus Hellfire.

She hoped she could successfully refine it in this life too.

The carriage wheels rolled forward. A’Ling, tired from shopping, leaned against the carriage wall. She glanced at a package by her feet, then irritably kicked it. The package opened slightly, revealing the heel of a shoe inside.

A’Ling pursed her lips, annoyed with herself. She probably had too much money with nowhere to spend it. Why did she buy these things? But since she had already bought them, A’Ling decided not to waste them.

“Driver, don’t go back to the east side for now. Head to the north side first.”

A’Ling thought, she’d just drop the items off with Jin Siliu and leave, not wasting another word on her.

At the Tranquil Shade Herb Hut behind Hongjian Academy, it was utterly silent after nightfall, broken only by the occasional faint cries of an unknown animal.

Shi Qingqian lay back in a rattan chair, gazing at the few scattered stars beside the full moon in the sky, which seemed superfluous and fragmented.

Apothecary Yang Xia returned from outside. Seeing Shi Qingqian still in the same posture as when she left, she wondered what Shi Qingqian was thinking. She tossed a dark purple box onto Shi Qingqian’s lap. “The Meteorite Crystal you wanted has been found.”

Shi Qingqian lowered her head, picked up the box, opened it for a glance, and then closed it again.

Apothecary Yang Xia frowned, puzzled by Shi Qingqian’s cold attitude. “Just a few days ago, you were rushing me to find this item to refine a magic artifact. Now that it’s finally found, why aren’t you happy?”

Shi Qingqian held the box without responding, her thumb lightly tracing its surface. She continued to gaze at the superfluous stars in the dark blue sky. Apothecary Yang Xia was used to her taciturn nature, so she tossed another bag of items to her.

“I got these for you from the dining hall. Eat more when you’re free. Look at your complexion; it’s as pale as paper every day, making people feel uneasy.”

Shi Qingqian opened the bag she held, glanced inside, and saw it was full of red dates…

Shi Qingqian looked at Apothecary Yang Xia doubtfully, her gaze seeming to ask if Apothecary Yang Xia was joking.

Apothecary Yang Xia didn’t look at her, busy turning over the Lover’s Grass that was moonbathing outside. She said to herself, “You lost so much blood today. Besides taking medicine, you should also be more careful normally. You haven’t achieved abstention from grains yet, so eating more blood-nourishing foods won’t hurt.”

As she spoke, Apothecary Yang Xia suddenly thought of Shi Qingqian’s competition today. She hadn’t gone to watch it live this time, but she had gone last month when she had nothing to do.

“Just look at Gu Jingyang, who competes with you every month. Look at that girl, her complexion is rosy and she looks so vibrant; people just naturally like her when they see her.” As a medicine cultivator, seeing such a healthy complexion truly brightened her mood. Unlike Shi Qingqian, seeing her always made her heart pound with worry.

“People like her?”

She was about to continue speaking when Shi Qingqian, whom she thought wouldn’t respond, suddenly spoke. Her voice was so low it sounded like a murmur, but Apothecary Yang Xia heard it clearly.

Apothecary Yang Xia nodded affirmatively. “No one dislikes such a healthy and lively girl.” Especially for an elderly medicine cultivator like herself. She didn’t say the rest of her thought; she didn’t want to admit she was old. She actually couldn’t quite remember how old she was anymore.

While Yang Xia struggled to recall how many hundreds of years old she was this year, she picked up a bamboo sieve and brought the dried herbs indoors.

Shi Qingqian looked at the purple box in her hand. Her index finger lightly pressed against the box’s latch, and with a gentle push upwards, the box clicked open. Inside, a Meteorite Crystal lay quietly, shimmering with a dark purple glow. Shi Qingqian’s eyes also reflected a crystalline purple shimmer. She quietly observed it for a moment, then reached into the bag on her lap, pulled out a bright red date, and crunch—

Apothecary Yang Xia, who had come out to continue collecting herbs, paused. She silently looked up at the sky; it was still the same moon.

Why was Shi Qingqian so receptive to advice today?

A’Ling had been busy for two days, and finally, she had bought all the items she needed, leaving her in high spirits. Especially since she hadn’t seen Shi Qingqian at home these past two days; life couldn’t have been more pleasant.

Two days passed quickly, and today was the day A’Ling and her companions were to hunt the Ferocious Beast. A’Ling was in a great mood early in the morning. But just as she stepped out of her room, Aunt Sun came to her, worriedly telling A’Ling that Shi Qingqian hadn’t returned home yesterday. She even asked A’Ling why Shi Qingqian hadn’t come home.

How would A’Ling know why Shi Qingqian hadn’t returned home? Her not coming home had nothing to do with her, and who knew, maybe she was off doing something shady.

Seeing that A’Ling truly didn’t know, Aunt Sun sighed and went to prepare breakfast, leaving A’Ling in a bad mood early in the morning.

Thinking of Shi Qingqian’s arrogant look after defeating Gu Jingyang, A’Ling felt annoyed. She glanced at the white wall beside her; the drawing cursing Huo Zhen had vanished without a trace. A’Ling raised an eyebrow, walked into the courtyard, kicked a Jujube tree, caught a falling Jujube fruit, crushed it, then walked to the white wall and swiftly drew an image of Shi Qingqian knocked to the ground.

Caption: Shi Qingqian, crawl for me.

Just like her Universe pouch incantation.

After finishing the drawing, A’Ling suddenly felt a little melancholic. Gazing at Shi Qingqian on the wall, and thinking of her formidable, almost heaven-defying talent, could she truly step on her? Without two seconds of hesitation, A’Ling thought of the story Gu Jingyang told about turtles fighting. She had also heard another story in the mortal realm when she was little: The Tortoise and the Hare.

A turtle keeps crawling and crawling; it doesn’t necessarily lose. If she kept cultivating, she would eventually reach the Soul Transformation realm, and perhaps even break through to the Mahayana realm, eventually ascending to immortality.

A’Ling looked at the arrogant face in the drawing, took a deep breath, and forcefully threw the Jujube fruit in her hand against the wall. Bright red juice splattered across the drawing’s skirt.

A’Ling’s eyes blazed with fire. “Today, in the beast hunt trial, I’m going to defeat Shi Qingqian and get the Qi-Gathering Primordial Pill!”

With Shi Qingqian absent, A’Ling had the carriage all to herself. She comfortably reclined inside, nibbling on the corn pancake she hadn’t finished that morning. As A’Ling chewed on the sweet corn pancake, she thought to herself that she would definitely not achieve abstention from grains. There were countless delicacies in this world, and she still wanted to try them all. In her previous life, her biggest annoyance was the lack of good food in the Demon Realm. And it was a hassle to get out of the Demon Realm. Thinking of her previous life, it had been truly hard. In this life, she had to live a different kind of life. Speaking of which, the Gu family’s food was really good. It was just that eating there could be exasperating, otherwise, if she had the chance, she’d want to mooch a few more meals.

Upon arriving at Hongjian Academy, A’Ling stepped out of the carriage and immediately spotted Gu Jingyang beneath the academy’s majestic gate, causing her to pause. The other person was clearly waiting for her specially.

Gu Jingyang saw A’Ling and walked over with a smile. She had been quite bored resting at home these past two days, thankfully A’Ling had kept her company with chats in the evenings. It was just that A’Ling’s attitude during their conversations was a bit too superficial; she needed to make some demands.

A’Ling saw Gu Jingyang approaching, and remembering what she had done, felt a little guilty. Her smile even turned a bit unnatural.

“So early? Are you waiting for me?” A’Ling waved her hand stiffly.

Gu Jingyang smiled and pulled her hand down. “I’m already in front of you. Why are you waving?”

A’Ling smoothly lowered her hand and scratched the side of her face. “Do you need something from me?”

Gu Jingyang nodded. “The Phoenix Feather messages I sent you—”

Before she could finish, A’Ling raised her hand again as if swearing. “I listened!”

Gu Jingyang’s eyes curved into crescents. “I know, but your replies are truly too simple. No matter what she said, A’Ling’s reply was always just ‘Received.’ Can’t you say something else besides ‘Received’?”

A’Ling’s heart settled. She pursed her lips and nodded. “Alright, I’ll say something different next time.” After saying this, a wave of secret delight washed over her. Indeed, her mind wasn’t just ordinarily sharp. She felt like wagging her tail for coming up with such an idea, if only she had one. A’Ling had set up a corner in her room, collecting all of Gu Jingyang’s Phoenix Feather messages there. The two sound-eating birds and two sound-translating birds were divided into two shifts: one sound-eating bird and one sound-translating bird per group, working in rotations. One was responsible for converting Gu Jingyang’s messages into text, and the other was responsible for swallowing the sound, making it inaudible to A’Ling in the same room. With these two shifts, the papers filled with translated text from the sound-translating birds had already piled up two meters high in the past two days, almost reaching the ceiling. When A’Ling woke up in the morning, she randomly pulled out a few sheets to read: the turtle named ‘Crooked Neck’ loved bananas from Yunnan; the Gu manor’s fountain would start changing its design tomorrow; ten narcissus flower buds had bloomed in Gu Jingyang’s room… After reading, A’Ling applauded her own brilliance once again. And her replies—those were the shining light of her wisdom. Back in the Hundred Birds Garden shop, the moment she realized Ling Ersan could mimic her voice, she came up with this plan. It was Ling Ersan who had replied ‘Received’ to Gu Jingyang.

A’Ling stifled her laughter and promised Gu Jingyang she would send different replies next time.

Gu Jingyang saw her smiling happily and felt a bit suspicious. “Why are you so happy?”

A’Ling pinched her cheek, trying her best not to laugh. “Aren’t I just happy thinking about participating in the beast hunt trial?”

Gu Jingyang was even more bewildered by A’Ling’s thought process after hearing that. “Your opponent is Shi Qingqian; how can you laugh?”

A’Ling laughed even more happily. “It’s precisely because it’s her that I’m happy. Don’t worry, I’ll definitely get revenge for you today and let her taste defeat.”

Gu Jingyang couldn’t help but narrow her eyes, sizing A’Ling up and down. “Are you still half-asleep?”

It wasn’t that Gu Jingyang wanted to discourage A’Ling; it was simply that after knowing Shi Qingqian’s abilities, she knew there was no way they could win today’s competition. Shi Qingqian’s team only needed Shi Qingqian herself to deal with their entire team.

A’Ling patted Gu Jingyang’s shoulder and said mysteriously, “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely lead you to victory.”

Gu Jingyang glanced at her patted shoulder, then at the very excited A’Ling. She lowered her voice and leaned into A’Ling’s ear, asking, “Are you going to beg Shi Qingqian to go easy on us?”

A’Ling took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to hit Gu Jingyang. “Can’t you show some backbone?! You lost once and now you’re afraid of her?”

Gu Jingyang shook her head. “Not just once. Strictly speaking, I’ve never won.”

A’Ling’s mouth twitched. She pressed down on one of Gu Jingyang’s shoulders again. “Then you must remember today. Today, you will defeat Shi Qingqian for the first time.”

Gu Jingyang reached up, took A’Ling’s hand off her shoulder, and squeezed it hard. “Wake up! What nonsense are you spouting in broad daylight?”

A’Ling gasped and quickly pulled her hand back.

“Don’t believe me, then don’t.”

Gu Jingyang: “Of course I don’t believe you, unless you beg Shi Qingqian to go easy on us.”

“Pah! Who wants her to go easy?! Just you wait and see how I defeat her.”

Gu Jingyang nodded. “Alright, I’ll be watching with wide eyes.”

Seeing that Gu Jingyang clearly still didn’t believe her, A’Ling said no more. When the time came, she would let her strength speak for itself.

The two chatted and laughed as they walked towards the Heart Cultivation Hall on the east side of Hongjian Academy. Upon arriving, they found many people already there.

The cultivation instructor leading the team had also arrived; it was Qi Leshan. A’Ling saw him looking her way and knew bad luck was coming. Sure enough, she heard him say in a sarcastic tone, “As newcomers, you still don’t know to arrive early and interact more, so you don’t drag down the whole team later.” He was looking at A’Ling when he spoke. Although he didn’t name her directly, everyone knew who he was talking about.

Those few from Class E-6, who already disliked A’Ling, chimed in sarcastically, “Maybe she has a private tutor. She’s different from us newcomers; it’s good to be good at buttering people up.”

Zhao Diqing, looking alarmed, tugged at the speaker and whispered a reminder, “A’Ling has a bad temper; don’t provoke her.”

When she said that, the person who had just spoken became even more indignant. “What, am I supposed to be afraid of her? A new cultivator who just entered Foundation Establishment, and is ranked last! Don’t tell me she won’t even be able to hit the Ferocious Beast’s fur later.” Her words were full of mockery, and some people around them chimed in with chuckles.

A’Ling also chuckled. “Well, that’s true. I’m second to last, and the last-ranked one is in your team. You’d better be careful not to drag down the entire team by not even being able to hit the Ferocious Beast’s fur later.”

As soon as her words fell, Zhao Diqing’s eyes instantly turned red. She sniffled and choked out, “A’Ling—”

Before she could finish, A’Ling reached out and interrupted. “Don’t try to butter me up. I only just managed to butter up my own captain by myself. The things she teaches me, I’ll only share with my own teammates at most. If you’re envious, then go butter up your own captain. What? You can’t butter up Shi Qingqian, or does Shi Qingqian simply not want to teach you lot? Tsk, tsk, tsk, can’t blame her, teaching you might be a bit of a struggle.”

“You!” The person who had just mocked A’Ling for buttering people up was enraged, her face turning scarlet. A’Ling was actually mocking them for wanting to butter up but failing. She wanted to say, ‘Who wants to butter up Shi Qingqian?’ but then she felt that if she said that, Shi Qingqian might be displeased if she heard it. If she said she wanted to butter up, then she had just mocked A’Ling for doing so. Both options were blocked, and her face turned from crimson to purplish-red with anger. If not for seeing Gu Jingyang standing behind A’Ling, she would have truly wanted to tear her mouth apart.

Zhao Diqing, with red eyes, stepped forward and pulled her back. “We’re all cultivators from the same class. We’re opponents this time, but we’ll still be classmates tomorrow. Let’s not damage our harmony.”

The person’s eyes lit up upon hearing this. Right, once they returned to Class E-6, Gu Jingyang wouldn’t be there. With more of them, were they truly afraid of teaching a lesson to a Foundation Establishment initial stage good-for-nothing?

Gu Jingyang frowned, her gaze towards Zhao Diqing growing sharper.

A’Ling felt that in this life, her mind might truly be working better. Or perhaps, once she saw someone clearly, it was harder to be deceived again. She also heard the ill intent in Zhao Diqing’s words. But it didn’t matter. She admitted she couldn’t defeat Shi Qingqian, but if she couldn’t handle these trash, she might as well ram her head against the Jujube tree at home and die.

Qi Leshan had remained silent when Zhao Diqing and the others were ganging up on A’Ling. But when he saw the situation turn around, he immediately began to enforce discipline.

“What are you all arguing about? Cultivators prioritize cultivating their hearts. If your heart isn’t calm, what’s there to talk about cultivation? Some people just have too much hostility, which is why their cultivation progress is so slow—” He was about to say more when his gaze fell upon a figure entering from outside the Heart Cultivation Hall. He immediately stopped speaking and went to greet her with a beaming smile. “Qingqian, you’re here. We were just waiting for you.”

A’Ling felt a wave of disgust seeing Qi Leshan’s discriminatory behavior. She pursed her lips. If she had been the last to arrive, she definitely wouldn’t have received such treatment.

Shi Qingqian expressionlessly said she was late, showing not a hint of embarrassment.

Hypocrite, A’Ling thought, glancing away immediately. She mentally reviewed the talisman drawing method she had spent two days devising. This was her secret weapon, the key to victory later.

Seeing that everyone was present, Qi Leshan led all the cultivators participating in the trial towards the Demon-Binding Cave behind the mountain.

A’Ling walked at the very back of the group, slowly drawing the talisman she would use in her palm as she walked. Gu Jingyang glanced over with a smile, and knowing what A’Ling was doing, didn’t speak to disturb her. She sped up, catching up to Shi Qingqian, who was a few steps ahead, and started chatting about their last competition. She was still a bit curious when Shi Qingqian learned the spell to transform into a Qilin.

After A’Ling finished drawing the talisman once, she looked up and saw Shi Qingqian walking ahead of her. She was dressed in white, spotless. Just how many sets of these plain, style-less white clothes did she even own?!

Suddenly, A’Ling noticed Shi Qingqian’s hand, hanging by her side, clutching something red in her palm. Today was the beast hunt trial, and A’Ling thought Shi Qingqian had brought some special weapon. She squinted, studying it carefully for a while.

A red date…

What use is that?