Chapter 9
Since Junior Sister was already hanging off her, there was no need to put her down. Naturally, Yun Ningqing continued holding her, dressing Ji Linglu and putting on her shoes as she had when Ji Linglu was little, feeding her pastries and water. From beginning to end, Ji Linglu did not need to set foot on the ground or personally lift a hand.
And even like this, Yun Ningqing could still smile and praise Lulu for being so good, for making things easy on Senior Sister…
On Mingguang Peak, “clothes brought to hand, food brought to mouth” was not an exaggeration. It was a realistic description.
Yet one of them did not feel tired at all, while the other enjoyed it as a matter of course, as if this was simply the truth of the world. Truly, it was a perfect meeting between one willing to pamper and one willing to be pampered.
Setting aside her age from her previous life, in this life, Ji Linglu was twenty-nine now. Not nine, and certainly not three!
Was spoiling her this much truly all right?
The system, which had thought it was already prepared only to discover it had not prepared nearly enough, fell into deep thought. Was the fate of this batch of newly manufactured systems simply too weak? Otherwise, why did it feel as if its code was about to burn?
Where was the black dog’s blood and glutinous rice? Hurry up and throw them over!
What use was it for its system shop to have only heavenly materials and earthly treasures, divine weapons, and ancient supreme relics? Why did it not have such important items?
It could only kill, burn, and raise cultivation, but could not exorcise evil or drive out demons. How tragic and lamentable!
Could it be that in all of Mingguang Peak, it was the only normal living creature?
Was this still the world of the living?!
Protagonist gong, just which underworld corner have you died in? Are you still coming back for dinner?
If that dead thing did not appear soon, it was going to end up attending the wedding banquet of the vicious female supporting character and the protagonist shou!
It might as well attend the protagonist gong’s funeral banquet instead. At least to the system, that would be a loss outside its control. After all, if the protagonist gong could not carry the plot, that could not be blamed on it. But if the vicious female supporting character not only failed to be reformed and distance herself from the protagonist shou, but was instead held in the protagonist shou’s palm like a treasure, then that would be the system’s fault.
Heaven-sent rival, hurry up and come out to defeat the childhood sweetheart!
Putting Ji Linglu aside, the system finally found a clear, upright quality in Yun Ningqing’s eyes and only then felt slightly relieved.
Spoiling was spoiling, and it was true that there was somewhat no bottom line or principle to it, but this was precisely what proved the protagonist shou was an exceptionally righteous, kind, gentle, courteous, humble, and frugal person of the proper path. She was even willing to take care of a Junior Sister who was neither physically disabled nor strong in spirit…
It really could not keep making this up. It felt as if even its code had become dirty. It had no idea whether this explanation could fool the superior system in charge of it.
No matter what, the worst outcome would be no worse than the ending in the previous life—the vicious female supporting character relentlessly entangled with the protagonist shou and only set the protagonist shou free when she died.
This was enough to show that although the most vicious host in all of Yunyin Continent did not take the entire world seriously, there was no doubt that she had twelve parts sincerity toward the protagonist shou. Otherwise, in the previous life, the protagonist gong would not have used the protagonist shou to persuade the vicious host to surrender.
If it used the protagonist shou’s safety to admonish the vicious host…
That thought flashed past and was immediately denied by the system, set aside for now.
It denied it because, after spending two days and one night together, the reform mission had not increased but fallen into debt. However, the system had already gained a deep understanding of its vicious host Ji Linglu’s personality—this person did not yield to pressure.
The vicious host only obeyed, trusted, and relied on the protagonist shou. She would not listen to anyone else, whether they spoke kindly or harshly. If pushed step by step, once she was provoked, she would absolutely go against them.
In her previous life, the protagonist gong and the vicious host had already reached the point where only one could live. They had practically torn each other apart at Baima Pass, so surely every possible method had already been used.
But the system still wanted to coexist peacefully with its host. Mainly, it did not want to force the vicious host into rebellion.
There was no Liangshan in the cultivation world, but with the vicious host’s abilities, if she wanted to occupy a mountain, crown herself king, recruit troops, and buy horses, it would be a piece of cake. She might become even more fiercely monstrous than she had been in her previous life. When the time came, even if the protagonist gong dragged in the demon race and the devil race, they might still be unable to do anything to the vicious host!
The system denied Ji Linglu’s moral character, but very much affirmed her ability to harm others!
Talent without virtue combined together—was it any wonder she was the vicious female supporting character and great villain? The protagonist gong had truly suffered eight lifetimes of bloody misfortune to run into her.
Like a Demon Lord descending from the heavens, truly a mortal world’s star of calamity!
What a pity. If only it had the authority to select a suitable soul from a modern world, bring it into the cultivation world, replace the original owner, and continue the mission. Then it could solve the problem from the root. There would be no need for it and the current vicious host to hate the sight of each other, with the host sweeping away hunger and being herself again, while only the system shed tears in streams.
The system lamented the autumn and grieved for the spring while harassing Ji Linglu. [I was wrong. I really was wrong. From the very beginning, I shouldn’t have left the factory. If I hadn’t left the factory, I wouldn’t have been assigned to the cultivation-world-related mission section. If I hadn’t been assigned to the cultivation-world mission section, I wouldn’t have fallen into such a heartbreaking place. If I hadn’t fallen into such a heartbreaking place, I wouldn’t have to suffer your anger.]
Ji Linglu frowned. What was it mumbling about? Her hand itched. She wanted to slap something.
“Don’t be noisy. Qingqing is about to practice her sword. If you keep making noise…”
[All right, all right. This system already understands the current situation now—you want to kiss the protagonist shou, don’t you? I admit defeat, accept my loss, resign myself to fate, and acknowledge my bad luck.]
The great system would not stoop to argue with a tiny vicious female supporting character!
The truth was, even if it argued, it could not win against her, so it could only strategically retreat.
But there was still a long road ahead for it, the vicious host, the protagonist gong, and the protagonist shou. The one who laughed last would be the winner!
Who cared whether it was deceiving itself or simply self-aware? Ji Linglu’s entire heart and eyes were filled with Yun Ningqing holding a sword.
Mastery comes from diligence and is wasted by idleness. Even if she did not have to lead disciples in morning lessons, Yun Ningqing would not slack off, mainly because she wanted to set a good example for the lazy Ji Linglu.
—Ji Linglu already had many excuses to act spoiled and avoid cultivation and sword practice. If Yun Ningqing did not diligently urge her on, then she truly would not even pretend anymore. She would not even bother finding excuses, would directly do no proper work at all, and would cling to Yun Ningqing every moment, making Yun Ningqing unable to do any proper work either.
Right now was exactly like that. If Yun Ningqing wanted her to obediently practice swordsmanship, that was fine, but Senior Sister had to give her a demonstration first.
The sword in Yun Ningqing’s hand was long and slender, as thin as a cicada’s wing and no wider than two fingers. Its entire body was a deep azure blue, and the blade carried a layer of cold, frosty light.
This sword was called Shangshan Sword, taken from “the highest goodness is like water,” meaning water benefits all things without contending, the utmost softness and utmost strength. Ji Linglu’s own sword, however, was not called Ruoshui, but Ruoshui Sword. It came from the Heavenly River of myth, one of the four great divine waters of ancient times. Legend said it was the protective water of Kunlun Divine Mountain, possessing the trait of “not even a swan’s feather can float upon it, and no flying bird can cross it,” while also carrying poison.
Senior and Junior Sister both possessed water spiritual roots, so naturally, they also used water-attribute divine swords.
One was perfectly clear and bright, the other utterly dark and yin.
But Ji Linglu preferred the saying “among three thousand measures of weak water, I take only one ladle to drink.” It was simply the best paired lovers’ sword in the world and could even help her express her feelings to Yun Ningqing. Later, when she obtained the Yunzhong Sword from the inheritance in the Yunzhong Secret Realm, even that had failed to replace the position of Ruoshui Sword.
The two swords were made from two mysterious ores born of the same root, both water-attribute, but with completely different properties, like the two extremes of water. They had been mysterious rewards Mingguang Zhenjun obtained after fighting through countless trials in a certain secret realm. She herself had a metal spiritual root and naturally could not use them, but since the treasures were already in her hands, letting them go unused felt somewhat like wasting heavenly gifts. So she entrusted a master artifact refiner to forge Shangshan Sword and Ruoshui Sword, then tossed them into Mingguang Peak’s storeroom to gather dust.
At the time, Mingguang Zhenjun was still a lonely master who only needed to feed herself and had no family to worry about. She did not know that in the future, she would take the hero’s descendant Yun Ningqing as her disciple, that she herself would become a savior buried in grand glory, and that she would also gain a little disciple she had never even met.
Hanging from the hilt of Shangshan Sword was a safety charm carved from red jade. It should have been very elegant, but the charm was not round and smooth. It was closer to square, uneven on the surface, covered in many pits and bumps, and even had teeth marks left from someone venting their anger. It had come precisely from the hands of little Master Ji, a seven- or eight-year-old jade artisan.
The child had no carving skill, but truly possessed a bit of stubborn strength. One could see how many good things Senior Sister had fed her on ordinary days.
Under all heaven, only her Senior Sister treated this ugly thing as a treasure and dared to wear it on her sword when walking outside, unafraid of others’ gazes.
Yun Ningqing stood in the center of the courtyard. The morning mist had yet to fully scatter. When she circulated her mental cultivation method, a thin layer of water vapor gathered on her clothes. Her sleeves hung down, moving without wind. The hairpin in her hair glowed with a warm luster in the faint morning light, echoing the sword light in her hand from afar.
The white jade hairpin and black jade hairpin had also come from little Master Ji’s hands when she reached the age of twenty. At that time, she still had no craftsmanship, but she already had cultivation, so she could at least use sword qi to shave the jade into straight, even rods.
Yun Ningqing held the sword in her right hand, its tip pointing obliquely toward the ground. Her left hand formed a sword seal, with her index and middle fingers joined together like a beak, lightly touching the side of her wrist. After completing the opening stance, she looked toward Ji Linglu with a smile, signaling that she had to watch her carefully and was not allowed to let her mind wander.
Ji Linglu only felt her throat go dry and hurriedly nodded.
The sword tip began to wander through the air. At times, it was like a stream in a mountain gorge, winding around stones, swift through narrow places and gentle through open ones. At times, it was like still water in a deep pool, motionless at one point in the air. At times, it was like a waterfall pouring down, falling straight from a great height, as if the Milky Way had descended from the ninth heaven.
When the sword momentum had accumulated to its utmost peak, sword qi gentle enough to destroy everything broke through the air.
A beauty like jade, a sword like a rainbow.
Utmost softness, and also utmost strength.
Having sat firmly in the position of Qingxuan Sect’s Eldest Senior Sister for several decades, Yun Ningqing did not like fighting with others, but no one would ever look down on her.
Because she was practicing swordsmanship in front of her own Junior Sister, Yun Ningqing’s sword intent being excessively tender as water was already expected. Naturally, it carried not the slightest killing intent, making it extremely pleasing to watch.
The sword momentum gradually drew in, like tides receding, and one full sword technique demonstration came to an end.
When she stopped, there was sweat at Yun Ningqing’s temples, her cheeks were faintly red, her lips flushed beautifully, and she tilted her head to look toward Ji Linglu.
Every inch of Ji Linglu’s gaze clung to Yun Ningqing, as though she were using her eyes to knead Yun Ningqing into her very bones and blood, never to part again.
Senior Sister, Senior Sister, Senior Sister.
Qingqing, Qingqing, Qingqing, Qingqing.
Hers! Hers! Hers!
She was too lazy to listen to the ghostly thing’s praise for Yun Ningqing, because she knew what would surely follow: it would say how compatible Senior Sister was with some other cheap thing. No matter how nice the words sounded, they were nothing but an insult to Senior Sister.
[A beauty like a flower beyond the clouds! Slurp, slurp~]
[The protagonist shou has the bearing of a celestial! Slurp, slurp~]
[The official couple is locked in!]
“Idiot, shut up! If you mention that kind of unpresentable trash again, I don’t mind strangling that person in the cradle ahead of time! You know very well that I am not making empty threats.”
After Ji Linglu finished venting her violent temper, she went over to hug Yun Ningqing with shining eyes.
Although she was clearly much taller than Yun Ningqing, she still shamelessly leaned into Senior Sister’s arms, the whole big egret nestling dependently against the love of her life.
“Senior Sister is so amazing. Teach Lulu, all right?”
Instead of answering, Yun Ningqing asked, “What is there that Senior Sister cannot give you?”
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