Chapter 5

Two days later.

After finishing her evening lessons, Qin Zhiyue held the pale purple jade pendant in her hand, feeling something peculiar in her heart. She raised the pendant and narrowed her eyes as she examined the side of its hollow carving. Sure enough, she discovered a tiny character for “Mian.”

With this jade pendant, she could move freely through not only Ningxue Peak but practically the entire sect.

How should she put it? As expected of Xiao Weimian. She was simply that confident, handing over the chief disciple’s personal token without hesitation.

Qin Zhiyue held the pendant and thought for a moment before hanging it conspicuously from her waist. She picked up the rusty sword from the Eight Immortals table again and felt a profound headache coming on. If she had not lost the memories of her previous life, she would have taken a very wide detour the moment she saw Xiao Weimian instead of becoming entangled in this love gu affair.

Sure enough, one must never pick up a protagonist from the roadside. Qin Zhiyue sighed bitterly with regret.

But asking an ordinary person like her to reach Foundation Establishment within a short time seemed even less efficient than simply stabbing her to death with a sword. Xiao Weimian would probably be delighted to fulfill that request.

Forget it. She was talking nonsense.

Her most urgent task was to figure out how to escape Xiao Weimian. Who knew how much patience Xiao Weimian had left? Qin Zhiyue had no desire to become involved in the female lead’s path to proving her Dao.

At that thought, Qin Zhiyue circulated the spiritual energy in her dantian, but it remained dry and depleted. The damage to her spiritual meridians had yet to heal completely. This sort of injury was not especially severe for an outer disciple, but recovering from it required a long time, and no one cared about an outer disciple.

Reach Foundation Establishment and enter the inner sect, or fail to reach it and die. She had to choose between trouble and death…

Unless she could find the Saintess of the Hehuan Sect. Qin Zhiyue racked her brain but could recall only the character description she had briefly mentioned in the novel: the Saintess of the Hehuan Sect, bewitchingly beautiful and seductive, with unmatched expertise in creating gu.

To be honest, Qin Zhiyue could no longer remember much. Everything she could recall revolved entirely around Xiao Weimian—the closer something was to Xiao Weimian, the more clearly Qin Zhiyue remembered it.

After all, Xiao Weimian was the only character she had spent so much time shaping.

Once her punishment at the Scripture Pavilion ended, Qin Zhiyue finally decided to test the jade pendant by venturing into the First Sword Sect’s inner sect.

She was then smoothly intercepted by that familiar senior sister. For the first time, Qin Zhiyue deeply resented how different the outer disciple uniform was from the inner disciple uniform. Even with such an ordinary, forgettable face, she could not blend in.

“Junior Sister, what brings you to the inner sect?” The senior sister who often served as Zifei’s aide called out to Qin Zhiyue for no other reason than that this junior sister was behaving far too suspiciously.

The moment the person before her turned around, the senior sister exclaimed, “Qin Zhiyue!”

“What a coincidence, Senior Sister Lu!” Qin Zhiyue greeted her enthusiastically. “Are you out for a walk too? Or did you come to admire the stars?”

Lu Li suppressed the twitching at the corner of her mouth and asked coldly, “What are you doing here?”

“Senior Sister Lu, I’m looking for someone. Could you make things a little easier for me?” Qin Zhiyue asked shamelessly.

Lu Li brushed away Qin Zhiyue’s approaching hand. “I am patrolling this area tonight. If you don’t want to be taken away for questioning tomorrow, you should leave immediately.”

Seeing that she had no way to sneak inside on her own, Qin Zhiyue reluctantly pulled open her outer robe, then looked confidently at Lu Li.

“Qin Zhiyue!” Lu Li angrily rebuked the ill-mannered junior sister before her.

“Senior Sister Lu.” Qin Zhiyue smiled bitterly. “How can you look at my access token if you close your eyes?”

Access token? Lu Li’s eyes abruptly opened, and her gaze moved downward. Qin Zhiyue’s uninhibited gesture had startled her so badly that she had not even looked carefully.

The purple jade pendant seemed exceedingly familiar, but even after thinking for a long time, Lu Li could not remember whose token it was. She mentally reviewed every familiar inner disciple, yet still found no answer.

At last, something occurred to her, and she tentatively asked, “Did Elder Ming give it to you?”

“Who?” Qin Zhiyue did not understand at first. After turning it over in her mind, she realized Lu Li meant Ming Xueshi. “It wasn’t Elder Ming.”

Qin Zhiyue was somewhat bewildered. Could Xiao Weimian’s belongings truly be this useless? She had assumed this jade pendant would silence anyone who challenged her, yet Lu Li did not even recognize it!

How could Xiao Weimian be doing so poorly for herself? Qin Zhiyue silently lamented.

“Don’t say anything yet.” Lu Li looked solemn. “I feel as ​unauthorized copy​though I’ve seen it before. I definitely remember it.”

But where had she seen it? There were only a few people she encountered regularly. Excluding impossible candidates such as the Sect Leader, Venerable Liu, and Senior Sister, who else could it be?

“Since you are already here, why haven’t you entered?” An icy voice interrupted the confrontation between Lu Li and Qin Zhiyue.

“Senior Sister?” Lu Li instinctively called out.

Xiao Weimian inclined her head slightly, her questioning gaze falling upon Qin Zhiyue.

Qin Zhiyue immediately smiled. “Senior Sister, I happened to encounter Senior Sister Lu just now, so we exchanged a few pleasantries. I’m coming now.”

The aloof, unattainable beauty did not answer, but a trace of impatience appeared at the finely shaped corners of her eyes.

Under Lu Li’s utterly dumbfounded gaze, Qin Zhiyue waved goodbye and leisurely walked toward Xiao Weimian.

“Junior Sister, you should remain focused on your cultivation,” Xiao Weimian said ​stolen content​without looking aside.

“Senior Sister is absolutely right. This junior sister has learned her lesson.” Qin Zhiyue’s voice carried a trace of laziness.

Lu Li stared blankly as the two left side by side, still feeling as though she were dreaming. She could not shake the impression that Xiao Weimian’s words had been directed at her and had even carried a faint note of warning.

But why would Xiao Weimian warn her because of Qin Zhiyue? Just because she had exchanged a few extra sentences with Qin Zhiyue?

Moreover, these two should have had absolutely nothing to do with each other, yet when they stood together, they somehow possessed an eerily harmonious air…

Qin Zhiyue followed closely behind Xiao Weimian to her cave dwelling, taking each step somewhat nervously.

“Senior Sister?” Qin Zhiyue looked at the cave dwelling’s completely bare interior in bewilderment. This was far too shabby.

Xiao Weimian’s snow-dusted lashes trembled slightly. A thin veil of mountain mist seemed to cover her deep black eyes, obscuring them while emanating a mysterious sense of danger.

“Sit,” Xiao Weimian said indifferently.

Qin Zhiyue would have liked to thank her politely, but where was she supposed to sit? There was not even a proper cushion in the place.

Seeing that Qin Zhiyue remained motionless for so long, Xiao Weimian formed a hand seal and forcibly pressed her onto a cold stone.

Understanding dawned on Qin Zhiyue. So this stone was the seat?

How environmentally friendly and completely natural. Before her backside could even warm the stone, something cool encircled her wrist. Xiao Weimian had taken hold of her hand.

Although their skin was touching, Qin Zhiyue felt as though the area around their hands was even colder than the stone beneath her.

Qin Zhiyue was forced to raise her head and look at Xiao Weimian, but before she could speak, surging spiritual energy suddenly poured through the meridians in her wrist. That icy spiritual energy slowly repaired Qin Zhiyue’s damaged meridians, even healing some old injuries that had accumulated over the years.

By the time she finished regulating her breathing and opened her eyes again, four hours had passed. The woman before her had her red lips lightly pressed together, and the faintest sheen of sweat seemed to cover her snow-white face. The red diamond-shaped mark on her forehead made her cold beauty appear even more bewitching.

Qin Zhiyue’s gaze slowly traced Xiao Weimian’s features. She looked exactly like the female lead Qin stolen content Zhiyue had once imagined. Her expression involuntarily became complicated, so when those phoenix eyes abruptly opened, Qin Zhiyue had not yet managed to conceal all her lingering emotions.

“Junior Sister Qin.” Xiao Weimian rose, the wrinkles in her skirt smoothing out as it fell, leaving her every bit the image of elegance and nobility. “I have repaired your damaged spiritual meridians. You may return at the same time tomorrow.”

“Senior Sister, were you the one who pleaded with the Sect Leader on my behalf?” Qin Zhiyue suddenly asked. When Xiao Weimian remained silent, she continued, “Thank you, Senior Sister.”

Qin Zhiyue did not believe that Zifei would have completely refrained from interfering in the matter of the love gu afflicting them without Xiao Weimian mediating behind the scenes.

Xiao Weimian lowered her eyes, her black hair resting neatly against her chest. Her lips were slightly pale from expending so much spiritual energy, and their corners curved into a fleeting smile. “There is no need. It did not truly count as pleading on your behalf. I merely asked Master to grant me three months.”

Qin Zhiyue understood. Was she truly that confident? Because she believed she could resolve the matter in the fastest and most effective way possible, had she chosen a three-month deadline so it would fall before the sect competition?

“Senior Sister…” Qin Zhiyue pressed her lips together and called out hesitantly.

“What is it now?” Xiao Weimian’s expression did not change, but after expending so much spiritual energy, she appeared especially unapproachable, giving the impression that she was particularly difficult to deal with.

“My legs have gone numb. Could I trouble Senior Sister to pull me up?”

Xiao Weimian: …

Oh, come on. She rarely cultivated for such a long time. Qin Zhiyue looked somewhat innocent before a cold hand seized hers and pulled her to her feet.

She possessed enough self-awareness to know that Xiao Weimian was probably eager to meditate and recover her spiritual energy. An overachiever like her had to be extremely anxious right now, so Qin Zhiyue had better make an obedient exit.

By the time Qin Zhiyue left Xiao Weimian’s cave dwelling, the sky outside had turned completely dark. She suddenly stopped at the entrance, her expression becoming unreadable as though something had confused her.

Which direction had she come from just now?

A contemplative look flashed through Qin Zhiyue’s eyes. There were only two choices. She might as well pick one and circle back if it was wrong.

The peaks housing the inner disciples stretched endlessly into the distance and were extremely numerous. Qin Zhiyue’s expression turned unpleasant. She seemed to be lost. Forget choosing between two paths—she could no longer find the way back at all.

Qin Zhiyue stepped into a hole. She seemed to be wandering into increasingly remote territory. Xiao Weimian’s cave dwelling was already ​bailiantales.com​situated in a relatively isolated location, yet Qin Zhiyue appeared to have ventured even deeper into the mountains, where the surroundings were more desolate still.

“Aaaaaah!”

Qin Zhiyue covered her ears. “…”

At the same moment, she rapidly retreated. Accompanied by the scream, a dark figure crashed heavily in front of her, sending dust flying into the air.

Qin Zhiyue looked at the writhing… fellow disciple on the ground, her expression somewhat awkward. The young woman lying there had disheveled hair, though two buns could still vaguely be seen. After considering it, Qin Zhiyue asked, “Junior Sister, are you all right?”

“Do I look all right to you?!” The voice sounded exceptionally youthful and charming. Its youthfulness came less from the girl’s actual age than from the fearlessness and innocence in her tone and expression.

It was precisely for this reason that Qin Zhiyue had addressed her as Junior Sister. After all, disciples who had spent many years in the sect would never behave so carelessly.

“Hey, you.” The filthy junior sister climbed to her feet, revealing a round, childlike face. “Which peak are you from, Senior Sister? Why haven’t I seen you before?”

The young woman revealed a smooth forehead and a beautiful face. She had a pair of bright, cunning eyes. Although her features leaned toward seductive and striking, her young age softened them considerably. She looked at the somewhat foolishly dazed outer senior sister before her and asked with great interest.

“Am I so beautiful that Senior Sister was stunned speechless?”

“Yin Wu.” A clear, melodious voice immediately captured all of Qin Zhiyue’s attention.

Yin Wu’s expression stiffened. Guilt and fear instantly appeared in her eyes, and she seemed extremely wary of the newcomer. She nimbly climbed to her feet, brushed the dust from her clothes, then turned around with an ingratiating smile.