Chapter 4
“Cough…”
She stopped abruptly, turned, and grabbed hold of an ancient pine tree beside the path, her fingers digging deep into its rough bark.
Without warning, she coughed up a mouthful of dark-red blood. The thick blood was mixed with fragments of damaged internal organs, and a glaring crimson stain instantly blossomed across the front of her pale robes.
Shi Cimo closed her eyes and leaned weakly against the tree trunk. A sharp, piercing ringing filled her ears, drowning out every other sound. Her surroundings blurred and swayed before her eyes as she gasped for breath. With trembling hands, she fumbled a pill out of her storage ring and swallowed it in one gulp. The warmth released as the medicine dissolved barely managed to suppress the cold energy rampaging through her meridians. Only then did she let out a long breath, though the rusty taste of blood lingered in her throat.
Shi Cimo wiped the blood from her lips, a vicious glint surging in her eyes.
When Leng Qianqiu had remarked that she’d handled matters with “remarkable impartiality,” he’d deliberately infused his words with the oppressive power of a Soul Formation cultivator. Wave after wave of that pressure had struck her, aggravating her internal injuries and leaving her spiritual meridians aching.
That damned old bastard. He’d mocked her for using her position to settle personal grudges, yet had he ever stopped to consider who had founded the tradition of treating Qingji Peak’s laws and regulations as personal weapons in the first place?
Shi Cimo raised her hand and stared at the blood still wet on her palm, letting out a cold laugh.
Ever since she had arrived at the Tianyan Sect as a child, pain and injury had clung to her like a disease eating away at her bones. Whenever Song Che encountered a fortunate opportunity or gained some sudden enlightenment, Shi Cimo inevitably found herself facing all manner of trouble and danger.
For example, when Song Che broke through to a new cultivation realm and became the youngest Golden Core cultivator at the age of twenty, Shi Cimo had been meditating and cultivating tirelessly, day and night. Yet her spiritual energy had suddenly gone berserk, severing her meridians and causing her cultivation to regress to the middle stage of Foundation Establishment.
Song Che’s path was smooth and effortless, while every step Shi Cimo took was fraught with hardship.
There had scarcely been a single good day in the past ten years. Repeated internal injuries had left her body terribly weakened, and she had only managed to keep herself going by relying on medicinal pills. Every day, she used spiritual energy to temper her body and purge impurities. Yet even so, neither her cultivation speed nor her physical condition could reach its peak. Simply recovering her late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation had already exhausted nearly all her strength and energy.
The backlash from their intertwined destinies was remarkably efficient. Song Che had only just entered the Frozen Ravine, and already Shi Cimo’s injuries were troubling her again.
The Frozen Ravine… Leng Qianqiu, you really can’t bear to let your precious darling suffer, can you?
Forcibly suppressing the surging blood in her chest and the dizziness clouding her mind, she straightened her back and continued toward her secluded little courtyard on Qingji Peak, keeping her steps as steady as possible.
＊
When she pushed open the courtyard gate, she encountered that familiar resistance once again.
“QUAAACK—!”
A noisy swarm of yellow fluffballs rushed toward her feet. Shi Cimo staggered half a step and grabbed the doorframe for support. Completely oblivious, the ducklings began pecking at the bloodstained hem of her skirt.
The mother duck, its feathers sleek and glossy, waddled over. Its beady eyes glanced sideways at her disheveled appearance, and a low gurgling sound came from its throat, almost as though it were mocking her.
For a moment, Shi Cimo recalled the scene from several days earlier when she had confiscated this entire flock of ducks. The Law Enforcement Hall had received complaints from several disciples about wild ducks running around everywhere and leaving droppings behind. Shi Cimo had immediately sensed that something was wrong. The situation felt so familiar that her temples had begun throbbing.
Later, when she led a group of disciples to investigate, she had indeed found Song Che sitting in a tree with her legs crossed, casually dangling an iron cage filled with ducks from one hand. Upon seeing Shi Cimo arrive, Song Che had looked up at her and actually smiled.
She hadn’t cared in the slightest about being caught. Her explanation was that the immortal cranes were too skinny, and if she wanted to make soup, nothing beat an ordinary domestic duck from the mortal world.
Shi Cimo had found the sheer stupidity of it almost unbearable.
She pulled her skirt free, then teleported forward and kicked the mother duck straight into the pond. Watching it flounder helplessly in the water eased some of the resentment in her heart.
Ignoring the ducks, she dragged her exhausted body toward her room. Her complexion, which was usually somewhat pale, had long since turned deathly white.
The ducklings continued chirping noisily, giving her a headache. She reached back and slammed the door shut with a bang. Unable to hold herself up any longer, Shi Cimo leaned against the cold wooden door and slowly slid to the floor. The chill that perpetually lingered over Qingji Peak seeped through her thin clothing and penetrated deep into her bones, leaving even her fingertips trembling slightly.
She closed her eyes, darkness repeatedly washing over her vision. Only after resting for quite some time did she manage to support herself against the wall and struggle back to her feet.
She was running low on healing pills.
Tossing the jade bottle back into her storage ring, Shi Cimo took out several packets of medicinal herbs instead and slowly made her way toward a corner of the meditation room.
A bathing tub stood there, reaching roughly half the height of a person.
She formed a hand seal, drawing mountain spring water into the tub. Then she opened the packets and poured all the medicinal powder into the water.
Before long, warm steam began rising from the tub, carrying the bitter yet refreshing fragrance of medicinal herbs.
She removed her disciple robes, stained with blood and dust, leaving only her undergarments. But instead of immediately stepping into the bath, she gathered her long, loose hair, which cascaded down her back like a waterfall of black ink. Then, barefoot on the cold floor, she silently approached an old-fashioned dressing mirror covered in dust in the corner of the room.
The bronze mirror reflected a pale, disheveled figure whose features were marked by deep exhaustion. Her face was reasonably delicate, but otherwise rather ordinary.
She looked down at her neck, where a thumb-sized jade ring pendant hung. Its color was a dull gray, and it appeared entirely unremarkable.
Shi Cimo rubbed her thumb over the pendant, feeling the faint warmth it had retained from resting against her skin.
Then she channeled a thread of spiritual energy into her fingertips.
Click.
The pendant flickered briefly before falling dormant once more.
But the reflection in the mirror underwent an astonishing transformation, as though its bones were being reshaped and its skin replaced.
Her originally plain, unremarkable features gradually softened and transformed into ones of exquisite beauty.
Her previously dull, pale skin took on the flawless, luminous whiteness of cool jade.
Her dark eyes resembled glazed glass submerged in a frozen pool, cold and distant. Their outer corners tilted slightly upward, lending her an innate sharp, alluring beauty. Illness had tinged those corners with a faint, breathtaking flush of red, adding a touch of fragile, tragic beauty to her appearance.
Her bone structure was exceptional, and her features were stunning. Even her sickly complexion could not conceal her incomparable beauty.
Yet not even such a breathtaking face could overcome the oppressive gloom and irritation in its owner’s expression. One glance was enough to make the heart tremble. She was dazzlingly beautiful, but she radiated a dangerous aura that warned strangers to stay away.
This was Shi Cimo’s true appearance.
Or rather, Chimo’s.
Staring at the long-unseen face in the mirror, one that was at once familiar and strangely foreign, Shi Cimo fell into a daze.
Unconsciously, she raised her hand and gently touched the mirror where the striking redness lingered at the corner of her eye.
Her gaze was filled with emotions too complicated to decipher.
There was also confusion, weariness, and profound exhaustion.
After a moment of silence, she turned and walked back toward the bathing tub.
—
News of Song Che’s punishment spread through the Tianyan Sect like a massive boulder thrown into a tranquil lake, instantly stirring up enormous waves.
Several days later, Shi Cimo happened to need an old record concerning the formation arrangements on the back mountain, which meant making a trip to the Document Archives beside the sect’s main hall.
Ordinarily, she disliked leaving Qingji Peak and had little interest in interacting with other people.
As soon as she stepped onto the broad bluestone path leading toward the main peak’s square, she keenly sensed countless gazes, some open and others concealed, turning toward her.
She was long accustomed to such attention. Her expression remained cold as she continued on her way.
The air was filled with hushed, oppressive whispers, like countless tiny mosquitoes buzzing around her ears.
“Look, it’s her…”
“…That cold-faced fiend from the Law Enforcement Hall… Always walking around with such a miserable face. Who’s she trying to impress…”
“Senior Sister Song really fell into her hands this time… Body tempering in the Frozen Ravine. Just thinking about it hurts…”
“Hmph! She only got a few days of temporary authority over law enforcement because Senior Sister Mu fell ill, and now she’s throwing her weight around, determined to make Senior Sister Song suffer!”
“Exactly! Senior Sister Song is such a nice person. Sure, she likes fooling around a little, but she’s never acted superior to ordinary disciples like us…”
“I heard she’s caught Senior Sister Song more than a dozen times! She watches her like she’s some kind of thief! I bet she’s just jealous of Senior Sister Song!”
“Word has already spread outside the sect that Senior Sister Song was forced to suffer such a severe punishment by one of her own fellow disciples. She’s so jealous of Senior Sister Song that she doesn’t even care about her reputation anymore. It’s downright embarrassing…”
Several inner disciples were gathered in a pavilion at the edge of the square, speaking neither too loudly nor too softly, just enough for Shi Cimo to hear them clearly.
The others made no effort to conceal their contemptuous, angry, or gleefully curious gazes as they stared at her. It was as though she weren’t a disciple enforcing the sect’s regulations, but a sinister, mean-spirited petty villain who couldn’t tolerate anyone more talented than herself.
Of course, in certain respects, they weren’t entirely wrong.
Shi Cimo kept her gaze straight ahead and maintained her steady pace. Their words stirred not the slightest ripple in her heart. Her dark eyes remained perfectly calm as she looked forward, an aloof, unapproachable aura surrounding her.
She walked straight across the square toward the Document Archives adjoining the sect’s magnificent main hall. Registering her request and retrieving the records, she carried out every procedure with rigid efficiency.
When the disciple on duty at the archives accepted her identification token, his fingers were slightly stiff, and his expression was peculiar. He didn’t dare meet her eyes, as though she were some terrifying monster.
Shi Cimo couldn’t have cared less. She took the jade slip containing the formation information, turned, and left.
She had barely taken a few steps beyond the archives’ threshold when—
“Clang—!”
A sharp, piercing whistle suddenly tore through the air. A fierce blade of sword energy shot straight toward Shi Cimo’s back.
Shi Cimo reacted instinctively the instant she heard the sword energy slicing through the air. Her body moved faster than she could think. Without turning around, she tapped the ground with the tip of her foot and twisted sharply at the waist, contorting backward at an incredibly agile angle before leaping several steps away.
The sword energy swept past her, shattering the bluestone paving and carving a deep gouge into the ground.
“Shi Cimo!”
A clear female voice rang out, unmistakably furious, cutting through the oppressive atmosphere like a sharp blade.
Shi Cimo glanced sideways at the gouge in the ground, stared at it for several seconds, then slowly raised her eyes.
A figure dressed in brilliant red, as flamboyant as fire, approached on a flying sword. She wore a neat, fitted martial outfit.
It was Qin Lingxuan, a disciple of Reverend Yeluo of Bibo Peak.
Qin Lingxuan held a sword in one hand. Her heroic features were now blazing with undisguised fury, and her piercing gaze was fixed directly on Shi Cimo.
She gritted her teeth, enunciating every word. “You’ve got some nerve.”
She was also at the late stage of Foundation Establishment and was among the few disciples of the Tianyan Sect’s younger generation with exceptional talent in swordsmanship.
Of course, most importantly, she was one of Song Che’s most devoted followers.
“…”
Shi Cimo looked at Qin Lingxuan’s face, flushed red with anger. Her voice showed not the slightest fluctuation. “What exactly are you referring to, Junior Sister Qin?”
“What am I referring to?!” Shi Cimo’s composure only made Qin Lingxuan angrier. “Stop playing dumb! Senior Sister Song was sentenced to suffer body tempering in the icy spring of the Frozen Ravine and copy scriptures a hundred times. Wasn’t that all your doing? The Frozen Ravine! Is that even a place fit for a person to stay?!”
The entire square fell silent.
The surrounding disciples immediately turned their attention toward the two women, and the air filled with the tense excitement of spectators anticipating a good show.
“I don’t know whether the Frozen Ravine is suitable for other people,” Shi Cimo replied, her expression unchanged as she looked at the red-clad woman opposite her. Her tone remained flat. “But judging by your behavior, Junior Sister Qin, you seem rather eager to experience it yourself.”
“Volume Seven, Article Two of the Sect Regulations: publicly attacking a law enforcement disciple. Article Five: publicly attacking a direct disciple. It seems Junior Sister Qin is also eager to compete for the top spot on the disciplinary rankings. Unfortunately, I doubt you’ll be as lucky as Senior Sister Song and have my master show you such consideration—”
Shi Cimo stared directly at Qin Lingxuan, refusing to yield an inch. She sneered. “Junior Sister Qin, are you perhaps eager to experience the Five Great Punishments yourself?”
“Shi Cimo!” Qin Lingxuan was beside herself with rage. Her grip on her sword tightened until it creaked, and her entire body trembled with fury. Yet she genuinely didn’t dare attack again.
“…Stop using the regulations to threaten me!” She glared viciously at Shi Cimo. “You’re nothing but someone who climbed to her position through underhanded, dirty means—”
Before she could finish, a hard, icy object suddenly hurtled straight toward her face, whistling through the air!
Qin Lingxuan’s pupils contracted sharply. Instinctively assuming it was a concealed weapon, she flicked her wrist and swept her sword horizontally with a fierce rush of wind.
“Clang—”
With a crisp ringing sound, the object was violently knocked away. It tumbled several times through the air before crashing onto the bluestone pavement nearby with a clatter.
It wasn’t a concealed weapon.
It was a palm-sized, circular jade disc. It lay quietly among the cracks in the shattered stone. Despite taking a powerful blow from Qin Lingxuan’s sword, not a single crack marred its surface, which still shimmered with a faint, gentle glow.
“It’s a jade disc!”
Someone in the crowd recognized it and cried out in surprise.
The Law Enforcement Hall’s jade discs were exclusive to its inner disciples. Whenever information was entered into one, it automatically synchronized with the Law Enforcement Hall’s database, which recorded every disciplinary violation committed throughout the Tianyan Sect. The discs also served as symbols of the law enforcement disciples’ authority and identity.
“…”
Qin Lingxuan’s sword remained raised in front of her. The anger on her heroic face had yet to fade, but it was now mixed with stunned bewilderment. She stared at the jade disc on the ground, momentarily unable to comprehend what had happened.
The surrounding whispers instantly died away. Countless gazes fixed on the small jade disc, and everyone held their breath.
A jade disc belonging to a direct disciple of Qingji Peak.
The highest level of authority.
“Not convinced?”
Shi Cimo’s voice was exceedingly cold, though careful listening would reveal a faint trace of anger beneath it. She made no attempt to conceal her mockery.
“Pick it up and see for yourself. Thirteen disciplinary violations. The dates, locations, and witnesses are all recorded.”
Qin Lingxuan’s complexion alternated between green and white. Her fingers tightened around her sword hilt until her knuckles turned pale.
In front of everyone, Shi Cimo actually dared to treat her like this, even ordering her around so brazenly!
Of course Qin Lingxuan knew that Song Che had genuinely broken the rules, and quite a few times at that.
But for so long, these direct disciples had all been regarded as the sect’s outstanding prodigies, figures admired and revered by everyone. When had any of them ever been punished so mercilessly?
Especially Song Che. She was the most dazzling among them all. Even when she behaved outrageously, her extraordinary talent and strength were enough to make the elders turn a blind eye. There was always someone willing to cover up or smooth over her violations, and matters had never escalated to such a serious extent.
Only Shi Cimo!
That dog of the Law Enforcement Hall, stubbornly clinging to them, refusing to let Song Che go!
Why did she have to be so incapable of getting along with everyone else…?
Qin Lingxuan bit her lower lip so hard that it almost hurt. The fury in her eyes seemed ready to burst into flames. She wanted nothing more than to kill the infuriating woman standing before her, yet the invisible threat of the Law Enforcement Hall’s Five Great Punishments kept her rooted to the spot.
“What? Afraid to look?” Shi Cimo’s mockery was merciless, each word pressing harder than the last. “Is this all the courage the eldest senior sister of Bibo Peak possesses? You’re only brave enough to launch a sneak attack from behind, but when confronted face-to-face, you don’t even dare acknowledge the facts?”
The evidence was irrefutable.
Those words reverberated through Qin Lingxuan’s mind. Never before had she found the notion of irrefutable evidence so utterly disgusting.
“You bitch…”
She ground the words out through clenched teeth.
Just as Qin Lingxuan was practically choking on her anger in the face of such undeniable evidence, Shi Cimo suddenly moved without warning.
Her figure flashed forward like a ghost, moving so quickly that the onlookers saw nothing but an afterimage. In an instant, she had closed the distance to within three feet of Qin Lingxuan.
“!”
Qin Lingxuan’s pupils contracted. She hadn’t even seen how Shi Cimo had moved. By the time she reacted, the bitter fragrance of medicinal herbs, mingled with the faint scent of blood, had already reached her nose.
Impossible! She’s clearly at the late stage of Foundation Establishment, just like me!
Qin Lingxuan’s eyes widened as an icy chill shot straight to the top of her head.
Shi Cimo paid no attention to what she was thinking. She leaned forward slightly, bringing her lips almost to Qin Lingxuan’s ear, and slowly spoke in a low, husky voice that only the two of them could hear.
“Qin Lingxuan…”
There was a strange smile in her voice, like a venomous snake gently flicking its tongue against Qin Lingxuan’s ear, making her scalp prickle.
“Three months ago, Song Che secretly picked an Ice Crystal Snow Soul Lotus and was caught by Senior Sister Mu. Tell me, why would someone at the middle stage of Golden Core need an Ice Crystal Snow Soul Lotus, something only Foundation Establishment cultivators require? Qin Lingxuan, I hear you were a witness. What are your thoughts on that?”
Qin Lingxuan’s pupils contracted slightly. All the color drained from her face in an instant, and her eyes filled with disbelief and astonishment.
The disciples watching nearby were both surprised and curious. All they saw was Shi Cimo leaning close to whisper a few words, after which Qin Lingxuan’s expression changed drastically, prompting another round of hushed speculation.
“And another thing.”
Shi Cimo wasn’t finished with her. Her voice dropped even lower, taking on a maliciously playful tone.
“On the seventh day of this month, in the side hall of the Library Pavilion, was that damaged one-of-a-kind copy of the Danxia Notes really ruined because Song Che accidentally knocked over some spirit ink? Or was it… some idiot who couldn’t master a sword technique and tore the book apart in a fit of frustration?”
Qin Lingxuan’s eyes widened. It felt as though something had exploded inside her head.
How could she possibly know? How could she know?!
“You…”
Her lips trembled as she stared at Shi Cimo, whose face was mere inches away and whose cold eyes regarded her as though she were a lifeless object. Qin Lingxuan felt as though she were looking at a venomous snake flicking its tongue in her direction.
Shi Cimo’s eyes reflected Qin Lingxuan’s miserable expression, and she smiled.
“Why weren’t you complaining about the fierce winds back then?”
With that, she stepped back twice, straightened, and put some distance between them, as though those devastating words had been nothing more than a figment of Qin Lingxuan’s imagination.
Shi Cimo calmly swept her gaze across the surrounding crowd. Wherever her eyes passed, everyone fell silent in fear.
Then, as though addressing Qin Lingxuan and everyone else at once, she let out a soft laugh.
“Even a rabid dog dares to run wild before the Law Enforcement Hall?”
Everyone’s expressions immediately became quite a sight, especially those inner disciples who had deliberately spoken ill of Shi Cimo loudly enough for her to hear.
Shi Cimo paid them no attention.
She bent down and picked up the cold jade disc from the ground with two fingers. Flicking it lightly with her fingertips, she brushed away dust that wasn’t even there. The casual movement carried an unmistakable air of sarcasm and disdain.
She put the jade disc away, turned coldly, and walked off at an even, unhurried pace. Passing through the utterly silent crowd, she headed straight toward Qingji Peak beneath countless complicated gazes.
She had encountered this sort of confrontation, with people hurling insults right in her face, no fewer than dozens of times since childhood.
By now, she was thoroughly practiced at dealing with it, remaining as unshakable as a mountain.
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