After Chasing The Villain With A Clueless System - Chapter 7

How could Song Qi have imagined that not only was Hutu a clueless system, it was also a complete scam?

An absolutely outrageous scam!

It was already the dead of night. Aside from the disciples patrolling the mountain, the entire Divine Sword Sect was silent. Everyone should have been resting, yet Song Qi was still digging through the dirt on the rear mountain.

“Hutu, if you were human, I would strangle you to death!”

Song Qi ground her teeth in fury, but she did not dare raise her voice for fear that the patrolling disciples might hear her.

【That’s just how side missions are! What can I do? I’m desperate too!】

Song Qi took a deep breath and decided not to argue with this clueless system.

However, she had already been digging for an hour and had not found any jade pendant. She was even beginning to suspect that Hutu had given her the wrong location.

This side mission was truly a trap. Once accepted, it could not be canceled. If she failed, she would even lose one point of luck.

Making someone dig through the rear mountain in search of a jade pendant in the middle of the night—if she were discovered, everyone would undoubtedly think she had lost her mind.

“Oh, right, Hutu. What exactly is luck?”

Song Qi had wanted to ask before, but somehow she had forgotten. Half a month had passed before she remembered again.

【It functions somewhat like currency. Once you accumulate one hundred luck points, they can automatically negate one fatal attack. It is a passive effect. There are also items you can purchase, such as martial arts manuals, clues, and internal cultivation methods.】

Song Qi immediately perked up when she heard that.

She had not expected luck to be so useful.

“Can you show me what’s available in the shop?”

【Not right now. You don’t have a single luck point.】

After hearing that, Song Qi suddenly felt that she was definitely getting the worse end of this digging mission. In addition to the fifty taels of silver, the system ought to reward her with some of this virtual currency too.

“Hutu, apart from the fifty taels of silver, you should give me a few luck points as well, right? Consider it a beginner’s bonus.”

Hutu did not respond immediately.

Song Qi thought it was pretending to be dead again and was just about to start cursing it when its voice finally sounded.

【Fine. I’ll give you two luck points.】

“That little?”

【Take it or leave it.】

“I’ll take it! I’ll take it!”

Song Qi felt unbearably humble.

Now, not only did she have to struggle to preserve her life, she even had to struggle for luck points. With such an unreliable system, she was beginning to worry about when it might finally scam her to death.

As Song Qi continued thinking and digging, her fingers brushed against something hard.

At first, she assumed it was a stone. But when she looked carefully, she discovered a green “stone.”

Delighted, she dug out the jade pendant.

“Hutu, Hutu! Is this the one?”

【Let me scan it.】

It was a square jade pendant, pale green and exceptionally translucent. A qilin was carved on the front, while the character “Xiu” was engraved on the back.

【That’s the one. Congratulations, you’ve completed the mission!】

Song Qi blew on the jade pendant, then brushed the remaining dirt away with her hand.

“What is this pendant used for?”

【Uh… I’m not sure. My superiors said it’s a quest item for later.】

Song Qi: “…”

Fine.

She had attained enlightenment.

It seemed Hutu’s superiors were just as clueless as Hutu itself. They kept speaking in riddles and pretending to be unfathomably mysterious, when in reality, they probably had not yet figured out what this thing was supposed to be used for either!

While complaining inwardly, Song Qi patted the dirt from her clothes.

“Time to go back. If I don’t sleep soon, I won’t be able to wake up for morning lessons tomorrow.”

This was one of the things Song Qi found extremely difficult to adjust to after arriving in this world.

As an unsuccessful author who slept during the day and stayed awake all night, she had never risen this early before.

The second thing she found difficult to endure was the absence of electronic devices. For a homebody like her, it was unbearable. She spent every night tossing and turning on her bed, unable to sleep.

Now that she had finally managed to settle into this new routine, she naturally did not want to disrupt it again.

Just as Song Qi rose and prepared to return, her ears twitched.

She immediately darted behind a tree trunk.

“I can see you.”

That voice…

Song Qi lowered her head and slowly stepped out from behind the tree, peering guiltily at the white-robed figure in the distance.

“Senior Sister Bai, couldn’t sleep either? Did you come out to enjoy the breeze?”

After speaking, Song Qi let out a few dry laughs.

The laughter could not have sounded more awkward.

She could hardly admit that she had come out here to dig holes in the ground!

“I’m responsible for patrolling the mountain tonight.”

Bai Luoyin did not waste time speaking nonsense with Song Qi. For the sake of security, she needed to determine why Song Qi was wandering around the rear mountain.

“Tell me the truth. What are you doing here?”

Bai Luoyin went straight to the point, leaving Song Qi no room to evade the question.

“I came here to practice.”

Song Qi sighed.

Then Bai Luoyin asked, “What about those holes in the ground?”

“…I was checking whether anyone had left behind a martial arts manual.”

The moment Song Qi finished speaking, she immediately unleashed her gift of gab.

“You know my martial arts aren’t very good, and my talent isn’t very high either. I have to try every possible method. Don’t laugh at me for indulging in fantasies. I simply don’t want to fall too far behind my fellow disciples.”

Song Qi spoke with deep emotion.

From within the darkness, however, she heard Bai Luoyin laugh softly.

That laugh was clearly telling Song Qi: Do you honestly think I believe you?

【Even I want to laugh at that excuse.】

Song Qi nearly unleashed a dragon’s roar.

【And whose fault is that?!】

Bai Luoyin said nothing. She merely approached Song Qi at an unhurried pace.

Under the moonlight, Song Qi could faintly make out Bai Luoyin’s figure and facial features.

Beautiful as the cold, luminous moon; gentle and distant as a breeze brushing across one’s face.

That was how the novel had described Bai Luoyin, and Song Qi discovered that it was remarkably accurate.

“As long as you aren’t doing anything that harms others or violates justice, I won’t hold you accountable. But rules are still rules. It is time to rest, so return immediately.”

“Got it!”

Song Qi felt as though she had received a royal pardon and immediately turned to leave.

However, Bai Luoyin called after her.

“Song Qi.”

“What? Are you inviting me to drink?”

Song Qi pretended to be relaxed, but inwardly she was panicking badly.

She had no idea what Bai Luoyin was about to say. She constantly felt that those penetrating eyes had already seen through far too much.

“You truly are very unusual.”

“No, no. I have two eyes, one nose, and one mouth. There’s nothing unusual about me. It’s not as if I’m some alien creature.”

Song Qi casually deflected the remark, then swaggered away from the rear mountain without saying anything more.

Bai Luoyin watched Song Qi’s retreating figure.

Her brows drew together slightly, as though she were troubled by thoughts she could not resolve.

**

The day of the Young Heroes’ Assembly soon arrived.

The Divine Sword Sect’s group reached Tianshan three days ahead of schedule.

Dark clouds and bitter cold stretched frozen across ten thousand miles; beneath the railings, sheer cliffs rose amid a thousand feet of ice.

Song Qi had not expected the Tianshan of the novel to be every bit as magnificent as the Tianshan of the real world.

Cold clouds extended endlessly, and solid ice coated the cliffs. The white snow did not completely conceal the beautiful scenery of the mountain range. Lush greenery was still visible amid the frost, making the landscape appear even more towering and spectacular.

“Achoo!”

It was certainly beautiful, but it was also genuinely cold.

Worse still, the competition was being held at the summit of Tianshan. Without internal force to protect the body, this place would practically kill someone.

Song Qi had merely stepped out into the courtyard to admire the scenery, yet she had already sneezed.

“Here.”

When Song Tianxing heard her sneeze, he immediately began removing his fur cloak to drape it over her shoulders.

Song Qi stopped him.

“Brother, you need to compete. You need to take better care of yourself than I do.”

If you fail to win the championship because of this, I might as well compete myself. At least then I could catch Wen Wanxi’s attention!

Song Tianxing hesitated and did not immediately accept her refusal.

Song Qi reached out and fastened the fur cloak securely around him herself.

“I’m truly fine. I won’t get sick, so don’t worry.”

【I remember a saying from the human world that fools never catch colds. Were they talking about you?】

Song Qi: 【Shut up. You never learn anything useful, only nonsense like this!】

Song Tianxing stared at Song Qi blankly for a moment, then reached out and stroked her head.

“Mm.”

“If you feel cold, return indoors and rest.”

Song Tianxing reminded her carefully.

Song Qi nodded in agreement, but she had no intention of going back inside just yet.

She circulated her internal force to protect her body and immediately felt much warmer.

It was not often that she had the chance to visit the summit of Tianshan. Naturally, she wanted to wander around and admire the scenery so that this magnificent landscape would not go to waste.

It was rather strange.

She had originally been a complete homebody, yet now she actually wanted to walk around everywhere.

It seemed that after coming to this world, more than just her habits had changed. Certain hidden aspects of her personality had shifted as well.

Still, Song Qi did not dare wander too far.

Song Tianxing continued following her. She could not tell whether he was worried about her safety or afraid that she might cause trouble again.

Probably both.

“Hey, Brother, where are the people from the Taixu Sect staying?”

Xu Yan’s martial arts were mediocre. All he possessed was an attractive face that people admired.

Unfortunately, Song Qi did not admire it in the slightest.

In fact, she wanted to beat him up.

Once she learned which courtyard the Taixu Sect occupied, she could begin planning how to give Xu Yan a proper thrashing.

“I heard they’re staying in the eastern courtyard. Why?”

Song Tianxing was curious.

Song Qi had never interacted with anyone from the Taixu Sect, so why was she suddenly interested in their whereabouts?

“No reason. I’m just curious.”

No reason.

She only wanted to beat that scumbag until even his own mother could no longer recognize the face he was so proud of!

“Could it be that you want to see Xu Yan, who is said to be as handsome as Pan An?”

Xu Yan’s strength was unimpressive, but his reputation was considerable.

Back then, he and Wen Wanxi had been praised as a perfectly matched, talented and beautiful couple. Their romance had once been celebrated throughout the martial world.

However, after Wen Wanxi turned ruthless, killed her master, and carried out a massacre, everyone in the martial world claimed that Xu Yan had been wise to separate from her, thereby preserving the Taixu Sect’s reputation.

The separation had indeed been a good thing—but only for Wen Wanxi.

At least she had not allowed a scumbag to ruin the rest of her life.

“Do you want to see him? Shall we go together?”

Song Tianxing naturally had no particular interest.

However, seeing Song Qi’s enthusiastic expression, he agreed.

The two walked side by side toward the eastern courtyard. Disciples passed them in both directions, and everyone nodded in greeting, even when they did not know one another.

Song Qi increasingly felt the atmosphere of the martial world around her—the kind of world where people freely repaid kindness and avenged grudges.

While staying at the Divine Sword Sect, she had felt as though she were playing some kind of character-development game, attending lessons and practicing swordsmanship every day.

Now that she had arrived here and seen all kinds of martial artists from different walks of life, she finally felt the rich and unmistakable flavor of the jianghu.

“Look. That should be him.”

The Taixu Sect’s disciples wore black-and-white Daoist robes and kept their hair and appearance neat and immaculate. They were easy to recognize even from a distance.

Among four Taixu Sect disciples, a handsome man in black-and-white robes stood in the distance speaking with his fellow disciples. A dark wooden token hung from his waist.

Elegant and striking, as handsome as Pan An.

The novel’s description had not been exaggerated.

Even so, Xu Yan still disgusted Song Qi.

Xu Yan was already twenty-eight. Naturally, he had not come to compete. He had accompanied a Taixu Sect elder who was bringing younger disciples to the assembly.

When people learned that Xu Yan would be attending, many began speculating that he might still harbor feelings for Wen Wanxi and had come especially to see her.

Yes, he had come to see Wen Wanxi.

But from beginning to end, Wen Wanxi never once looked at him directly.

That was exactly how a scumbag deserved to be treated!