Chapter 2
【In that case, I think you should start preparing for the Immortal Hunt as soon as possible, Host.】
…It had originally assumed this was the story of a deranged elder and his pitiful disciple, who had finally reached the limit of being controlled.
After all that, they seemed more like a desperate single father dreaming of his son’s success and an obedient daddy’s boy.
The system no longer had the energy to criticize Qin Youzhou and Ying Weiye’s bizarre master-disciple relationship.
【Once each plot checkpoint ends, I’ll award you points based on how much you altered the original plot. Those points can be used to purchase certain high-grade spiritual treasures. I hope they’ll be useful to you.】
【If you have no more questions, I’ll send you back now.】
“There’s one last thing.”
Qin Youzhou stared fixedly at it.
“What happened to my master at the end of the original story?”
Among the memories he had received, there were very few scenes involving his master.
And in those pitifully few scenes, they were either arguing or fighting.
The “Ying Weiye” whose face was filled with disappointment and whose words were sharp and extreme already felt unfamiliar to him.
But the “Qin Youzhou” who spoke disrespectfully to his master for the sake of a man he had known for only a few years was even more incomprehensible.
Everything concerning his master abruptly ended in the first lifetime, when Qin Youzhou broke with him and rushed out to find Dai Yang.
【I’m sorry, Host. I don’t know either.】
The system fell silent for a moment before blinking apologetically.
【The backgrounds of minor characters are usually incomplete. If the novel never wrote it, then he simply has no ending.】
“All right. I understand.”
The entire sect had been slaughtered.
His master’s ending could not have been a good one.
Perhaps not knowing was for the best.
As long as Qin Youzhou could rewrite it, that was enough.
The light screens descended, and the register he had not yet had time to put down reappeared in Qin Youzhou’s hands.
The disciples around him were still laughing and chatting as though everything that had happened within the light screen had merely been his imagination.
He handed the register to a fellow disciple who had been staring at it eagerly for ages, then hurriedly disappeared into the crowd.
After walking for a while, he removed his glass spectacles and blinked tiredly.
He had been injured while taking human form, leaving him with poor eyesight ever since.
Without his spectacles, he could not distinguish men from women from more than a meter away, nor humans from animals at three meters.
Fortunately, his other four senses were excellent, so he could still manage daily life without them.
He headed straight toward Xuanxing Peak.
He had told his master that he would return before noon.
If he walked quickly, he could still make it on time.
The other peaks remained beneath clear skies, but as he approached Xuanxing Peak, a fine drizzle began to fall.
Dark clouds pressed down over the summit, and chaotic spiritual energy produced by an impending tribulation scattered in every direction.
Ying Weiye had already been in seclusion for three months in preparation for breaking through to the middle stage of the Mahayana Realm.
Yet the heavenly tribulation that should have arrived long ago had still not appeared.
It seemed he would need to remain in seclusion for some time yet.
The rain dampened Qin Youzhou’s collar.
As he opened his umbrella, he looked up at the bolts of lightning occasionally splitting the black clouds.
His master’s breakthrough did not appear to be going smoothly.
Qin Youzhou brushed away a dead leaf that had been blown onto his shoulder, carefully avoided the puddles scattered across the uneven path, and entered Xuanxing Peak.
Of the Five Peaks, it had the most luxuriant vegetation, with apricot blossoms blooming throughout all four seasons.
The mountain was quiet and isolated.
Only master and disciple lived there, and their residences were situated in the same courtyard.
Qin Youzhou lived on the eastern side.
His master lived on the western side.
Between them stood the secluded meditation chamber Ying Weiye used for breakthroughs.
Qin Youzhou stopped before the chamber.
Demon cultivators were prone to madness during breakthroughs.
Because of that, Qin Youzhou had already bound the door shut with black iron chains and added three layers of barriers.
His voice, however, could still pass through the door.
“Shizun.”
He called out once.
The chamber remained completely silent.
There was not the slightest response.
Only fire-aspected spiritual energy, carrying a scorched and agitated heat, lingered around the building without dispersing.
“I met with the Sect Master at the hour of the dragon today. He said tomorrow there will also be…”
Suppressing his concern, Qin Youzhou gently reported the day’s events to Ying Weiye.
Even by the end, however, he did not mention the Immortal Hunt.
Rumble—
A muffled roll of thunder sounded just as Qin Youzhou finished his report.
“…Shizun, please take care of yourself.”
He quietly added the words.
The rain silently eased.
Without his noticing, a line of sentient spirit herbs capable of walking had gathered behind him.
They stood in an orderly queue, waiting for Qin Youzhou to trim their leaves and branches.
“Bugu!”
A plump little ginseng root enthusiastically threw itself into his arms, kicking its short legs and acting spoiled.
It was a spirit herb he had raised since childhood, named Jiezi.
“Don’t rush.”
Patiently, Qin Youzhou trimmed away the withered leaves, applied insect-repelling ointment, then placed each herb back into its pot one at a time.
Afterward, he skillfully prepared a meal for himself and used a spell to clean his clothes.
【Host, doesn’t anyone help you with these chores?】
The system was puzzled.
It remembered that the novel had stated that even outer disciples like Dai Yang did not need to wash their own clothing.
“They’re only small matters. There’s no need to trouble anyone else.”
Qin Youzhou tasted a mouthful of radish soup.
The tiny ginseng Jiezi, who had been clinging beside him, immediately hugged its own frail little body in terror.
Finally, Qin Youzhou packed the leftover soup into separate containers and placed them in the ice cellar.
The garnishes in each portion were arranged neatly and attractively.
【You’re so domestic!】
The system practically drooled as it watched.
Unfortunately, since it could not eat, it could only stare longingly.
Qin Youzhou had already grown accustomed to this.
He smiled and paid it no further attention.
That night, Qin Youzhou, who had always been a light sleeper, suffered from insomnia.
Perhaps because so many unfamiliar memories had suddenly been forced into his mind, he was plagued by nightmares all night long.
In one, to justify delivering food specifically to Dai Yang, he cooked meals for all his fellow disciples as well.
In the end, Dai Yang poured his portion away because it did not suit his tastes.
In another, Qin Youzhou argued fiercely with his master.
He shoved Ying Weiye away and ran out of their home into the pouring rain.
…Then, a moment later, blood blurred his vision.
The suffocating sensation of impending death surrounded him.
Every meridian in his body ached as though it were being drilled through, yet he was unable to close his eyes.
The lenses of his spectacles lay shattered across the floor.
His fair hands were covered in cracks, filth, and blood.
Except for the face Dai Yang had liked, there was not a single uninjured patch of flesh left on Qin Youzhou’s body.
He startled awake at the hour of the rabbit.
When he came back to himself and looked out the window, the gentle tribulation rain had already become a torrential downpour.
Fortunately, his master’s spiritual energy had not gone completely out of control.
It was only somewhat more chaotic than before.
Following Ying Weiye’s previous instructions, Qin Youzhou reinforced the seals on the meditation chamber door, then set off early for Chengyun Peak, where the Sect Master resided.
“Well, well. Little Junior Brother Qin.”
Qin Youzhou had just reached the foot of Chengyun Peak when a shrill voice approached from the distance.
The cultivator was half a head shorter than Qin Youzhou.
He was fairly handsome, but there was something oily and slippery about his appearance.
He flicked the horsetail whisk in his hand and gave a falsely pleasant smile.
“You see your senior brother and don’t even greet him. Aren’t you lacking in manners?”
“Senior Brother Li, I didn’t see you just now.”
Qin Youzhou’s thoughts were focused on the Immortal Hunt.
He responded neither humbly nor arrogantly.
“My apologies.”
The Five Peaks of the sect were arranged in order:
Chengyun Peak, which cultivated the sword path;
Qingyue Peak, which cultivated spellcraft;
Miaoxue Peak, which cultivated music;
Xuanxing Peak, which cultivated medicine;
and Longling Peak, which cultivated beast taming.
They surrounded a valley that served as the sect’s central square and connected to the sect’s grand defensive formation.
Li Minglu, the personal disciple of Qingyue Peak, had the worst relationship with Qin Youzhou among the four personal disciples of their generation.
Li Minglu looked down on medical cultivators.
He always believed they were cowards who hid behind others and merely provided support.
He frequently tried to provoke Qin Youzhou by claiming that spell cultivators were superior and more prestigious than medical cultivators.
Thus, when Qin Youzhou saw in the original story that the other personal disciples had died defending the sect while Li Minglu defected to Dai Yang, he was not surprised.
Ignoring Li Minglu’s obvious displeasure, Qin Youzhou sat down and began reading his medical text.
“Putting on airs.”
Li Minglu sneered and transmitted his voice to the cultivator following beside him.
“A half-blind medical cultivator acting so self-important. He’ll get what’s coming to him.”
A while later, a baby-faced female cultivator dressed in green rushed inside.
“Senior Brother Qin, Senior Brother Li, I’m late!”
She was Yun Luoyi, the personal disciple of Longling Peak.
She was only a little over eighty years old.
Qin Youzhou set down his book and smiled as he nodded to her.
“You’re not late. There’s still half a quarter of an hour.”
“Junior Sister.”
Li Minglu put on an exaggerated smile and waved her over.
“Come sit beside your senior brother.”
“Thank you, Senior Brother.”
The female cultivator gave Li Minglu an awkward smile, then chose a seat slightly closer to Qin Youzhou.
“Eldest Senior Sister is out exterminating evil, and Senior Brother Yu ran off to have fun. It looks like only the three of us will be here today.”
Unable to tolerate Li Minglu’s offensive attitude, she stiffly began a conversation with Qin Youzhou.
“According to past practice, they should choose two people.”
She pulled a miserable face.
“My cultivation isn’t high enough, so I probably won’t be selected, but I still wanted to come and see.”
“The Immortal Hunt is exhausting work. Men can handle it.”
Li Minglu immediately cut in.
“Junior Sister only needs to remain in the sect and await our good news.”
“You won’t know the result unless you try.”
Qin Youzhou comforted the indignant female cultivator.
“Junior Sister cultivates beast taming. You’re actually well suited for it.”
In the novel, the Sect Master had made Qin Youzhou, a medical cultivator, take the place that should have belonged to a beast cultivator.
That had been deeply unfair.
Li Minglu’s expression darkened for a moment.
Pretending to joke, he said, “Junior Brother, don’t be ridiculous. Once we’re inside the mountains, with that scholarly appearance of yours, will you even be able to protect Junior Sister?”
Yun Luoyi frowned.
“I don’t need anyone to protec—”
She spotted a white-haired, long-bearded elder standing in the doorway and hurriedly stopped speaking.
“Sect Master!”
The elder had a kindly, benevolent appearance.
He looked around at the disciples who had risen to greet him.
His gaze lingered particularly long on Qin Youzhou, filled with approval.
“Sit.”
The argument that had nearly erupted was forcibly suppressed.
“I’ve spent a long time considering the candidates for this Immortal Hunt.”
After exchanging a few meaningless pleasantries, Sect Master Lü Quechen’s complicated gaze once again settled on Qin Youzhou.
“Taking your masters’ opinions into account, Minglu and Luoyi will attend this Immortal Hunt.”
The moment those words fell, all three disciples froze.
Even Li Minglu had not expected Lü Quechen to exclude Qin Youzhou, the disciple he regarded most highly.
Li Minglu secretly gloated over finally besting his junior brother.
Yun Luoyi, however, looked toward Qin Youzhou with concern.
She wanted to go, but she still felt the arrangement was unreasonable.
“Luoyi needs experience, while Minglu has already overseen the Immortal Hunt several times.”
Seeing their varied expressions, Lü Quechen pondered for a moment.
“It’s settled. Prepare yourselves properly over the next few days.”
“Youzhou, remain behind. I have something to discuss with you.”
Qin Youzhou gently shook his head at Yun Luoyi, who looked as though she wanted to say something.
He ignored Li Minglu’s smug expression.
“The truth is, I wanted you to go.”
Once the other two had left, Lü Quechen finally sighed.
“But before your master entered seclusion, he specifically instructed me not to allow you to leave the sect until he emerged.”
“However, if you wish to go, I can still keep it from him and arrange for you to join them.”
“This disciple does wish to go, but joining the expedition as an overseer at this point would be improper.”
Suppressing his confusion, Qin Youzhou replied calmly.
“Please permit me to follow secretly as an ordinary disciple instead. There is no need to inform anyone else.”
That way, he would have greater freedom to take action.
Lü Quechen frowned.
“You understand that if you merely accompany them, all achievements will be credited to your senior brother and junior sister.”
“This disciple understands.”
“…Very well. If you’re willing, then go in that capacity.”
Lü Quechen was somewhat disappointed.
He sighed again.
“If you remain with your master and obey him, he certainly treats you well, but…”
His voice stopped abruptly.
“Forget it. You never listen when I speak of this, so I won’t continue.”
Qin Youzhou was the most talented among all the personal disciples.
No matter what path he cultivated, he could easily master it.
Moreover, his fate was one that could strengthen Yinxiao Sect’s immortal destiny.
Lü Quechen had always hoped Qin Youzhou would become his own disciple.
But Qin Youzhou was exceptionally stubborn.
He insisted on remaining on the most remote and impoverished Xuanxing Peak, following the worst elder in the sect.
Lü Quechen had never been able to persuade him otherwise.
Qin Youzhou quietly waited until he finished, then politely declined.
“I am grateful for the Sect Master’s regard, but my answer remains the same as it was twenty years ago.”
The small meeting concluded in an awkward atmosphere.
【Host, in the original novel, you and Li Minglu were the ones who attended the Immortal Hunt. Your master never tried to stop you.】
The system remained confused throughout the journey.
【Something isn’t right!】
“We’ll observe the situation.”
The novel had brushed over the meeting in a single sentence.
It had only stated that Qin Youzhou was present during the Immortal Hunt, Li Minglu became frightened by a ferocious beast and tried to flee, and Qin Youzhou rushed forward to save Dai Yang.
Viewed lightly, the current outcome was no different.
Viewed more seriously, however, his master’s behavior was highly abnormal.
Strangely enough, the instant Qin Youzhou stepped within the boundaries of Xuanxing Peak, the violent downpour from moments ago abruptly weakened.
After reporting his whereabouts to Ying Weiye, Qin Youzhou returned to his simply furnished room.
He continued his orderly, disciplined routine—one most cultivators would find impossibly dull—until the sky gradually darkened.
【Host…】
The system spoke weakly.
【I keep feeling a chill around here.】
It felt like the place was haunted!
“Xuanxing Peak is rather poor. One of the windows may simply be old and damaged.”
Qin Youzhou closed the window that had been creaking in the wind and patiently reassured it.
“Don’t be afraid.”
At first, he had assumed the system was some vicious evil spirit.
After spending two days with it, however, he had discovered it was merely a timid and talkative special spirit.
Qin Youzhou had never been stingy with his protection toward any well-intentioned human, demon, monster, or spirit.
【All right. Thank you, Host.】
The system became dizzy with emotion at his gentle attitude.
【To avoid spying on your privacy, I’ll shut down now. Go to bed early, Host.】
After sending the system away, Qin Youzhou stared at the clean tabletop and sorted through his chaotic thoughts.
At last, a trace of exhaustion appeared on his face.
He took a wooden box from a drawer and removed a square piece of white candy, placing it into his mouth.
The milk candy was filled with crushed peanuts and carried a rich, creamy fragrance.
It was a recipe his master had taught him.
His master knew how to cook many strange dishes.
Qin Youzhou had never been able to recreate the exact same taste, nor had he ever met anyone else who could.
When he thought of Ying Weiye, Qin Youzhou felt resentment—but even more guilt and unease.
He resented his master for confining him within the sect for years without ever explaining why.
Yet he also felt guilty because he was deceiving him in return.
Creak—
A faint sound came from behind him.
Qin Youzhou abruptly turned around.
There was only a door that had been blown halfway open by the wind.
Through the pitch-black crack, a thin sliver of light from the eternal lamp outside seeped into the room.
But he remembered locking the door.
Qin Youzhou sensed no unfamiliar spiritual energy, so he could only rise and close it.
Through the window, he looked once more toward the meditation chamber.
Everything appeared undisturbed.
Night enveloped Xuanxing Peak.
A faint, almost imperceptible scent of blood drifted from the meditation chamber, only to be concealed beneath layer upon layer of powerful medicinal fragrance filling the courtyard.
A hoarse scraping sound, as though something hard were dragging across the floor, briefly sounded from within.
It quickly fell silent again.
The next morning, Qin Youzhou noticed something was wrong.
At some point during the night, a layer of fire-aspected spiritual energy at the Mahayana Realm had silently enveloped the area outside his room.
The energy had gathered into a barrier covering the entirety of Xuanxing Peak.
“It’s Shizun’s spiritual energy.”
Qin Youzhou first attempted to leave by gentle means.
When that failed, he worried that his master might notice during his breakthrough and reluctantly stopped.
【He deliberately imprisoned you?】
“It may only be spiritual energy leaking unconsciously during his breakthrough.”
Qin Youzhou watered the writhing gu herbs, weakly defending him.
In truth, whenever Qin Youzhou had shown an intention to leave the sect in the past, his master had used the same method.
…Perhaps his master was monitoring him even while in seclusion.
A chill crawled through Qin Youzhou’s heart.
He forced himself to reject the uncomfortable thought.
The Immortal Hunt would take place in eight days.
He had to get out.
【Don’t worry, Host.】
Noticing his concern, the system reassured him carelessly.
【The plot checkpoint will create all kinds of coincidences to force you outside. Just sleep peacefully and think about how you’ll deal with Dai Yang. You’ll definitely be able to leave when the day comes!】
Since the system was not particularly reliable, Qin Youzhou still prepared a backup plan.
In secret, he drew a talisman capable of breaking formations.
Using it to break the barrier would certainly alert his master.
But if necessary, he would have no other choice.
Qin Youzhou never expected the system’s words to become prophecy.
And the “coincidence” that forced him to leave would come at an enormous price.
Eight nights later, Qin Youzhou was once again tormented by nightmares.
He awakened amid the roar of thunder.
A continuous deluge swept across Xuanxing Peak.
One bolt of lightning after another struck the meditation chamber, each more powerful than the last.
The rain was violent enough to beat every tree and plant toward the ground.
Yet it could not wash away the scent of blood drifting from the chamber.
Qin Youzhou rushed out into the storm.
Lightning illuminated half his face, making it appear deathly pale.
At his feet, pale red rainwater trickled down the steps.
“Shizun!”
He had no time to wipe the water blurring his spectacles.
He called desperately toward the person inside the chamber.
Only even fiercer heavenly thunder answered him.
The heart-protecting scale clenched in his palm remained warm.
It was the only sign that Ying Weiye had not yet been struck dead.
The barrier confining Qin Youzhou had already shattered beneath the repeated lightning strikes.
Yet with his head lowered, there was not the slightest joy on his face.
This was the warning sign of a failed breakthrough.
If opening the chamber door now would not cause Ying Weiye to suffer backlash, Qin Youzhou would already have broken inside.
【Host…】
The system spoke in a trembling whisper.
【Don’t worry. He won’t die.】
“How can you know that?”
Qin Youzhou remained before the door.
Golden spiritual energy flowed from his palm into the chains.
The reality of the so-called novel’s plot closed in on him once again, pressing painfully against his chest.
A heavenly tribulation of this severity was anything but normal.
To force Qin Youzhou onto the stage of the story, that invisible hand had reached toward the family beside him.
Destroying the breakthrough his master had awaited for fifty years—
That was its first warning.
【Because it isn’t yet the point in the plot… when he dies.】
The system’s voice grew increasingly faint.
A cannon-fodder character could not even decide when they were allowed to die.
Dying earlier than scheduled was not permitted.
Qin Youzhou pressed his hand against the door’s rough surface.
His fingers slowly curled inward.
“I won’t die.”
“Neither will he.”
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