What Should I Do When My Junior Sister Loves Me Too Much? - Chapter 2

When this strange junior sister tightened her embrace, Yu Wanyu’s brows furrowed slightly.

In the next instant, Zhu You was practically sent flying.

She did not stop until she collided with the desk she had been standing in front of just moments ago.

It hurt a little.

Zhu You stared at Yu Wanyu, looking somewhat dazed.

For some reason, Yu Wanyu even detected a hint of grievance in her expression.

As though she were bullying her.

Yu Wanyu grew a little more puzzled, though her face remained expressionless. Even the slight furrow between her brows had smoothed away.

“Draw one hundred Mind-Clearing Talismans, the kind taught in today’s lesson.”

After saying this indifferently, Yu Wanyu turned and left. It was already time for class to end, after all.

One strange junior sister was hardly enough to capture her attention. She would not linger on her account.

She had only punished this strange junior sister because she had failed to pay attention in class.

“Did you lose your mind just now?”

Once Yu Wanyu’s figure disappeared, the classroom finally emerged from its previous state of utter silence.

Bai Xi walked over to Zhu You, her mouth hanging open in astonishment. “How did you even dare to hug Senior Sister Yu?”

She did not even know what to do with her hands. Waving them around as she tried to imitate Zhu You’s earlier actions, she exclaimed in disbelief, “That’s Senior Sister Yu!”

Hearing Bai Xi’s question, the others silently turned their gazes toward them, equally curious about where Zhu You had found such courage.

Although Zhu You had a cheerful personality and was quite bold, she had always been a well-behaved student in class. What happened today had truly caught everyone off guard and left them utterly astonished.

It made them very, very eager to… hear some gossip.

Zhu You seemed to have only just returned to her senses. As though frightened out of her wits, she did not answer.

Her complexion was still somewhat pale.

She looked rather pitiful. Bai Xi could not bear it and patted her. “All right, all right. Senior Sister Yu isn’t going to eat you. Next time she comes to teach the outer sect, just apologize to her.”

She muttered, “Or maybe you won’t even need to. Senior Sister Yu probably won’t remember such a trivial matter.”

The people around them could not help nodding. Exactly, exactly. That was Senior Sister Yu they were talking about.

So they had all been eavesdropping!

They could not let these people keep watching the spectacle. Bai Xi stretched out both hands, hastily gathered their belongings, and pulled Zhu You toward the exit. “Let’s go back. We still have to get to the dining hall. Come on, come on!”

Upon hearing the words “dining hall,” the other cultivators temporarily suppressed their desire to watch the excitement and, as though by tacit agreement, rushed toward the exit.

Gossip could wait. Eating was more important!

None of them had reached the stage of bigu yet, so the sect had specially established a small dining hall for them. If they arrived early enough, they could get their hands on spiritual food.

This spiritual food was somewhat similar to medicinal cuisine, except it was not medicine and contained none of the medicinal residue that could hinder absorption.

Eating it was beneficial to cultivation, making it a rare and valuable treat for outer sect cultivators like them, who were still in the Qi Refining stage.

Ordinarily, Bai Xi would not even need to remind Zhu You. She was always among the fastest cultivators to run there and could even lead Bai Xi through shortcuts, allowing them to successfully obtain the spiritual food that was so difficult for them to come by.

But something was different today. Zhu You’s mind seemed to be wandering somewhere far away, and she did not care about food in the slightest.

Bai Xi could understand, though. Anyone who dared to forcibly embrace Senior Sister Yu would inevitably be a little abnormal afterward.

It was only after they walked out of the classroom that Zhu You finally returned to her senses and stopped in her tracks.

“Your soul finally come back?” Bai Xi teased with a grin. “No wonder you were asking me about Senior Sister Yu a few days ago. So you were planning to pull off something this outrageous today.”

She glanced left and right, lowered her voice, and asked with a mixture of caution and outrageous audacity, “Does Senior Sister Yu smell nice?”

…?!

What on earth?

Zhu You’s mind was currently filled with memories of her previous life. How could she possibly be in the mood to joke around with Bai Xi?

She had not even finished sorting through her thoughts.

Judging from her current circumstances, she must have returned to the past, to the days when she and Bai Xi were both in the outer sect.

She still needed to ask Bai Xi exactly when this was, but Zhu You was extremely wary and did not dare ask questions carelessly.

Based on her experiences in her previous life, there was a traitor within the sect.

That traitor had even begun gradually undermining the Shuanghan Sect long ago and had orchestrated the accident that led to Senior Sister Yu’s death.

Although Zhu You was currently nothing more than an outer sect disciple who would hardly attract anyone’s attention, she still did not dare reveal anything unusual about herself.

Not even during a private conversation with an old friend.

It was not that Zhu You suspected Bai Xi. But after experiencing such a devastating calamity that had destroyed the entire sect, she could only exercise caution in everything she did.

Thus, after thinking for a moment, she adopted their usual manner of interacting and replied casually, “Well, naturally—”

Bai Xi pricked up her ears, waiting for Zhu You’s answer.

“Smack!”

Suddenly, two successive sounds of impact rang out.

Zhu You covered her head as a chestnut slid down in front of her eyes.

Fortunately, its prickly outer husk had already been removed.

Beside her, Bai Xi had already started crying out in pain.

“If there’s a next time, you’d better watch out. I’ll drag both of you to the Law Enforcement Hall.” The cold, merciless voice was thick with displeasure.

Still holding her head, Zhu You looked over.

Sitting on the eaves of the classroom they had just left was a strikingly beautiful young woman. Her eyebrows were raised sharply, her arms were crossed over her chest, and her gaze was filled with disapproval. “Disrespecting your seniors and teachers! At the very least, I’ll have three months of your stipends deducted and send you to weed the medicinal herb fields for an entire year!”

“We were wrong, we were wrong! Senior Sister Hua, we were wrong!” Bai Xi instantly surrendered, practically dropping to her knees. “Please be magnanimous, Senior Sister Hua, and spare the two of us! If we lose three months of our stipends, we’ll become the first disciples in the Shuanghan Sect to starve to death! Boohoohoo!”

Hearing her address the woman as Senior Sister Hua, Zhu You remembered that this Senior Sister Hua was also an inner sect disciple, and even a personal disciple of one of the peaks.

The Shuanghan Sect had a rule requiring inner sect disciples to take turns teaching classes in the outer sect. Consequently, most outer sect disciples were at least somewhat familiar with the inner sect disciples, or could recognize their faces at the very least.

Zhu You had not noticed anyone nearby earlier. She understood that this was because her current strength was far too low.

She had already examined her body internally and discovered that her cultivation was currently only at the middle stage of Qi Refining.

Never mind the vast cultivation world. Even within the Shuanghan Sect alone, she was nothing more than an insignificant ant.

She needed to be even more cautious.

Hua Yingxue did not actually make things difficult for them. After issuing a couple more stern warnings with an unpleasant expression, she departed on her flying sword.

“We’re saved.” Bai Xi let out a long sigh of relief. No longer daring to fool around, she trudged heavily alongside Zhu You toward the small dining hall.

Neither of them spoke along the way.

Bai Xi had finally learned to behave herself, while Zhu You was busy organizing her thoughts.

How could she save the Shuanghan Sect?

As she recalled the terrible calamity of her previous life, the foul stench of blood seemed to fill her nostrils once more.

Almost all of her former fellow disciples had been reduced to mutilated remains. Their spilled blood had stained the sect’s once-pristine white jade steps crimson, turning its clear lake into a blood-red pool…

Zhu You pursed her lips.

Was her rebirth an opportunity granted to the Shuanghan Sect by the Heavenly Dao?

But…

Her?

Although Zhu You was not someone who belittled herself, before the sect’s calamity in her previous life, she had always been content to take things as they came, never obsessing over matters of cultivation.

Even so, she knew her own limitations very well.

She, Zhu You, possessed thoroughly mediocre aptitude.

In her previous life, she had spent many years muddling along in the outer sect before finally breaking through to Foundation Establishment, barely managing to enter the inner sect just before the age limit.

She remembered being twenty-six at the time. Had she broken through a few years later, at the age of thirty, she would not even have qualified to enter the inner sect. She would have had no choice but to settle down as an instructor in the outer sect.

And the sect’s calamity had occurred when she was twenty-seven.

Right. Her current age was…

“Bai Xi, what present do you want for your birthday this year?”

Hearing Zhu You’s question, Bai Xi exclaimed in surprise, rubbed her hands together, and replied excitedly, “Speaking of that—no, no, no! Don’t tell me! I won’t tell you either! We both have to keep it a secret. That’s the only way it’ll be a surprise!”

“Oh.” Zhu You nodded obediently.

Her birthday and Bai Xi’s fell close together.

Her birthday had not yet arrived, her cultivation was at the middle stage of Qi Refining, and this was also the year Senior Sister Yu was teaching classes to the outer sect disciples.

That meant she was sixteen this year.

In that case, there were still eleven years until the sect’s destruction.

And until… Senior Sister Yu’s accidental death, there were still—

“Three!”

Upon entering the small dining hall, Bai Xi practically threw herself at the serving counter. Holding up three fingers, she deliberately sweetened her voice and said ingratiatingly, “Granny, I’d like three chicken drumsticks.”

The spiritual food had long since sold out, so naturally, she had to eat more of the other delicious dishes to comfort her wounded soul.

The granny serving the food had an exceptionally steady hand. With three resounding thumps, she piled Bai Xi’s bowl full to the brim.

When it was Zhu You’s turn, she flashed a brilliant smile and spoke with heartfelt respect. “Granny, I’d like four.”

She held up four fingers.

Four years.

There were only four years left until Senior Sister Yu’s death.

Carrying her generously filled bowl, Zhu You sat down with Bai Xi in the dining hall.

She picked up her chopsticks and began pulling the meat off her chicken drumsticks.

Bai Xi was considerably less restrained. After using a spell to clean her hands, she simply picked up a drumstick and started gnawing on it.

“That really scared me to death just now.”

By this point, Bai Xi had already abandoned her newly acquired good behavior and was chattering away about gossip again. “Judging by your reaction, you probably don’t know this, but Senior Sister Hua is Senior Sister Yu’s number one admirer!”

She patted her chest with her free hand, feeling a lingering sense of danger on Zhu You’s behalf. “Thank goodness she didn’t see you hugging Senior Sister Yu. Otherwise, there would’ve been no escaping that punishment of weeding the herb fields for a whole year.”

Zhu You truly had not known about this.

After all, she could hardly be considered acquainted with Senior Sister Yu in her previous life. She had merely been one of the many disciples who listened to tales of her glorious achievements.

Later, like everyone else, she had been deeply saddened by the accident that claimed Yu Wanyu’s life.

But right now, Zhu You had no desire to concern herself with Senior Sister Hua.

During their walk here, she had already figured out what she ought to do next.

Whether she was at the Qi Refining stage or the Foundation Establishment stage, if she directly confronted the impending calamity that awaited the Shuanghan Sect, she would not even qualify as a mantis trying to stop a carriage.

Only powerful cultivators who held sufficiently important positions within the sect could possibly find a way to prevent such a disaster.

For example, the Sect Leader.

Or Sword Venerable Yuehua.

Zhu You had only met the Sect Leader a handful of times. She had no idea how she could convince him to believe her words.

Moreover, there was a traitor within the sect. If the Sect Leader failed to take her seriously and casually disclosed the matter to someone else, then forget saving the Shuanghan Sect—the next person to die would be her.

With that in mind, Zhu You was more inclined to seek out Sword Venerable Yuehua. During the final period of her previous life, she had spent nearly every waking moment with the Sword Venerable and had come to understand her to a certain extent.

However…

“You’re right.” Zhu You swallowed the food in her mouth and spoke. “Since we’ve already escaped punishment, let’s not talk about it anymore. Bai Xi, Sword Venerable Yuehua still hasn’t returned to the sect, has she?”

Indeed, Sword Venerable Yuehua disliked returning to the sect. In Zhu You’s memory, she had only briefly returned two or three times.

And even during those few visits, Zhu You had not managed to see her every time.

“That’s right.” Bai Xi continued eating, her words coming out muffled. “You still haven’t given up on that?”

Seeing her like this, Zhu You was genuinely afraid she would choke. She poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of her. “Swallow your food before you speak.”

Bai Xi gave her an extremely grateful look, picked up the cup, and gulped down a generous amount.

“Ah!” She patted her chest to settle herself, then continued, “Apart from once considering taking Senior Sister Yu as her disciple, Sword Venerable Yuehua has never accepted any disciples.”

Bai Xi gave Zhu You several appraising glances. “Although I think you’re wonderful in every way, we’re still just outer sect disciples… How about we stop dreaming about that?”

After saying this, she worried that she might have hurt Zhu You’s feelings and hurriedly added, “The selection trial for promotion from the outer sect to the inner sect is coming up at the beginning of next spring. As long as you achieve a good ranking, you can enter the inner sect without even reaching Foundation Establishment.

“Once you’re in the inner sect, even if you can’t become Sword Venerable Yuehua’s disciple, there are several Immortal Lords there who specialize in the sword, and they’re all incredibly powerful!”

Bai Xi thought that even if Zhu You could not become a personal disciple, it would still be better than remaining in the outer sect without a Shizun.

This news about the trial was precisely what Zhu You had wanted to hear.

She wanted to enter the inner sect.

In her previous life, she had not been particularly determined to enter the inner sect. Her inquiries to Bai Xi about Sword Venerable Yuehua had merely stemmed from the admiration a sword cultivator held for a distinguished senior.

Zhu You remembered that in her previous life, she had participated in this trial simply with the intention of honing her abilities.

Although she had been diligent in her sword practice, she ultimately could not compare to several of the outstanding disciples in the outer sect.

In the end, she placed seventh, while the inner sect only accepted the top three disciples.

She had not been disappointed at the time, feeling only happiness at the improvement she had achieved.

But now, Zhu You could no longer maintain such a peaceful state of mind.

This selection trial, which offered outer sect disciples a chance to advance into the inner sect, was extremely important to them. It was held only once every ten years.

If she missed next year’s trial, the next opportunity would come too late.

Zhu You clearly remembered what the black-robed figure had said: Senior Sister Yu had been born with the ability to discern treachery and evil.

If Senior Sister Yu had not died, events might very well have unfolded differently.

Moreover, although entering the inner sect would still leave her with only a slim chance of meeting Sword Venerable Yuehua, it would nevertheless be a far greater chance than she had in the outer sect.

In her previous life, she had only ever caught a distant glimpse of Sword Venerable Yuehua once while she was an outer sect disciple.

Zhu You quickened her eating pace.

“What’s wrong?” Bai Xi asked, bewildered. She hurriedly sped up as well. “Zhu Xiaoyou?”

Zhu You raised her head. Her bowl had already been completely emptied. “I think you’re right.”

“Starting today, I’m going to cultivate even more diligently so that I can enter the inner sect.”

After saying this, she stood up. “Take your time eating. I’ll head back first. Help me clear away my bowl and chopsticks afterward. Thanks!”

“Hey, hey! Wait for me! I’m coming too!”

Damn this mouth of mine! Hurry up and eat!

Bai Xi began shoveling food into her mouth.

Zhu You had already hurried back to the small residence assigned to her.

These little houses provided for outer sect cultivators accommodated two people each, with a partition dividing the room down the middle. The arrangements were fairly decent.

She and Bai Xi were roommates.

She went straight to her side of the room and took out the iron sword she used for practice.

The blade, forged from black iron, reflected Zhu You’s face.

The faint smile she had habitually worn in her younger years had completely disappeared. An indistinct, suppressed emotion lingered within her clear, bright eyes.

Endure it, Zhu You.

The situation within the sect remained unclear, but for the time being, nothing irreversible was going to happen.

The most urgent task was to enter the inner sect first.