Chapter 7: Never Apart - A chance encounter with my senior sister who invited me to live with her, I did my best...
Where is my senior sister?
Will my senior sister be kicked out halfway through too?
Startled, Shen Lixia nearly slipped and fell. She steadied herself on the path, her gaze searching for Qiao Yanshen's figure among the steps.
How could someone as beautiful as my senior sister possibly walk down the Heavenly Ladder?
Her thoughts were a jumbled mess, each idea more absurd than the last, and she couldn't help but turn her head to look down the mountain.
"Good, Senior Sister isn't there." Shen Lixia breathed a sigh of relief, then thought that Qiao Yanshen was someone who had already begun cultivating, so he wouldn't be rejected by the Heavenly Ladder like she was. She still had a long way to go, and the view from higher up was not yet visible, so perhaps Senior Sister was there.
However, before climbing up, she had one more thing to do. Shen Lixia's gaze locked onto a small shadow on the ladder, her hand on her waist, and she took out a slingshot from her storage bag.
The child who had spoken rudely earlier was standing relatively close to her, frozen in place like everyone else by some illusion on the ladder to heaven, showing no sign of moving. Shen Lixia picked up two pebbles from the ground, narrowed her eyes slightly, and aimed them at the child's head.
Although such fuss makes her seem naive, educating a child who lacks manners is truly a good deed.
In life, words can be dangerous, and one must always pay the price for their mistakes. Shen Lixia tightened the rubber band, sandwiching two pebbles between it. The moment the band loosened, the pebbles shot towards the boy's head like shooting stars. Distracted by the sudden attack, the boy lost his footing and was pushed down the ladder by an invisible force. Seeing his figure disappear, Shen Lixia could easily imagine the confusion on his annoying face. Feeling a sense of satisfaction, she put away her slingshot, turned around, and continued climbing the path in two quick steps.
What a pity, why didn't the Heavenly Ladder kick him out with a bang?
Humming a little tune, she walked a short distance and saw the sun hanging in the center of the sky, so she slowed down to rest. Even though she slowed down, Shen Lixia didn't dare to look around, thinking that even if she had the chance to cultivate immortality in this life, she probably would never experience the carefree life of an immortal.
The Heavenly Ladder wasn't particularly high, and Shen Lixia figured that climbing it probably wouldn't lead directly to the sect. She wondered what the purpose of this place was. The higher she went, the thinner the white mist became, only gathering in some places into milky-white clouds that drifted by. Her vision gradually opened up, and the outline of a stone tablet came into view. Shen Lixia quickened her pace, suddenly feeling her foot step on something hard. She looked down and found it was a piece of wood.
Using the tip of her shoe, Shen Lixia cleared away some of the soil around the wood and pulled it out of the ground by one end. The wood had a deep color, and its faint fragrance, not masked by the earthy smell, wafted out.
"Not bad wood." Shen Lixia stared at the wood in thought. A thought flashed through her mind, and her eyes lit up. She put the wood into her storage bag.
Upon reaching the stone tablet, which was about the height of a person, she saw patterns carved on its surface. Shen Lixia wasn't very knowledgeable about paintings, but she could make out that the patterns were divided into four sections, separated by cleverly flowing lines, depicting a dragon soaring through the clouds and a tiger striding majestically. Her gaze moved up and down, and finally she understood—these were the Four Symbols of mythology: the Azure Dragon, the White Tiger, the Vermilion Bird, and the Black Tortoise, all present.
In the center of the four symbols was a slightly sunken pentagonal groove. Shen Lixia thought this was probably where the spiritual root was tested. She reached out and pressed her hand on it, but the stone tablet remained silent, as if the Heavenly Ladder was disrespecting her. She was so frightened that she thought she was about to be kicked down. She quickly pulled her hand away, but found that her hand seemed to be stuck to it and she couldn't pull it away.
Oh no, this time I'm going to have to kick a really big one. She hasn't even come up the Heavenly Ladder yet, she took a shortcut.
Shen Lixia closed her eyes in despair, waiting for the wonderful flight experience that she would never forget and would never return from.
About half a minute later, instead of taking off, there was a movement on the stone tablet. A beam of light flowed from the ground she had touched, meandering to both sides, and after a moment, the light intensified, becoming extremely dazzling. Shen Lixia squinted slightly, almost tears welling up from the glare. In the shimmering light, she saw that the Vermilion Bird and White Tiger were simultaneously filled with light, which then grew brighter and brighter, almost like a new sun shining brightly.
The patterns on both sides, seemingly locked in a fierce competition, are equally striking, with gilding and crimson colors shimmering against each other. Their contrasting brilliance illuminates the entire stone tablet, even dissipating much of the surrounding mist.
At the same time, the golden crow that had been perched on the beam of the main hall of the sect on the main peak opened its eyes, its bright pupils even more dazzling than its feathers.
The sounds of chess pieces being placed in the hall suddenly fell silent, only to resume a moment later.
"Born with a golden fire spirit body, both spiritual roots are planted to their limit."
Shen Lixia silently recited the information that appeared in her mind. As she withdrew her hand, she grasped something slightly warm, which must have been her token.
“…Spiritual power, none.” She let out a sigh of relief, looking at the token with a wry smile, still feeling nothing unusual. Spiritual energy flowed through her body, but no matter how she tried to draw it in, it simply vanished without a trace, and there was no sign of energy gathering in her dantian.
Shen Lixia put away the token. Perhaps because she had already prepared herself mentally, the taste of frustration had been digested, and she no longer felt angry or disappointed. She sat cross-legged beside the stone tablet, took out some wood and a small knife from her storage bag, and began to tinker with them.
Clouds and mist swirl around the Heavenly Ladder.
Qiao Yanshen sheathed his sword, his gaze remaining icy. The woman's figure grew increasingly blurry as she walked forward, brushing past her.
A wisp of divine consciousness from the Heavenly Dao.
A mere wisp of divine consciousness could conjure such a realistic world; one wonders its true power, and the mere thought of it is terrifying. If they were drawn here by something like this, how will they ever gain the leverage to negotiate with it?
Qiao Yanshen could only tell himself to take it one step at a time. He was only at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, let alone the Heavenly Dao; even a Foundation Establishment stage character could easily deal with him.
"Fine, I can't stop you." The woman shook her head with a smile and said behind Qiao Yanshen, "It's strange, losing most of your soul has changed your temperament. You weren't like this before."
Qiao Yanshen stopped in his tracks.
"You don't remember? Well, that's understandable, given how much is missing, it can never be whole again. In that case, I wish you a safe journey."
The woman's figure gradually faded behind him, and Qiao Yanshen could feel her presence slowly disappearing as well.
"But how did you recognize me?"
Your acting is terrible.
Qiao Yanshen pondered for a moment, then refrained from speaking, her voice softening with deep thought: "She won't stop me."
After speaking, she walked into the vast white mist that had gathered again ahead. The woman turned back to look at her, a faint smile seemingly passing across her blurred face.
To save everyone in the world is perhaps a bit cruel to the one person you initially wanted to protect.
Stepping across the crumbling ground, the shape of steps gradually appeared beneath his feet. As the sunset faded, Qiao Yanshen felt a chill in his fingertips and his heart race.
Hopefully it's not too late. With that thought, she quickly walked up the steps, like a butterfly struggling violently in a spider web, wanting this ethereal illusion and mist to dissipate completely.
At that moment, a call came from above, followed by another, like a bird's song, melodious and breaking the silence, giving Qiao Yanshen the feeling that his ears had been temporarily cleared.
"Senior Sister!"
"Senior sister—can you hear me? Why aren't you moving? Are you too tired? Come on, stretch out your hand, I'll help you up!"
She silently felt her heartbeat returning to normal and her body relaxing, her chest filled with a strange, soft, and peaceful feeling.
It's like waking up in the afternoon and smelling a warm aroma of food as dusk settles, amidst the desolation and loneliness; or like reaching into your arms to grab a doll when you're startled awake by a nightmare in the middle of the night.
An indescribable sense of peace.
In that instant, all the confusion and bewilderment that had been gathering in her heart like a gloomy cloud vanished.
This place wasn't entirely unfamiliar; there was someone who understood her, someone who, like her, was adrift. They spoke the same language, longed for the same homeland, and huddled together. An unseen memory of their original world became a unique bond between them.
Qiao Yanshen reached out into the ever-dispersing fog.
"Leaving Summer".
A warm and strong hand gripped her wrist. She closed her eyes and followed the other person's movements. When she opened them again, the grip loosened, and she saw Shen Lixia's concerned eyes. The surroundings had transformed into lush green forests.
"I'm here," Shen Lixia said with a smile, then raised her hand. "Goal achieved, let's give each other a high five, Senior Sister?"
Qiao Yanshen smiled, his eyes filled with tenderness.
The two hands met in the air, making a crisp sound. Qiao Yanshen saw the stone tablet, walked over, and placed his hand on the center of the Four Symbols pattern.
A blue light surged toward the Azure Dragon, illuminating its soaring, cloud-riding body with exceptional brightness. The blue light was as clear and pure as water, with a hint of emerald green slowly seeping out. The two intertwined harmoniously, unlike the confrontational approach taken with Shen Lixia.
"Dual spiritual roots of water and wood, with the water spiritual root reaching its peak, cultivation level at the mid-stage of Qi Refining."
Qiao Yanshen put away the token, turned to look at Shen Lixia, and saw her staring at him with bright eyes.
"Senior sister, this light is so beautiful."
"You can praise anything." Qiao Yanshen reached out and pinched her cheek. "Where did everyone else go?"
"Shen Lixia, her face pinched by Qiao Yanshen, spoke indistinctly, 'Let's go, the teleportation array is just ahead.'"
The two teleported back to the sect, and Shen Lixia repeated what the steward had told her earlier. The sect's servants, outer disciples, and inner disciples were clearly divided. Inner disciples lived on the mountains centered around the main peak, while outer disciples mostly resided in the small towns and forests surrounding the mountains, each with their own courtyard. Their classes differed: the former usually had fixed schedules and could receive individual instruction from Nascent Soul cultivators; the latter could go wherever they wanted to learn, and once a hall was full, no one else could enter.
The servants all lived in a town outside the main town, which was connected to the main town. They could enter and leave the sect and handle affairs. There was a fixed teleportation array in the town, making it convenient to go up and down the mountain. It was also only a matter of moments to go to places like the spirit beast breeding area or the herb field. It could be described as a well-connected area.
The supplies they can receive are different, but the amount is about the same for outer disciples and servants, except that outer disciples receive more pills.
However, servants are not qualified to participate in most sect affairs. The sect will issue tasks periodically, which can be obtained from the affairs hall. Tasks are also divided into levels, which are shared by both internal and external disciples, but the scope of tasks that servants can accept is extremely limited.
"Simply put, the inner disciples are like graduate students, with mentors to guide them and they can even hold seminars, it's a small class system. The outer disciples go around to classes without a schedule, they just choose classes to attend based on the main schedule. The servants... servants aren't allowed to attend classes."
Shen Lixia sighed, the sunset glow falling on her shoulders, outlining a golden silhouette.
"So I had a lot of free time after that, just working for the sect. The manager said it was an exception that he would take me in, since there was no spiritual energy fluctuation in my body, so he just treated me as an employee."
Qiao Yanshen looked around thoughtfully. This was clearly in a small town. It was already evening, and most people had finished eating. The shops not far away were deserted, and the students inside were packing up to close. Meanwhile, the place that looked like a tavern was slowly lighting up.
Shen Lixia handed a map to Qiao Yanshen, saying, "This is a map of the sect. Senior Sister can infuse it with spiritual energy to see her location. I'll head back now if there's nothing else. The servants' quarters aren't far from here. Just come find me if you need anything..."
Qiao Yanshen put the map away and asked, "Is there anything else to say?"
Shen Lixia thought carefully, then shook her head.
"Did they say that mixed-sleeper accommodations are not allowed?"
"Is Senior Sister going to Guyu Peak to find Senior Sister Tang?"
"...Come with me to choose a house in the mountains."
Shen Lixia nodded blankly, wondering if her senior sister had trouble making decisions, or if she was worried about her safety being alone so late at night...
wrong.
She suddenly looked up at her senior sister, but the other sister showed no sign of surprise; her eyes, tinged with twilight, held a serene luster. Large swaths of light and shadow fell, the remaining warmth gently bathing the two of them.
“I can pick out a bed… but since it’s a separate courtyard, there should be more than one place to sleep, otherwise how can we entertain guests…” Qiao Yanshen muttered to himself.
My senior sister wants her to live with her?!
A note from the author:
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