Chapter 57: So you guys bullied him while I was away? They're all alright...
Shi Liuying crashed headfirst into that cool, refreshing embrace, her hands tightly gripping the fabric at Jun Lintian's waist.
Jun Lintian was slightly swayed by her impact, but then caught her steadily.
He paused, startled, as he felt the dampness on his chest.
Jun Lintian lowered his eyes, looking at the fluffy head in his arms. His cold hand hesitated for a moment, but finally gently lifted it and skillfully placed it on the top of her head, patting it very lightly.
"Yes," he responded softly, his voice exceptionally clear in the quiet night, "I'm here."
Under the eaves of the library, Xuanji Zi sighed.
Shi Liuying was crying so intensely when she was suddenly startled by this clear sigh, her surging emotions caught in her throat.
She suddenly realized the position she was "hanging" on her senior brother—her cheek pressed against his warm chest, her hands gripping his waist fabric tightly, her tears and snot probably covering him completely.
She released her grip as if burned, staggered back half a step, and hastily wiped her wet face.
After calming down, the cool yet slightly tired aura emanating from her senior brother, and the faint warmth emanating from beneath his clothes... all became belated sensations, causing her ears to burn with a tingling sensation.
She stared down at the tips of her shoes, not daring to look at Jun Lintian's expression.
Under the ancient tree, Granny Jiang, or rather, Xuanji Zi, had quietly taken a few steps closer.
She was still wearing that gray cloth dress, leaning on an old broom, her face calm and aged, only her eyes, clear as a mirror, quietly watching Shi Liuying.
Five years is but a fleeting moment in the 'Sword Heart Reflects the Dao'.
Xuanji Zi's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a strange penetrating power, landing directly in Shi Liuying's heart: "Little girl, can you sense anything different about yourself?"
Five years?!
Shi Liuying suddenly looked up, no longer caring about her awkwardness, her wide eyes filled with astonishment.
She just... felt like she'd been reading for a while, and suddenly five years had passed outside?
Almost instinctively, she felt a slight unease and looked inward at herself.
Upon seeing this, she was so shocked that she almost jumped up on the spot.
Within his dantian, the spiritual energy that was originally as vast as a lake had now transformed into a boundless, golden "sea"!
As spiritual energy flowed, it was smooth and unhindered, without any stagnation. An unprecedented sense of power and clarity filled his limbs and bones.
The bottleneck I had vaguely sensed before had vanished without a trace, replaced by a mysterious realm where I felt as if I could resonate with heaven and earth at any moment.
Mahayana period?!
She actually... crossed that threshold that countless cultivators could not reach even after a lifetime of effort.
Did they not even experience the anticipated tribulations or inner demons?
Xuanji Zi seemed to see through her shock and slowly said, "In 'Sword Heart Reflects the Dao,' enlightenment is cultivation."
"What you have comprehended is the fundamental principle of the Great Dao of the Sword. When the principle is understood, the power will follow, and things will naturally fall into place. You will not need to go through the barriers and tribulations that occur when breaking through ordinary realms."
“You haven’t been practicing for five years, but rather you’ve been understanding for five years.”
"You have read, understood, and made the sword-related classics, diagrams, insights, and fragments stored in the Sword Sect's library for thousands of years.
Have you read through all the treasures collected over the millennia?
Shi Liuying opened her mouth hesitantly, and after a long while, she finally found her voice: "I...I thought I was just reading a book..."
“One book is equivalent to ten thousand books.” A faint glimmer of satisfaction flashed in Xuanji Zi’s eyes. “The ultimate principles of swordsmanship are inherently interconnected.”
As Shi Liuying processed this massive amount of information, she subconsciously turned to look at Jun Lintian.
Under the moonlight, my senior brother's figure was still tall and straight, but he seemed to have thinned a little compared to my memory.
Her heart tightened, and she blurted out, "Senior brother... have you been waiting here for five years?"
Jun Lintian shook his head, his voice still steady: "I haven't been stationed here all the time. There are matters to attend to at the sect, so I only come here to stand here when I have some free time."
He paused, his gaze falling on her tear-streaked face, and his tone softened: "Your senior brother always thought that you might come out at any time."
“It’s not just me, Rong Yan, Chong Cang, Han Zhou, and Su Wan also come here often.”
"But today... it just so happens to be my turn."
Just right...?
A warm current surged in Shi Liuying's heart, which diluted the embarrassment and shock she had just felt.
It turns out that even though she "disappeared" into the cracks of time, her senior brothers and sisters never forgot her and continued to wait for her in their own way.
These five years were a fleeting moment of enlightenment for her, but for them, they were a real and constant concern.
"Are the senior sisters... all alright?" she asked, her voice filled with an urgency she herself didn't realize.
She suddenly realized that in the past five years, without her as a "disruptor," had those deeply entrenched systems had caused even more harm to her senior brothers and sisters?
Jun Lintian remained silent for a moment.
The moonlight illuminated his handsome profile, and Shi Liuying then noticed that her senior brother had faint bloodshot eyes, a light blue stubble on his chin, and dark circles under his eyes. He exuded an undeniable weariness.
This appearance... is exactly the same as when she first met her senior brother.
“Actually,” Jun Lintian began, his voice tinged with a barely perceptible hesitation, “it’s not that great.”
Shi Liuying's heart tightened.
During the five years she peacefully comprehended the Dao in "Sword Heart Reflecting the Dao," in the real world, without her ability to interfere with the system, the system's erosion of her senior brothers and sisters would probably have intensified!
"I should return to the Myriad Manifestations Sect," Shi Liuying said resolutely, her eyes regaining their sharpness and clarity.
The moment she finished speaking, Jun Lintian, who had been struggling to stand, suddenly swayed.
His eyelids drooped slightly, and without warning, he fell straight down in Shi Liuying's direction.
"Senior brother!"
Shi Liuying was startled and quickly stepped forward, reaching out to firmly catch his slumped upper body.
Jun Lintian's head rested limply on her shoulder, his breathing even and deep; he had actually... fallen asleep.
Shi Liuying froze for a moment, then carefully adjusted her posture to make her senior brother lean more steadily.
She then realized that, perhaps because her cultivation level had improved and her body had been tempered, she had grown quite a bit taller.
She used to only reach her senior brother's chest, but now he can tilt his head slightly and comfortably lean against her shoulder.
The figure she once looked up to is now firmly held in her arms.
This realization caused a strange ripple in Shi Liuying's heart, as if a drop of water had fallen.
She pursed her lips, tightened her arms to support Jun Lintian more securely, then turned her head and bowed solemnly to Xuanji Zi, who was quietly watching from under the tree.
Xuanji Zi's gaze lingered for a moment between her and the sleeping Jun Lintian, a look of satisfaction in her eyes.
She didn't say anything, but simply nodded very lightly and slowly, leaning on her broom.
Without further delay, Shi Liuying silently drew her sword, Bu Ling, and hovered in front of her.
She embraced Jun Lintian and gracefully leaped onto the sword. Spiritual energy flowed around them, creating a warm and invisible barrier that shielded them from the night wind and the chill of the high altitude.
They soared into the air on their swords, breaking through the clouds. The clear moonlight shone down on the two people standing side by side.
Shi Liuying turned her head to look at her senior brother, who was sleeping soundly on her shoulder and rarely showed such dependence and vulnerability. She then remembered herself from a long time ago, when she needed to rely on her senior brother.
She subconsciously straightened her shoulders, which, while not broad, were already quite sturdy.
It turns out that without realizing it, I have become someone people can rely on.
-
When the sword light landed on the familiar bluestone path within the Myriad Manifestations Sect, it was already dawn.
Shi Liuying helped the still-sleeping Jun Lintian and tiptoed toward her long-lost little wooden house.
As soon as I approached the courtyard, I heard a rustling sound coming from inside, mixed with a low, ingratiating male voice.
"...Grandpa Rabbit, Ancestor Rabbit, please have some mercy and give me a hint?"
"When exactly is Boss Liu Ying coming back? Don't you two have a contractual connection? Tell me quietly, and I promise, I, Chen Hanzhou, swear to God, I will never tell a second person!"
"Look at how I treat you to the best food and drink every day, and I only pick the tenderest and most expensive medicinal herbs. With our friendship and affection, it's not too much to share a little secret, is it?"
"Good brothers should share happiness, hardship, and secrets..."
The courtyard gate was pushed open.
Shi Liuying stood at the door and coughed twice.
Shen Hanzhou was facing away from the door, half-squatting on the ground, holding a plump carrot in one hand and trying to scoop up the blood-stained rabbit that had obviously become several sizes bigger with the other.
Hearing the cough, he didn't even turn his head, assuming it was some clueless disciple who had accidentally wandered in, and muttered impatiently, "Who is it? So early in the morning, don't you know the rules?"
"Lying around in front of the former residence of Shi Liuying, the number one genius of our Myriad Manifestations Sect, and you even dare to cough?"
"Do you know that spitting on the ground incurs a fine of ten low-grade spirit stones? Hurry up..."
As he spoke, he slowly turned his head.
Then, as if frozen in place by a spell, I froze.
The carrot he was holding fell to the ground with a "thud".
Shi Liuying was also looking at him.
Five years had passed, and Shen Hanzhou seemed to look the same, except that his eyes and brows had lost some of their liveliness and gained a subtle melancholy.
Time seemed to freeze for a few moments.
"Master Liu Ying?!"
Shen Hanzhou jumped up suddenly, his voice cracking, and his face instantly lit up with immense joy, like a firecracker that had been lit.
"You're back! You're really back! Thank goodness, you're alright!"
"You look... wow, even more amazing! That aura, that brilliance! Incredible!"
He was incoherent, circling around Shi Liuying twice, wanting to get closer but afraid of bumping into Jun Lintian whom she was supporting, and he was so excited that he was waving his arms and legs.
However, this excitement lasted less than three seconds before the smile on his face vanished as quickly as the tide receded.
Her lips turned down, and her eyes reddened visibly, a layer of moisture quickly covering her usually bright eyes.
He tried to cover his mouth to stop himself from sobbing.
"You...you're not here..." He let out a sad voice through his fingers, which sounded both funny and pitiful.
"They all bullied me... I, I suffered so much injustice... Waaah..."
It looked both heartbreaking and ridiculous.
Shi Liuying felt a bittersweet, warm feeling in her heart.
Not only does she need them, but they need her too.
This feeling of being needed, relied upon, and trusted and expected without reservation is like a huge, fluffy, soft cotton candy, soaked in warm emotions, flowing into every part of my body.
She blinked, suppressing the sudden stinging in her nose, and tried to make her voice sound steady: "Alright, Shen Hanzhou, come and give me a hand. Senior Brother is asleep, we need to help him inside to rest."
"Okay! Alright!"
Upon hearing the command, Shen Hanzhou responded reflexively, her tears welling up and quickly receding.
He nimbly stepped forward and carefully helped Jun Lintian up from the other side, instantly switching to his sycophantic side: "Boss, please watch your step, let me do it, how can I let you do such rough and tiring work..."
Together, the two of them settled the sleeping Jun Lintian on the simple yet tidy wooden bed in Shi Liuying's hut and covered him with a light blanket.
As soon as I stepped out of the house and closed the door, several undisguised, smirking laughs came from outside the courtyard.
"Hey, Mr. Shen, where are you hiding to count your spirit stones? We've been waiting for your tribute for ages."
"That's right, shouldn't you pay your fellow disciples' mutual aid fee for this month? I heard you took on a lucrative job diving for pearls in the East China Sea last month, you must have made a good profit, right?"
"Stop dawdling and hurry up! We need to go and guide our new junior brothers and sisters in their cultivation; we don't have time to waste with you!"
Shi Liuying frowned and looked out of the courtyard through the gap in the fence.
Three young men dressed in inner sect disciple robes, standing rudely with roguish expressions, blocked the doorway. The one in the lead was impatiently grinding pebbles on the ground with his toe.
Shen Hanzhou's face turned pale the moment he heard these voices, and the lively spirit he had shown in front of Shi Liuying vanished without a trace.
His shoulders hunched over instinctively, his back stooped, and he forced a smile that looked worse than a grimace.
He trembled as he reached for his storage bag, his movements as slow as if he were struggling against an invisible weight, mumbling, "Just wait, wait for my boss to kill you... Please wait a moment, senior brothers, I'll get it right away..."
Just as Shen Hanzhou's trembling fingers finally touched the edge of the storage bag, preparing to take out the neatly stacked spirit stones and materials inside...
"Squeak—"
The door to the cabin was pushed open from the inside.
Shi Liuying, who had changed into a clean and neat light blue outfit and tied her long hair back up, walked out slowly.
The morning light fell on her, outlining her already tall and slender figure, like a bamboo shoot.
Her face was expressionless, and her clear eyes calmly swept over the three people outside the courtyard.
She walked to Shen Hanzhou's side, reached out, and gently pressed his trembling hand as he was about to open the storage bag.
Then he raised his eyes, his gaze precisely locking onto the three inner disciples who looked surprised and uncertain. His voice was not loud, but it carried a chilling aura that penetrated to the very core of his being.
She asked, word by word:
"It's filthy things like you..."
"You bullied Chen Hanzhou while I was away?"
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Author's note: Random red envelopes [pat on the head]
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