After taking the Wind-Controlling Pill given to her by Xiao Jingrui, Shen Zhaozhao landed on a secluded mountaintop in less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea.
As soon as she landed, Shen Zhaozhao couldn't help but widen her eyes.
This hill... doesn't look very big, it's even a bit tiny.
Yet every brick, tile, blade of grass, and tree exudes an indescribable, understated yet luxurious elegance.
The path beneath your feet is paved with warm, delicate, and subtly spiritual jade. Stepping on it warms your feet, and the spiritual energy seeps into your meridians.
She remembered that even in the Tianyan Sect, there was only a pitiful patch of this thing, about the size of a palm, laid out in front of the elders' caves.
The disciples' residences in the distance were built with submerged ebony, a material that is resistant to decay for thousands of years and has a calming and concentration effect. Its deep color exudes an understated yet dazzlingly luxurious aura.
Even the few spiritual plants casually planted along the mountain path had leaves with a faint golden edge, and their spiritual energy was so rich that it was almost dripping out.
Shen Zhaozhao's eyes nearly popped out of her head. She turned her head sharply, pointed at the "low-key luxury" scene of the sect in front of her, and said to Xiao Jingrui incredulously, "Second Senior Brother, our sect looks quite wealthy."
"You're so rich you can pave roads with warm jade, why do you still go out and get involved in that mosquito industry, swindling and cheating?"
"Is it simply a love for our profession?"
"Second Brother, your quirk is quite unique, isn't it?"
Under Shen Zhaozhao's constant probing questions, Xiao Jingrui's mask of "smooth sailing and gentle as jade" finally cracked open with a "snap".
"Why……"
The veins on his forehead throbbed violently, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and his gentle demeanor was instantly replaced by a surge of resentment. "It's all because of that damned, insane sect leader!!!"
He suddenly raised his hand and pointed towards the mountaintop, as if he wanted to poke a hole in that place.
"He acts like he's seriously ill every day! Relying on that face of his, which looks like God is chasing after him to feed him, he's completely unrestrained! He's causing trouble all the time!"
"We'll decorate the sect's main hall with 'Crimson Pearl Weeping Blood Orchid' in a bit, saying that the flower's weeping blood-like appearance matches his melancholy temperament!"
"That thing costs three hundred high-grade spirit stones per plant! And it's damn delicate! It'll wilt if you don't water it with spirit dew for three days!"
"Then he said that the 'black silk gauze' he was wearing was not good enough for his peerless face, and insisted that he change it to 'starry brocade'!"
"That thing was woven from stardust mixed with moonlight, and he insisted on using it to make an outer robe!"
"He even suddenly went mad a few days ago!"
Seemingly forced to recall some unbearable and painful past, Xiao Jingrui trembled with anger: "He insists that someone took a liking to him and forced themselves on him! Now he's hiding in his cave all day in seclusion! Saying he wants to heal his broken heart and... cough! Anyway, he just won't see anyone!"
"I, a genius alchemist! I should have been a legend on Danxia Peak, but look what happened?!"
He pointed to his handsome face, filled with grief and indignation: "I'm like a mother hen, cleaning up all his messes and tangle every day! My spirit stones are flowing out like water! I saved up for three years for the materials of the 'Nine Revolutions Condensing Spirit Pill' to break through to the Nascent Soul stage! It's all gone to fill his bottomless pit of unreasonable demands!"
"If it weren't for him, would I still be stuck at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage for three years?!"
The surging resentment, almost solidified into a tangible black mist, swirled around Xiao Jingrui, making his handsome face appear somewhat ferocious.
Shen Zhaozhao's lips twitched violently twice. Looking at her second senior brother, who was on the verge of a complete breakdown and could explode at any moment, she subconsciously shrank her neck.
She asked tentatively, with a hint of inexplicable curiosity, "Um... Second Senior Brother... is our Sect Leader really... that handsome?"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jingrui's furious expression froze instantly, then turned into two extremely cold and sarcastic "heh hehs".
"nice?"
He twitched his lips, revealing a forced smile, "What good is being good-looking? He's mentally ill!"
"You'll know when he comes out of seclusion."
A chill suddenly shot up from Shen Zhaozhao's tailbone to the top of her head, causing a fine layer of white sweat to break out on her back.
As a seasoned and shrewd businesswoman, she has an almost instinctive intuition for danger.
The resentment of the second senior brother before him, the sect leader at the mountaintop whom he had never met but who sounded extremely unreliable and incredibly capable... this sect...
My feet involuntarily moved back half an inch.
Shen Zhaozhao's eyes darted around, her mind racing with thoughts like, "Maybe we should just give up...", "Fellow Daoist, we don't necessarily have to join this sect...", "Is it too late to run away now?"...
As soon as the thought crossed her mind, a hand with distinct knuckles and an irresistible force suddenly gripped her wrist.
Shen Zhaozhao was startled and looked up to meet Xiao Jingrui's face, which had once again put on a "gentle" smile.
But that smile, no matter how you look at it, exudes a warm feeling of "sharing weal and woe," "since you're already here," and "you've come to my doorstep, how could I let you get away?"
"Junior sister~"
Xiao Jingrui's voice was clear and pleasant, as if the person who had just roared and breathed fire was not him: "Since we're here, we might as well make the best of it."
He didn't lessen his grip and pulled Shen Zhaozhao inside.
"Come, let me show you your bedroom. Don't worry, our 'Peerless Handsome Man Sect' may not have much else, but it is spacious and has few disciples."
He paused, a chilling smile curving his lips: "You, all by yourself, have a beautiful little house made entirely of ebony wood. Aren't you happy, junior sister?"
Shen Zhaozhao: "..."
Damn it!
Unparalleled in handsomeness?!
What kind of lousy name is this?!
Looking at Shen Zhaozhao, who had instantly turned to stone, Xiao Jingrui's "gentle" smile not only did not diminish but deepened, and a numb sense of pleasure, as if "finally someone understands my pain," even flashed in his eyes.
He even thoughtfully added, "This name was personally chosen by our sect leader, who said that only this name could match his unparalleled elegance."
Shen Zhaozhao's mind went blank for a moment, and she even felt her soul trembling!
"Second Senior Brother... are you serious...?"
"yes."
Xiao Jingrui's expression was serene, carrying a hint of numbness from being tormented for so long that he had completely given up resisting.
He raised his hand and patted Shen Zhaozhao's stiff shoulder reassuringly, his tone carrying a pitying "you'll get used to it" tone: "When you announce your sect's name in the future, remember to speak louder and more imposingly, okay?"
Shen Zhaozhao: "..."
Help!
What kind of lunatic is that guy on the mountaintop?!
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