But her master was slow to punish her, and the feeling of waiting was even more painful than being punished.

At night, Ran Ran begged her uncle to give two pancakes to her second brother who was kneeling at the foot of the mountain, so that he wouldn't faint from hunger. She tried to stay in the room and didn't dare to see her master.

But he had already slept for three days, so it was not convenient for him to stay in bed all the time. The next day, Ran Ran got dressed and walked to the bamboo forest next to the hot spring house. He happened to see his master who had returned from hunting in the mountains.

The little white tiger followed behind him, walking proudly with two rabbits in its mouth.

Su Yishui saw her and said, "You should change the medicine."

Ran Ran saw that his master looked normal, not as angry as he was yesterday when he chased Second Senior Brother away, so he followed him back to the house obediently.

After the little white tiger put down the rabbit, he very sensibly brought Su Yishui's medicine box, then lay aside and watched Su Yishui change the medicine for Ranran.

There was a bloody wound on Bai Yingying's arm that was very eye-catching. Normally, the wound should have scabbed over after a few days. However, Ranran's arm was still bleeding, and it was only with the hemostatic powder that the bleeding was barely stopped.

Watching the master's skillful movements, Ranran wondered if her wounds had been bandaged by the master himself in the past few days?

Ran Ran said a little embarrassedly: "I have had this physique since I was a child. Once I get hurt, the bleeding can never be stopped. My parents were scared before and found many doctors to treat me, but it didn't work. So over time, my parents didn't trust me to go out of the yard, for fear that I would fall and get hurt outside."

Su Yishui remained silent, but quickly applied medicine powder on her and then slowly wrapped it with a clean dry cloth. The miracle doctor's technique was superb. Ran Ran was stunned when she looked at the profile of her master and didn't even feel the pain.

However, after bandaging the wound, Su Yishui finally spoke: "I chased Bai Baishan away yesterday, but you were the only one who didn't plead for him. Why?"

Ran Ran whispered, "Will my plea be of any use?"

At that time, Second Uncle couldn't help but beg for mercy, but Master ignored him, didn't he?

Su Yishui listened to his apprentice's question with a blank expression on his face, and it was unclear whether he was happy or angry.

Ran Ran couldn't play it safe, so he could only answer honestly: "When you asked us to copy the Calming Mantra every day, you said that this was the foundation of cultivation, which would make people clear-headed and upright. Copying it every day, in addition to getting rid of evil spirits, has the same effect on resisting unorthodox methods such as spells. But Second Brother, except for pretending to do it at the beginning, the rest of the time, he was fishing for three days and drying the nets for two days. When we arrived at Cha Ming Mountain, he basically stopped writing. If he insisted on not slacking off in his studies, even if he was careless and was ambushed by Chi Men, he would not be so obsessed by the spell and make such a mistake. So although he didn't want to make mistakes, he planted the seeds of trouble for making mistakes on weekdays. There was a reason why Master didn't want to teach him, so why should I make it difficult for Master?"

After she said this, she looked up at Su Yishui, but found that Su Yishui looked at her with a complicated look.

"I thought you were in the same school with him for a year, so you would not be able to bear it... It turns out that you are a very soft-hearted person..."

Although Ran Ran didn't know why Su Yishui would say that she was soft-hearted in the past, she knew that the second senior brother had his own reasons for his mistakes: "If small evils are not punished, they will surely become big evils. The way of cultivation originally allows people to have abilities beyond ordinary people. If a bad person is taught, wouldn't it be a harm for thousands of years? If the second senior brother doesn't know why he cultivates the Tao, he might as well go down the mountain. He just likes to stand at the top and be admired by others. It would be faster for him to go down the mountain and take the imperial examination...but..."

The "but" was drawn out a little longer, and Ran Ran whispered, "Second Senior Brother is certainly wrong, but Master, you are also wrong..."

Su Yiping asked calmly, "What's wrong?"

"We disciples are all young men with unstable minds...Good and evil are determined by a single thought. Master, you knew that the spiritual spring had caused great harm, but you never supervised or checked our studies. If you were stricter, Second Senior Brother would not have gotten into such a disaster..."

Su Yishui listened expressionlessly, and suddenly said, "So it was me, the master, who was wrong?"

Ran Ran felt a little sorry for saying too much and quickly said, "I dare not. Master has his own reasons for whatever he does."

Su Yishui said expressionlessly: "I am also a human being, why can't I be wrong? If one day you find out that I am a heinous person, what will you do?"

Ran Ran felt that her teacher, who loved exams, suddenly tested her again, which really caught her off guard. This exam question was really tricky.

If he accompanies the tyrant to commit atrocities, he will obviously not be able to get away with it. But if he says that he will sacrifice his own relatives for the sake of justice and kill his master to prove his truth, he is afraid of following the same fate as his second senior brother.

Grabbing the remaining "Pass Every Exam" insole with his toes, Ran Ran answered sincerely, "Master, you are so noble, how could you possibly do evil? If this day really comes, there must be a compelling reason. I am a humble disciple, but I am willing to stay by your side, endure the pain of heaven and earth, and share life and death with you!"

Perhaps it was the insole that came to him, for after hearing such a flattering answer, a bitter...painful look appeared on the master's cold face, as if her answer had brought back unpleasant memories for him.

As Ran Ran was getting nervous, she heard her master say, "Remember, don't stay away from me from now on!"

Ran Ran raised her eyes and felt that this sect rule was a little strange. She tried to explain, "...Master, your sect rules are not strict enough. Even married couples don't stay together all day. How can this half step be counted? They can't sleep or bathe together!"

Su Yishui looked at his little disciple Pipi, his eyes brightened, and suddenly lowered his head and said, "If you can't do it, I will help you do it..."

Ranran was caught off guard and was enveloped by the master's breath. With their noses touching, she stared blankly into Su Yishui's eyes.

His eyes were deep, filled with meanings that Ranran could not understand.

At this moment, Yu Tong walked in holding a specially made arm brace. Ran Ran's arm was not easy to move, so Master Zeng made a light one that could just fix her arm and prevent the wound from opening.

But she didn't expect that when she lifted the door curtain, she would see such an ambiguous situation. The face of that girl Xue was almost touching her master's...

If she had come in a step later... Yu Tong was shocked and didn't dare to think further.

Moreover, this situation was common twenty years ago.

The lazy Mu Qingge often blocked the expressionless young master in the waterside corridor, forced him to stand against the wall, put one hand on his ear, and teased him with ambiguous words... It was exactly like a playboy teasing a common girl!

Every time she saw her master's clenched fists at his side relax and clench again, she was always filled with righteous indignation and felt that Mu Qingge was too bullying!

But now the situation is reversed...

Look at the way Ranran is pinching her skirt with her fingers in embarrassment... Well, the master is too strict with his apprentice! Even if he is disciplining someone, he doesn't have to get so close. Look how scared the girl is.

Adhering to the belief that everything the master said was right, Yu Tong spontaneously resolved the deep meaning of the scene before him, and hurriedly said with a smile: "Master, she already knows she was wrong. Now Bai Baishan has been expelled from the sect, and Gao Cang and Xier have also been beaten. As for Ran Ran, she has been injured, so she naturally knows she was wrong. Don't you think so, Ran Ran..."

As he spoke, Yu Tong winked at Ran Ran, signaling her to quickly admit her mistake to her master.

Ran Ran nodded gloomily, and after reflecting on herself, she realized that she had indeed talked back to her master just now.

Shaking his head and putting aside the ambiguous scene just now, Ran Ran was even more worried about Wei Yan's use of such a despicable move, which was really hard to guard against. In addition, he and Mu Qingge had an appointment to meet at Huayang Mountain in three days, and she didn't know what tricks he would use on Mu Xianchang.

But when Su Yishui heard Ran Ran talking about this, he didn't care and said, "Why should we outsiders worry about Mu Xianchang's affairs? By the way, you haven't been punished for leaving the mountain without permission. Since you are injured, you will be spared the punishment. Go! Copy the Yu Feng Jue four hundred times!"

Ran Ran's expression fell slightly. Why did the damned Chimen minions shoot her left arm? If it was her right arm, wouldn't she be spared?

But for some reason, on the third day when Bai Baishan was kneeling at the foot of the mountain, Su Yishui suddenly asked the master uncle to bring him back.

Su Yishui told Bai Baishan that if he wanted to return to his master's sect, that was fine, but he had to stay with Uncle Zeng Yi and learn from him how to use his feet instead of his hands.

Only after experiencing enough suffering can one rethink the true meaning of being a human being.

If one day, Bai Baishan could assemble a self-ringing bell with his own feet, which would be enough to show his strong will, then Su Yishui would take back his words and accept him as Xishan's disciple again.

Bai Baishan was ecstatic after hearing this, and immediately told his master that no matter how difficult the test was, he would try his best to complete it.

After hearing this, Ranran tentatively asked her master if it was her offensive words to him that day that made him change his mind.

However, while Su Yishui was tuning the strings of his zither, he said calmly: "Only by accepting some rebellious disciples can you understand the hardship of being a teacher. I didn't take your teaching seriously before, so I have to punish myself and make myself suffer."

Ran Ran was a little unsure whether the "traitor" he was referring to was the second senior brother or the ignorant her. But it was worth being happy that the master was willing to forgive the second senior brother and give him another chance.

Besides, Qiu Xier and the others were also scared. The incident with the second senior brother was a wake-up call to the lazy people. Although the master seemed to be letting the sheep go back to the mountains, if they really did something wrong, they would be punished mercilessly.

So even though the scenery of Cha Ming Mountain was still beautiful, the hot springs were comfortable and warm, and the town at the foot of the mountain was bustling and prosperous, Gao Cang and Xi'er dared not be lazy any longer, and they got up early every day to meditate and build their foundation, silently reciting various mental formulas.

Although Ran Ran was injured, which was a good excuse to be lazy, he did not dare to use it. He only studied the book brought by his uncle seriously after writing the formula.

The second brother carefully cut his toenails, soaked his feet in white vinegar, and began to practice using his feet instead of his hands with Uncle Zeng Yi. Every day when he ate, he would use his feet to hold the spoon to eat.

However, he could not meditate and build the foundation with everyone for the time being, and instead moved to live in the workers' room in Uncle Zeng's Tangchi.

On weekdays, he also had to do some rough work in the hot spring to pay for his meals.

The hand rest that Uncle Zeng made for Ranran is very useful. When Ranran has free time reading, he goes back to the garden to pick flowers, and then collects a vase and places it on the table in Uncle Zeng's workshop.

That day she came to the garden for a walk again, and saw a large bunch of blooming gardenias beside a pond. She simply decided to do her meditation homework there.

So she found a mat, sat by the pool, watched the fish swimming, and slowly entered a state of meditation.

This pond is very close to Uncle Zeng's workshop. She hid in the flowers, and once she entered a state of meditation, she could hear the sound of Uncle Zeng grinding parts with a small file.

She had heard her uncle-master say yesterday that he was going to make her a pair of lightweight, soft silver armor that was invulnerable to swords and spears. It was said that the armor was made of a very resilient southern rattan wrapped around thin soft silver threads, and it took a lot of effort to make.

Ran Ran looked at it for a while and told her uncle that there was no need to make such trouble. Anyway, she would follow her master in the future and would not dare to go down the mountain casually, and she would not encounter any danger again.

But Master Uncle Zeng refused to comply and insisted on doing it stubbornly.

At this moment, she heard familiar footsteps again. It should be her master Su Yishui.

Uncle Zeng said, "Have you considered what I mentioned to you before? Leaving her with me is the best choice. If she follows you, she will repeat the same mistake sooner or later..."

Before he finished speaking, Su Yishui interrupted him coldly: "No, she must stay with me."

Then, Master Zeng sighed: "For her, it's all a matter of a lifetime. She has let go of everything. Why can't you let go? Since you promised her an ordinary life, why don't you stick to it and give her a peaceful and comfortable life?"

After hearing this, there was a long silence. After a long while, a deep voice said: "I have never picked it up before, so how can I put it down?"

After saying this, the master strode away.

This paragraph of conversation was incoherent and Ran Ran felt a little confused. However, she did not intend to eavesdrop. It was just that her ears were too sharp after meditation, and she always heard other people's privacy.

This time, Ranran did not rush to get up. Instead, she waited until her master walked away before she stood up from the flowers. When she returned to the house, she was still thinking about who they were talking about.

But maybe she was an old friend of the master and the uncle, so it was normal that she didn't know him. But who could make the master unable to pick up and put down, and was she a man or a woman?

But the master said firmly that he wanted to keep her by his side...

Ranran held his chin and thought for a while, but he couldn't figure it out.

It seems that when I have the chance in the future, I will have to ask my second uncle, Master has been practicing Taoism for so long, has he ever thought about finding an immortal companion to accompany him?

Suddenly, an idea flashed in her mind. Could they be talking about... Second Uncle Yutong?

Isn't Yu Tong the only woman who has stayed with Master for a long time? She grew up with Master, so they can be considered childhood sweethearts, right?

Ranran suddenly understood what was going on. She thought that her master didn't talk much to Yutong on weekdays, and he really hid his love very deeply!

It seems that she will remind the third sister to be careful with her words and actions in front of the second uncle, because the second uncle may very likely become their master's wife in the future!

But if this is true, wouldn't Mu Xianchang have been missing his lover in vain for two lifetimes, instead of being able to live together with his beloved as he wished.

After some rest at Cha Ming Mountain, the few people with frostbite were able to recover and would return to Xishan in a few days.

After Wei Zhen suffered heavy casualties, he seemed to calm down for a while and was not in a hurry to settle accounts with Su Yishui.

But recently the weather has changed drastically, with frequent thunderstorms, most of which are concentrated in the famous mountains where cultivators gather.

It seems that many powerful people are about to ascend to heaven. Such things that go against the law of reincarnation will naturally bring about thunder and strange phenomena.

At this time, the ginseng fruit on the reincarnation tree seemed to be of great use. Unfortunately, Mu Qingge had already figured out a solution.

After she left Wangxiang Pass, she hid in the Daqi Palace under the pretext of refining elixir for His Majesty.

The founding emperor of Daqi was once a great man who returned halfway. He failed to cultivate immortality, but he became an emperor. When the palace was first built, he also invited an expert to give him advice. He arranged it according to the Fuxi Bagua formation, and laid countless spirit-absorbing stones in the foundation of the palace.

Therefore, no matter how powerful the extraordinary person is who enters this palace, his spiritual power will be disturbed and he will not pose a threat to the royal heir of Daqi.

Mu Qingge hid here. Although she couldn't use her spiritual power to cultivate, she was not afraid of anyone coming to catch her and make trouble.

No matter how loudly and thundering there were on the hills, she would just hide in the palace and enjoy the hospitality of His Majesty.

Moreover, although she got a new furnace, she used the excuse that she was poisoned by Wei Yan's resentment and her spiritual power was damaged, so she couldn't open the furnace. This was very smooth and she didn't have to show her weakness.

Su Yu doted on Mu Qingge very much. In order to make it convenient for her to live, Su Yu allocated a corner of the West Palace to her, and there was a special palace gate for her to enter and exit. Not only did he assign her maids to serve her, but also fine clothes and food, and all kinds of treasures. Even the most favored queen in the palace did not enjoy as much as Mu Qingge.

Such courtesy, comparable to that of a national teacher, is something that others would envy.

A visiting card was delivered from outside the Heavenly Palace, saying that Wen Hongshan from the Kongshan School was coming to pay a visit to Empress Zhan.

Hearing that Wen Hongshan was coming to see her, Mu Qingge raised her eyebrows in disapproval. She thought that this Fairy Wen was going to say something like atonement for her sins by doing good deeds, and asked her to contribute her cultivation to take the place of Master Wen of the Kongshan Sect to withstand the thunderbolt.

Originally she didn't want to see him, but thinking that she could get some recent information about Kongshan Sect from her mouth, Mu Qingge ordered someone to bring Wen Hongshan in.

How beautiful was the red fan in the empty mountain that was once as beautiful as a flower?

At the beginning, she became Su Yishui's mother's savior because she obtained a magical medicine for Su Yishui's mother. When Su Yishui was still in Jiuhua Sect, the two of them almost got married under the auspices of Su Mu and became a pair of practicing partners.

But later, Mu Qingge devised a plan and made Su Yishui swear a soul oath. After he lost the bet with her, he left Jiuhua Sect and was forced to join Xishan Sect. The marriage between the two was thus called off.

Later, when Mu Qingge cut Wen Hongshan's face out of jealousy, Wen Hongshan cried to Su Yishui. Su Yishui was furious and denounced Mu Qingge for being perverse and cruel. The two even fought, and Su Yishui left Xishan.

It's a pity that Miss Wen, who once fascinated Su Yishui, now has scars on her face, and her youthful face is full of fatigue from the years. She is willing to appreciate Wen Hongshan's wasted years from a close distance.

When Mu Qingge appeared in front of Wen Hongshan in a colorful dress with gold thread, Wen Hongshan's decadent state was highlighted to the fullest.

Mu Qingge was very satisfied with the feeling of being looked up to, and asked with a smile: "I wonder what brings you here, Miss Wen?"

Wen Hongshan said coldly: "I have something private to tell you, please send your attendants away so that others won't hear it."

Mu Qingge felt that Wen Hongshan was playing with Xuanxu, so he curled up the corners of his mouth and smiled, then stood up and wanted to leave.

She just wanted to see how the woman Su Yishui had been obsessed with in the past had become, and she was not interested in what she had to say.

But just as she passed by him, Wen Hongshan asked in a low voice: "Who... are you?"

These words made Mu Qingge pause and his pupils dilated slightly.

However, she calmly waved away her left and right, and when they were alone, she smiled and asked, "Miss Wen, your question is too strange. What do you mean who am I? Of course I am Mu Qingge."

Wen Hongshan looked straight into her eyes and sneered, "When you were in Jueshan, you apologized to me and said you were sorry for scratching my face when you were possessed by the devil."

Mu Qingge looked at her with a smile and asked tentatively, "Are you unwilling to forgive me and are looking for trouble with me?"

Wen Hongshan suddenly burst into laughter, and the scar on her cheek looked a little ugly because she laughed too hard. She finally stopped laughing and said coldly, "Everyone thinks that the wound on my face was caused by Mu Qingge, but only she and I know that it's not the case. At the beginning, I wanted Su Yishui to misunderstand her, so I deliberately cut my face with her sword, but I didn't know that Mu Qingge's sword had just killed a poisonous snake, and the blood poison had not yet cleared, so the small wound was rotten and left this scar. At that time, Mu Qingge deliberately framed me and didn't look at me anymore. But you apologized to me because of my face?"

Wen Hongshan's words made Mu Qingge's expression slightly stiff. She forced a smile and said, "I don't know what you are talking about."

Wen Hongshan looked at her with contempt: "You think you are Mu Qingge with this face? Little do you know that people who know her can tell at a glance that you are a fake!"

These words made Mu Qingge's face tense, and he suddenly pulled his hand out and attacked Wen Hongshan.

Wen Hongshan came here just to test the waters, but he didn't expect that the fake product would be revealed as soon as he tried.

She was the adopted daughter of Master Wen of the Kongshan Sect, so she was naturally very skilled. Although Mu Qingge's attack was fierce, she was able to handle it calmly, still smiling: "I heard from the people of Chimen that there were two fruits on the tree. I was skeptical at first, but I didn't expect it to be true..."

Mu Qingge's heart tightened when he heard this, and he quickly stopped and said, "What did you say? You know there are two fruits on that tree? Where is the other spiritual fruit?"

Wen Hongshan dodged and jumped to the side. Looking at the fake's reaction, he couldn't help but wonder, "How come you don't know the whereabouts of the other spiritual fruit?"

She originally thought that this was another of Mu Qingge's cunning schemes, to create a fake to take the place of the real one, while she herself hid away and enjoyed herself. Unexpectedly, this fake seemed to be unaware of the other spiritual fruit, which was really interesting.