Chapter 36
Ruan Shuzai looked closely at Sheng Ningyu, her gaze tracing her eyes, and she uttered soft, dreamlike sounds.
"This disciple looks... he looks very familiar."
These words sounded very strange, and Jin Xianyao looked at Sheng Ningyu beside him, somewhat at a loss.
Sheng Ningyu lowered her head, seemingly at a loss, but forced herself to say, "Thank you for your praise, Elder. However, I have never been to the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, nor have I ever had the honor of meeting you."
It's a completely different tone and intonation.
In my memory, that person was free-spirited and unrestrained, like the bright moon in the sky. How could he be so uneasy and anxious?
Ruan Shu suddenly came to her senses, took a step back, and whispered, "It was my presumption. You two disciples should go to class now."
Jin Xianyao breathed a sigh of relief. This time, without Sheng Ningyu saying anything, he also channeled his spiritual energy and ran very fast.
Sheng Ningyu comforted her, "If that weren't the case, wouldn't everyone be able to come and go freely in this main hall without being punished for their mistakes?"
Jin Xianyao scratched his head: "That's true."
He always felt that there was something strange about these words, as if they were a teaching from an elder? In short, they had an indescribable flavor.
However, Kim Hyun-yo was always easygoing and didn't take it to heart. The two quickly arrived at their classroom.
As expected, the Chu family patriarch was personally instructing the students, and even the classroom was the best one in the entire Qingyi Academy.
Ancient and solemn, with upturned eaves and glazed tile roofs shimmering softly in the sunlight, surrounded by what seems to be a ring of waves like the sea. Only upon closer inspection does one realize that it is actually a ring of spiritual energy!
"Huh! Why is the academy suddenly being so generous?"
"I heard it was because of what happened the other day. For some reason, the formation and talismans went astray that day. So the Chu family specially placed the Spirit Gathering and Evil Dispersing Talisman outside the classroom!"
"The talismans are flowing like water! This is truly the Chu family!"
As he said this, the disciples, without paying attention, looked up and saw Sheng Ningyu and her group. They immediately shut their mouths and respectfully stepped aside.
Sheng Ningyu was very familiar with this move. With a quick movement, she used her spiritual power to easily hide behind Jin Xianyao.
The action happened in the blink of an eye, and by the time Jin Xianyao reacted, he had already become the most conspicuous one.
In a daze, Jin Xianyao was momentarily confused and tentatively asked, "It's getting late, shall we all go in together...?"
The disciples filed in, and Jin Xianyao breathed a sigh of relief, then became somewhat smug.
"Look, they all let me go first!"
Sheng Ningyu nodded with a smile: "Yes, Junior Brother Jin is exceptionally capable."
Moreover, because of their troublemaking, those Chu family disciples were severely punished, so who knows if the Chu family head will take his anger out on them?
Everyone knows that the Chu family is extremely protective of their own.
Therefore, during this lesson, all the disciples, regardless of their sect or school, behaved as obediently as quails, and none of them dared to act recklessly.
Chu Jiye acted as if nothing had happened, quietly explaining a few key points before concluding, "You will soon be descending the mountain to remove obstacles. Today, I will teach you a few methods that will be beneficial in removing the puppet obstacle."
The drowsy disciples below perked up, and one of them couldn't help but raise his voice: "Is the patriarch going to teach us the 'Soul-Shattering Talisman'?"
These words were somewhat rude, but Chu Jiye was not angry; his delicate and rather beautiful face softened slightly.
“Yes.” He looked in one direction in the classroom and said, “But before learning this talisman, we need to start with another talisman.”
He raised his hand, and two streams of spiritual power were poured into the jade slips of everyone present. Then, a whirlwind instantly swept through the entire classroom!
The sudden gust of wind swept by like a sharp blade, catching many disciples off guard. Forced by this whirlwind, which was as sharp as a knife, they all channeled their spiritual power and closed their eyes to resist the wind.
Those disciples with higher cultivation levels were somewhat better off, managing to maintain their balance, though they still swayed precariously in the wind. Those with slightly lower cultivation levels fared even worse, struggling to stay upright, their bodies staggering as if pushed by an invisible force. Some even lost their balance in the fierce wind, tumbling and rolling on the ground like beads from a broken string.
What a brilliant move!
Sheng Ningyu was also in a bad mood, but she had more knowledge and experience than all the other disciples present. While she used some of her spiritual power to resist, she took advantage of the strength of the disciples with higher cultivation levels and quickly grabbed Jin Xianyao, who was rolling on the ground.
Chu Chang'an has truly gone mad.
Sheng Ningyu frowned.
She could roughly guess what Chu Chang'an was thinking. Although she had been discreet that day and hadn't used any of the talismans she had drawn, she had still attracted Chu Chang'an's attention.
But it's one thing for him to test her, but with so many disciples present, and the puppet barrier so volatile, could he really protect them all?
In previous years, it wasn't uncommon for elders to teach their disciples in this way, but they would either tell the disciples to prepare in advance or ensure that the disciples had the ability to protect themselves. How could someone like Chu Chang'an be thrown out without any explanation?
Unless... not only Chu Chang'an, but also the elders of the academy tacitly approve of his actions.
For example, we could use this opportunity to make them complete the punishment of "removing obstacles from the mountain".
Thinking about it this way, Sheng Ningyu felt much more at ease.
But that doesn't mean she wasn't annoyed.
Xie Qianjing left so suddenly that she didn't have time to thank him for the matter of the spirit bone.
They didn't even say goodbye.
Sheng Ningyu sighed. After thinking it over, she felt that all of this was Chu Chang'an's fault.
She decided that once she had collected all the spiritual bones and restored her spiritual power, the first thing she would do was to beat up Chu Chang'an and, while she was at it, demolish that so-called "Bright Moon Pavilion on the Sea".
In this way, those rumors about "deep affection" and "unbreakable bond" will probably be debunked on their own.
...and incidentally, wash away the aura of "Senior Qi" from myself.
The wind gradually subsided, and with the overgrown weeds, it was impossible to discern directions.
The disciples looked up, but could not see Chu Jiye; they only heard his voice.
"Learn from this, and I will come back to take you back in nine days."
The eerie atmosphere had nothing to do with the place; one disciple shrank back slightly: "What if we can't learn it?"
However, there was no further reply.
Sheng Ningyu's eyes swept over the disciples present, including herself and Jin Xianyao, making a total of nine people.
That means the other disciples were sent to different places.
The group looked at each other, and one of the Nine Heavens Pavilion disciples said helplessly, "Since things have come to this, we can only continue our training here for now. If we can master our skills soon, Patriarch Chu might take us back sooner."
The group quickly got to work.
However, after two nights, no one could decipher the mystery of the Soul-Shattering Talisman.
Sheng Ningyu blended in among them, calm and collected, not in a hurry at all.
So the half-body sect disciple suggested, "Why don't we walk towards the edge of the forest?"
No one objected, so they traveled together through the secluded forest. Suddenly, a stream appeared before them. The water was crystal clear, and the pebbles at the bottom of the stream were smooth and rounded by the flowing water. Several fish were swimming in the stream.
"This place seems familiar..."
The disciple of Qingniao Yiyehua hesitated before raising his hand: "This seems to be a stream about ten miles outside the city of Shanhai Never Sleeps."
Jin Xianyao exclaimed "Wow!" with his eyes sparkling: "Then can we stay temporarily in your sect and return in nine days?"
"careful!"
The crimson barrier of puppets rushed towards us like a poisonous net.
Sheng Ningyu grabbed Jin Xianyao and rolled on the ground. The half-walled sect disciple beside her drew out a long whip, and as he swung it, black and purple lightning flashed in the air, which looked extremely terrifying.
Jin Xianyao also held his own spear, while Sheng Ningyu took out a magic weapon from her Star River Pouch.
Upon seeing this, the disciples of the Nine Heavens Pavilion exclaimed with delight, "We didn't expect Fellow Daoist Wang to be a fellow practitioner!"
Sheng Ningyu: "Yes, yes."
The disciple of Nine Heavens Pavilion said, "Then let's play a duet and let this puppet barrier see how powerful my zither playing is!"
Sheng Ningyu: "Okay, okay."
Her delicate hands plucked the strings, producing the first note of debate.
The Nine Heavens Pavilion disciple playing the flute nearby nearly lost his breath, and even the disciples who were originally on high alert almost twisted their ankles.
There's no other reason than that the sound of this zither is simply too... too unique.
The disciple of Nine Heavens Pavilion said in a trembling voice, "Fellow Daoist, you...you should...you should withdraw your supernatural powers!"
Sheng Ningyu glanced up, puzzled, and asked, "Why? I think this music is very effective against the puppet barrier!"
This is her own secret technique. As long as you integrate spiritual power into it and think about sword techniques, you can play randomly without thinking, and it will always have some effect.
The music was different each time, so Sheng Ningyu wasn't afraid of being recognized.
Of course, Sheng Ningyu also knew that such a piece of music was not considered pleasant in a worldly sense, so she never showed it to others easily.
The disciple of Nine Heavens Pavilion said sadly, "Yes, it is effective... but I'm almost out of breath too."
Audio editing is particularly sensitive to timbre.
People generally categorize music as either "pleasant to listen to" or "unpleasant to listen to," but the disciples of Jiuxiaoge believe that there should be another category from now on.
To be able to eke out a living under this music, one wonders how many times his ancestors kowtowed in the underworld.
With trembling hands, the disciple of the Nine Heavens Pavilion could no longer play any beautiful music. In a moment of desperation, he took out a cinnabar brush and used his spiritual power to draw a soul-scattering talisman from afar.
If he can't afford to offend them, can't he at least avoid them?
The crimson color, like blood congealed on yellow paper, soon spread across the surface with golden light.
The disciples of the Nine Heavens Pavilion formed a hand seal and shouted, "Demons and monsters, all the evil and wicked in the world, may they be slain here, their souls scattered and their spirits destroyed!"
Whether it was truly due to the good deeds of our ancestors, this time, the talisman really worked!
Sheng Ningyu: "You're a promising young man!"
The disciple of Jiuxiao Pavilion stared blankly: "It is because of your immeasurable merit."
Before everyone could rejoice, they saw even more crimson puppet threads surging in from afar like a raging tide. They spread and grew continuously from the depths, carrying an ominous aura. These puppet threads were not only astonishing in number, but also blood-red in color, forming two lines that seemed to devour all traces of life.
What I just saw was nothing more than a drop in the ocean!
Sheng Ningyu's expression changed: "Step back."
If the previous one could be considered a test, this one is definitely not something they, with their level of cultivation, should be able to handle!
However, given their level of cultivation, it was already too late.
The puppet barrier, like viscous venom, firmly imprisoned the surroundings, forming a net that blotted out the sky. On the other side, a person dressed in a cinnamon-purple dress stood out conspicuously.
Her figure appeared and disappeared in the sea of poisonous silk. At first, no one noticed her, but now that we are closer, we can see her clearly.
In the hazy light and shadow, she moved gracefully, holding a long sword, her body surrounded by spiritual energy, like a blooming datura flower, mysterious and alluringly elegant. Although trapped in the puppet, she seemed to be dancing, sometimes close, sometimes distant, advancing and retreating at will.
Sheng Ningyu said in a deep voice, "Instead, they are driving the puppet strings towards us."
The puppet barrier had initially been focused on the woman in purple, but with each of her hand gestures, which carried an irresistible force, many more puppet threads ended up near them.
It was obvious that this was the person who had attracted the poisonous barrier, and now she seemed to be trying to escape, at the cost of leaving them behind forever.
As the figure in purplish-red hue approached, the three disciples of the Half-Body Sect suddenly changed their expressions and spoke harshly.
"It's Ning Jiao!"
Sheng Ningyu also saw it clearly, and her lips twitched, but she didn't know what expression to make.
Ning Jiao, her junior sister.
In Sheng Ningyu's heart, Ning Jiao might harbor some dark thoughts, or she might not be as innocent and harmless as she appeared, but she was ultimately a kind and lovely girl with a good nature.
In this life, who can remain as radiant as the moon at first? Even she, didn't she initially have some reservations about Ning Jiao's arrival? And after waking up, didn't she also develop the bad habit of being suspicious?
Despite her usual carefree and cheerful demeanor, Sheng Ningyu has never allowed Yuan Shuhe and the others to walk past her to her right rear.
Even Yuan Bushu couldn't help but use the spirit bone to subtly ask her to "trust more".
Sheng Ningyu knew that her senior brother Fei Fou meant well; he didn't want her to be all alone, to have all her thoughts on one person, and to live such a tiring life.
But it's difficult.
Sheng Ningyu thought, "This is too difficult."
Even Ning Jiaojiao has transformed from a little girl who used to cling to her arm and act coquettishly into Madam Ning, who can kill without batting an eye.
And her unpredictable swordsmanship is completely unlike anything taught at the Sword Pavilion. Where did she learn it from? How has she been all these years? What has she experienced? Was she deceived by that man surnamed Qi?
...
But no matter what, innocent lives should never be taken.
Sheng Ningyu sighed softly, and formed a magic seal with her fingertips. Suddenly, the piece of spiritual bone that still had the aura of demonic patterns appeared in her previously empty palm.
Oh well, so be it. Once she regains her spiritual power, she'll be able to hide again.
Feng Xiaohong wants to kill her, Li Qingfeng had already fallen out with her long ago, and Chu Chang'an is a madman whose purpose is unknown. Yunwang Palace might cause trouble if they take her in... At worst, she can hide until the Ghost Nurturing Day ends, and then go to her senior brother's Ghost Cang Tower.
There's always a way.
Sheng Ningyu thought that as the senior sister, if the junior sister did something wrong, it was also because she had failed to teach her properly.
Since Ning Jiao is like this, she must always take responsibility.
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Author's Note: Our Mingyue is such a wonderful senior sister, waaaaah!
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