The next morning, when Qinghe woke up, she felt dizzy, as if she had just had a long dream.
When they went to pay their respects to their master as usual, some disciples saw that Senior Sister Jiyue was still drowsy and had faint dark circles under her eyes. They thought she was grumpy when she woke up, so they consciously chose to stay away from her to avoid being angry with her.
Qinghe was unaware that he had become someone everyone wanted to avoid. Shaking his head, he went to the main hall. He had just passed through the trial grounds and was still some distance from the main hall when he encountered Lingyun, who had also not slept all night.
Both of them were in a daze, their minds unclear. When they met, sparks flew and tensions rose.
Some disciples, who were always eager for a good show, stayed away from the trouble and peered out to watch this historic moment.
Some people even started a betting game on the spot, using Jiyue and Lingyun as stakes, guessing who would win and who would lose.
“In the past, Senior Sister Jiyue always won, so I bet on Senior Sister Jiyue.”
"I don't think so. Didn't you see that Senior Sister Jiyue isn't in good shape today? It's hard to guarantee she won't lose."
"What do you know? Even if Senior Sister Jiyue didn't sleep well, her cultivation level is still there. Lingyun is definitely going to lose!"
"That's what you call reckless! You forgot that Lingyun is a relative of the Grand Tutor, with powerful backing! Even if Senior Sister Jiyue can beat her, she can't do anything to her. She might even have to give her a move or two..."
The more they thought about it, the more sense it made. They all craned their necks to look at the two people involved in the betting game.
On the left, Senior Sister Jiyue was covering her head, looking at Lingyun calmly, while on the right, Lingyun was also covering her head, looking at Jiyue angrily.
After a long standoff, the two suddenly started walking towards each other at the same time.
"It's moving! It's getting closer! Three meters... two meters... one meter! Fire!" several disciples watching excitedly exclaimed.
Two figures in the center of the trial grounds drew closer and closer until they brushed past each other.
"Hey, why did you leave? What's going on? Did the sun rise in the west?"
The disciple next to him looked up, then turned back and said, "No, the sun still rises from the east."
The group looked at each other in bewilderment: This was too strange; they hadn't even started fighting.
Someone sighed, "Alas, it seems this betting game won't happen. I was hoping to win some money to buy some cosmetics..."
The disciple next to her nudged her with his finger, signaling her to turn around.
The disciple was still immersed in the sorrow of not being able to hold a gambling game when he turned his head and met Ji Yue's cold gaze.
"Senior Sister..."
Ji Yue said coldly, "It seems you haven't been doing enough homework, which has allowed you to have so much free time."
Several disciples knelt down and said, "Senior Sister, we know we were wrong, and we will never dare to do it again."
Ji Yue lowered her eyes to look at the figures kneeling before her and said softly, "The sect rules, a thousand times."
Several disciples looked distressed: "Thank you, Senior Sister. We will go and accept our punishment now."
Ji Yue said nothing more and turned to walk gracefully toward the main hall.
After she had walked quite a distance, the disciples who had been kneeling stood up and began to blame each other: "It's all your fault! Why did you start this gambling game? Now look what's happened! We'll have to write the sect rules a thousand times over!"
"How dare you talk to me like that? You used to be the one causing the most trouble when we were running gambling dens!"
"Hey, all of you, stop arguing and think about how to write these rules a thousand times!"
"What's there to be afraid of? Senior Sister only said to write the sect rules a thousand times, but she didn't say what method to use. We'll use spiritual power then... hehe."
"Yes, that's a good idea..."
"Let's do it this way..."
The sound grew farther and farther away until it disappeared completely.
...
After paying his respects to his master, Qinghe wandered around the Floating Life Pavilion, seemingly leisurely, but actually searching for the whereabouts of the Mountain-Breaking Pearl.
When they reached a secluded spot, she stopped and said coldly, "Come out!"
A moment later, a thin figure emerged from a dozen meters behind Qinghe.
Qinghe turned around and looked at the figure. It was the girl who had been bullied and knocked to the ground by Lingyun earlier.
She was still wearing the torn clothes, with mud still stuck to them, and a small section of her wrist was visible with faint red marks from being whipped.
The girl stood there somewhat awkwardly, not daring to look directly at Qinghe. Her lips moved for a long time, but she couldn't say anything.
Qinghe: "You've been following me since yesterday. What's your intention?"
The cold, distant words sent a chill down the girl's spine. She clenched her fingers and stammered, "Senior Sister Ji... Jiyue, my name is Zhou Xiaotong. I've been at Fusheng Pavilion for two years now. I want to... I want to cultivate spiritual power. Can... can you help me?"
After half a day, she finally managed to finish a complete sentence, her face flushed red with nervousness.
Qinghe could naturally see that Zhou Xiaotong's cultivation was only at the Qi Refining stage, her spiritual level was weak, her aptitude was very poor, and she was timid and submissive, so it was no wonder that she was the target of bullying.
The reason she came to Qinghe to be her protector was obviously because of what happened yesterday. She still remembered the amazement and admiration in the girl's eyes when she forced Lingyun back yesterday.
Qinghe sized up Zhou Xiaotong, but in his mind he was wondering whether he should take on this trouble.
The scrutinizing gaze fell on Zhou Xiaotong, like a sharp knife scraping her skin again and again. She felt like a duck being sold, her skin exposed, her innermost self revealed to the public, naked and without dignity.
She clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her flesh, but she felt no pain whatsoever.
She began to tremble all over, yet felt incredibly cold despite the warm, gentle sunlight.
Unable to hold on any longer, Zhou Xiaotong suddenly turned around and ran away into the distance, ignoring Qinghe calling her name from behind, even though she had mispronounced her surname.
Qinghe stood there, frowning as she looked in the direction Zhou Xiaotong had run off to, muttering, "That Wang Xiaotong, I was about to say yes to her, why did she suddenly run away? It's really strange..."
A strange day, strange people, strange things.
Zhou Xiaotong didn't stop until she had run quite a distance. She looked up and used her hand to shield her eyes from the glaring sunlight. She found a secluded, shady spot, squatted down, and curled herself up into a ball.
Her palms were covered in cold sweat. She grabbed a piece of her dress and rubbed her palms with increasing force until they bled. Only then did she stop.
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, and she sobbed uncontrollably in a quiet, deserted corner, bursting into tears.
The cries were sharp and pitiful, and it took a long time for them to gradually subside. Zhou Xiaotong rubbed her teary eyes, her body trembling from crying so hard. Her already dirty clothes were now soaked with tears.
She wiped her eyes, her moist gaze turning cold and ruthless. "Just wait, one day I will be stronger than all of you. I will defeat you all, trample you all under my feet, and kill you all, leaving no one alive!"
Her eyes were filled with hatred and resentment, and her face showed a terrifying expression. She stared intently at one spot, a strange smile curling at the corner of her mouth, as if she had already foreseen the scene of everyone dying tragically at her hands.
After a long while, she wiped away her tears, stood up, stepped out of the shadows, and reverted to her timid and cowardly self, leaving in one direction without looking back.
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