Everyone was stunned by the sudden sword strike, and cried out in alarm. As the cold sword pierced towards Lingyun with unstoppable momentum, they suddenly closed their eyes.
The expected scene of a violent death and a river of blood did not occur. When everyone opened their eyes, they saw the sword tip stop an inch away from Lingyun's pupils. After a few seconds of pause, it suddenly retreated, circled a few times in the air, and then returned to its sheath.
Lingyun slid to the ground against the tree trunk, panting heavily. Cold sweat had already broken out on her forehead, and the fear in her eyes had not completely subsided.
Ji Yue stepped forward slowly and said calmly, "You're right, hitting people does feel really good."
Her eyes darted around, her gaze sweeping coolly over Lingyun's lackeys. Though there was no hint of intimidation in her eyes, they felt an overwhelming pressure that held them frozen in place, unable to move.
"From this day forward, you few will go to the back cliff to reflect on your mistakes and will not be allowed to leave for five years." Ji Yue said coldly, "Do you understand?"
The lackeys stammered, "We...we understand..." and then scrambled away from the place.
Ji Yue looked at Ling Yun, who was slumped on the ground, "As for you..."
Lingyun finally came to her senses, and stood up while holding onto the tree trunk. Although she quickly reverted to her arrogant and disdainful demeanor, her legs were still weak.
"Jiyue, it's you again! Why do you always have to go against me!" Lingyun glared angrily at Jiyue. "You couldn't do anything to me before, and you still can now. Don't forget, the Grand Tutor is my aunt. If you dare to touch me, I'll expel you from Fusheng Pavilion and make sure you have no place to stand in Qingshan!"
Ji Yue, whose face was disguised as Qing, had her eyes shifting a few times. She hadn't expected Ling Yun to be so fearless. She had only wanted to teach her a lesson, but now she had deliberately stirred up trouble.
After a pause, he said to the two men carrying stones, "What are you standing there for? Come on, the road has been cleared for you."
The two disciples: "..." So you were trying to give us a passage? Well, your method of creating that passage was pretty brutal.
They complained inwardly, but no one dared to say it aloud, so they could only carry the stones and continue their difficult journey forward.
Seeing Ji Yue and the two disciples walking forward without stopping, Ling Yun became even more furious and shouted, "Ji Yue, what do you mean! Do you think I don't exist?! How dare you ignore me! You just wait, I will definitely not let you off!"
Ignoring the fading angry shouts behind her, Ji Yue walked forward expressionlessly, muttering to herself, "It's just clearing a road, why are you so angry? I'll just be more polite next time..."
The two disciples were speechless.
After walking for a while, Qinghe finally saw the shadow of Nanshan Residence. Strangely enough, it was named Nanshan Residence, but it was located in the north. No wonder she couldn't find it no matter what she did.
If someone who knows she has a terrible sense of direction heard her thoughts, they would definitely mock her, saying that someone who can't even tell east from west would have no chance of finding her way.
It wasn't until they entered Nanshan Residence that Qinghe instructed them to put down the stones.
The two disciples were panting heavily and almost sat down to rest, but because their senior sister was there, they only stopped for a moment before saying, "Senior sister, if there's nothing else, we'll take our leave."
Qinghe, taking pity on them, stopped making things difficult for them and waved them away.
After they left, Qinghe went to a room, pushed open the door and saw a person lying on the bed, who was none other than Lingyin in disguise as Ruxing.
Upon seeing Qinghe, Lingyin suddenly sat up and whispered, "Didn't you give yourself away?"
Qinghe shook his head.
Lingyin breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good."
Qinghe said, “That Grand Tutor is very powerful. If I didn’t have the Divine Pearl with me, I’m afraid she would have seen through me.” She sat on the wooden stool and said to Lingyin, “I told her that you are recovering from your injuries and that you should not go out during this time to avoid being seen through.”
Lingyin nodded and looked at Qinghe, asking, "Is that divine pearl really that powerful?"
Qinghe remained noncommittal.
Lingyin bit her lip and said casually, "Since that's the case, give me one too. With it, no one will be able to recognize me, right?"
Upon hearing this, Qinghe looked up at her. His eyes, clear and bright like water, seemed as deep and unfathomable as a cold pool to Lingyin.
Feeling inexplicably guilty, she looked away, chuckled awkwardly, and said nonchalantly, "Never mind, I was just kidding. Since the Divine Pearl is so powerful, you'd better keep it safe and don't let anyone steal it."
Qing looked at her quietly and said, "Don't worry, I'll keep it safe. It won't be stolen." She looked away, gazing at the gentle, bright sunlight outside. "Do you think the world would be a better place if there were fewer people with ulterior motives?"
Lingyin clenched her fingers tightly and looked at Qinghe. Her heart sank slightly, thinking that Qinghe had seen through something. But when she looked at Qinghe's expression, she was calm and composed, without any fluctuation, as if she had just asked a question casually.
Lingyin felt slightly relieved and replied perfunctorily, "Probably."
After a long while, Qinghe chuckled softly and said calmly, "You should get some rest." Then she got up and left the room.
Lingyin sat blankly on the bed, staring at the closed door. After a long while, she lowered her head, slowly stretched out her fingers, and her palms were already sweaty.
"Hidden motives..." she sneered, "but everyone has their own destiny."
A soft murmur drifted into Qinghe's ears on the breeze. Qinghe lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly. She then withdrew her divine sense, left Nanshan Residence without lingering any longer.
...
As night fell and the moon hid behind dark clouds, the gloomy weather gave people the illusion that it was about to rain at any moment.
Qinghe meditated quietly in her room, but perhaps because of the weather, she couldn't calm down. Her thoughts were chaotic, and she felt somewhat irritable.
Suddenly opening her eyes, Qinghe looked out the window. The night seemed to become alluring and seductive, and she was unconsciously drawn to it. She moved lightly to the window, wanting to admire the boundless night view up close.
A gentle breeze caressed her face, and countless fireflies danced in the air, gradually forming the outline of a person. As the outline took shape, Qinghe suddenly opened her eyes wide.
"Please allow me..."
She murmured softly, her clear, cool voice especially distinct in the still night.
The pale fingertips gently touched the figure, the fireflies bright, flashing with a cold, eerie green light.
"Qi Rong, why have you become so short?"
The fireflies twisted at a speed visible to the naked eye, and she seemed to see Qi Rong's expression become somewhat eerie.
"What's with that expression? Am I wrong? You've gotten shorter."
Qing continued to express his own opinions, completely ignoring the increasingly distorted expression on the firefly's face.
The pink figure hiding under the big tree in the distance had an expression exactly like the eerie expression formed by fireflies. Lingyun's face twitched, and she cursed inwardly, "What kind of nonsense is this woman thinking!"
Lingyun, who originally intended to teach Jiyue a lesson using the Dream-Guiding Lamp, was now filled with regret. Instead of cultivating on such a beautiful night, she had come here to make trouble for herself. She was really asking for trouble.
Lingyun had thought she could find Jiyue's weakness through the dream and mock her, but she ended up trapping herself. Looking at the figure by the window still rambling on and on, Lingyun suddenly felt that she was incredibly stupid.
With a flick of his wrists, the Dream Lamp vanished, and at the same time, the fireflies by the window disappeared without a trace, as if blown away by the wind.
Lingyun stomped her foot, glared at Jiyue, and then turned and disappeared into the night.
Qinghe stared at Qi Rong, who had suddenly disappeared, still in a daze. She peeked around and called out, "Stop fooling around, come out now. Even if you've gotten shorter, I won't mind."
The night remained quiet and still.
Qinghe: "If you don't come out soon, I'm leaving." Her eyes darted back and forth. "I'm really leaving."
After a long while, she closed the window and sighed, "I gave you a chance, but you didn't do it."
I sat back on the bed and meditated again. This time, my thoughts didn't wander, and I regained my peace of mind.
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