Chapter 29 Getting close will defile him
"...4498, 4499, 5000!"
After finally completing five thousand repetitions, Sheng Zhiyi was so exhausted that she couldn't move a single finger. She collapsed to the ground, looking up at the twinkling stars in the night sky.
The night sky was deep, quiet, and cold, like an endless, crab-shell-green sea, with stars twinkling and a wisp of thin cloud drifting by.
As far as the eye could see, all was quiet and still, with the cool fragrance of pear blossoms wafting to the nose.
Sheng Zhiyi sighed inwardly.
Ji Fuguang has not returned yet.
Such a private residence must have some kind of barrier or enclosure that can detect whether there are other people around.
Is it because she is still alive that Ji Fuguang is unwilling to come back?
She propped herself up on her arms and sat up from the ground, her whole body aching and sore.
After Ji Fuguang left, she began practicing swordsmanship. In the past, she would only practice a thousand times, but today, she practiced it five thousand times.
Deep down, Sheng Zhiyi held onto a faint hope that Ji Fuguang would realize she hadn't cheated or slacked off, and that he would have a better impression of her—good enough to allow her to come to Shuanghua Peak, good enough to forgive her behavior.
But now it seems that all her efforts were in vain.
Sheng Zhiyi frowned, feeling both bitter and dissatisfied.
What's there to be angry about when a grown man's face is just touched? It's not like he's lost a piece of flesh.
If he's unhappy, he can just touch her back, touch her face, and she can stand there and let him touch her.
For some reason, the thought of Ji Fuguang touching her face made Sheng Zhiyi's heart skip a beat, as if she had been unexpectedly branded by something scalding hot.
Shaking her head, Sheng Zhiyi shook off this inexplicable feeling.
Ji Fuguang hasn't come back yet, and she can't keep shamelessly staying here.
After resting for a while, she circulated her inner energy and flew down the mountain on her sword.
Shuanghua Peak is steep and higher than other places. The night is deep and quiet, and it is pitch black everywhere. Only the sound of pine trees rustling in the mountain stream can be heard.
Not far away, a towering building could be faintly seen, its light still shining like a tiny spark.
Sheng Zhiyi landed on the ground, blinked, and seemed to be deep in thought.
——
The next day, Sheng Zhiyi got up early and went to the entrance of the library. She looked up and examined the building.
The main hall, built on a foundation of blue bricks and stones, stands ten stories high. Each story has flying eaves with hanging bells at the four corners, and a finial adorned with floral patterns and mythical beasts. A gentle breeze blows, and the soothing bells emit melodious sounds, washing away worldly distractions.
Ji Fuguang had previously said he had something to attend to and needed to come to the library to finish it. After several delays in the past few days, he should be here to take care of it by now.
Actually... regardless of whether Ji Fuguang will come to the library, she still wants to gamble here.
She couldn't go to Shuanghua Peak anymore, and she couldn't enter the inner sect, so she could only try her luck at the library.
Sheng Zhiyi stood waiting in front of the main hall. Passing disciples glanced at her, somewhat surprised, finding her unfamiliar. Only the disciples who had participated in the entrance trial with her showed surprise on their faces and whispered among themselves.
Sheng Zhiyi ignored them; they recognized her, but she didn't recognize any of them.
She was afraid of missing Ji Fuguang, so she arrived here at Chenshi (7-9 AM) and waited for almost an hour, but still didn't see Ji Fuguang.
My neck was getting sore from stretching so much, and I was just starting to have some doubts when I suddenly smelled a cool, refreshing scent of pear blossoms.
Sheng Zhiyi looked up and saw Ji Fuguang dressed in white, with a jade crown on his head and black hair like a waterfall, walking step by step up the stone steps toward the main hall.
"Senior brother." Sheng Zhiyi hurriedly went to greet him, her face beaming with smiles.
"Junior Sister." Ji Fuguang stopped at the entrance of the main hall, nodded slightly to Sheng Zhiyi, and said with a gentle expression.
"Senior brother, I knew you'd come over so early. Have you had your meal yet?" Sheng Zhiyi pretended to take out food from her storage bag.
She prepared this specially last night, hoping to gain some favor with Ji Fuguang.
"Thank you for your kindness, Junior Sister," Ji Fuguang said in a clear voice, though there was a hint of detachment in it. "This is a quiet place where disciples are all focused on their cultivation. It is really not appropriate for us to do this."
Before Sheng Zhiyi could persuade him further, he added, "Besides, for cultivators, eating is merely a temporary indulgence in their appetite; not eating is no big deal. Junior Sister, I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."
Sheng Zhiyi watched his departing figure, clenching her teeth in anger.
fraud!
It's not a big deal if you don't eat anything; he was the one who asked you before if you wanted to eat breakfast.
Now he acts distant, as if she has something dirty about her and getting close would defile him.
She already said it was because she was drunk and lost control! She didn't have any fetishes about touching other people when she was sober!
Ji Fuguang hurried forward, his face expressionless, but a strange sense of unease rose within him.
Why is she everywhere?
In front of the main hall, people came and went, and naturally saw the scene of Ji Fuguang's refusal. More of their gazes fell on Sheng Zhiyi, and they seemed more frivolous than before.
Being looked at by these gazes only fueled Sheng Zhiyi's stubbornness.
She admitted that she had done something wrong to Ji Fuguang.
She can be nice once, and she can be nice a second time. I don't believe Ji Fuguang never has a moment when he's soft-hearted.
Thinking of this, Sheng Zhiyi lifted her foot and walked into the library.
The library has ten floors. Except for the top three floors, which require a decree from the sect leader to enter, the other seven floors are open to everyone. Upon entry, simply hand your sect token to the disciple at the entrance for registration.
As Sheng Zhiyi watched Ji Fuguang simply greet his disciples and enter the door, while she herself was blocked by the long queue, she couldn't help but curse inwardly.
The privileged class!
Why doesn't Ji Fuguang need to register? Is his face the sect's token?
There were three or four people ahead of her in line to register, and she was worried that Ji Fuguang would have to go up to the third floor, so she couldn't help but feel a little anxious.
When it was finally her turn, Sheng Zhiyi took out her sect token and handed it to the registered disciple.
The woman was dressed in the sect's standard long robe, and her hair was neatly styled; she appeared to be a person who followed the rules and regulations.
She did a routine check, recorded Sheng Zhiyi's information, and returned the token to Sheng Zhiyi.
"The servant's token allows you to browse the library for three hours, limited to the lower three floors."
"What?" Sheng Zhiyi exclaimed in surprise.
The woman looked at her with a puzzled expression and repeated, "That's the rule for the servant's token. You can browse the library for two hours, but only on the lower three floors."
Actually, this rule is not about discrimination. If a servant has no one to teach him, he is at great risk of going astray if he rashly reads advanced books.
Sheng Zhiyi frowned. The top three floors were filled with books that were easily damaged, so it was unlikely that Ji Fuguang would go there. But if she could only go to the bottom three floors, the probability of encountering Ji Fuguang would be greatly reduced.
After all, the books in the library are categorized by difficulty level. Given Ji Fuguang's cultivation level, he probably wouldn't be looking at the basic tutorials.
"Um... could you make an exception?" Sheng Zhiyi tentatively asked. "I'm just going upstairs to read a book. I won't do anything out of line."
The woman shook her head and said, "These are the rules of the library, and everyone must abide by them."
Sheng Zhiyi knew that this rule was not something a mere disciple could break. Moreover, the two were not related, and she really couldn't force the woman to do anything for her.
As the line behind her grew longer, she realized she was already running out of time. Dejected, Sheng Zhiyi reached out her hand, wanting to take back her sect token.
"If..." the woman suddenly began, then paused for a moment, "there is another rule in the library: if someone is willing to vouch for you, you can be treated the same as an ordinary disciple."
Sheng Zhiyi's eyes lit up at first, then she shook her head dejectedly.
She didn't know anyone in the sect, and Ji Fuguang wasn't going to appear out of nowhere, so she'd better behave herself and not get in the way.
Just as Sheng Zhiyi's hand touched the sect token, a voice suddenly came from behind her:
"I'll do it."
Sheng Zhiyi turned around in surprise and saw an unexpected person walking out of the line.
"Qin Shaoyang?!"
What is he doing here? Is he here to see her make a fool of herself?
Sheng Zhiyi looked over warily. Qin Shaoyang was moving very slowly, and his injuries had not yet fully healed.
Thinking of this, Sheng Zhiyi breathed a sigh of relief. It's alright. Qin Shaoyang is currently old, weak, sick, or disabled. If a fight really breaks out, she shouldn't get beaten up.
“Junior Sister Sheng.” He nodded calmly to Sheng Zhiyi, then whispered to the woman registering, “I will vouch for her.”
Even after she got her sect token back, Sheng Zhiyi was still a little dazed. She looked at Qin Shaoyang and couldn't help but wonder if Ji Fuguang's whip had made him stupid.
Given his unusual behavior, if she weren't in the Tianyan Sect, she would have suspected that Qin Shaoyang had been possessed.
The disciples behind them came to register, and the two stepped into the library.
"Junior Sister Sheng, I know what you're thinking." Qin Shaoyang noticed her gaze and said slowly, "Since being punished by Senior Brother Ji that day, I've thought about it repeatedly these past few days and I've indeed lost my heart for cultivation."
Sheng Zhiyi looked over with a mixture of belief and doubt.
Qin Shaoyang smiled slightly, "In a few days, I will be going down the mountain to train, so I will not participate in the inner sect selection in three days. However, junior sister, I advise you that there are many experts in the outer sect. Apart from me, many others also have unique skills. You must not let your guard down."
Sheng Zhiyi has one redeeming quality: she is very receptive to instruction. Seeing Qin Shaoyang's earnest words, she nodded solemnly, "I understand, Senior Brother Qin, thank you."
In her last battle with Qin Shaoyang, although she was angry that Qin Shaoyang was so arrogant, Sheng Zhiyi still knew that he wasn't a vicious person. This realization wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
“Although you do have some talent,” Qin Shaoyang added, “I still don’t think you will be able to enter the inner sect.”
He looked Sheng Zhiyi up and down, then slowly shook his head.
...
Thank you so much!
Sheng Zhiyi tilted her head back and glared angrily at Qin Shaoyang, then laughed, "Fine, then you can wait until the inner sect selection is over before you leave, and see if I can actually enter the inner sect."
She was determined to enter the inner sect. This was not just a momentary impulse, but more importantly, it was because only after entering the inner sect could she get close to Ji Fuguang, instead of being helpless as she was now, as long as Ji Fuguang did not want to see her.
On the stairs of the library, a figure in white lowered his eyes and saw a man and a woman talking to each other on one side of the main hall.
As she continued, the girl looked up and smiled.
Sunlight streamed through the stained-glass windows of the library, making the girl's eyes sparkle as she gazed directly at the man before her.
His tall figure lifted his foot and went up the steps, leaving a pile of dust on the steps where he had just stood.
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