Xu Ling Sect, Merit Hall.
Lu Li leaned against a hall pillar, a look of panic on his face, clearly frightened by Duan Xueyan’s earlier words.
He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the awkwardness and irritation in his heart, his expression gradually returning to its usual cold composure—though a faint, almost imperceptible blush lingered at the tips of his ears.
“Heh heh… Senior Sister flatters me. This humble Daoist appreciates your regard.”
Lu Li cupped his hands, his tone distant and resolute.
“As for the matter of the Dao Fruit path, I have already made my decision. There’s no need for Senior Sister to concern yourself further. As for changing allegiances, that is absolutely impossible.”
“The Emotion-Severing Dao inheritance of Duanqing Peak, this humble Daoist would never dare forget.”
Having said this, Lu Li gave a slight nod, unwilling to linger on this topic, and directly cut to the point:
“Senior Sister, the mission in Yangzhou City has been completed. The related Mission Voucher, Scrolls, and crucial intelligence on Yin Corpse Sect’s activities have all just been submitted to you…”
“So, if there’s nothing else, may I trouble you to settle the mission rewards: three hundred Middle-grade Spirit Stones and five hundred Sect Contribution Points? I still need to return to the peak to supervise the disciples’ cultivation.”
With that, Lu Li put on an air of official business, eager to escape.
Duan Xueyan watched his desperate attempt to evade her and could only find it amusing.
Instead of picking up the Scrolls and processing the mission for Lu Li, she moved gracefully, drawing even closer.
With a half-smile, she glanced sidelong at Lu Li, her slender white finger lightly tapping the stack of Scrolls, blocking Lu Li from submitting the mission.
“Sigh~ Junior Brother, why are you in such a hurry?”
Duan Xueyan’s voice remained soft and charming, yet now carried a tone that brooked no refusal.
“The reward isn’t going to grow legs and run off. I haven’t seen you in ages, and we’ve barely exchanged a few words before you’re already getting up to leave?”
“Sigh… you heartless little thing, aren’t you being a bit too cruel to your Senior Sister~”
Duan Xueyan artfully positioned her body and arm, forming a small ‘enclosure’ in front of Lu Li, trapping him between the pillar and herself.
Though not overtly intimate, it was more than enough to make Lu Li’s escape difficult.
“Junior Brother Lu~ stay and chat with your Senior Sister a while longer~”
Duan Xueyan leaned in slightly, as if she wanted to sniff whether Lu Li carried the scent of travel.
Yet at the moment she drew close, her wings fluttered almost imperceptibly.
“…Who would have thought~ Junior Brother Lu’s wooden head is finally opening up~”
“I thought that cultivating the Emotion-Severing Dao really meant severing all emotion and love… but it seems you just look down on your Senior Sister’s charms~”
Lu Li was bewildered by Duan Xueyan’s words, completely unsure what she was getting at.
“Senior Sister… what are you talking about?”
“Oh~ Junior Brother, still pretending to be innocent?”
The smile on Duan Xueyan’s face didn’t change, but a faintly probing glint flashed in her eyes, her tone languid yet suddenly holding deeper meaning.
“Heh heh… There’s no such thing as a secret that stays hidden forever. Junior Brother Lu, after this trip outside, it seems you’ve picked up a rather unusual feminine fragrance?”
As she spoke, Duan Xueyan brought her nose closer to Lu Li again.
“Sniff~ sniff… Elegant and cold, like plum and orchid, and not just one scent at that…”
“Ara~ Junior Brother, on this trip, aside from slaying monsters and demons, did you also encounter some ‘peach blossom fate’? Which immortal maiden was so lucky as to leave her fragrance on you, when you’re always so distant from women?”
As soon as Duan Xueyan finished, Gong Shangyu and Gu Qingying, who had been secretly watching at the door, suddenly tensed up.
Obviously, the feminine scent Duan Xueyan referred to came from the two of them.
Lu Li, on the other hand, was even more confused by Duan Xueyan’s words.
“Uh… Senior Sister, you must be joking. This humble Daoist went to Yangzhou purely on business, constantly tangling with demonic sect scoundrels. Where would I have the leisure to meet any immortal maidens? Surely you’ve got the wrong person?”
“Oh? Is that so?”
Duan Xueyan dragged out her words, clearly unconvinced.
She let the topic of fragrance drop and circled back, gently placing her jade hand on Lu Li’s arm, fingertips unconsciously stroking the fabric of his Daoist robe.
Her eyes were bright as she stared into Lu Li’s face, half teasing, half serious.
“If there are no wildflowers outside… then—Junior Brother Lu, what do you think of your Senior Sister?”
Duan Xueyan lowered her voice, her tone now tinged with an indescribable allure:
“Your Senior Sister has had her eye on you for quite some time. I dare say, my looks aren’t bad, my cultivation is decent, and I manage the Merit Hall—one could say I have some authority within the sect.”
“So… if you and I were to become Dao companions, with Xiaoyao Peak and Duanqing Peak joining forces, even the Sect Leader would have to show us some respect~”
“As for that Dao path of yours… your Senior Sister can help you figure it out, too. Better than you groping about alone.”
By now, Duan Xueyan’s words were utterly direct, her expectation in her eyes nearly impossible to conceal.
Lu Li only felt his scalp tingle, and where she touched his hand, it was as if ants were crawling.
He quickly ducked out from her embrace, retreating once again to put distance between them, his tone helpless yet firmly resolute.
“Senior Sister Duan! Please show some self-respect! This humble Daoist is wholly devoted to the Dao, and has no intention of pursuing romance for the time being.”
“Senior Sister Duan, you are talented and beautiful, and will find your perfect match—please don’t waste your feelings on me.”
With that, he smiled and handed his Contribution Token to Duan Xueyan.
“Senior Sister Duan, if you please, could you settle the mission reward!”
At that moment, in the shadows outside the Merit Hall.
Gong Shangyu and Gu Qingying were pressing against the crack in the door, taking in the entire scene within the grand hall.
Seeing Duan Xueyan move in on Lu Li again, even reaching out to touch his hand, Gu Qingying’s fist clenched, her eyes nearly shooting flames, and she muttered through gritted teeth.
“That old hag Duan Xueyan! Where does she think she’s putting her hand! Shameless!”
Gong Shangyu managed to keep a calm expression, but the hand fanning herself had stilled, a cold glint flickering in her peach blossom eyes as she snorted, “Hmph~ Senior Aunt really knows how to scheme. Join forces? She must be thinking about how to swallow up Master and Duanqing Peak into their Xiaoyao Peak, no doubt?”
“Heh… Junior Brother Lu~ are you sure you don’t want to consider becoming my Dao companion?”
As soon as Duan Xueyan said this, the two girls nearly burst into the hall.
“Argh… That damned old witch! She actually dared say it out loud!”
Gu Qingying stamped her foot in anger, but afraid of being discovered, had to stifle her voice.
Gong Shangyu rapped Gu Qingying’s head with her fan’s frame, whispering to her junior sister, “Calm down! Didn’t you see that Master intends to refuse her?”
As expected, upon hearing Duan Xueyan’s words, Lu Li refused her again.
Seeing Lu Li once more put on a stern face and resolutely declare himself devoted to the Dao with no intention of romance, the two girls finally breathed a sigh of relief, glancing at each other and seeing mutual relief in each other’s eyes.
However, upon seeing that even after repeated rejection, Duan Xueyan continued to pester Lu Li, even using the mission reward to trap him, their barely subdued anger flared up again.
“Argh… That damned old witch! She’s even using the reward to threaten Master!”
Gu Qingying ground her back teeth.
“Hmph… If we don’t give Senior Aunt Duan a little warning, she’ll never learn to restrain herself.”
Gong Shangyu narrowed her eyes, already scheming in her mind how to ‘accidentally’ cause trouble for her Senior Aunt, so she’d have less time to harass their Master.