Chapter 6: Human relationships

“How is it, Yaoyao? Does it still hurt?”

Chu Lingshuang asked with concern as they walked along the road.

“It’s just a minor injury. It’s the perfect excuse to skip cultivation, hahaha,” Baili Muyao replied, forcing a laugh.

Even though she was still in agonizing pain, she didn’t want her best friend to worry.

Suddenly, a stranger appeared before them.

The person wore a fox mask and had a graceful figure, clearly a woman.

Sensing ill intent, Chu Lingshuang reached for the sword at her waist.

“Who goes there?”

The figure didn’t answer.

She lunged forward with a burst of speed.

Chu Lingshuang drew her sword to meet the attack, but to her surprise, the woman had no desire to fight her.

Instead, she swept past and snatched Baili Muyao off Chu Lingshuang’s shoulder.

“Ah! Yaoyao!”

Chu Lingshuang spun around, only to see the woman pressing her fingers into Baili Muyao’s temples, lifting her entire body into the air.

“SOUL REFINING.”

Blackish-purple baleful energy began to seep from the woman’s hands, spreading like thin threads and flowing into Baili Muyao through her seven orifices.

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!”

Baili Muyao began to bleed from her eyes, nose, ears, and mouth.

Her expression was one of extreme agony, looking a hundred times more painful than when her bones had been broken earlier.

“Stop! Do you know who she is?”

The woman remained silent, continuing the torture.

“She’s the foster daughter of the Scorpion Palace’s Master! If you kill her, every assassin in the world will come for you!”

The woman didn’t stop.

“She’s also the youngest daughter of the prestigious Baili family! She’s the family head’s favorite! You’ll regret it if you kill her!”

“BODY PURGING.”

The woman still didn’t stop.

In fact, she intensified her efforts.

After a brief delay, water began to seep from Baili Muyao’s skin, accompanied by severe incontinence.

Gradually, her body began to shrink like a deflating balloon.

Ultimately, Baili Muyao’s body became a withered husk.

It hit the ground with a clatter, shattering into several scattered pieces.

Watching this scene, Chu Lingshuang’s pupils constricted violently as tears streamed down her face.

This was her only dear friend in the sect, the sole pillar of emotional support that allowed her to endure staying there.

“You beast! What did she ever do to you? Why did you kill her in such a cruel way?”

Chu Lingshuang had heard of this technique.

Soul Refining and Body Purging—as the names suggested, the former roasted a cultivator’s soul as if refining a pill, while the latter expelled impurities from the body.

It was originally a method of body tempering, but under the modification of a certain evil cultivator in the past, it had been transformed from a self-applied technique into an evil art that could be forced upon others.

Since then, all Soul Refining cultivators had been hunted down and killed by righteous cultivators under the motto ‘better to kill an innocent than let a guilty one go.’

The cultivation method itself had been strictly banned and was soon completely lost.

Yet the person before her could use that evil art so skillfully; she had to be a cold-blooded killer.

Even so, Chu Lingshuang couldn’t understand why someone would treat such a good girl with such cruelty.

She was her only best friend, a girl who always thought of others, the most beautiful soul Chu Lingshuang knew.

“What she did to me was ten thousand times more cruel than what I’ve done to her!”

Chu Lingshuang took a half-step back, startled by the sheer weight of the woman’s resentment.

The tone didn’t sound like a joke at all.

But this only made Chu Lingshuang more confused.

Suddenly, the woman’s resentment vanished.

She spoke in a bored tone.

“Ah, forget it. Why should I explain anything to you?”

“Since you’re so sad, I’ll just send you to reunite with her.”

With that, the woman drew her longsword, kicked off the ground, and flew toward Chu Lingshuang.

Clang

The eyes behind the mask widened.

She found that her sword had been caught between another person’s two fingers.

“Sect Master!?”

“Sorry, Lingshuang. I’m late.”

Jun Lin caught a glimpse of the remains of Baili Muyao on the ground.

Unable to bear the sight, she looked away and closed her eyes.

At this moment, her heart was a whirlwind of emotions.

She knew very well how much Baili Muyao meant to Chu Lingshuang.

She was even worried that Chu Lingshuang’s Dao heart would be damaged by the loss.

But it wasn’t just because of Chu Lingshuang.

Although Baili Muyao’s talent wasn’t as high as Chu Lingshuang’s, she was still among the elite and came from a high-status family.

Now that she had died so miserably within the sect, Jun Lin truly didn’t know how to explain this to those two powerful figures.

“In any case, let me see who you are.”

The masked woman tried to flash backward, but her body was frozen mid-motion.

The pressure released by Jun Lin pinned her in place.

Just a moment before Jun Lin could reach out to remove the mask…

Boom!

A stone like a falling meteor crashed between the two of them, gouging out a deep crater.

Jun Lin looked up along the meteor’s trajectory and saw another masked man.

The woman in the fox mask clearly noticed him too.

A flash of cowardice appeared in her eyes, and she pursed her lips, swallowing hard.

“Stop.”

“And if I don’t?”

Jun Lin formed a sword gesture with her hand, commanding the sword at her waist to fly toward the masked man in the air.

The man in the sky changed his hand signs.

A cauldron with a five-clawed golden dragon coiling around it flew out from behind him, clashing with the immortal sword.

“The Sky Pivot Cauldron?”

Jun Lin slowly sheathed her sword.

The masked man in the sky descended slowly, landing beside the fox-masked woman and wrapping an arm around her waist.

The woman’s body trembled.

She didn’t resist; instead, her body tensed as she kept her head lowered.

The man waved his wide sleeve, tossing three wooden boxes toward Jun Lin.

Jun Lin caught them and opened them.

Inside were three Level 7 pills.

“Consider today’s matter settled. May we never meet again.”

The masked man took the fox-masked woman and slowly ascended into the sky.

Jun Lin watched them leave in silence.

“Sect Master! You can’t let them go! They killed Yaoyao!”

“Lingshuang!”

Jun Lin’s voice suppressed Chu Lingshuang.

Once the two were completely gone, Chu Lingshuang asked in confusion, “Sect Master, why did you let them go?”

Chu Lingshuang didn’t understand.

In her eyes, Jun Lin’s strength was exactly like her name—an existence that could rule over the world.

Why would she be afraid of those two?

Why let them go?

“Do you know of the Sky Pivot Cauldron?”

Jun Lin asked calmly.

Chu Lingshuang shook her head.

“The Sky Pivot Cauldron is an object that appeared during the Great War of the Immortals in ancient times. It can attack and defend. It can even be used as a refining cauldron. It is a divine creation without flaws.”

“But how could such a powerful weapon…”

Chu Lingshuang trailed off.

“I’m not sure either. I’ve only seen a few mentions of it in ancient texts. If that truly was the Sky Pivot Cauldron, I’m not certain I could defeat its wielder. That person could also casually produce three Level 7 pills. One can see his skill as an alchemist.”

Chu Lingshuang nodded silently.

She understood that the highest quality of medicine was Level 10.

The theoretical Level 11 pills had never appeared.

Therefore, Level 7 pills were already enough to be the crowning treasures of ordinary sects.

For that man to throw away three so casually—regardless of his actual combat strength—carrying three such pills already proved many things.

“When victory isn’t guaranteed, obtaining three Level 7 pills is already a good outcome. It’s just…”

Jun Lin turned her head to look at the scattered remains of Baili Muyao.

Shaking her head in pity, she reached out and used a flame to burn the fragments into ash.

“Remember, Lingshuang. Nothing happened today. You know nothing.”

“I… I understand.”

Jun Lin left Chu Lingshuang alone.

15 minutes later, walking on a deserted path, Jun Lin took out the three pills.

Looking at them, she suddenly couldn’t help but chuckle and shake her head.

“Heh.”

….

Chu Fan brought Shen Yuying back to his room.

Normally, Shen Yuying’s mood would be exceptionally good whenever she entered Chu Fan’s room, but this time she appeared timid and cautious, keeping her head down and remaining silent.

“Sit down.”

Shen Yuying sat across from him in silence.

In the past, she would have sat by his side.

Sitting at the table, Chu Fan poured a cup of hot tea and pushed it toward her.

Shen Yuying shook her head.

“Drink.”

Shen Yuying hesitated, swallowed hard, and picked up the cup with both hands, draining it in one gulp.

“Don’t you have anything to say to me?” Chu Fan’s voice was colder than ever.

Shen Yuying’s hands tightly gripped the corners of her clothes.

Her mouth opened and closed, but she couldn’t get a single word out.

“Do you know that girl’s identity?”

Shen Yuying nodded stiffly.

“So you think you’re invincible under heaven?”

Shen Yuying shook her head.

“Do you remember what I told you this morning?”

Shen Yuying nodded stiffly again.

“Repeat it.”

“Don’t… don’t start conflicts with others… prioritize your own safety…”

“And then? What did you do?”

“…”

“Have I spoiled you too much?”

Shen Yuying shook her head vigorously, a few tears flying out.

“Sigh…”

Chu Fan stood up and reached out toward Shen Yuying.

Watching Chu Fan’s large hand get closer and closer, Shen Yuying—who usually would have been eager to grab it—now kept her eyes tightly shut.

She held her breath, her body trembling.

She gripped the hem of her clothes, waiting for punishment to arrive.

However, a gentle sensation came from the top of her head in the next moment.

Chu Fan rested his hand on Shen Yuying’s head.

She opened her eyes.

“Don’t make me worry, you silly girl.”

The tears that had already filled her eyes spilled over.

Shen Yuying’s tightly pressed lips trembled, and her nose felt more stung by emotion than ever before.

“Don’t let it happen again, alright?”

“Mhm… mhm…” Shen Yuying nodded hard.

“Alright, go back and rest. I’ll figure out the rest.”

Chu Fan removed his hand and turned toward the bed.

Pulling back the covers, he was stunned to find that Shen Yuying was already lying on her side there.

Chu Fan looked back as if doubting he was hallucinating, confirming that the person at the tea table was indeed gone.

Yet, this only made him more confused.

Because the Shen Yuying before him didn’t look like she had just cried at all; she was even peeking at him with one eye, a mischievous grin on her face.

“Sigh…”

Chu Fan was out of options.

He headed for the tea table, intending to make do there for the night.

But before he could take two steps, he felt something fluffy wrap around his waist.

Looking down, he saw a snow-white tail.

With a slight tug, the tail pulled Chu Fan over.

Chu Fan fell back onto the bed, looking helplessly at his eldest disciple who was good in every way except for knowing when to stop.

“Master, it’s so late and so dark outside. Just let me stay for one night.”

“You aren’t even afraid of killing someone, but you’re afraid of the dark?”

“Look at what you’re saying. People can be killed, but the sky can’t be lit up. Of course I’m afraid.”

‘Why does that sound so logical…’

“Exactly. So just let me stay for one night.”

“Fine, but let go of my waist.”

“I don’t want to.”

“I can let you stay for the night, but we are not sleeping in the same bed.”

“You let me when I was little.”

“You said it yourself—when you were little. And don’t you remember how poor we were back then?”

“But we aren’t poor now.”

“And you aren’t little anymore!”

Chu Fan was fuming.

Never mind the fact that she was grown up now and had become quite a beauty.

Even when she was young, if it weren’t for Chu Fan’s dire financial situation, he absolutely would not have shared a bed with her.

“Oh~ So Master likes the childhood version of your disciple? Then I can change~”

“No!” Chu Fan was breathless with frustration.

Seeing this, Shen Yuying sat up straight.

While massaging his shoulders, she said softly, “Master, don’t be in a hurry. Look at this.”

“What? Mmph…”

As soon as Chu Fan turned his head, Shen Yuying took the opportunity to wave her sleeve in front of his nose.

Chu Fan smiled slightly.

“You want to use drugs on me? Don’t you know what your Master does for a living?”

“Of course I know,” Shen Yuying replied with a matching smile.

Seeing that smile, Chu Fan felt a sudden sense of dread.

An intense wave of sleepiness hit him.

He grabbed his temples as his body began to sway.

Shen Yuying leaned into Chu Fan’s ear and whispered, “This isn’t a knockout drug. It’s the sleep—ing—pill—that I asked Master for, refined by your very own hands~”

Chu Fan’s body collapsed, his head falling into an endless, soft range of snow-white peaks.

In his unconscious state, he did the thing he was most unwilling to do.

On the other side, Shen Yuying held Chu Fan’s head with a look of pure bliss.

A seductive smile curled her lips as she used her tails to pull up the blanket, completely covering the two of them.

Gradually, nine tails emerged from under the covers, writhing incessantly as if enjoying something.

The blanket also pulsed and moved; no one knew what was happening inside.

…

The next morning, when Chu Fan woke up, he found that not only were his clothes perfectly neat, but Shen Yuying was also gone.

This made him sigh in relief.

Fortunately, nothing crossed the line.

Even so, Chu Fan swore he would never give Shen Yuying any more pills for purposes other than cultivation—unless she swallowed them on the spot.

But what was wrong with his waist?

To refine those sleeping pills capable of restoring bodily functions, he had added many supplements.

Why did he feel even more exhausted after a night’s sleep?

Was the medicine expired?

Unlikely!

He felt so weak, as if something very important had been drained from his body.

Well, he wouldn’t think about it anymore.

Stepping off the bed, Chu Fan opened the door, only to find an uninvited guest standing there.

“Jun Lin? What are you doing here?”

“Elder Chu, this time, you owe me a favor.”

Jun Lin leaned against the doorframe, calmly playing with those three pills.