“I can see a snowstorm hidden within Senior Sister’s sword.”
Chu Wanning’s figure abruptly halted.
Her fingertip stopped less than an inch from Lin Yue’s brow.
That trace of blue light was actually trembling slightly.
“What did you say?”
Lin Yue looked at her, his tone becoming inexplicably wistful.
“Senior Sister, you cultivate the Emotionless Sword. But you suppress your emotions with every move you make. The more you suppress, the deeper the flaws become. That move of yours, Frost Flower Breaks the Willow—the third variation—does it always feel a bit sluggish to you?”
Utter silence fell over the entire area.
Even the wind stopped.
Chu Wanning looked as if she had been struck by lightning.
This was the greatest secret of her cultivation.
No one in the sect knew except her master.
Yet this Outer Sect trash actually saw it at a glance?
“You’re teaching me how to wield a sword?”
Chu Wanning’s voice dropped to freezing point, her killing intent swirling up like a gale.
Lin Yue felt that terrifying pressure; his legs were practically turning to jelly.
But his mouth remained as steady as ever.
After all, the task wasn’t finished yet.
“Not teaching, just a reminder.”
Lin Yue sighed, suddenly taking a step closer and whispering low in Chu Wanning’s ear.
“Senior Sister, the sword is cold, but the person wielding it is warm. If you were truly emotionless, that palm strike yesterday should have shattered me to pieces, not just sent me flying into the Washing Sword Pool.”
Chu Wanning sharply withdrew her hand.
Her face was somewhat pale, her eyes filled with complexity and confusion.
“Today’s lesson ends here.”
She tossed out the sentence, her figure transforming into a stream of light, instantly vanishing from the training grounds.
Leaving only over a thousand disciples staring at each other in bewilderment.
And Lin Yue, sweating profusely, still carrying the iron pillar.
“Task complete. Chu Wanning’s Dao Heart is shaken. Unlocked Heavy Sword’s second stance: Severing the Vast Expanse. Reward: Spiritual Power Infusion. Cultivation stabilized at the peak of Qi Refining Layer Four.”
Before Lin Yue could even catch his breath, he felt a chill creep up his back.
“Senior Brother Lin, you were so gentle with Senior Sister.”
An Xiaoxiao had somehow already walked up behind him, still holding that gleaming, large iron shovel, her smile so sweet it made one want to write a last will.
“When Senior Brother was whispering in Senior Sister’s ear just now, Little Xiaoxiao’s heart was beating so fast.”
Lin Yue stiffly turned his head.
“Xiaoxiao, let me explain. That was to save my life, really, purely an academic exchange.”
“Academic exchange?”
An Xiaoxiao tilted her head, her fingertip lightly tracing the shovel’s handle.
“Then when will Senior Brother have an ‘academic exchange’ with me too? For example, exchanging ideas on how to neatly bury a talking person in the ground?”
“…That kind of exchange is entirely unnecessary.”
Lin Yue grabbed the iron pillar and ran.
Due to Chu Wanning’s departure, the large class ended early.
Lin Yue originally wanted to hide in his dorm for a while, but before he even reached the door, he was stopped by Mo Feng, whose face was ashen, along with his men.
Today, Mo Feng was wearing an extremely solemn, dark-colored robe, the collar buttoned up tightly.
He had even put on a pair of white silk gloves.
His expression looked as if he had just returned from a funeral.
“Lin Yue, come with me.”
Mo Feng’s voice was cold and hard as stone.
“Steward Mo, in broad daylight, moving boxes again?”
Lin Yue looked at him warily.
“Move your head.”
Mo Feng snorted coldly, a simple yet ancient bronze mirror covered in complex inscriptions appearing in his hand.
“Last night, there were traces of demonic aura fluctuations near the training grounds. I suspect a demonic cultivator is lurking. Routine inspection. Hand over everything on you, including that iron pillar!”
Lin Yue’s heart sank.
Demon-Revealing Mirror.
It had finally come.
“Steward Mo, isn’t this a bit against the rules? I’m a perfectly clean Outer Sect disciple…”
“Rules? I am the rules!”
Mo Feng took a step forward, his gaze icy.
He had clearly decided to settle yesterday’s auspicious sign account on Lin Yue’s head.
Today was blatantly looking for trouble.
Just as the atmosphere was stretched to its breaking point.
“Steward Mo, such impressive authority.”
A sweet, delicate laugh sounded.
An Xiaoxiao, carrying a basket of fresh, dewy peaches, came bouncing over.
She didn’t even glance at Mo Feng, directly stuffing a large peach into Lin Yue’s hand.
“Senior Brother, try this, I just picked it from the back mountain. It’s very sweet.”
Mo Feng frowned, looking at this seemingly harmless junior sister.
“An Xiaoxiao, this is none of your business. Move aside.”
“Ah, Steward Mo.”
An Xiaoxiao blinked her innocent, large eyes.
“Is your Demon-Revealing Mirror broken? When I passed by just now, why did I see it glowing at your own reflection?”
Mo Feng was stunned, instinctively glancing at the bronze mirror in his hand.
The mirror showed no reaction.
“Stop stirring up trouble here!” Mo Feng said angrily.
“Lin Yue, hand it over!”
“If Steward Mo really wants to investigate, Little Xiaoxiao will accompany you.”
An Xiaoxiao suddenly leaned close to Mo Feng, her voice so low it was almost inaudible, yet carrying a bone-chilling coldness.
“Just… the mud stains on the clothes Steward Mo lost in the woods last night don’t seem to be completely washed off yet. If the elders of the Discipline Hall were to find out that the newly appointed supervising steward privately trespassed into the forbidden area of the back mountain… how long do you think you could keep this position?”
Mo Feng’s face instantly turned from ashen to deathly pale.
“You… how do you know?”
“I know a lot of things.”
An Xiaoxiao smiled, her eyes curving like crescents, casually straightening Mo Feng’s slightly crooked collar.
“So, Steward Mo should drink more tea and get less sun. The waters of the Outer Sect run deep.”
Mo Feng stared fixedly at An Xiaoxiao.
This Outer Sect junior sister, rumored to be gentle and timid, now gave him a sense of oppression even more terrifying than Chu Wanning.
“…Stand down.”
Mo Feng gritted his teeth and spat out the two words, turning and leaving without even daring to look back at Lin Yue.
Lin Yue let out a long sigh of relief.
He looked at An Xiaoxiao and smiled bitterly.
“You saved my life again.”
“A life-saving grace should be repaid with a fountain of gratitude.”
An Xiaoxiao grabbed Lin Yue’s sleeve, pulling him towards the back mountain.
“Let’s go, Senior Brother. You must be exhausted from fighting with Senior Sister just now. Little Xiaoxiao will take you to a good place. We’ll… continue our academic exchange.”
Lin Yue sighed but didn’t resist.
Watching the girl’s light footsteps ahead, he suddenly felt that this ‘soft rice’ actually tasted a bit… fragrant?
Back mountain, near a hidden mountain spring.
The spring water tinkled, fallen blossoms covered the ground.
This was the edge of the Outer Sect’s forbidden area.
Normally, no one dared to come here.
An Xiaoxiao took off her shoes and socks, dipping her two fair, delicate little feet into the cool spring water, squinting her eyes in comfort.
“Senior Brother, do you think all the men in the world like that icy type like Senior Sister Chu?”
She tilted her head, looking at Lin Yue who was sitting nearby sharpening his sword (the iron pillar).
Lin Yue kept working with his hands, not turning his head.
“Different strokes for different folks. I don’t like the too-cold type. It’s a waste of effort.”
“Then what type do you like? Do you like… my type?”
An Xiaoxiao suddenly leaned over, her damp little feet rubbing against Lin Yue’s trouser leg.
Her eyes held a hint of teasing and an inexplicable seriousness.
Lin Yue stopped his work and looked at her.
The moonlight hadn’t risen yet.
The last rays of the setting sun spilled over the spring water and onto An Xiaoxiao’s face.
At this moment, she carried no killing intent, no disguise.
She was just a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old girl with budding feelings.
“You…” Lin Yue reached out and ruffled her pigtails as usual.
Only this time, his movements were gentler, lingering longer.
“You’re a big trouble.”
“Trouble is trouble.”
An Xiaoxiao leaned against Lin Yue’s shoulder, playing with the half-eaten peach in her hand.
“Senior Brother, if you really were the reincarnation of the Demon Emperor, would you take me to see the stars across the Nine Realms?”
Lin Yue’s heart skipped a beat.
He looked down at An Xiaoxiao, his eyes filled with shock.
An Xiaoxiao, however, giggled, patting Lin Yue’s cheek.
“Look how scared you are! I was just guessing wildly! Isn’t that how all the storybooks write it? Trash awakens, Demon Emperor returns. Senior Brother, your changes lately really resemble that.”
Lin Yue forced a dry laugh.
“Heh, heh. You, girl, read less of that brainless light fiction.”
“But I’m taking it seriously.”
An Xiaoxiao closed her eyes, her voice growing softer.
“No matter who you are, as long as you’re willing to help me bury people, willing to feed me chicken legs. You are my… Senior Brother Lin.”
Lin Yue remained silent for a long time.
Looking at the evening glow filling the sky, he felt for the first time that no matter how impressive his previous life might have been, it truly seemed inferior to this pool of spring water before him.
“Alright, I’ll take you to see the stars.”
He promised in a low voice.
In his consciousness sea, the ledger that should have been mocking was now eerily quiet.
On the yellowed page, beneath An Xiaoxiao’s name, a line of small golden characters slowly appeared: “Causal Bond Deepens. Demon God’s Baleful Aura… is dissipating.”
Lin Yue knew this still came with a blade attached.
But at least.
The sweetness was real.
Due to An Xiaoxiao’s interference, the punishment Lin Yue should have received vanished.
Not only that, he even got an opportunity to accompany the Outer Sect convoy down the mountain for procurement.
The reason was simple—Steward Mo Feng said he was strong and fit for carrying things.
In truth, everyone knew Mo Feng wanted him farther away, out of sight, out of mind.
“Senior Brother, bring me a pretty little dress when you come back down the mountain.”
At the mountain gate, An Xiaoxiao waved a handkerchief, her smile radiant and dazzling.
Lin Yue, carrying that heavy iron sword, boarded the swaying carriage, but his heart was pounding.
“Ledger, this trip down the mountain, nothing weird is going to happen again, right?”