Xu Mu had taken in a total of four disciples.
The eldest disciple, Shen Qinghan, possessed an Innate Dao Body and exceptional talent, but her Heavenly Spiritual Root had been forcibly removed in childhood.
When Xu Muxue first saw her, she was a frail little beggar curled up in a corner.
Xu Mu took her in, restored her spiritual root, and taught her diligently, which led to her becoming the Sword Sect’s Sword Chief today.
The second disciple, Feng Xi, was the only daughter of the Feng Family, the royal clan of the Northern Kingdom. When treacherous ministers usurped the throne, the Feng Family was slaughtered overnight, with only Feng Xi narrowly escaping.
It was Xu Mu who taught her the Dao and helped her purge the villains, ultimately enabling her to become the Northern Kingdom’s first Empress.
The third disciple, Ji Lian, was the Holy Maiden of the Elysium Sect, who had fallen into demonic madness due to practicing an incomplete cultivation technique.
Xu Mu taught her the orthodox way of Magic Cultivation—that supremacy belongs solely to oneself, not to slaughter or desire.
The fourth disciple, Ye Lingxi… this little disciple was a royal of the Fox Royal Clan from Qingqiu. Having enjoyed smooth sailing since birth, she did not require Xu Mu’s painstaking care like the first three disciples.
Yet, perhaps precisely because Xu Mu hadn’t devoted as much effort teaching her, this little thing seemed to have gone a bit off track…
However, without exception, Xu Mu always left right when his disciples’ dependence on him peaked, finding some excuse to depart.
After all, his teaching was always one-on-one, and the System had assigned different identities for each disciple. Therefore, he had to sever the previous ties cleanly and decisively.
Otherwise, entangled Fate would inevitably cause the fortunes of the four Empresses to clash.
Plus, Xu Mu himself was not originally from this world; mixing in too many foreign causalities could lead to severe consequences.
Put simply, the Empresses’ paths had to be walked by the disciples themselves.
The master may lead you to the door, but cultivation is up to the individual…
After confirming that Xu Muxue was indeed “Xu Mu’s newly accepted disciple,” Shen Qinghan suddenly felt everything made sense.
That’s right, this little fox was Xu Mu’s disciple, so naturally, she had to speak for her master.
Back then, she would have done the same. But that scoundrel was far too rough raising a child—he actually made the kid wear his own clothes.
Such an adorable little fox, and he didn’t even bother to buy her some pretty outfits…
Shen Qinghan’s gaze softened immediately when she looked at Xu Muxue.
“Little fox, what’s your name?”
Shen Qinghan squatted down and gently patted the little fox’s head.
“…Xu Muxue.”
“Xu Mu… Xue?”
Shen Qinghan frowned.
“Is that the name your master gave you?”
“Yes, yes!”
Xu Muxue swallowed nervously.
“Master added ‘Xue’ after his own name and said this would be mine from now on…”
“Giving a disciple a name so casually… sounds exactly like his style.”
Hey, stop calling him “that guy”!
Show some respect for Master!
Xu Muxue grumbled silently but kept up the obedient fox act on the surface.
Hearing that “Fifth Junior Sister” was also a name given by Master, Shen Qinghan’s expression grew even gentler as she looked at Xu Muxue.
“The day Master picked me up, there was a light drizzle, and the chill of early spring was biting. So he named me ‘Qinghan’—it’s pretty casual, isn’t it?”
“Not casual at all!”
Xu Muxue blurted out before she could stop herself.
“Jade peaches grow in the heavens and dew, not common flowers numbered.
In the depths of chaotic mountains, waters wind and turn; alas, a single branch like a painting blooms for whom?
Light cold rain, feelings unbounded, not saying spring is hard to govern.
Intoxicated for you, so what?
Only fearing the heart breaks when sober.”
“He hopes you will be like the jade peach in the heavens, aloof and independent, endlessly fragrant. Even if the cold drizzle and short spring come, you need not bloom flatteringly for anyone… Master told me all this!”
Xu Muxue’s heart pounded wildly.
She nearly let something slip.
“Intoxicated for you, so what?
Only fearing the heart breaks when sober…”
As Shen Qinghan recited those last lines, her gaze became dreamy.
After a long pause, she whispered, “He really isn’t dead… Master, Xu Mu, where is he now?”
“H-He?”
Xu Muxue’s eyes darted guiltily.
“He just left me somewhere to train on my own and then disappeared…”
She didn’t dare reveal her true identity. When she had faked demonic downfall and a false death to escape, she had deceived the eldest disciple thoroughly.
She still remembered how Shen Qinghan had cried her heart out back then. If discovered…
“Hmph, that’s exactly the kind of thing he’d do.”
Shen Qinghan sneered coldly.
“Disciples are just his toys to pass the time with. Once bored, he tosses them away casually…”
“I… Master isn’t such a bad person, right?”
Xu Muxue weakly tried to defend him.
“Of course he is!”
Shen Qinghan raised her voice sharply.
Seeing Xu Muxue look scared, Shen Qinghan sighed and gently rubbed the little fox’s head.
“Little Fifth, you’re still young. You’ve been deceived by Xu Mu and don’t really know what kind of person he is…”
But Xu Muxue was stunned beyond words by Shen Qinghan’s use of “Little Fifth.”
“L-Little Fifth?!”
Oh no, oh no, they actually hung out together without her knowing!
Then all those times she told each of them, “You are Master’s one and only dearest good disciple,” wouldn’t that be exposed?!
“That’s right. There are four more victims like you. When the time comes, the senior sisters will tell you all about the good deeds your master has done…”
Shen Qinghan naturally interpreted Xu Muxue’s shock as something else entirely and ground her teeth as she spoke.
At this moment, Xu Muxue was sweating profusely as she frantically poked her mental System.
“System, system, show yourself! Hurry and send me back to Blue Star! Hello? Hello?!”
But the System was as dead as a doornail, showing no response.
“Don’t worry, your master doesn’t want you, but senior sister does. Senior sister will take you back to the Sword Sect.”
Shen Qinghan gently hugged the flustered Xu Muxue from behind, her soft voice slipping sweetly into her ear, melting her mind like sugar.
Embarrassingly enough, Xu Muxue felt a wave of maternal affection from the disciple.
Damn it, this little girl was so scrawny when she first picked her up, but what are those two soft lumps pressed against her back now?!
“Ahem… never mind.”
Xu Muxue blushed furiously as she wriggled out of Shen Qinghan’s embrace. “Master told me to train alone. Relying on senior sister’s power should be considered cheating, right…”
“Hmph, cheating what? As someone who’s been through it, senior sister tells you, it’s best not to listen to anything that guy says. The more you trust his nonsense, the deeper you get hurt in the end.”
Shen Qinghan snorted coldly.
Xu Muxue scratched her head in frustration.
Why was she being painted as a heartbreaker who deceived girls?
Seeing Xu Muxue’s conflicted expression, Shen Qinghan spoke again softly, “Xu Mu’s aura has disappeared for countless years, only reappearing today. Even if just for a moment, I could sense it through the Heavenly Dao Decree.”
“If I can sense it, my three junior sisters can as well. I happened to be closer to here, so I was the first to arrive. They should be here any moment now.”
“By the way, those three are even more stubborn than me. If they can’t find Xu Mu and then see his newly accepted fifth disciple, they might just take out their anger on this pure white, tender little fox…”
Seeing Xu Muxue trembling, Shen Qinghan teased with a smile:
“So, how about it? Ready to come back to the Sword Sect with me now?”