Li Yunxian walked over and sat down beside Yu Qiyao’s bed, her eyes curved into a gentle smile as she looked at her, speaking softly, “What’s going on?”
“I came over to comfort you, didn’t I? How come it’s you comforting me now?”
Hearing Li Yunxian’s voice, Yu Qiyao blinked, two tears slipping down her cheeks.
Li Yunxian handed her a tissue.
Clutching the tissue uselessly, Yu Qiyao’s voice choked with suppressed sobs, “Yunxian, you don’t have to comfort me.”
“I understand everything. Teacher already told me.”
“That Duan Rong guy was holding back because of teacher; he never dared to kill me. He only wanted to humiliate me terribly, destroy my Dao heart, so I’d never progress past the Qi Refining stage.”
“You helped me humiliate him back fiercely.”
“He got what he deserved. He received his retribution.”
“What I should do now is pull myself together, not dwell on what happened in the Practice Arena, and not let Duan Rong get his way.”
Li Yunxian didn’t say a word, her gaze soft as she watched Yu Qiyao curl up and sob quietly.
The fact that Yu Qiyao could cry like this meant her state was actually better than Li Yunxian had imagined.
After crying for a while, Yu Qiyao gradually calmed herself, but didn’t look up. Her voice was low as she asked Li Yunxian, “Yunxian, am I really useless?”
Li Yunxian’s eyes curved into a smile. “If that’s the case, I should go downstairs and have a fight with Professor Chen, lose, and then come back up to cry with you about how useless I am.”
Yu Qiyao: How can you make such a comparison?!
She didn’t say anything after that.
Li Yunxian stayed silent alongside her.
After quite some time, Yu Qiyao muttered to Li Yunxian, “Am I really stupid?”
“Knowing you couldn’t win, yet still agreeing out of anger.”
“Yunxian, if it were you, you definitely wouldn’t do that.”
Li Yunxian tilted her head, thought for a moment, and nodded, “Yeah, he couldn’t insult me.”
Yu Qiyao:
That’s not what she meant.
But…
Those words instantly reminded Yu Qiyao of the incident at the Assembly Hall in the Capital’s Cultivation Hall headquarters, where Li Yunxian made Shen Bofeng and Ying Qian so furious they almost lost their tempers.
The gloomy thoughts in her mind were interrupted by this ‘beautiful’ memory, and Yu Qiyao finally couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.
Seeing Yu Qiyao finally respond with a positive emotion, Li Yunxian’s lips curved up slightly.
For the first time, she spoke proactively, asking Yu Qiyao, “Qiyao, do you regret stepping into the Practice Arena to accept the challenge?”
At the question, Yu Qiyao’s clenched fists tightened suddenly, her fingernails digging into her flesh hard enough to draw blood.
Li Yunxian didn’t stop her, simply watching quietly.
***
After a long while, or perhaps just a short moment, Li Yunxian saw the back of Yu Qiyao’s head shake slowly but firmly.
“No regrets.” Yu Qiyao’s voice was muffled. “If I could do it again, I’d still agree.”
Li Yunxian couldn’t help but laugh softly at this.
Hearing that laugh, Yu Qiyao’s voice dimmed, “Am I really stupid?”
Li Yunxian leaned down, gently embracing the curled-up Yu Qiyao. “Right or wrong, smart or foolish—who sets those rules?”
“Qiyao, as long as you don’t regret it, that’s all that matters.”
“Always being perfectly correct and wise—that’s a machine, not a person.”
“Qiyao, I’m waiting for you to come back.”
Feeling the warmth from Li Yunxian’s embrace, Yu Qiyao moved her hand, hooking it on Li Yunxian’s clothes. She swallowed her sobs, tears shimmering in her eyes as she nodded.
“Mm, I will come back…”
After comforting Yu Qiyao, Li Yunxian went downstairs. At the corner of the second floor, she saw Chen Bujian standing there, seemingly having been there for quite some time.
She must have overheard the conversation between Li Yunxian and Yu Qiyao earlier.
Li Yunxian stopped beside Professor Chen and offered a comforting word, “Professor, don’t worry. Qiyao will be fine soon.”
Chen Bujian’s eyes were gentle as she looked at Li Yunxian and nodded, indicating she understood.
Hearing Yu Qiyao say she had no regrets, Chen Bujian knew it was only a matter of time before Yu Qiyao recovered.
She was waiting at the stairwell not because she wanted to hear those words again from Li Yunxian.
“That day in the Practice Arena, I actually wanted to take you as my student,” Chen Bujian said.
As an Assistant Instructor, Duan Qiu could only take one student. But for a Fenshen Stage professor like Chen Bujian, if she wanted, she could take several.
So, from the beginning, there was never really any issue of Yu Qiyao ‘snatching’ a spot.
It was true that she simply didn’t favor Duan Rong.
“But back then, if I had said that, it would have put you right in the spotlight. And now…” Chen Bujian looked at Li Yunxian thoughtfully.
Thinking of Li Yunxian’s words to Yu Qiyao earlier, how she handled Duan Rong in the arena, and the moment in the main conference room when Li Yunxian stood up protesting unfairness.
“Now it seems you have your own path to walk, and no longer need a teacher,” Chen Bujian said with a hint of regret.
Li Yunxian smiled but didn’t respond to Chen Bujian’s words. Instead, she said sincerely, “You are a good teacher.”
If it weren’t for Chen Bujian’s careful care and the comfort she gave Yu Qiyao, the latter wouldn’t be in such a tearful state when Li Yunxian saw her.
Everyone likes to hear kind words. The slight regret Chen Bujian felt was now tinged with a smile. She twisted her wrist, and a small sword appeared in her palm.
“This is a Spirit Sword I used before, called Xiayun. Since you recklessly meddled with your Spirit Sword yesterday and interfered in the Practice Arena, take this as compensation.”
Li Yunxian’s gaze fell on the Xiayun Sword.
The small sword in its original form radiated a faint orange-red glow, faintly surrounded by a misty halo.
Without needing any explanation, just one glance showed it was a treasure.
An Xuan Grade Top-quality Spiritual Sword.
Li Yunxian was stunned for a moment. She hadn’t expected Chen Bujian to offer something of this caliber right away.
Back when she was at the Golden Core stage, she only began using this level of Spirit Sword.
In the Cultivation World, a Spirit Sword of this rank wasn’t something a Huashen Stage cultivator could casually give away, especially in the modern era when Qi has been reduced and Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures have become scarce.
Li Yunxian could tell that Chen Bujian’s words were just an excuse.
Most likely, this gesture was simply Chen Bujian’s way of showing gratitude for Li Yunxian standing up for her student.
Who cares!
No matter who gives her something, Li Yunxian wasn’t shy about accepting.
Without hesitation, Li Yunxian bowed slightly to Chen Bujian and took the Xiayun Sword. “Thank you, Professor.”
Her straightforward attitude surprised Chen Bujian for a moment, then she smiled gently.
She suddenly felt that Li Yunxian was quite an interesting person.
Li Yunxian didn’t say anything to refuse or deflect. Chen Bujian didn’t press further and instead spoke directly about one last matter.
“Has Duan Sen, that Duan Rong’s father, given you any trouble?” Chen Bujian asked Li Yunxian.
She had heard some news about this.
Li Yunxian thought for a moment about the students who missed class today, and those who came initially but were disobedient.
“Maybe, but it’s not important. I’m waiting for him to send someone after me.” Li Yunxian raised her eyebrows.
“I want the Xuanwen Token. If he takes the initiative to find someone to challenge me and I knock them down, isn’t that great?”
“I instantly killed his son. If he wants to retaliate, he’ll probably send at least a hundred people to deal with me, right?”
Chen Bujian was speechless, looking at Li Yunxian with nothing to say.
If that’s how someone thinks, then there really isn’t much to discuss.
“Then let’s add each other as friends. If you can’t handle it, contact me.” Chen Bujian said helplessly.
Li Yunxian naturally didn’t refuse.
After adding her as a friend, Li Yunxian curiously asked, “When will the Xuanwen Token be released in the Xuefu?”
Chen Bujian chuckled, “At the latest, tonight. It won’t be much longer.”
The reason there had been no news these past days was because some Assistant Instructors and professors deliberately delayed it, hoping their students could get a head start to fight for spots.
The Duan Rong incident caused a lot of trouble.
The best way to suppress the noise inside the Xuefu was naturally to release something big.
The higher-ups wouldn’t accept any more delays.
In a way, Li Yunxian and the others had done a favor for the ordinary students in the entire school.
After bidding farewell to Chen Bujian, Li Yunxian headed towards the Qingteng Villa District. As she strolled, she suddenly sensed something and walked slowly toward a certain Fenshen Stage villa.
Standing at the gate, Li Yunxian looked at the yard filled with a fluffy, large fox.
Its pure white fur layered like the finest velvet, seeming cool and refreshing under the sunlight, faintly glimmering with a crystalline texture that invited one to bury their hands in it.
Li Yunxian stared for a long time, long enough that the Great White Fox’s eyes slowly opened and narrowed.
“Something you need?” the Great White Fox said in a flat tone.
Li Yunxian blinked and asked, “Can I pet you?”
Great White Fox:
At once, the two-story-tall fox in front of Li Yunxian disappeared, replaced by Su Wenjing with long, snow-white hair standing before her.
Su Wenjing’s mouth twitched as he gave Li Yunxian a cold, utterly exasperated look, showing no intention of talking, then turned and went inside the villa.
Watching the tightly closed door, Li Yunxian rubbed her nose sheepishly.
Then she recalled the Great White Fox form she’d just seen.
It seemed… two of its tails were broken.
That was probably an external manifestation of Su Wenjing’s fallen cultivation realm.
Li Yunxian took note of this but didn’t pay it much mind. Everyone has their own fate, and Su Wenjing’s situation wasn’t something she needed to intervene in.