At the exact instant she counted to “three,” Luo Hou and the four disciples all turned their gaze toward Qin Zhizhi. In that split second, she unleashed the Lomo Eye.
The moment their eyes met, Qin Zhizhi felt as if she had plummeted into an endless void. She watched countless chaotic images flash before her eyes one after another. The sheer volume and scale of these images were so overwhelming that she was completely immobilized, while Luo Hou and the others also fell into a subtle, dazed state.
In a duel between top experts, victory or defeat is often decided in a single thought.
Seizing this fleeting moment while Luo Hou was dazed, Xie Yutai wrapped his arm around her, stepped onto the Hantian Sword, and instantly flew toward the eastern array.
Qin Zhizhi’s sea of consciousness was crammed with countless figures. Though blurry, many were unfamiliar faces. Whose lives were these? Luo Hou’s, or someone else’s? In that light-speed flicker, she saw a familiar figure: a round-faced monk, smiling as he patted the other person’s shoulder, saying something.
The old monk! Was the old monk actually from the Shapo Sect too?
Qin Zhizhi tried to grasp this image, but it receded in an instant. Accompanied by a sharp, throbbing pain in her head, her stomach churned with nausea. Fine beads of sweat broke out on her forehead. Forcing her eyes wide open, she managed to cast one last glance at the five people still standing in a daze.
When her gaze landed on Luo Hou, Qin Zhizhi could not help but let out a startled, “Huh?”
Detecting her anomaly, Xie Yutai asked: “What is it?”
Qin Zhizhi wondered: “Why is black smoke rising from the top of his head?”
While the other four showed no abnormalities, black smoke was rising in plumes from the top of Luo Hou’s head, as if he had been poisoned.
Before she could investigate further, Qin Zhizhi felt a throbbing pain in her eyes that made them feel as if they were about to explode. She quickly closed them tightly, clearing all the images from her mind, before the throbbing slowly subsided.
The Lomo Eye, such a powerful technique, but it seemed her current self was still unable to control it properly.
By now, Xie Yutai had shaken off the five of them, pulling her down to land steadily on the magic array. The eastern array had been abandoned for a long time. When the two landed on it, the array showed absolutely no reaction. Xie Yutai placed Hantian in the center of the array, attempting to use his sword qi as a catalyst to activate it, but there was still no movement.
Xie Yutai: “…”
Qin Zhizhi: “…”
Could this thing really still be used?
Xie Yutai: “Try spirit stones.”
“Sure,” Qin Zhizhi replied. But seeing that he made no move for a long time, she was about to speak when she suddenly realized, Xie Yutai probably did not have any on him.
That’s right, sword cultivators were notoriously poor. As for just how poor they were, the wealthy Qin Zhizhi had never specifically considered it. At any rate, compared to the Tiantong Sect, they were truly impoverished.
In the past, Fu Xingyun had often grumbled in disgust:
“That bunch of scrap-collectors next door, carrying around broken copper and rusty iron as if they’re treasures.”
“Aha! Thank goodness I snatched my Qiankun bag back!” Just thinking about this made Qin Zhizhi feel smug. Talk about foresight! If her Qiankun bag had just been stolen, and they had no spirit stones on them, they would still be helpless even after running to this array.
She was truly a lucky star personified.
She pulled out two high-grade spirit stones and activated the array. In just an instant, Xie Yutai and Qin Zhizhi’s feet left the ground. Their figures gradually faded as the array activated.
After another bout of dizziness, the weightless sensation vanished. Qin Zhizhi heard the chirping of birds, smelled the faint, fresh scent of grass and trees, and… the enticing aroma of food nearby.
Lord help her, she was starving!
The last time she had eaten was back at the Heguang Sect. Qin Zhizhi had not yet achieved Bigu (grain avoidance). Between all the running around and her sudden breakthrough to Foundation Establishment, plus fighting and escaping, her energy consumption was massive. It was only natural for her stomach to be empty.
Qin Zhizhi silently calculated in her mind: “Immortal Lord Xie, this array is a random teleportation.”
Where on earth did this random teleportation array drop us? Can we grab some food first?
But before she could finish her sentence, she was interrupted by Xie Yutai: “Since you have achieved Foundation Establishment, there is no need to call me ‘Immortal Lord’ anymore.”
“Oh.” Qin Zhizhi’s head was full of question marks. If she didn’t call him Immortal Lord, what should she call him? Xie Yutai?
After a moment of silence, she spoke: “Big~ Brother~ Xie~~”
Xie Yutai: “…”
She was incredibly skilled at using a high-pitched, cutesy voice; in fact, she was far more adept at it than Qin Zhijie.
“Big~ Brother~ Xie~, where are we?”
Holding his sword hilt, Xie Yutai paused his steps. In the end, he said nothing, letting her have her way.
The array was located in a dense forest. After walking only a few steps, they could faintly see rooftops and eaves ahead. Clearly, a small town lay right in front of them.
Xie Yutai walked forward at a leisurely pace, looking entirely out of place with his surroundings, yet every step was light and steady. The wind whipped up a corner of his robes, making the white cranes embroidered on his collar look as though they were spreading their wings to fly.
The two were quite fortunate; the random teleportation array had dropped them right at the small town at the foot of the Guiyuan Sect’s mountain. From here, it would take less than fifteen minutes of sword-riding to return to the Guiyuan Sect. This was highly convenient for Xie Yutai in his current predicament.
Smelling the faint aroma of food wafting through the air, Qin Zhizhi looked around, swallowing her saliva.
Grumble… A rumbling sound like thunder echoed from her stomach. She quickly clapped her hands over her belly and let out two loud coughs, attempting to cover it up.
Qin Zhizhi squeezed her palms, carefully stealing a glance at Xie Yutai standing ahead of her. Generally speaking, only she could hear her own stomach grumbling, right? How could she politely yet non-awkwardly propose getting a meal under such a critical situation?
Grumble, grumble.
Xie Yutai did not answer, but simply walked forward. Before long, he stopped in front of a tavern. Under the protruding eaves, the lingering crimson glow of sunset was reflected. Next to the high-hanging shop sign hung some slightly worn red lanterns, swaying weakly in the wind.
“Go in.”
Qin Zhizhi cradled her stomach in disbelief: “You heard that?”
She had even coughed on purpose! Why did it feel like it had been completely useless?
Xie Yutai acted as though he had not heard her question and stepped inside.
Qin Zhizhi stood frozen in place, wishing she could die of embarrassment. For goodness’ sake, what is the point of the fat on my stomach if it neither insulates sound nor keeps me warm?
Unfortunately, there was no system to answer her.
However, if Qin Zhizhi had no other outstanding qualities, her mindset was exceptionally good. As long as she forgot quickly enough, she wouldn’t be the one embarrassed. Thus, she recovered in no time. “People are made of iron, and food is made of steel; missing a meal makes you weak.” How could a living person hold a grudge against food?
Xie Yutai sat by the window. Qin Zhizhi walked over generously and sat opposite him.
Seeing the extraordinary bearing of these two guests, who were likely prominent figures, the waiter greeted them with a flattering smile: “What would the two of you like to eat?”
Xie Yutai had already achieved Bigu and likely had no need for food. Qin Zhizhi did not hesitate and directly asked the waiter for their signature dishes. After listening to his recommendations, she rattled off in one breath: “I want Stir-fried Three Delicacies, Gourd Chicken, Milk Soup Hotpot Fish, and Eight-Treasure Savory Oil Tea. Oh, and add a bowl of Saozi Noodles, absolutely no cilantro!”
The waiter was dumbfounded, secretly marveling at how much this young lady could eat. Seeing that she finished ordering quickly, he carefully added: “Our water-pot mutton is the ultimate signature dish here. Would you like to try some, miss?”
Qin Zhizhi blurted out instinctively: “I don’t eat mut-”
In the next instant, she realized: Uh-oh. The dishes she had just ordered were all favorites of Qin Zhizhi from the Tiantong Sect, the chicken, the milk soup fish, the no cilantro, and now not eating mutton… the overlap rate was far too high.
The words that had slipped out of her mouth did a quick U-turn: “ton spine! But I want lamb spine hotpot! Also, give me a portion of hand-pulled rice, and put a lot of cilantro in it! A lot! I just love eating rice with cilantro.”
Well, the waiter’s face bloomed with a smile, and he hurriedly took down the order and left to prepare the food.
There weren’t many people in the tavern, so the dishes were served very quickly in large bowls and plates. Qin Zhizhi ate with great relish, constantly praising the food: “Mmm~ this lamb spine is truly delicious. Wow, this hand-pulled rice is incredible! Let me try this cilantro.”
Yet the lamb spine and the hand-pulled rice sat quietly at the corner of the table alongside the large bowl of cilantro, completely untouched.
Xie Yutai merely sat to the side. Hearing Qin Zhizhi’s praises, his right index finger resting on the corner of the table tapped unconsciously twice, but otherwise remained as still as a painting. Were the eyes beneath his white silk band open or closed? How badly was he injured? And how had he been injured in the first place?
He did not mention a single word about himself; he never did.
“What exactly is going on with the Shapo Sect?” Qin Zhizhi’s gaze couldn’t help but repeatedly drift toward Xie Yutai. She genuinely found it bizarre. Luo Hou with the black smoke rising from his head, the suddenly deceased Shapo Sect disciples… why was it specifically Xie Yutai who was targeted?
Xie Yutai said calmly: “I fear the Shapo Sect is facing a crisis. I must trouble you to go up the mountain with me to report this matter to the Sect Master.”
“Ah.” Qin Zhizhi froze. She had to go too?
But Xie Yutai was not wrong. Since someone was trying to frame him in the shadows, his sole testimony would naturally be useless. Bringing her along would make explaining things much easier.
“Alright then.” Qin Zhizhi answered hesitantly.
“Where do you want to go?” Hearing her reluctance, Xie Yutai suddenly asked.
Qin Zhizhi replied as a matter of course: “The Heguang Sect.”
If it weren’t for the sudden change at the Shapo Sect, she would have returned to the Heguang Sect first. After all, it was rather scary for a whole person to just vanish like that.
Xie Yutai held his teacup in his right hand, bringing it to his lips for a shallow sip: “Do you like him very much?”
Qin Zhizhi stared at him blankly, temporarily unable to comprehend what he was talking about.
“Just now, you even risked your life to snatch back the Qiankun bag.”
After all, the Qiankun bag was a gift from Jun Wuya, who was also at the Heguang Sect.
A long, long time ago, the system would always scream in her sea of consciousness:
“Host, no way, do you like Xie Yutai?”
Qin Zhizhi had replied, baffled: “What’s wrong with that?”
The system: “This is Xie Yutai we’re talking about! You can’t be serious, right? Do you like him?”
Qin Zhizhi had said: “Relax, I don’t.”
“Do you like him very much?”
The past conversation drifted before her eyes. A breeze came from somewhere, fluttering the tips of Qin Zhizhi’s hair. She tightened her grip on her chopsticks, and as if possessed, she blurted out: “Yes, I like him very much.”