Nan Sining’s whole body stiffened. She looked toward her senior sister, and when Qin Sangyue turned slightly, she caught sight of the wound on her back. Her heart clenched—there was a huge, gaping hole, black blood pouring out continuously. It wasn’t just a grave injury; she was poisoned as well!
Nan Sining sucked in a sharp breath. She wanted to ask, but the sight of Qin Sangyue’s face, enduring the pain so calmly, made her think of her grandmother. Even the day before her grandmother passed, she had still comforted her, saying she was getting better and would recover in a few days.
Just like her grandmother, Qin Sangyue hid her true condition so that her loved ones wouldn’t worry. Even if asked directly, she wouldn’t tell the truth.
Nan Sining’s heart ached with sorrow. To watch someone close die before her eyes—she didn’t want to go through that again!
So she cried out inwardly to the system: “Quick, help me think of a way! How can I save Senior Sister?!”
The system answered: “I’m searching through the newly obtained information about this cultivation world. The data is too vast—it’ll take time. Wait for me.”
While Nan Sining anxiously awaited a response, Qin Sangyue’s voice called her back: “Xiao Jiu, inject a trace of spiritual power into this jade slip.”
Nan Sining came to her senses. “Okay.”
As soon as her spiritual power flowed in, the jade slip glowed faintly. Qin Sangyue explained kindly, “This will transmit our location to your third senior brother, so he can come find us.”
That was easy enough to understand—like sending a live location with a phone.
Seeing her junior sister nod in comprehension, Qin Sangyue felt gratified. For over ten years, everyone in their sect had wished for their ninth junior to regain her wits. Now that it had finally come true, even if she died today, she could feel at peace.
But the wound on her back made it clear—her spiritual power was rapidly dissipating, her life force draining. She couldn’t even circulate energy anymore, weaker than a Qi Refining novice. She didn’t know how much longer this broken body could hold on.
If her third junior couldn’t arrive before she breathed her last, so many things would remain unsaid.
So she grasped Nan Sining’s hand and looked her in the eyes solemnly. “Xiao Jiu, remember everything I say next. Promise me.”
Before Nan Sining could answer, Qin Sangyue rushed to speak: “In the next half month, you and your third senior brother must do your best to find Dragon Head Blood Ginseng. If you can’t, then Dragon Spine Blood Ginseng. At the very least, Dragon Tail Blood Ginseng. If none are found, you must spend a great amount of spirit stones to buy it. This herb is essential for your second senior brother. Without it, his raging spiritual power cannot be suppressed—his body may explode and he will die.”
Nan Sining’s heart tightened at the tone of final instructions. She asked, choking back tears: “And you, Senior Sister? Aren’t you coming with us?”
Qin Sangyue forced a smile. “Senior Sister needs time to recuperate in seclusion. I can’t accompany you.”
Nan Sining’s eyes stung, tears threatening to fall.
Qin Sangyue stroked her head and continued: “In my storage bag, there’s a Heavenly Flame Sword. I planned to give it to your seventh sister after we returned. Help me pass it on to her. Though it’s not as fine as the Fiery Light Splitting Sword she covets, it’s still good. With diligence, she’ll obtain something even better one day.”
Her words broke off as a surge of blood rose in her chest. She clutched at her breast, coughed violently, and spat a mouthful of blood before collapsing.
Nan Sining panicked, scrambling to check her.
Qin Sangyue wiped her lips, sighing inwardly. She had endured so long, but still couldn’t hold back. How frightened her little junior must be—those teary eyes were heartbreaking.
“Xiao Jiu…” Qin Sangyue’s voice was faint. “From now on, you must listen to your seniors… cultivate well… cough, cough…”
Nan Sining’s tears brimmed over. She rummaged quickly through the storage bag, pulling out bottles of pills. Qin Sangyue weakly shook her head. “I’m already dying. Don’t waste pills on me…”
But Nan Sining’s spirit flared up, refusing to yield. “Eat them! As long as Senior Sister can live another breath, maybe there’ll be a chance!”
The system was still processing. All she could do was buy time.
Before Qin Sangyue could resist, Nan Sining had already shoved a Small Rejuvenation Pill into her mouth. The medicine soothed her condition slightly. It couldn’t cure her, but it prolonged her life for now.
Seeing the faint color return to her face, Nan Sining finally let out a shaky breath.
At that moment, footsteps sounded outside. A tall, broad figure appeared—Qin Sangyue murmured, “Your third senior brother is here.”
Zhou Lixing’s eyes widened at the sight of his senior sister lying pale on the ground, little junior red-eyed beside her. Shocked, he rushed over. “Senior Sister! Junior Sister! What happened?!”
For even Senior Sister to be wounded so gravely—surely they had faced a deadly trial.
Nan Sining looked up at him. His clothes were in tatters, his body covered in bloody gashes. Though the bleeding had stopped, his staggering steps showed his condition was poor.
Qin Sangyue noticed too, frowning. “Third Brother, did you refuse to take pills again?”
For cultivators, such external wounds weren’t serious. One pill would heal them unless vital organs or the dantian were harmed.
Zhou Lixing chuckled sheepishly, scratching his head. “Don’t worry, Senior Sister. My skin is thick. These scratches will heal themselves. Why waste a pill?”
Qin Sangyue’s face hardened. “When pills are needed, they must be used. No matter how poor we are, life matters most! Take a Rejuvenation Pill at once.”
She tossed him a bottle. Flustered, he caught it but quickly pushed it back. “I have my own! I can’t take yours.”
Under her sharp gaze, he finally pulled one from his bag, swallowed it, and reluctantly began meditating. His wounds closed before Nan Sining’s eyes. Curious, she poked his arm—the flesh was whole.
She was amazed. This was truly a must-have medicine for survival and travel!
Once Zhou Lixing was healed and changed clothes, he asked about their situation.
Qin Sangyue opened her mouth, but Nan Sining spoke bluntly: “I picked and ate the Blazing Heart Soul-Nourishing Fruit, angering a sixth-rank Kuiwood Serpent. Senior Sister was injured protecting me.”
Zhou Lixing froze. The information overwhelmed him.
Junior Sister had eaten the fruit raw?
No—Junior Sister had spoken so clearly?
Wait, the real point—Senior Sister and Junior Sister faced a sixth-rank serpent?!
He sucked in a cold breath.
Qin Sangyue gave Nan Sining a disapproving look. “The Kuiwood Serpent is powerful, but escapable. The real issue was Luo Qingyao. She deliberately threw thunder bombs at it, provoking its rage. That’s why it chased us. While we drew it away, she and the others escaped unharmed.”
Nan Sining finally understood. She had thought Luo Qingyao had done it in panic to escape. But no—the villainess had been targeting her all along.
Zhou Lixing roared, “That’s harming one’s own sect! Even as the sect master’s disciple, how could she stoop so low!”
But Qin Sangyue, the victim, remained calm. “Luo Junior Sister wasn’t like this before. I don’t know when her hostility toward our peak grew so deep. Third Brother, warn everyone to keep distance from her—especially Fourth Brother.”
Zhou Lixing agreed, then added, “Senior Sister, you should warn them too. Your words carry more weight.”
Nan Sining expected Qin Sangyue to brush it off. Instead, she said evenly, “I would, but I’m going to die.”
Zhou Lixing leapt up, voice cracking. “What?! Impossible!”
But when he saw the wound on her back, his body trembled, breathing ragged. He spun around. “I’ll kill that bitch Luo Qingyao!”
Nan Sining rushed to stop him. Qin Sangyue also staggered up, but the effort tore at her wound and she collapsed with a cry.
Nan Sining darted back to support her. Hearing her pain, Zhou Lixing dropped his vengeance, hurrying back with pills from his own bag, forcing two into her mouth.
Nan Sining sat down hard, scolding: “Third Brother, Senior Sister told you this not so you’d rush off to die, but to warn you. Luo Qingyao may only be at the seventh layer of Qi Refining, but she has many protectors and treasures from the sect master. Charging at her now is suicide—it’s exactly what she wants!”
Qin Sangyue coughed weakly. “Your little sister is right. If you go now, you’ll just be… just be—”
“—Sending your head.” Nan Sining finished.
Qin Sangyue nodded faintly. “Crude words, but true. My little junior is smart indeed.”
Zhou Lixing clenched his fists. “So we just let her go?!”
Nan Sining said quickly, “Senior Sister’s injuries come first. Once she recovers, there will be plenty of chances to deal with Luo Qingyao.”
Zhou Lixing’s eyes lit up. “That’s true!”
Nan Sining nearly collapsed with exasperation. Was her third brother really this easy to sway?
For a moment, Qin Sangyue felt comforted. But despair soon returned.
Her little junior hoped for her recovery. Her third brother too. But her meridians were shattered, her dantian gravely damaged. To heal was a fantasy.
Her own death didn’t matter. But who would support their peak? Who would care for the juniors?
The sect competition was near. Without good results, their resources would be cut further. Already impoverished, they’d be worse off.
And their master—absent for years, likely in danger. She had planned to train harder, then go search. But now she wouldn’t live to try.
Thinking so, Qin Sangyue began instructing Zhou Lixing on the matters of their peak.
Nan Sining realized—she was giving her final instructions again.
Just then, the system finally responded: “Ningning, I’ve found it. Based on your senior sister’s injuries, only a Great Rejuvenation Pill, and a top-grade one at that, can save her.”
“A Great Rejuvenation Pill? What’s the difference from the Small one?”
“The Small is a simplified version—easier to make, but far weaker. A top-grade Great Rejuvenation Pill is a treasure even in a mid-tier sect like yours. Its herbs are rare, and refining it is extremely difficult. However…”
The system buzzed for a moment, then continued: “I’ve located what seems to be an early version of the recipe. The ingredients are simpler, and even a novice could attempt it. Do you want to try?”