Mo Xiaoxing said, “There are only the two of us here. If you were to die here, I wouldn’t be able to clear my name even if I grew ten mouths!“
Nanshan Lie closed his eyes slightly. “Is that why you saved me?“
Mo Xiaoxing replied, “Of course.“
Nanshan Lie said nothing more; he lay flat on the rock, motionless.
Mo Xiaoxing noticed his body was flushed red; his skin, scorched by the Earth Core Fire, looked as if it were poisoned and would not fade anytime soon.
“Nanshan Lie, how are you holding up?“
Nanshan Lie opened his eyes slightly and looked at Mo Xiaoxing.
“I won’t die. Rest assured, I won’t let you be wronged.“
Mo Xiaoxing said, “You’re in this state, yet your tongue is still so sharp. If it weren’t for the sake of us being fellow disciples, I wouldn’t have saved you.“
Nanshan Lie countered, “Wasn’t it because you were afraid of being wrongly accused?“
Mo Xiaoxing: “Regardless, I saved you! A life-saving grace is as vast as the heavens. Nanshan Lie, how do you intend to repay me?“
Nanshan Lie: “Speak your mind.“
He actually hoped Qin Yu would state a condition. He never liked to owe favors, let alone such a massive one.
Mo Xiaoxing said, “Fine, then I’ll say it: about today’s events, you are not allowed to mention them to anyone!“
Nanshan Lie was silent.
Mo Xiaoxing: “Why aren’t you saying anything?“
Nanshan Lie: “That’s it? That is your condition?“
Mo Xiaoxing nodded. “That’s right.“
Nanshan Lie: “…“
He had thought it would be something difficult to handle; he had already prepared himself mentally.
Nanshan Lie: “I, Nanshan Lie, hereby swear that I will not mention today’s events to a third person other than you and me. Otherwise, may I die a horrible death… Is that sufficient?“
Mo Xiaoxing was satisfied. Nanshan Lie was quite straightforward, after all. People who practice cultivation are bound by their words; having made the vow, she didn’t fear him going back on it.
“That’s perfect.“
After waiting a while, Mo Xiaoxing looked at Nanshan Lie again; he was still motionless, likely due to the massive expenditure of spiritual energy earlier.
A little later, Nanshan Lie propped himself up, summoned his flying sword, and looked at Mo Xiaoxing.
“Get on.“
Mo Xiaoxing naturally complied.
They didn’t linger on the cliff. After flying across and Nanshan Lie setting Mo Xiaoxing down, he suddenly said, “Qin Yu, you lied to me.“
Mo Xiaoxing: “What did I lie to you about?“
Nanshan Lie opened his palm to reveal a piece of fire marrow. It turned out he had already found fire marrow within the Earth Core Fire.
The moment Mo Xiaoxing saw it, she understood instantly!
He must know by now that her fire marrow was also found in the Earth Core Fire, right? After all, he had seen her entering and exiting the Earth Core Fire with his own eyes.
Mo Xiaoxing: “Even if I told you the truth, would you believe me?“
Nanshan Lie: “No.“
Mo Xiaoxing: “Then isn’t that settled?“
Nanshan Lie stood on his flying sword, hovering slightly above the ground. He had intended to leave, but he hesitated, feeling strange.
His curiosity was usually limited, but today’s events were simply too unbelievable.
Ultimately, he asked, “Qin Yu, in truth, you have already subdued the Earth Core Fire, haven’t you? That day you burned your house down, you used Earth Core Fire… When did that happen?“
Mo Xiaoxing was stunned for a moment.
Nanshan Lie’s words had opened up a new line of thinking for her!
Since she had no idea why she could command the Earth Core Fire anyway, why not just say she had subdued it?
“…It was when I was confined to the back mountain; I accidentally fell down there.“
Nanshan Lie frowned. “And then?“
Mo Xiaoxing: “And then I was reborn through the flames. Mere Earth Core Fire couldn’t burn me to death, so I conquered it!“
Nanshan Lie stared at Mo Xiaoxing; in his unruly eyes, there was a hint of genuine admiration.
He believed her, because there were no shortcuts to subduing Earth Core Fire; it required risking one’s life.
He had only just made up his mind today to walk into the fire tomb, yet Qin Yu had done it long before him.
He just wondered what she had been thinking when she fell into the fire tomb, at the moment between life and death…
Nanshan Lie gripped the fire marrow tightly. Having been severely injured today, he wouldn’t linger. He gave Mo Xiaoxing one last look and flew away on his sword.
Mo Xiaoxing returned to her dwelling, bathed, changed her clothes, and sat under the frame of blooming orange roses, eating a popsicle, her whole body finally relaxed.
Watching the sunset and the breeze blowing across the lake, creating ripples and occasionally bringing the faint scent of lotus flowers, she sighed.
“Home really is the most comfortable place.“
Mo Xiaoxing had finished two popsicles before she suddenly remembered today’s spoils of war.
The two storage bags of those Qi Refining cultivators contained only seven or eight spirit stones, three ordinary swords, and a few talismans.
“So poor; no wonder they resorted to robbery.“
However, those two sabers were worth studying. That iron chain formation was quite powerful. If she hadn’t had the Earth Core Fire as her trump card, she probably wouldn’t have escaped today.
Just then, a maid ran over and said, “Your Highness, Miss Chen is here.“
“Miss Chen? Chen Shuyao?“
Maid: “Yes.“
Mo Xiaoxing frowned slightly. She didn’t really want to see this Chen Shuyao, because Chen Shuyao was very close to Qin Yu, and dealing with an old friend of Qin Yu made Mo Xiaoxing worry she wouldn’t be able to act convincingly.
However, Chen Shuyao had already entered.
“Ah Yu, where are you? Aren’t you going to come and welcome me?“
The young woman’s crisp voice reached her ears. Mo Xiaoxing heard it clearly but didn’t stand up.
Rounding the path shaded by tree branches, Chen Shuyao caught sight of Mo Xiaoxing lounging in the chair.
She fluttered over like a happy bird and seated herself in another wicker chair.
“Ah Yu, why didn’t you answer? You made me search everywhere for you.“
Mo Xiaoxing glanced at Chen Shuyao. “Didn’t you see me the moment you walked in? Where exactly did you search?“
Chen Shuyao: “Oh, I was just saying that. Besides, I just returned to the sect, weary from my journey, and came to find you first thing. Is this the attitude you show me?“
Mo Xiaoxing pushed the small bamboo basket on the table toward her. “Then have a popsicle?“
Chen Shuyao glanced at the colorful “popsicles”—Mo Xiaoxing was currently eating one herself, so she assumed it was some kind of snack.
“You keep them for yourself. My master says that cultivators should abstain from grains, as indulging in worldly cravings is of no benefit to cultivation. Ah Yu, you haven’t started practicing spells yet, so it’s no surprise you’re a bit greedy, but once you reach my cultivation level, you’ll understand.“
Mo Xiaoxing finally looked at Chen Shuyao properly.
Chen Shuyao was quite pretty and had a lively personality, born into a prominent, prestigious family. Qin Yu and she had known each other since childhood and had entered the Everlasting Sect together last year.
The difference was that Qin Yu had been parachuted in as the Sect Leader’s disciple, while Chen Shuyao had passed the sect’s tests and walked in through her own efforts.
In her memories, Chen Shuyao and Qin Yu were best friends. Yet, from the first sentence Chen Shuyao spoke upon entering, Mo Xiaoxing found she couldn’t bring herself to like her.
She even felt a sense of aversion.
Mo Xiaoxing suddenly asked, “What is your cultivation level?”
Chen Shuyao began to laugh, unable to hide the pride on her face. “I’m at the fourth level of Qi Refining.”
Mo Xiaoxing responded flatly, “Oh, I am also at the fourth level of Qi Refining.”
Chen Shuyao’s smile froze. She scrutinized Mo Xiaoxing. “You actually leveled up too?”
Judging by her tone, she seemed unable to believe it. It wasn’t just surprise that she had leveled up; it sounded more like she was implying that she should have only been worthy of the third level of Qi Refining forever and never dreamed of advancing.
Mo Xiaoxing looked at her. “Am I not allowed to level up?”
Chen Shuyao quickly regained her smile. “No, that’s not what I meant. I was just a bit… pleasantly surprised. That’s great, Ah Yu, I’m happy for you.”
Mo Xiaoxing: “Oh.”
Chen Shuyao looked at Mo Xiaoxing and suddenly realized she was quite unusual today. In the past, whenever she arrived, Qin Yu would be overjoyed, pulling her this way and that, talking endlessly. Why was she saying so little today?
The Emperor and Empress had given her so many rare, precious pills—enough to feed someone up to the Foundation Establishment stage! Yet Qin Yu was only at the third level of Qi Refining; her potential was just that small.
She had always believed Qin Yu would never reach the fourth level of Qi Refining in her life. Even if her master was the most powerful cultivator in the Yuanyuan Continent, it couldn’t change the fact that she was a good-for-nothing.
Suddenly, Chen Shuyao asked, “Ah Yu, what’s going on between you and that Crown Prince of the Blood Dragon Sect?”