Liu Ziyi ignored the mumbling and grumbling from his waist, knowing full well that no one else could hear it anyway, and simply went straight to find Qiu Zaiqi, only to see the single-eyed saber cultivator standing in the courtyard admiring the scenery.
Liu Ziyi followed his gaze and looked toward the valley directly behind Youning Peak, which was also the largest back mountain within the entire Fujian Sect.
Unlike the rest of Tianxuang Cliff, the back mountain of Youning Valley teemed with living things and echoed with the cries of various beasts, serving as the sole oasis amidst this frozen realm of ice and snow.
“How about… I take you for a tour around the back mountain?”
Liu Ziyi propped his chin with his fingers and suddenly spoke up.
He glanced at the sky. It wasn’t even the Chen hour yet, and if he went back now, Shen Zhuoqing would definitely drag him off to morning cultivation! Xiao Liu, who had already obediently attended several days of morning and evening lessons, was about to suffocate to death.
He figured that wandering around with this saber fanatic was still better than staying cooped up with Shen Zhuoqing!
“Isn’t that a restricted area?” Qiu Zaiqi countered with a question.
Hearing that, Liu Ziyi instantly understood what he meant.
Wasn’t that just showing interest?
As for restricted areas, although entering during closed periods did require reporting beforehand, nobody ever said that unauthorized entry during a closure counted as a direct violation of the rules.
So Liu Ziyi clapped his hands and smiled at Qiu Zaiqi. “Not at all. If you’re interested, we can go right now.”
Qiu Zaiqi raised one eyebrow and looked at him, nodding with a mixture of doubt and belief.
However, Liu Ziyi’s rosy vision was short-lived. The moment they stepped out of Youning Peak, he sensed an ominous aura.
Sure enough, within three steps, he spotted that familiar figure not far away: Shen Zhuoqing.
At this moment, Liu Ziyi was standing at the fork in the road right in front of Youning Peak. Taking one more step would put him directly on the path leading to the back mountain, leaving him with zero room for excuses or debate.
“Xiao Liu.”
Shen Zhuoqing called out to him, then shifted his gaze toward Qiu Zaiqi beside him. “Daoist Qiu.”
“I wonder where the two of you are heading right now?”
Qiu Zaiqi cupped his hands in a greeting and returned the bow. Evidently unaware of the gravity of the situation, he answered honestly, “Daoist Liu intends to take me to visit your sect’s back…”
Before he could finish, however, Liu Ziyi abruptly stepped forward to cut him off, reaching out to pull him behind his back.
“Right! We’re going to visit the Youning Valley behind us. Since it’s a green oasis in the middle of the snow, he was quite curious about it!”
With that, Liu Ziyi didn’t forget to shoot a warning look back at Qiu Zaiqi.
I told you it wasn’t a restricted area, why did you honestly spill the beans like that?!
Yet when he turned his head back, Shen Zhuoqing was already looking over with a knowing expression, his probing gaze making Liu Ziyi’s scalp tingle.
“So that’s how it is.”
Shen Zhuoqing acknowledged, “If Daoist Qiu doesn’t mind, I wouldn’t mind showing the way…”
As he spoke, he locked eyes with Liu Ziyi. “After all, my junior brother doesn’t seem very familiar with the paths around here, and the route you two are taking leads directly to the back mountain, which is not open to visitors at this time.”
Shen Zhuoqing deliberately emphasized the words back mountain, wearing a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, a look that made Liu Ziyi shrink back instantly.
“Sigh…” Liu Ziyi let out a sigh.
In the end, he answered honestly, “Actually, I did want to take him to see the back mountain. After all, nobody said it was strictly a restricted area.”
He certainly couldn’t just let things snowball and drag Shen Zhuoqing into taking another tour around Youning Valley, especially since running into Third Uncle-Master Fuye would blow their cover all over again.
Liu Ziyi had already prepared himself to accept Shen Zhuoqing’s reprimand, but instead, the man stepped forward and stopped just two steps away from him, turning around.
He seemed to look in the direction of the back mountain as he said, “Mn… It truly isn’t strictly a restricted area, though it does require prior reporting during this time slot.”
After a moment of contemplation, Shen Zhuoqing offered a compromise: “The time required to report to the sect is far too long, and I imagine Daoist Qiu wouldn’t be willing to wait that long anyway. I happen to have a passage token on me, so I can temporarily escort the two of you inside.”
“Of course, to ensure your safety, I must remain by your two sides. The paths in the back mountain are complex, and you are not allowed to split up.”
Never expecting Shen Zhuoqing to be so reasonable and accommodating, Liu Ziyi instantly swept away the gloom on his face.
Though having Shen Zhuoqing tag along was an unexpected development, it was still infinitely better than going back for morning cultivation!
A day of leisure was a day gained, after all. Besides, he rarely visited the back mountain, and he had never seen what it looked like at this time of day himself.
“Mn!”
Liu Ziyi nodded at him, a joyful expression breaking across his face. As his smiling eyes curved into crescent moons, he naturally failed to notice how the aloofness in Shen Zhuoqing’s demeanor melted away at that smile. Even the famously strict and stubborn eldest senior brother had been infected by the sight, letting out a faint smile of his own.
“Please lead the way, Senior Shen.”
Qiu Zaiqi, having witnessed the entire process, chose to remain oblivious to the inexplicable atmosphere between the two martial brothers and politely addressed him.
With Shen Zhuoqing leading the way, entering became a simple matter.
The back mountain was protected by a barrier. Liu Ziyi had originally planned to use some secret spells to sneak in with Qiu Zaiqi undetected, but now, with his senior brother right beside them, the journey was naturally smooth all the way through.
The back mountain of Tianxuang Cliff was surrounded by mountains just like Youning Valley, but compared to the serene and secluded peach-blossom-spring vibe of Youning Valley, this back mountain felt much more tranquil and enclosed. All sorts of tenacious spiritual plants grew upward, blocking out the sky directly above the entire back mountain, leaving only scattered droplets of warm twilight filtering through the gaps.
Falling upon a valley floor blanketed in vines and strange spirits, it looked more like the lair of harmless magical beasts.
If this place weren’t closed off most of the time and rarely allowed disciples entry, such abundant spiritual energy would truly make it an exceptional spot for cultivation and breathing exercises.
Although Shen Zhuoqing accompanied the two of them closely, he maintained a considerate distance and showed no interest in what they were chatting about along the way.
In truth, Liu Ziyi and Qiu Zaiqi didn’t have much to talk about anyway, aside from introducing the rare spiritual plants and beasts found in the back mountain and comparing the differences between the back mountain of the Zhen Dao Sect and the Fujian Sect.
Naturally, Shen Zhuoqing had no desire to chime in on such harmless topics.
As they penetrated deeper into the area and exhausted whatever casual topics they had left, Shen Zhuoqing finally injected himself into their conversation, opening up a new subject.
“Recently, the spirit herb known as twisting vine-skin has been running rampant, and Uncle-Master Fuye has been troubled by it for quite some time. Since we happen to be entering this area, we might as well deal with some of it, which will make it easier to explain things to the elder in charge of the back mountain later.”
“Oh, good idea!”
Liu Ziyi responded, then tilted his head toward Shen Zhuoqing. “However, twisting vine-skin usually grows in the deepest parts. Is it really okay to bring Qiu Zaiqi in there? The deep areas are dangerous.”
Before Shen Zhuoqing could speak, Qiu Zaiqi chimed in first, “They are merely some spiritual herbs; they aren’t enough to pose a threat to me.”
Liu Ziyi rubbed his chin. Senior Brother Shen Zhuoqing was currently at the peak of the Golden Core stage, rumored to be not far from breaking through to Nascent Soul.
As for himself, he was only at the mid-Golden Core stage, which was still the result of his progress from three years ago, while Qiu Zaiqi’s level was unclear, though he at least had mid-Golden Core strength back when he participated in the tournament three years ago.
“Then it should be fine for us to split up, right?” Liu Ziyi suggested. “Though the spiritual plants in the deep areas are dangerous, if we are just careful—”
Before he could finish, Liu Ziyi felt a hand suddenly press down on his head.
Shen Zhuoqing interrupted his chatter, “No.”
“If any accidents happen, the Fujian Sect cannot afford the responsibility.”
Realizing what Shen Zhuoqing was worried about, Liu Ziyi had no choice but to drop the idea.
He simply didn’t want to linger around Shen Zhuoqing, didn’t Shen Zhuoqing understand that?
“Don’t be like that, nothing will go wrong—”
With that, Liu Ziyi took a step back, giving a slightly disgruntled sideways glance at the hand Shen Zhuoqing had just used to pet the top of his head.
In the past, Shen Zhuoqing had never liked getting close to him. Now that he had grown taller and was almost too tall to have his head patted, he found himself pressed down by force instead. No matter how he thought about it, Liu Ziyi felt he was inexplicably serving as a recipient of Shen Zhuoqing’s guilty conscience and compensation.
He wanted no part of it.
“Xiao Liu…”
“Fine, fine, fine, since you’re the eldest senior brother, we all have to listen to your orders.” As he spoke, Liu Ziyi glanced sideways and collided with Shen Zhuoqing’s helpless gaze.
Yet right in the middle of that eye contact, Shen Zhuoqing took the initiative to yield:
“Very well. If Xiao Liu and Daoist Qiu are so insistent on acting separately, then please allow me to place a protective restriction around the two of you to prevent any unforeseen disasters.”
Liu Ziyi arched his brows in suspicion, completely baffled as to why Shen Zhuoqing suddenly backed down.
He watched as Shen Zhuoqing raised his hand and cast defensive barriers over both of them, providing them with maximum protection before turning away without following them further, heading instead toward an alternate fork in the road.
Did I upset Senior Brother?
Pondering this, Liu Ziyi turned his gaze to Qiu Zaiqi, seeking the other’s opinion.
It was quite obvious that Qiu Zaiqi had no desire to get sucked into the whirlpool between these two martial brothers, so he simply turned his gaze away with cold indifference.
Fine, looks like Shen Zhuoqing is genuinely angry.
Liu Ziyi shrugged, speaking in a volume loud enough for even Shen Zhuoqing on the other side to hear, sounding partly as if he were muttering to himself and partly as if he were talking to Qiu Zaiqi.
Though he cared not a whit whether Shen Zhuoqing could hear him: “My senior brother just has a weird temper, don’t mind him.”
“Let’s split up too. There are still two fork roads over here.”