Maple leaves drifted slowly downward.
As the little girl collapsed, bleeding, the tiger-head hat fell comically over her face.
Fen Jue walked over to the girl and bent down, casually gripping the hilt of his sword with his right hand while his left reached toward her nose.
“Dead.”
After uttering those two words lightly, he fell silent.
A moment later.
He sent another wisp of his spiritual sense into her consciousness sea.
“She is indeed a junior disciple of Jade Immortal Peak.”
“She hasn’t even mastered Guiding Qi into the Body, let alone shown any talent. She must be the sect’s trash.”
The words that slipped from his thin lips held no trace of mercy. If Jiang Bingbing were still alive, she would probably have jumped up and bitten him.
“A piece of trash—dead is dead.”
Fen Jue turned away, sword in hand, but after two steps, he paused and unhurriedly turned back.
He hadn’t planned to bother with this trashy little girl.
But then he suddenly remembered something.
And so, he had no choice but to intervene.
After all, it was only a wisp of his spiritual sense that had come to the Sword Tomb.
This little girl had no talent to speak of; living to a hundred would already be a stretch. By the time she died, he could simply reclaim this wisp of spiritual sense, saving face in the Upper Heavenly Palace.
It wouldn’t be a waste of time either.
To his long lifespan, a hundred years was as fleeting as the rising and setting of the sun.
With that thought.
The scarlet-robed sword cultivator formed hand seals. In the next moment, spiritual power gathered like wind, lifting the ink-black hair behind him.
A golden light radiated from Fen Jue’s body.
Jiang Bingbing, her eyes tightly shut, slowly rose, her toes lifting off the ground as the bloodstains at the corners of her mouth dried.
The golden light surrounding the two grew even brighter.
The scarlet-robed sword cultivator lowered his gaze to Jiang Bingbing. His sword slid across his fingertip, and a drop of crimson blood welled up.
He pressed his fingertip to Jiang Bingbing’s forehead. Once the blood had formed a mark, he placed his right hand behind her head, tilting it back slightly. Then, he lowered his head, pressing his own forehead firmly against the girl’s.
His thin lips moved softly as he whispered the vow.
“With my blood and your soul, we form a pact here. I shall protect you for a lifetime.”
“Unless heaven and earth perish, this soul pact shall not break.”
“Seal!!”
With that command, the two shot up dozens of feet into the air, golden runes swirling around them.
The fiery red maple leaves added fervor to the breathtaking scene.
If Jiang Bingbing had seen this.
She would have drooled.
…
“Senior Sister, the formation array has been shattered to pieces!”
“How am I supposed to explain this to Master?”
“Little Junior Sister, wake up!”
“It’s all my fault, Senior Sister.”
Senior Sister?
Wake up?
Who is that?
Aren’t you afraid of being haunted for disturbing someone’s eternal rest!
Even in death, she had to be bothered by noise.
Wait, wasn’t she dead? How could she still hear someone mourning her?
Could it be that she had become a wandering ghost?
Jiang Bingbing tried to open her eyes, but her eyelids felt parched and sore, aching with every movement of her eyeballs.
She could feel someone shaking her arm.
Shaking her hard.
But she just couldn’t wake up.
After a while, Jiang Bingbing fell unconscious again.
Meanwhile, atop the spiritual platform at the center of her consciousness sea, the scarlet-robed cultivator sitting cross-legged slowly opened his eyes.
“This senior sister from Jade Immortal Peak is in such a panic. This trashy girl may have abysmal talent, but she’s clearly doted on.”
“She wasn’t lying completely.”
With that, he formed hand seals again.
Closing his eyes, he returned to his cultivation in peace.
Although Fen Jue and Jiang Bingbing had formed a soul pact, Jiang Bingbing had, after all, died once. It would take at least ten days to half a month for her to fully awaken.
During the ten days she lay unconscious, the pact-forming ceremony had already concluded. This year’s participants had shockingly good luck—Ling Hanchuan had formed a pact with a senior from the Sword Sect who cultivated the Path of Emotionlessness.
Liu Zheng had also formed a contract with an ice spirit root senior.
Jade Immortal Peak, which should have been bustling with celebration, was now shrouded in a heavy, oppressive atmosphere due to Jiang Bingbing’s unconscious state.
All Sword Sect disciples knew that the little fool on Jade Immortal Peak was a treasure. Now that she had suffered misfortune in the Sword Tomb, no one knew how Immortal Lord Qingxue would vent his anger on the sect leader.
Sect Leader’s Hall.
Immortal Lord Qingxue stood before Sect Leader Wuya with a dark expression.
He spoke the same words for the 53rd time in ten days.
“Sect Leader Senior Brother, I told you not to let Bingbing enter the Sword Tomb. You insisted on strictly following the sect rules, saying that as long as Bingbing could guide qi into her body and reach the Qi Refining stage, you wouldn’t say anything. But she has no ability to protect herself at all. Now my most beloved disciple is still unconscious—it’s all your fault!”
Sect Leader Wuya endured his nearly calloused ears and repeated what he had said 53 times.
“Yes, yes, it’s my fault, all my fault.”
Seeing his junior brother pick up a teacup, take a sip, and moisten his throat—likely preparing to lecture for another half-hour—Sect Leader Wuya hurriedly reminded him:
“Junior Brother, Bingbing’s breathing and pulse are normal. She’s only unconscious, not in any life-threatening danger.”
“You said ‘only unconscious’!” Immortal Lord Qingxue’s voice suddenly rose in anger. “Being unconscious for ten days is one thing, but what if it’s ten years or a hundred years?”
Sect Leader Wuya dared not utter a word upon seeing his junior brother’s fury.
After a while, he timidly said:
“Ah, there’s nothing we can do. All inner sect disciples who have reached fifteen years of age must enter the Sword Tomb. I couldn’t help it either.”
What was even more infuriating was that they couldn’t figure out why Jiang Bingbing had ended up like this.
Here was Immortal Lord Qingxue, who usually paid great attention to his appearance, cursing the sect rules loudly, while the normally dignified sect leader sat upright, listening without daring to retort.
After the time it took to drink two cups of tea.
Sect Leader Wuya glanced at the sun setting on the horizon. His old arms and legs had already gone numb.
His junior brother still hadn’t finished venting.
He really couldn’t listen any longer.
“Ahem—” He stroked his beard. “Junior Brother, look, it’s getting late. Perhaps…”
“Senior Brother!” Immortal Lord Qingxue declared with a resounding, deafening voice, “My little disciple is in critical danger. How can you not even bear to listen to your junior brother’s complaints?”
“Complaints”?
You’ve been cursing from noon until sunset!
At least give this sect leader some face!
The disciples outside already knew about this. How could he have the dignity to lead the sect to become number one in the cultivation world?
“Junior Brother!” Sect Leader Wuya had no choice. He could only take out a brocade box from his storage ring. “This is a thousand-year Blood Lotus. Why don’t you take it back and let Bingbing eat it?”
After speaking, the sect leader’s beard trembled with heartache.
Immortal Lord Qingxue had achieved his goal.
He bent down to receive the Blood Lotus.
“Thank you, Senior Brother!”
At that moment, a young attendant ran in from outside, calling out crisply:
“Report! Good news!!”
“Sect Leader True Lord, Immortal Lord Qingxue, Jade Immortal Peak has sent word that Senior Sister Jiang has awakened!”
Upon hearing this, Immortal Lord Qingxue took the Blood Lotus and immediately turned to leave. The sect leader reached out to stop him: “Wait, Junior Brother. Since Bingbing has awakened, perhaps you could return the Blood Lotus to me.”
Jiang Qingxue, who had already reached the threshold, moved even faster.
He mounted his flying sword and waved his hand. “Senior Brother, consider this gift as a celebration for my little disciple’s recovery from danger!”
As soon as the words fell.
He had already transformed into a streak of light and disappeared beyond the horizon.
Sect Leader Wuya held his forehead and sighed.
That was the thousand-year Blood Lotus he had obtained a hundred years ago from a secret realm left by an ascension-level great power!!
Sword Cultivators were already poor and rarely saw such treasures.
Now, he felt as if his heart were being carved out and his flesh cut—the pain was unbearable.
The messenger boy retreated from the main hall with a bewildered expression.
“Why is the sect leader shaking his head like that?”
“He must be overjoyed that Senior Sister Jiang has awakened.”
“Yes! That must be it.”