The snow on Xiaoyao Peak arrived quietly on a winter night. Mu Yao sat by the window, listening to the sound of the wind outside. She could not see the falling snow, but she could hear the sound of hurried footsteps running toward her.
Then, she heard the sound of the door being pushed open: “Senior Sister, it’s snowing.”
A crisp voice entered Mu Yao’s ears.
Mu Yao put down the carving knife in her hand and responded softly, “Mm.”
“Does Senior Sister not like snow?” The young girl wore a long purple dress. As the years passed, her eyes became increasingly captivating. Tied around her wrist was the bell that Feng Yang had once given her, leaving a string of crisp ringing sounds along the path she had just walked, which then vanished into the world with the wind.
“I like it.” Mu Yao gently blew on the object in front of her. Ah Jiu saw that it was a small, exquisite umbrella.
“Senior Sister’s carving skills are getting better and better,” Ah Jiu praised.
Fumbling, Mu Yao placed the umbrella into the hands of the carved maiden standing beside her.
Then, she placed it carefully on the bookshelf.
Ah Jiu walked over to sit opposite Mu Yao and attentively looked at the various wooden carvings displayed on the desk, most of which were women holding long swords. She knew those were sword forms that Senior Sister had carved out.
Although Senior Sister could no longer cultivate, her exploration of the Dao of the sword had never stopped. She would use this method to verify whether her thoughts and ideas were feasible.
“Senior Sister, after today it will be the mortal realm’s New Year. Today is New Year’s Eve.” Ah Jiu tilted her head slightly as she looked at Mu Yao.
Mu Yao’s fingertips rested on the desktop, and she leaned back lazily, “Mm, and then?”
“Does Senior Sister not want to celebrate the holiday?” Ah Jiu asked.
Mu Yao gently shook her head, “The mortal realm’s New Year. That is a day for family reunions.”
She spoke softly, and then looked at Ah Jiu, “Does Ah Jiu want to?”
“Not especially, but Senior Brother Qi Heng said he misses home and wants to go back to celebrate the New Year.” Ah Jiu tilted her head slightly.
“What is a home like?” Mu Yao heard Ah Jiu ask.
She reached out and placed her hand on Ah Jiu’s head, “A home? Books say it should be a place with a mother and a father, sisters and brothers, and elders who cherish you.”
“Then does Senior Sister miss it?” Ah Jiu looked at the wind and snow outside. This year’s snow was falling quite heavily, and by now the snowflakes were drifting down like the feathers of a white crane.
“For me, Xiaoyao Peak is home,” Mu Yao answered softly. Her former home had long since vanished in a raging fire.
Ah Jiu thought about it, “Then Ah Jiu’s too.”
Mu Yao chuckled softly, “Why did you go looking for your Senior Brother Qi Heng again?”
“Senior Brother wanted to ask Senior Sister Nanyou for some medicinal pills, but didn’t dare ask Senior Sister Nanyou himself, so he came to find Ah Jiu,” Ah Jiu explained innocently.
“I see.” Mu Yao replied casually, then continued, “It’s getting late, you should rest. Tomorrow Master told you to get up early, make sure you don’t fail to wake up again.”
Hearing that she had to wake up early, Ah Jiu instantly wilted a little all over.
“Alright, then Senior Sister sleep early too.” Before leaving, Ah Jiu even walked over to help Mu Yao close the window.
Even though Senior Sister had said she wasn’t afraid of the cold, Ah Jiu still felt that someone with Senior Sister’s frail body couldn’t possibly not fear the cold.
After Ah Jiu left, Mu Yao chuckled softly and then tidied up the things on her desk.
Three years had passed in the blink of an eye, and Ah Jiu was already eight years old. Yet, mischievous as the little one was, Mu Yao always felt that she didn’t seem like an eight-year-old child; she was simply far too sensible.
The next day when Mu Yao woke up, the Qifeng Pavilion was completely quiet. Even the usual playful sounds of the spirit souls could hardly be heard.
It must have been because of the snow that fell last night, as many sounds had been absorbed.
Mu Yao walked out of her room as usual, following the method Uncle-Master Fan Yuan had taught her to meditate.
Between heaven and earth after the snowfall, water spiritual energy was abundant. Mu Yao allowed the water spiritual energy to circulate within her body, and gradually those spiritual energies merged into every part of her meridians.
Currently, Mu Yao was still undergoing acupuncture and medicinal baths in conjunction with Fan Yuan, and she had only begun attempting to absorb spiritual energy recently.
When the spiritual energy entered her body, there was already a slight sense of pain, a prickling sensation akin to countless dense needles stabbing her.
Beads of sweat the size of soybeans oozed from Mu Yao’s forehead. She recalled Fan Yuan’s words: at first it would be exceptionally painful, but she must never stop the circulation of spiritual energy because of the pain. Gritting her teeth, Mu Yao persevered.
After running a full two cycles, Mu Yao finally stopped and then let out a light breath. Although it hurt, once the circulation ended, there was also a comforting sense of exhaustion followed by a refreshing recovery.
Before she could even raise her hand to wipe away her sweat, Mu Yao felt a handkerchief land on her forehead, gently wiping away the beads of sweat.
Her nose caught the scent of faint plum blossoms, accompanied by the sound of bells ringing as an arm moved.
“Does it hurt very much, Senior Sister?” Ah Jiu’s worried voice entered Mu Yao’s ears.
There was also the gentle motion of the hand wiping sweat from her forehead, vaguely giving Mu Yao the feeling that clearly she was the Senior Sister, yet she was the one being tenderly cared for by the little one.
“It’s alright.”
“Senior Sister is lying, it clearly hurts Senior Sister a lot.” Not believing her words, Ah Jiu immediately retorted.
Mu Yao laughed, “Doesn’t Ah Jiu hurt when she does body tempering on ordinary days? The Dao of cultivation has always been like this.”
Ah Jiu pursed her lips, seemingly unable to refute.
“Did Martial Uncle not forbid Senior Sister from cultivating? Why is Senior Sister cultivating in secret?” Ah Jiu asked in a low voice after finishing wiping Mu Yao’s sweat.
“Now it is permitted.” Mu Yao stood up and held out her hand to Ah Jiu. With a wide grin, Ah Jiu immediately grabbed it.
“Does that mean Senior Sister’s illness is almost cured?” Ah Jiu tilted her head up to look at Mu Yao’s profile.
Mu Yao was silent for a moment before answering her, “Should be.”
“That’s wonderful!” Ah Jiu’s tone became much more cheerful; anyone listening would have thought she was the one recovering from a severe illness.
Mu Yao did not tell her that her own illness was not what Ah Jiu thought it was. The demonic fire within her body could not be removed overnight. Even if her Uncle-Master had changed her constitution, this demonic fire could only be forced out bit by bit by herself, and if the fire seed was not eliminated, she wouldn’t be able to shake it off for the rest of her life.
“Then will Senior Sister be able to see?” Walking along, Ah Jiu suddenly thought of this matter.
“No.” Mu Yao answered her calmly.
Ah Jiu’s expression visibly wilted, “Ah, is that so?”
Hearing her disappointed voice, Mu Yao held her hand and continued walking forward, “It’s not that big of a deal anyway. I haven’t been able to see all this time, so it doesn’t matter.”
Ah Jiu was silent for a good while before speaking again, “Then Ah Jiu will be Senior Sister’s eyes.”
Hearing her words, Mu Yao paused slightly, and then a gentle smile bloomed at the corners of her lips, “Alright.”
“Then thank you, Junior Sister.” Mu Yao’s tone was gentle, seeming always like this. Nothing could make her feel extremely sorrowful, nor would anything bring her that ultimate joy.
Ah Jiu looked up at Mu Yao for quite a while. She liked the way Senior Sister looked when she smiled, as it was exceptionally pretty.
When the two of them returned, Feng Yang was also just coming down from the book pavilion.
She handed two scrolls to Mu Yao. Taking them, Mu Yao fondled the handwriting on the scrolls: “Taixu Xuantian Jue, Jiuqu Xuanbing Jue.”
“What does Master mean by this?” Mu Yao raised her head to meet Feng Yang’s gaze.
“Your Junior Sister has now mastered her body-tempering techniques. Once her body refinement is successful in the future, you will teach her to guide the spiritual energy into her body for breathing and circulation. With her talent, as long as she is willing to learn, she won’t require too much instruction from me.”
“I hear that the Southern Nether Sea has experienced frequent unrest recently with demonic energy shaking, so Master must go and have a look,” Feng Yang told the two disciples.
“Who knows when I will return from this trip. Ah Jiu.” Feng Yang crouched down and touched Ah Jiu’s head, “Cultivate well. You said yourself that you were going to take care of Senior Sister. You won’t be able to take care of Senior Sister if you don’t cultivate earnestly.”
Ah Jiu reached out and hugged Feng Yang, “Ah Jiu understands. Then Master must go and return quickly.”
Feng Yang smiled, “You little one.”
“Don’t be so mischievous and give your Senior Sister trouble to worry about.” Feng Yang pinched her nose.
Ah Jiu let go and rubbed the bridge of her nose, “No way, Ah Jiu is very well-behaved.”
Feng Yang flicked her forehead, “I am your Master, would I not know whether you are well-behaved?”
“I am well-behaved.” Ah Jiu muttered discontentedly. She was very well-behaved indeed.
“You’re well-behaved? Didn’t you accidentally damage your Sect Master Uncle’s pillar just a few days ago?” Feng Yang flicked her forehead again.
“It really was an accident! I was only sparring with Senior Sister that day, who knew Sect Master Uncle’s pillar was so flimsy? And it wasn’t me who broke it, it was Senior Sister.”
Ah Jiu scratched her head, “Master, why is the place where Sect Master Uncle lives even less sturdy than the place where we live?”
For a moment, Feng Yang didn’t even know how to explain it to her.
“That’s just a random wooden hut your Sect Master Uncle built casually, without any array formations supporting it, just ordinary trees from the back mountain. How sturdy do you expect it to be?”
“Then why does he live there? Is there no other place to live?”
Mu Yao couldn’t help laughing. Ah Jiu’s train of thought was always different from ordinary people’s.
“It’s not that there is nowhere to live. That is simply the place where Sect Master Uncle usually goes fishing to quiet his mind,” Mu Yao explained briefly.
Feng Yang stood up and patted her little face, “In short, help your Sect Master Uncle repair it sooner, or else you’ll get what’s coming to you when he gets back.”
“Oh.” Ah Jiu’s eyes rolled around twice, and then she nodded very forcefully, “I’ll definitely fix it for Martial Uncle.”
Feng Yang always felt that this fellow was brewing some other bad idea, but she couldn’t be bothered to care anymore.
“Alright, the two of you look after the home properly. Master is leaving.”
“Have a safe trip, Master.” Mu Yao bid her farewell softly.
Ah Jiu waved at her, “Come back early, Master.”
Feng Yang departed on her sword. Watching her sword-riding posture, Ah Jiu tugged at Mu Yao’s sleeve, “Senior Sister, if I cultivate well, will I be able to be just like Master?”
“Naturally you can. Sword-riding arts are nothing more than the simplest of spells.”
“Then I want to learn.” Ah Jiu said with a face full of anticipation.
“You won’t be able to learn this if you don’t properly temper your physical body every day. Right now, you haven’t even crossed the threshold of cultivation,” Mu Yao slowly explained her current strength to her.
“Ah? Then what about Senior Sister?” Ah Jiu asked, tilting her head up.
“If Uncle-Master lifts the seal on my body, I should be at the Earth Soul realm.”
“Body-tempering, Meridian-condensation, Soul-condensation, Earth Soul, Heavenly Soul, Heavenly Origin, Origin Martial, Profound Underworld, Samsara, altogether nine realms. Senior Sister, did I recite them right?” Ah Jiu wore a look asking for praise.
Mu Yao felt somewhat helpless. These were fundamentals after all, and reciting them wasn’t anything rare.
Still, she gently accommodated Ah Jiu’s wish, “Mm, correct.”
Hearing Mu Yao’s affirmation, Ah Jiu grinned, exceptionally happy.