Chu Mingdong’s brow furrowed instantly.
“Mingyao, aren’t you just looking for trouble? Yun’er was just about to apologize……”
“Oh?” Chu Mingyao’s smile deepened, cold and sharp. “She apologizes, and then what? This is between her and me. You barged in— so tell me, what is your role here? Are you the judge of right and wrong? Are you saying I’m the one in error, or is she? Eldest Senior Brother, have you forgotten? The moment I woke up, the first thing you did was demand I apologize to her.”
The crease between Chu Mingdong’s brows deepened into a permanent scowl.
Behind him, Xiang Qingyun quickened her pace, scurrying to Chu Mingyao’s side. She bit her lower lip, casting a furtive, trembling glance at Chu Mingdong. When she saw him looking down at her, she offered a faint smile— one that appeared both fragile and desperately brave.
Then, she looked up, meeting Chu Mingyao’s gaze with feigned courage.
“Eldest Senior Sister, this is all my fault. I overestimated my own abilities and insisted on challenging you. That is why you were injured. Eldest Senior Brother only spoke out of concern. Seeing you hurt while I did nothing but cry— immature as I am— he became flustered. He didn’t mean what he said. Eldest Senior Sister, you are known for your magnanimity. Please, don’t hold it against him.”
As she spoke, she doubled over, bowing deeply to Chu Mingyao.
“Eldest Senior Sister, I’m sorry! It’s all Yun’er’s fault. Now I’ve even caused a rift between you and Eldest Senior Brother. A thousand mistakes, ten thousand faults— they are all mine. If you must blame someone, blame me. Just…… please don’t blame Eldest Senior Brother. While you were hurt, he was truly worried for you every single moment!”
Chu Mingyao stared down at Xiang Qingyun. The young woman remained doubled over, refusing to straighten her back.
Chu Mingyao’s gaze drifted, sweeping over Chu Mingdong and Chu Mingbei. As expected, heartache was written plainly across both their faces. By taking all the blame, Xiang Qingyun had performed a masterstroke. How could these young men actually believe she was at fault?
To them, Chu Mingyao was simply being petty— a senior disciple bullying her junior over trifles. By prostrating herself so miserably, Xiang Qingyun had ensured these young men would feel the need to compensate her even more in the future.
Chu Mingyao let out a soft, airy laugh.
With a casual flick of her sleeve, an invisible surge of power shot out, forcibly wrenching Xiang Qingyun’s back straight. Unhurriedly, Chu Mingyao smoothed the silk of her cuffs.
“You said a great deal, but only two words were actually true— overestimating yourself.”
Chu Mingdong’s fist cracked as it clenched. “Chu Mingyao!”
To him, those words were especially grating.
The words stung him. Even though he knew she was addressing Xiang Qingyun, he couldn’t help but feel the barb was meant for him, too.
“Is it not so?” Chu Mingyao arched a brow, her smile thin and mocking. “Though, Junior Sister, you did get one thing wrong. What you truly overestimated was not your ability to challenge me.
After all, as the eldest senior sister, I often act in place of the sect elders to instruct disciples. Sparring and guiding your moves is a duty I perform daily. Even you, though you’ve only been in the sect for a mere six months, how many times have I guided you? No matter how much spiritual power I expend, you could never be my match.
The timing of your challenge was calculated. It was during the sect competition— at most, an exhibition match after the internal rankings were already settled. By that logic, challenging me carried no real risk. On the contrary, as long as you put on a decent performance, you could catch the eyes of the elders and secure better training for your future.
That approach……” Chu Mingyao paused deliberately, sweeping her gaze over the three faces before her before continuing, “……is not without its merits.
But your greatest mistake was that you knew full well you could not evade my sword strike. You knew that if you didn’t concede in time— even if you used a life-risking move to keep fighting— you would be pierced by my blade before your own strike could even reach me, provided I did not falter.
Yet you still overestimated yourself and attacked. Worse, your movement was slower than usual, forcing me into a choice— either ignore your safety and move to severely injure you in the arena, or…… forcibly halt my strike and suffer the internal backlash myself.”
Xiang Qingyun’s face turned deathly pale.
She looked at Chu Mingyao with the eyes of a cornered fawn— bewildered, panicked, and utterly trapped. A watery mist gathered in her eyes.
“Eldest Senior Sister, I…… I truly know I was wrong. It’s only because I lack combat experience. I was frightened at the time, and I only remembered what you used to tell us— that when facing an enemy, one should never lose the will to fight. That’s why I…… why I lashed out. What you just said, I never even considered back then. Yun’er was too foolish. I’ve dragged Eldest Senior Sister down with me.”
Chu Mingyao shook her head dismissively.
“It’s nothing. I am simply reminding you that it was only because we are not enemies, and because we were in the sect’s arena, that you dared to counterattack. You didn’t die because I chose to injure myself to protect you. Change the setting, and you would be a corpse.”
Chu Mingdong and Chu Mingbei wore different expressions, yet both remained silent. Xiang Qingyun parted her lips, ready to offer another round of apologies and gratitude, but Chu Mingyao had already transformed into a streak of sword light, vanishing in an instant.
Only her voice, carried by spiritual power, echoed coldly behind her.
“What happened that day is behind me. I only hope you all start putting your energy into cultivation instead of wasting your days on these trivial matters. If you can’t manage yourselves, then don’t trouble me. I— am— going— to— cultivate!”
Regardless of what the three left behind were thinking, Chu Mingyao had already arrived at Neiwu Peak. She entered the Hall of Internal Affairs and met the presiding elder, Perfected Zizhu.
Perfected Zizhu looked aged, a wine gourd dangling at his waist. As an elder, his role was largely oversight. Minor matters rarely required his hand, leaving him quite idle. Before Chu Mingyao entered, he had been reclining in his chair, eyes half-closed in a doze.
He didn’t sit upright at the sound of her arrival, but the flash of sword light flickering through his cloudy eyes proved he was far from unguarded. Seeing Chu Mingyao, he straightened lazily and chuckled.
“So, it’s Little Mingyao? What brings you here to apply for a cave dwelling? Let me see…… Eh?!”
He abruptly leaned forward, his gaze fixed intensely on Chu Mingyao. After a long silence, he sighed and slumped back into his seat, hunching over.
“Little Mingyao, your Divine Sense has already broken through to the Nascent Soul level? Your spiritual power…… It’s fairly well-refined, but compared to your Divine Sense, it still has quite a way to go.”
As he spoke, Perfected Zizhu was already moving to approve Chu Mingyao’s application. He had just produced a jade token to open a dwelling when his movements suddenly froze. He looked Chu Mingyao up and down once more.
“Little Mingyao, given your current rank, the best I can offer is a Xuan-ranked cave— and that’s only because there happens to be a vacancy. Even though you don’t hold the title of chief disciple, you are Perfected Ziqiong’s direct disciple. I can pull those strings for you. Anyone else would be lucky to get a Huang-ranked spot. Why not just borrow your master’s dwelling? His is Di-ranked— the second best of its tier.”
Within the Sword Sect, cave dwellings were divided into four grades— Tian[1]Heaven jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1829781_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1829781_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, Di[2]Earth jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1829781_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1829781_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, Xuan[3]Mysterious jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1829781_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1829781_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });, and Huang[4]Yellow jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1829781_1_4').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1829781_1_4', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });.
Tian-ranked dwellings possessed the richest spiritual energy, but they were reserved for supreme elders and hidden ancestors. Among the Di-ranked tier, the first belonged to the sect master, and the second to the grand elder, Perfected Ziqiong. Xuan-ranked dwellings typically required Nascent Soul cultivation. Though Chu Mingyao was still at the late Golden Core stage, she was preparing to ascend. By the strict letter of the law, however, she only qualified for a crude Huang-ranked dwelling.
Faced with Perfected Zizhu’s questioning, Chu Mingyao had no intention of offering an explanation.
How could she tell him that, were it not for Chu Mingdong’s constant interruptions, she would have broken through in her own courtyard? How could she explain that, because of a nightmare, she now harbored a deep-seated wariness toward her own master? She no longer trusted him. She feared that if she spoke to him, he would only persuade her to delay her breakthrough— urging her instead to focus on helping Chu Mingdong bolster his strength. That would be a far greater headache.
Though she remained silent, the conflict was written clearly on her face.
Perfected Zizhu considered her for a moment and sighed. He tucked away the token for Xuan-ranked cave number nine hundred and thirty-seven and produced a different one from his storage ring.
“Take this. It’s my own personal dwelling. If you don’t mind it, use it. Di-ranked, number fifty-three. It’s not as grand as your master’s, but it’s far superior to anything in the Xuan tier.”
“This……” Chu Mingyao felt a flush of embarrassment.
Perfected Zizhu’s beard bristled as he glared at her. “What? Turning up your nose at it, little girl? Back when you snuck into my courtyard to steal my Green Bamboo Wine— getting so drunk you went on a rampage and left my place a total wreck— you weren’t nearly so picky!”
Chu Mingyao pressed her lips together, suppressed a smile, and accepted the token. She bowed deeply.
“Thank you, Martial Uncle Zizhu! Mingyao has nothing with which to repay you, except……”
Before Perfected Zizhu could huff again, she straightened up and offered a playful blink.
“……to break through to Nascent Soul in a single attempt!”
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