There is a Flashy Little Goblin Inside…
“Master?” Noticing the movement of the person in her arms, Wen Chiyue paused just as she was about to leap downward. She tilted her head in confusion and asked considerately, “What’s wrong?”
Jiang Xiechen did not want to speak.
This little sword spirit was not only a chatterbox, but she also lacked any sense of discernment.
The heat on her face was burning, and the temperature at the tips of her ears refused to recede. Jiang Xiechen’s brain was practically ground to a halt, barely able to hear the rusty, mechanical clicking of her own thoughts.
This wasn’t right.
Blatting out without thinking, Jiang Xiechen said, “Jump!”
Even though she didn’t understand why, Wen Chiyue didn’t hesitate for a single moment and leapt straight down.
Despite being the one who gave the order, Jiang Xiechen was still slightly shaken by Wen Chiyue’s sheer execution.
Especially as they plummeted further down, the immense depth of the chasm became increasingly palpable.
Compared to someone who was blind, a person with sight would only feel greater terror when facing such a long, dark plunge into the void. Jiang Xiechen suddenly found herself wondering how Wen Chiyue had found the courage to just leap down like that.
After wrestling with the question for a long time, she finally asked aloud.
Without needing to think at all, Wen Chiyue replied, “Hmm? Because I am Master’s sword spirit. When Master gives a command, there is absolutely no reason to doubt it.”
As she spoke, there was even a trace of a smile playing at the corners of her lips.
Jiang Xiechen: ?
A sword spirit.
Jiang Xiechen thought to herself that this was far more different than she had ever imagined.
Crack.
The stone overhead suddenly fractured, and debris began to rain down. Wen Chiyue reacted instantly, immediately shielding Jiang Xiechen within her embrace.
Jiang Xiechen caught the faint scent of blood.
“Little sword spirit,” Jiang Xiechen called out.
Wen Chiyue: “Hmm?”
Jiang Xiechen: “You don’t need to do that. I am not afraid of getting hurt.”
As a sword cultivator, who among them hadn’t been tempered by hardships and toil? Furthermore, Jiang Xiechen was an orphan who had been fortunate enough to be picked up by her master. However, aside from providing the most basic shelter, everything else had depended entirely on Jiang Xiechen herself.
After all, Jiang Xiechen’s master had long since formed a Golden Core and had no need for sustenance, let alone knowing how to cook. Back then, a child who didn’t even reach a person’s waist would laboriously hoist a spatula, her eyes filled with determination.
When Jiang Xiechen was young, she had only one thought. Only by staying alive can I become stronger.
The hardships she had endured might not have been the absolute most, but they certainly weren’t few.
She had practically grown accustomed to this way of living. Suddenly having a little sword spirit materialize by her side made Jiang Xiechen feel a bit troubled.
“No way, no way.” Wen Chiyue shook her head repeatedly, flatly rejecting Jiang Xiechen’s proposition. Her voice rang out as crisp as a silver bell, exceptionally distinct in the quiet environment. “How could I let Master get hurt? I am your natal sword, after all. If Master gets injured while the sword remains perfectly intact, wouldn’t that be a total failure of my duty?”
Wen Chiyue had her own set of principles. “This is the exact reason for my existence as a natal sword. Master absolutely cannot strip away my final sense of purpose.”
She had always been adept at playing the victim. Pouting her lips slightly, her voice sounded muffled as she spoke. If Jiang Xiechen could see, she would also see Wen Chiyue’s watery eyes, the outer corners flushed red, looking as though she had suffered an immense grievance.
Jiang Xiechen said, “If you act like this…”
The tears at the corners of Wen Chiyue’s eyes instantly vanished, and her clear, sparkling eyes looked intently at Jiang Xiechen, expectantly waiting for her master’s praise.
Jiang Xiechen finished the rest of her sentence at a slow, deliberate pace: “…it will make me very annoyed.”
“Huh?” Wen Chiyue was completely dumbfounded.
After all, they had dropped from a great height, and Wen Chiyue had no cultivation to protect her body. When they landed, she still sustained quite a few injuries.
Fortunately, the Autumn Frost Sword was exceptionally durable, only chipping slightly along the existing crack. Compared to that startling, terrifying fracture, this minor damage wasn’t even worth mentioning.
However, the new crack still caused a persistent buzzing in Wen Chiyue’s head. Even so, she couldn’t care about that right now. As soon as Jiang Xiechen finished straightening her clothes, Wen Chiyue hurriedly grabbed her and asked, “What Master said earlier… what did you mean by that?”
Jiang Xiechen tugged her sleeve away, turning her back to Wen Chiyue. With a soft sigh, she said, “Exactly what I said literally.”
“Is it because I talk too much?” Wen Chiyue asked cautiously.
The more cautious her tone became, the more irritable Jiang Xiechen felt inside.
But Jiang Xiechen wasn’t the type to lose her temper at someone over nothing.
Listening to the sound of the wind, she asked, “No, it has nothing to do with you. Are there many paths here?”
The phrase Wen Chiyue least wanted to hear was that something had nothing to do with her.
She was the sword spirit of Jiang Xiechen’s natal sword, that was an incredibly profound connection, one even closer than that of Dao companions. She was someone who would never betray her. How could it be said that it had nothing to do with her?
If Jiang Xiechen was adept at shifting the topic without leaving a trace, then Wen Chiyue was best at getting to the bottom of things. Stiffening her neck, she asserted, “It has everything to do with me. Master, just tell me. If you think I talk too much, I can change.”
“There’s no need.” Being pulled by Wen Chiyue, Jiang Xiechen discovered for the first time that even without any cultivation, the little sword spirit’s strength was still remarkably immense, as if terrified that she might run away.
After a few rounds of tugging back and forth, Jiang Xiechen had no choice but to speak the truth: “It is not your problem. It is just that I am not used to it.”
“Eh?” Wen Chiyue blanked out.
She noticed that the temperature on Jiang Xiechen’s face, which had finally managed to cool down, was surging up again. Wen Chiyue leaned forward, pressing her forehead directly against Jiang Xiechen’s forehead, and cried out in alarm, “Master, do you have a fever?”
“No.”
“What do you mean no!” Wen Chiyue said solemnly. “This temperature, it’s burning hot.”
Compared to the possibility of being disliked by her master, what Wen Chiyue desired most was for Jiang Xiechen to be healthy, safe, and smooth sailing.
Belatedly, Jiang Xiechen touched her own forehead.
It really was a bit feverish.
No wonder she kept feeling an underlying heat. Reasonably speaking, this place was completely devoid of light, damp, and gloomy, with water pooling along the subterranean paths. It should only make a person feel a bone-chilling cold, so how could she possibly feel hot?
Jiang Xiechen said, “It matters not. Just a low fever.”
Wen Chiyue wished desperately that she could find some thick clothing to wrap her master up securely from head to toe.
Regrettably, their circumstances were limited; they had absolutely nothing, and their best option was to get out as quickly as possible.
Wen Chiyue said, “There are quite a few cave openings here. I will go scout ahead. Master, you rest here first, and once I find the way, I’ll come back to fetch you.”
“No, wait, that won’t do.” After a moment of thought, Wen Chiyue shook her head again, overturning her previous idea. “Who knows if there are members of the Demon Race lurking around here. Forget it, it’s better if I just continue carrying you, Master.”
“You have injuries on your body, there is no need,” Jiang Xiechen refused.
Unfortunately, Wen Chiyue was unyieldingly stubborn on this matter. The two of them reached a standstill, until ultimately, it was Jiang Xiechen who chose to surrender: “Fine, just support me.”
Sure enough, raising an impossible condition that Master would never agree to, and then taking a step back, would successfully win her agreement.
Having achieved her little plot, Wen Chiyue supported Jiang Xiechen by the arm, picked a path at random, and prepared to head through.
“Hold on.” Jiang Xiechen placed a finger over her lips and made a soft shushing sound. “There’s a sound.”
Wen Chiyue was the type who least tolerated this kind of silent environment. She was born loving lively atmospheres, the moment she was stuck in a quiet place, she would feel uneasy all over. Her mouth opened and closed repeatedly, constantly wanting to say something, but looking at Jiang Xiechen’s focused expression, she could only give up half-heartedly.
Having nothing to do, she looked at the water stains on the ground, and then at the various forks in the path.
There didn’t seem to be any difference.
Her eyes darted around, and she shifted her attention back to Jiang Xiechen.
It had to be said that Jiang Xiechen was incredibly beautiful.
It was the kind of beauty that words failed to fully capture, bright eyes, pristine teeth, and skin so fair it seemed to reflect light. Her lip color was very pale, with only her cheeks bearing a touch of warm color due to the fever.
Her eyelashes clustered together, long and dense, bringing to mind the wings of a butterfly.
“What are you looking at?” Jiang Xiechen asked out of nowhere.
Not feeling the least bit self-conscious, Wen Chiyue propped her chin in her hand, looking even more intently: “Looking at Master, of course. Didn’t Master feel it?”
This person…
No, this sword spirit…
Jiang Xiechen pointed her finger in a certain direction. “Go over there.”
That particular path appeared to be the most ordinary.
The other paths looked incredibly rugged and jagged, obviously difficult to traverse at a single glance, whereas this path was smooth and level, completely unlike something that would naturally appear inside a secret realm.
Instead, it closely resembled a crude trap.
Without a shred of doubt, Wen Chiyue replied, “Alright.”
This path was exceptionally long. Even the appearance of the walls was entirely repetitive, walking for a long time easily made one suspect if they were simply pacing in circles on the exact same spot.
Yet, Wen Chiyue could actually unearth amusement from this tedious environment. “Master, look over there, there’s a glowing spirit butterfly! It’s so pretty.”
“Oh, Master, look, stalactites!”
“Wow, bats! As expected, even the cultivation world can’t escape the existence of such creatures. Come to think of it, they are truly resilient to be able to survive among the Demon Race.”
Jiang Xiechen halted her steps.
Wen Chiyue: “Hmm?”
“We’ve arrived,” Jiang Xiechen said.
However, this path clearly had not reached an end. There was a path ahead, the way they came lay behind them, and the walls on both sides looked no different from the sections they had walked past earlier.
Wen Chiyue asked blankly, “Is there something I failed to notice?”
Jiang Xiechen gently placed her fingertips against the wall.
It felt damp to the touch, and brushing her hand sideways, she could feel the presence of moss.
Jiang Xiechen pressed the corners of her mouth down.
“Master, take this.” Wen Chiyue smoothly retrieved a handkerchief and offered it to Jiang Xiechen’s side. “Use this.”
Judging from Jiang Xiechen’s past, she wasn’t incapable of enduring filth, it was just that whenever she was placed in such an environment, it would always evoke unpleasant memories.
Jiang Xiechen didn’t decline. She slowly and methodically wiped the dirt off her fingertips with the handkerchief before folding it back up. Keeping it beneath her palm, she began to grope along the wall.
The handkerchief had just been taken from Wen Chiyue’s person, and it still carried a lingering warmth along with Wen Chiyue’s distinct, delicate fragrance.
Reaching a certain spot, Jiang Xiechen pressed down gently.
The wall ahead collapsed inward. Jiang Xiechen pushed it aside, successfully dodging the cloud of dust kicked up by the impact.
The chamber inside was completely filled with spiritual stones, gold and silver treasures, and countless medicinal herbs scattered across the floor and the cabinets. Yet, the most unique object on display in the entire room was a sword.
At the center of the sword, a high-grade spiritual stone was embedded, gleaming brilliantly in the darkness.
As a sword spirit, a layer of goosebumps erupted across Wen Chiyue’s arms.
This was the aura and pressure radiated by that sword. It had sensed the entrance of a fellow sword and had deliberately unleashed its pressure.
In its presence, all other swords were meant to pale in comparison.
Refusing to be outdone, Wen Chiyue released her own pressure right back at it.
What sword cultivator could possibly look upon such a treasure sword with indifference?
Even without being drawn from its scabbard, this sword was bound to be more dazzling than swords that were fully unsheathed. It hadn’t given rise to a sword spirit, but that was precisely this sword’s greatest advantage.
After all, a master would find a sword spirit too talkative.
Faced with a formidable enemy, Wen Chiyue went completely on guard. Her muscles tensed up, and her feet shifted back a couple of steps, looking ready to launch an attack at any given moment.
Jiang Xiechen couldn’t see the items inside, but through the fluctuations of spiritual energy, she could tell that the contents of the room were extraordinary. She asked, “What is inside?”
Wen Chiyue gritted her teeth. “A love rival.”
Jiang Xiechen was slightly bewildered. “Is there someone there?”
That shouldn’t be the case, she hadn’t detected any breathing sounds other than the two of them.
Wen Chiyue said resentfully, “No, it’s a flashy little goblin.”
And wasn’t it just that? It had made everything else look dusty and dull, leaving only itself looking completely eye catching. It was a scheming hypocrite at first glance.