IVYSCP - Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Ling Qingyue felt that the way Pei Si was looking at her was somewhat indescribable.

Had she been flattering herself again?

But for a senior figure like Pei Si to pay attention to a junior like her, could it also be because of her master? After all, at various grand gatherings in the Immortal Realm, when several elders gathered together, they very much enjoyed discussing whose disciple was at what level of cultivation, and then exchanging a few mutual compliments.

Ling Qingyue considered herself, among her generation, one who was frequently mentioned.

"I know I have no talent for formations, you don't have to look at me like that." Ling Qingyue muttered another quiet sentence. "Just like her grand-disciple."

Back when Pei Yin had just arrived at Shangtianqiong, Ling Qingyue had been very enthusiastic, taking her around everywhere. Hearing she was formidable at cultivation formations, she had begged Pei Yin to teach her.

Pei Yin, annoyed by the pestering, had coldly taught her a formation that wasn't too complex. Ling Qingyue, in the end, got herself trapped inside it and couldn't get out. After Pei Yin rescued her, Ling Qingyue had seen that same indescribable expression on her face.

Pei Si was still thinking about her previous sentence. That last muttered complaint slipped past in a mumble, and she paid it no mind.

"If you want to learn, I can teach you."

Ling Qingyue was somewhat pleasantly surprised. "Really!?"

She had always been quite interested, but after being looked at like a fool that one time, she had grown quite averse to those who studied formations, specifically, quite averse to Pei Yin.

Now it was different. Pei Si was willing to teach her. Pei Si certainly wouldn't look at her like a fool.

Pei Si nodded, then her expression shifted slightly as she turned her head away and stifled a cough.

Perhaps her demeanor had been too nonchalant just now, and Ling Qingyue, her own mind disturbed by the revelation that she had become a demon lord, had momentarily forgotten that Pei Si was injured and still needed to take her medicine.

"We'll talk about it later. You rest first, I'll go brew your medicine." Ling Qingyue picked up the medicine packet and stood.

Pei Si pulled her back, looking at her somewhat pale face. "You're injured too."

The two injured were in one room.

Ling Qingyue suddenly laughed. She tilted her head and said in a troubled tone, "Then what do we do? Do I brew medicine for you, and you brew medicine for me?"

Pei Si was also amused by this. She then took out her jade token.

Ling Qingyue blinked. "Are you going to have Sect Leader Nie come brew medicine for us?"

A senior figure truly carried weight.

Pei Si: "..."

After sending a message with the jade token, Ling Qingyue and Pei Si went to sit in the courtyard. Not long after, Lu Yao arrived, smiling broadly.

"You two seniors." Lu Yao bowed. "The sect leader instructed me to take good care of you both."

With that, she deftly took out a medicine pot and a small stove from her Qiankun Pouch, found a corner, and began brewing the medicine, her movements efficient and without the slightest hesitation.

Ling Qingyue watched her brew the medicine, feeling somewhat apologetic. "Lu Yao, I don't have any spirit stones to give you. What would you like?"

Back in Linshui Town, she had told Lu Yao that one must give compensation when asking others to do things. Lu Yao had given her spirit stones, but now she was completely cleaned out, unable to offer any payment.

Lu Yao pressed her lips together. She didn't stand on too much ceremony with her either. After thinking for a moment, she spoke. "Just now while exchanging moves with a few senior sisters, they all said my trip to the Mortal Realm had led to great improvement. I know it's because I crossed swords with you, Senior. When your injuries are a little better, how about crossing swords with me a few more times?"

What was so difficult about that?

Ling Qingyue gladly agreed.

The bitter scent of the medicine spread. Ling Qingyue lay sprawled over the stone table, pillowing her head on her arms, and turned to look at Pei Si.

Pei Si saw she had something to say and waited quietly for her to speak.

"Pei Si, what kind of technique did you use on yourself? Why are all your Seven Gates and Three Acupoints completely sealed?"

Although Pei Si had told her not to believe Gu Huai's words, if it had been any other medical cultivator, she might have believed the other party's medical skills were lacking. But Gu Huai was, after all, once a disciple of the Medicine King; there could be no fault in her medical skill.

Ling Qingyue guessed that Pei Si might be unwilling to speak the reason behind it, but she still wanted to know. They had already been married once, and they were going to perform Dao Bonding in the future. Such a huge secret shouldn't exist between them.

Besides, she had now told Pei Si all her secrets. Pei Si had to tell her something in return.

As for Pei Si's identity, Ling Qingyue felt her own guess was likely close to the truth. Compared to her identity, she wanted even more to know the reason Pei Si had used this technique on herself.

With the Seven Gates and Three Acupoints completely sealed, spiritual energy could only enter, not leave. Over time, it would easily lead to meridian exhaustion and severe damage to one's cultivation.

Pei Si sighed inwardly. She knew she couldn't hide it from her. Even if she refused to say now, who knew if Ling Qingyue might one day sneak off to ask Gu Huai.

So she spoke, mixing truth with half-truth. "My cultivation is the Supreme Detachment Path. Its most important heart formula is the Supreme Detachment Formula. Within the Supreme Detachment Formula, there is a secret art called Emotion Transference. This is the technique I used on myself."

Ling Qingyue seemed to partly understand. "Why use this? Can it raise one's cultivation?"

Pei Si gave her a deep look. "You could say so. The Supreme Detachment Path dreads nothing more than being trapped by emotion. Emotion Transference requires one to first develop emotion, then transfer it, and finally detach from it, completely forgetting the thought that plagues oneself, thereby achieving Supreme Detachment."

In the beginning, she had thought the fated tribulation that fell upon Ah Xi would be a love tribulation. Love tribulations were hard to overcome. She had used Emotion Transference on herself, originally wanting to use this love tribulation to forget her thoughts of Ling Qingyue along with it, and also completely eliminate her heart demon. She just hadn't expected that the thought she couldn't let go of and the love tribulation were the same person.

Now, it was too late for regret. The Emotion Transference method was irreversible. Forcing it to stop would bring enormous backlash.

Ling Qingyue opened her mouth, then her expression turned somewhat awkward. "Then if, in the future, I become a trouble to you, wouldn't you also use this whatever technique to forget me?"

Pei Si froze for an instant. Realizing something, she pressed her lips together.

Ling Qingyue felt her heart go cold at the sight. She stood up, agitated, and blurted out. "No! You can't do that! We're married, you can't just abandon me!"

She failed to control her voice. Lu Yao, brewing medicine over there, had a shocked look in her eyes.

What had she just heard!?

"I won't." Pei Si reached out and took Ling Qingyue's hand, soothing her. "I won't. I won't use it again."

She wouldn't let Ling Qingyue leave again either.

Lu Yao saw them holding hands again and turned back, reassured, to continue brewing the medicine.

Ling Qingyue felt an urge, right now, immediately, at once, to take Pei Si back to Shangtianqiong to see her master and senior sisters, and then perform Dao Bonding!

"When will this technique end?"

Actually, Ling Qingyue also wanted to ask what the thought that troubled her was. But then she remembered that this senior figure had lived for hundreds of years, had seen how many people and how many things. What troubled her might not necessarily be the kind of feeling she was thinking of. What if she asked and ended up embarrassing herself again?

Pei Si sighed. "Soon."

---

Linshui Town.

Holding her sword, Xue Zizai unknowingly found herself back in front of the small courtyard. She glanced at it, then noticed a small pebble at her feet. With a flick of her toe, she sent the pebble skipping to the courtyard gate, striking the door with a dull thud.

"Creak—"

The courtyard door opened from within.

Xue Zizai was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected anyone to still be here.

Lin Zhao poked her head out and saw Xue Zizai. "Do you need something?"

Xue Zizai raised her chin. "What are you doing here?"

Lin Zhao replied, "Ah Xi asked me to look after her courtyard for her. She'll come back someday."

Xue Zizai gave a scornful laugh. "And you believe that?"

Lin Zhao tightened her grip on the broom in her hand and nodded emphatically. "I believe it."

Xue Zizai said no more to her and walked toward the direction of Back Mountain. Not long after leaving the alley entrance, she saw several streaks of light flashing across the distant sky from afar. Xue Zizai's heart leaped, her emotions surging.

Were people from Piaomiao Sect here!? Could she follow them to the Immortal Realm this time!?

Feigning indifference, she turned back around, waiting for the people from Piaomiao Sect to head to the Xue Estate. The scene caught from the corner of her eye made her stop abruptly. Her head turned sluggishly back around.

That group of people landed just outside the town entrance. There, several townsfolk were gathered together talking. Seeing more immortals arrive, they hurried over warmly, ready to offer pleasantries. But before they could even open their mouths, a hand viciously grabbed at them. Immediately after, that person began convulsing all over, their expression one of extreme agony. Blood began to flow from their eyes, nose, and mouth.

The people nearby stared wide-eyed, too terrified to speak, thinking that person had offended the immortals. But the next instant, another person had their head seized and, just like the one before, bled from all seven apertures and collapsed, motionless.

The remaining people finally thought to run. Yet how could they outrun immortal cultivators? They hadn't run two steps before being caught and dragged back.

Xue Zizai's face turned pale, her legs going slightly weak. She no longer hesitated and turned to run toward the Xue Estate.

The townsfolk who had just witnessed that scene also fled toward their own homes. In an instant, the town fell into chaos.

A barrier once again enveloped Linshui Town, allowing no one to enter or leave.

"Soul Searching. Leave no one alive."

"Yes!"

Several streaks of light shuttled through the streets and alleys. At the town entrance, only two remained.

One of them was unmistakably Yu Ting, who had abandoned her fellow disciples that day. Now she wore a different ritual garment, standing respectfully off to the side.

"Didn't you say a restriction had been placed on the barrier, that no one would know about the matters here?" The woman's voice was disguised, low and hoarse, hard to identify. "Why did Piaomiao Sect come so quickly?"

A chill ran down Yu Ting's back. She knelt without hesitation. "This subordinate does not know. I did not send any message to Piaomiao Sect!"

The woman gave her a cold glance but did not let her rise. She turned to look toward Back Mountain. "You've been here all this time and never discovered that two people from the Immortal Realm were hiding in this town?"

Yu Ting bowed her head even lower. "I never had contact with them. I have been helping our master deal with those corpses."

A burst of spiritual energy lashed out. Yu Ting felt her qi and blood surge upward, a dull pain spreading through her chest. She forced herself to stay still, a trace of blood seeping from the corner of her lips.

"Back then you extinguished Liu Qingtang's soul lamp. I spared your life so you could redeem yourself through service. Go. Conduct the Soul Searching."

"Yes."

After Yu Ting's figure vanished, the woman slowly set foot upon the bluestone path of Linshui Town. By her feet still lay two corpses, their eyes frozen open in death.

Shrieks and pleas for mercy rose one after another. Xue Zizai sprinted all the way back to the estate.

Abandoning all decorum, she burst into the main hall and pulled over Lady Xue, who was trimming flower branches. Panicked, she cried, "Mother!"

Lady Xue frowned and scolded gently, "What kind of behavior is this!"

Xue Zizai was so anxious her eyes had turned red. "Mother! Run! If we don't run, we'll all die here!"

Lady Xue saw her covered in sweat and looking frantic. She wiped her sweat as she asked, "What happened? Tell me slowly. What's all this talk of death?"

The words had just left her mouth when the main gate of the Xue Estate crashed to the ground. Three immortal cultivators stormed straight in. The Xue Estate guards drew their sabers and swords at the sight. The cultivators' eyes showed contempt. With a mere raise of a hand, those blades instantly turned to dust. Then the guards themselves were pulled in.

The scene from the town entrance replayed before Xue Zizai's eyes. Lady Xue was so frightened her legs went weak. Xue Zizai hurriedly supported her.

Lady Xue hastily took out a jade token and directly smashed it on the ground.

A streak of spiritual light shot toward the sky. Lady Xue's expression turned to one of joy. She tightly grasped Xue Zizai's hand.

They had hope. The immortals of Piaomiao Sect would come rescue them!

Xue Zizai watched helplessly as that streak of spiritual light suddenly shattered and scattered midair, as if it had struck a wall that completely isolated Linshui Town.

It was the barrier!

Xue Zizai's face was deathly pale. A figure flashed before her eyes. She stared at the person in front of her in disbelief. A scalding tear rolled down her cheek.

"Senior Sister Yu Ting?"

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