That Settles It, Then! (Two-in-One)

Hong Qin is the same Female Soul that Jiang Lin saw at Zhen Xian's residence in the Wutong Academy.

Jiang Lin remained by Zhen Xian's side, watching Zhen Xian's dream.

After meeting this little girl, Zhen Xian... no, he adopted her and took her home.

Su Hongqin.

This is the name of this seven-year-old girl.

Zhen Xian Flying Sword Letter, indicating that he would not be returning for a while and would go back to the academy to take responsibility later.

After settling down in the capital of Bei Ming Country, Zhen Xian spent every day with this little girl.

Zhen Xian taught her to read and write, and to conduct herself in society.

Every night Hong Qin wakes up from a nightmare, Zhen Xian always appears beside her to comfort her.

To Zhen Xian's surprise, during an examination of the little girl for any injuries or hidden ailments, even though he wasn't a Qi Observer, Zhen Xian was able to sense the flow of Spiritual Power within Hong Qin's body.

In other words, Hong Qin can be used for cultivation...

However, Zhen Xian dared not teach her indiscriminately, and only imparted to the little girl the basic cultivation techniques.

After all, no woman had yet set a precedent for Confucian self-cultivation methods.

The little girl's feelings towards Zhen Xian evolved from initial wariness to familiarity, and finally to trust and dependence.

Six months later, the little girl already regarded Zhen Xian as her family.

For the little girl, wherever this Big Brother went, she would go too.

Time passed year after year.

Two years later, the girl, now nearly ten years old, began to grow, and a small point appeared on her fair chin.

The little girl is becoming more and more beautiful; she's already showing signs of becoming a beauty. If nothing unexpected happens, she'll grow up to be a great beauty.

However, as the little girl grew older, it seemed to become more of a torment for Zhen Xian.

In Zhen Xian's eyes, Hong Qin was becoming more and more like her mother.

Four years later, the girl, who was nearly fourteen, had grown into a graceful young woman, just like a willow branch sprouting new leaves.

By this time, Hong Qin already bore a striking resemblance to her mother, bearing about seven-tenths of her features.

Every time Zhen Xian saw Hong Qin, he would feel a moment of disorientation.

However, Zhen Xian also knew that she was not Red Dress...

Therefore, Zhen Xian began to deliberately avoid Hong Qin, and besides, Hong Qin was already quite old, so it was time for him to leave.

It's time to ask her whether she wants to pursue spiritual practice or live a peaceful life 《Husband and Child》.

If she chooses the former, Zhen Xian will help her find a Famous Righteous Sects to practice the magic she likes.

If she chose the latter, she was already the daughter of a general; with just a word from me, she could easily become a princess, live a life of comfort and ease, and find someone she loved.

Just as Zhen Xian wanted to have a proper talk with Hong Qin...

On this day, the girl returned from grocery shopping, followed by a female Sword Cultivator at the Nascent Soul Realm stage.

This female Sword Cultivator came from the Sword Sect, specifically the Sword Sect of the Ten Thousand Swords Continent. She was an elder of the Sword Sect who came to the Bei Ming Country to find promising talents.

Hong Qin happened to run into him while she was buying groceries, which sparked her idea to take him on as an apprentice.

After all, meeting someone is a matter of fate, and besides, the other party has talent in swordsmanship, so why not accept them?

That evening, after dinner, Zhen Xian called Hong Qin over.

"Is the gentleman leaving?"

Hong Qin, now a graceful young woman, sat with her legs together in front of Zhen Xian. Her fingers tightly gripped the hem of her skirt, her head lowered, and she wore a long, bright red dress just like her mother's.

"Yes, Hong Qin, I've told you before, I'm a cultivator, and I'll leave sooner or later. Now that you're all grown up, it's about time..."

Why are you avoiding me, sir!

"Um?"

Raising her head, Hong Qin bit her red lips as she looked at Zhen Xian: "Hong Qin has been able to sense this ever since Hong Qin was twelve years old. Although you haven't shown it, you've always deliberately kept your distance from Hong Qin. Did I do something Hong Qin?"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong, it's my fault..." Zhen Xian shook his head.

"No! It's Hong Qin..." Clutching the hem of her skirt tightly, the girl's tears fell one after another. "Is it because Hong Qin is starting to look more and more like Hong Qin's mother?"

Hearing the girl's voice, Zhen Xian's heart suddenly clenched. He lowered his eyes, his mouth slightly open as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he could only close it.

"Just as I thought..."

How did you know?

"Hong Qin had a very good memory since she was a child. When she was little, her mother's personal maid would tell Hong Qin about her mother's time at the academy, including... mentioning the teacher..."

"I see..." Zhen Xian smiled gently, but said nothing more, as if lost in his own thoughts.

"Sir, do I really look like my mother?" Hong Qin asked bravely as always.

Looking into the girl's eyes, Zhen Xian nodded. "Yes, very much like her..."

"Hong Qin is willing to stay by the master's side in place of her mother!"

As if using all her strength, the girl clenched her hands tightly and uttered those words.

Looking directly into the girl's eyes, how could Zhen Xian not understand the meaning behind her words?

But in the end, Zhen Xian shook his head. "Hong Qin, you are still you. You are not Red Dress, you are not a substitute."

"But Hong Qin is willing!" The girl stood up. "As long as you're willing, as long as Hong Qin can stay by your side, Hong Qin willing to be anyone!"

"Hong Qin!"

"Gentlemen!"

"Enough!"

Throughout the entire ordeal, Zhen Xian, who had never shown anger in front of the girl, roared loudly.

Watching this scene unfold, Jiang Lin was utterly shocked and his mind went blank for a moment. He was even startled by the sight.

Why is this guy yelling so loudly?!

"Hong Qin, I..." Realizing his loss of composure, Zhen Xian felt a pang of regret.

"Sir, you're being mean to me..."

In front of Zhen Xian, the girl's eyes were already wet with tears. She clenched her fists tightly and sniffled, looking so aggrieved that Jiang Lin wanted to pin Zhen Xian, this straight man, to the ground and rub him to vent his anger on the girl.

But honestly, doesn't that dialogue ruin the atmosphere a bit?

"I... I'm not..." Zhen Xian stood up.

"I don't care! The master is just yelling at me..."

"Hong Qin..."

Zhen Xian reached out to touch her shoulder, but ultimately Zhen Xian go. The girl had already noticed these subtle details.

This time, the tears truly streamed down her face, and the girl ran out.

The next morning, Hong Qin decided to leave with one of the elders from the Sword Sect to cultivate there.

"Hong Qin will definitely go find the master! She definitely will!"

These were the last words the girl spoke before she left.

After the girl left, Zhen Xian stood in the courtyard for a very long time. Jiang Lin didn't know what he was thinking, but Jiang Lin felt that Zhen Xian was quite exasperating.

Not long after the girl left, Zhen Xian also closed his Private School, left Bei Ming Country, and returned to the Wutong Academy.

Back at the academy, Zhen Xian apologized to the Master, admitting his crimes of killing mortal soldiers in Bei Ming Country, lingering in the mortal realm, and slaughtering the cultivators who burned down the general's mansion in a moment of anger.

Looking at his most prized student, the Master stroked his goatee. "Are these the sins you wish to admit to?"

Zhen Xian thought for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "If this student has neglected any punishment, please punish Master."

"Enough," the Master simply shook his head. "Go into seclusion and reflect on your mistakes for a hundred years."

"Yes."

Zhen Xian then went to the Repentance Peak to reflect on his mistakes. In fact, Zhen Xian was surprised by his punishment. He thought that his title of "Sage" would definitely be stripped and the punishment would be more severe.

But unexpectedly, it only meant a hundred years of reflection.

This left Zhen Xian momentarily confused.

During this century, Zhen Xian read books and practiced cultivation in the thatched hut on Repentance Peak. Apart from not being able to leave Repentance Peak, Zhen Xian had no constraints and even lived a secluded life.

Moreover, students from the academy would occasionally come to Repentance Peak to reflect on their mistakes, play chess, read books, and discuss academic matters together, living a rather carefree life.

However, most of those Repentance Peak were for minor mistakes, and they left after a maximum of five years.

So Zhen Xian saw off batch after batch of his "fellow inmates"... and forged deep friendships... many of them were still reluctant to Niannian with Zhen Xian when they left.

This was something Jiang Lin hadn't expected...

Unbeknownst to them, a century had passed. During this time, Zhen Xian Golden Core Realm, left the Repentance Peak. The first thing he saw was a woman dressed in red.

A crimson raindrop flower adorned her brow, and her long black hair was gently tied up with a Deer God Hairpin, flowing down to her waist.

A century has passed. The girl who sprouted willow branches back then has long since grown up. Her long, curled eyelashes, like tiny brushes, lie beneath her delicate willow-leaf eyebrows, and her light blue eyes sparkle like stars.

Her delicate nose, her pink lips slightly upturned, and the red and white ribbons wrapped around her waist in a neat sword knot all accentuated her pure and beautiful appearance, all made her look even more innocent and lovely beneath her red skirt.

She's starting to resemble her mother more and more.

With her exceptional talent, she has become the Direct Disciple one of the Sword Sect Thirty-Six Peaks. Within a century, she has become Sword Cultivator in the late Golden Core Realm.

If the girl's sword practice were replaced with studying, then her talent would be no less than Zhen Xian's.

"Zhen Xian, now that you've been reflecting on your mistakes for a hundred years, don't just sit idly by. This time, it's our Wutong Academy's turn to send a sage to Ten Thousand Mile City in Penglai Province. It just so happens that you and this Miss Hong Qin from the Sword Sect are going for trials. Why don't you go together? You're both from Wutong Province, so you can look after each other along the way."

The Wutong Academy's Dharma Sound came from afar, an instruction and an order that Zhen Xian could not refuse.

"Yes, student understands."

Although Zhen Xian sighed softly in his heart, he still bowed in the direction from which the Dharma Sound came.

As Zhen Xian straightened up and looked up, he saw the girl's bright red and clear smile.

"I am but a humble woman, and I humbly request your guidance, sir."

Zhen Xian smiled, though it was a smile, it also carried a hint of helplessness. "I hope you won't find me, a pedantic scholar, disrespectful."

After leaving Wutong Province, the two set off together for Penglai Province. Along the way, despite being Sword Cultivator in the late Golden Core Realm, she still acted like the little girl she used to be in front of Zhen Xian.

However, there is a slight difference: this beautiful and refined female Sword Cultivator is much more proactive than she was a hundred years ago.

Because she no longer had any worries.

If it can be said that at that time, his mother was "separated by heaven and earth," one being the daughter of Lords or nobleman in the mortal world, and the other Confucian cultivator in the mountains, and ultimately unable to be together due to the rules, then...

Now that I am also a person of the mountain, standing in the same place as you, there are no longer any obstacles. Why should I have any worries?

So along the way, Hong Qin kept trying to win over Zhen Xian, while Zhen Xian took his straight-laced, unyielding nature to the extreme.

Jiang Lin Jiang Lin was not only constantly being fed dog food, but he was also completely stunned by what he saw.

Is this really the same Zhen Xian who went to the Thousand Dreams Pavilion behind my back and summoned several Cat Demon Zhen Xian?

Upon arriving at Wanli City in Penglai Continent, Hongqin not only spent her days pursuing Zhen Xian but also began slaying demons in the city. Meanwhile, Zhen Xian learned from the Confucian sage atop Wanli City how to command the battlefield and buff the cultivators of the Vast World.

Looking down at the battlefield, Zhen Xian's gaze was always drawn to that red-clad figure.

And that red-clad figure would sometimes look up at the clouds during a moment of respite from the battlefield, and give him a bright smile.

"You like her?"

After being fed dog food (a slang term for witnessing public displays of affection) for a year, the Confucian Saint of Ten Thousand Mile City finally couldn't take it anymore.

Over the past year, they had maintained a close yet distant relationship, seemingly mutually attracted, with the Sword Cultivator girl being particularly proactive. However, this junior was like a block of wood, wanting to get closer but not daring to, always keeping his distance.

Faced with her senior's question, Zhen Xian did not answer, but simply looked at her beneath the clouds.

"Ugh! This is so frustrating..."

The Confucian Saint of Ten Thousand Mile City shook his head and said nothing more.

If it were me, with such a beautiful girl liking me, I'd have kids old enough to run errands by now.

Time passed by day by day.

Under Hong Qin's relentless pursuit, their relationship reached a certain point and then stalled, as if there was only this one chasm between them forever.

Finally, with only one month left before Zhen Xian's studies in Ten Thousand Mile City, and just before he was about to return to Wutong Province to report for duty, Hong Qin called Zhen Xian out the night before a great battle between humans and demons.

"If Hong Qin kills ten thousand demons and enters the Nascent Soul Realm tomorrow, how about you stay with me, sir!"

"I..."

"Then it's settled!"

This time, Hong Qin didn't give Zhen Xian a chance to finish speaking. After making a private agreement, she ran off, which was incredibly exciting.

Zhen Xian didn't chase after her, whether because he acquiesced to her promise or because his thoughts were too chaotic.

The next day, the demon race launched their daily siege. Since it was the Demon Race World's Mid-Month Summary siege, there wouldn't be any powerful demons, so the Confucian Saint confidently let Zhen Xian the operation, giving him a good opportunity to gain experience.

Below the city, every time that red-clad figure brandished her red sword, it caused a bewitching bloom of blood.

Five thousand... six thousand...

Seven thousand... eight thousand...

Just as the girl was about to kill ten thousand, and her cultivation level was even showing signs of breaking through, the demon race withdrew as usual.

At this moment, high above in the clouds, Zhen Xian, knowing that this was the end, also lowered his head.

Unexpectedly, just as Ten Thousand Mile City was about to withdraw its troops and return to the city, that red figure pierced directly into the retreating demon army.

[Thanks to the generous patron "Nan Xunyuan" for the 30,000 Qidian coins! So generous, boss! Here's an iced cola for you! (*??`*)]