Fish Come!

At some point, a thin layer of frost had silently formed on the surface of the lake before him.

The next moment, the fishing rod began to tremble.

Snapping back to reality, Zhou Qing had no time to dwell on his surprise. He grabbed the rod, planted his feet apart, and crouched slightly.

His heart pounded with excitement, but his expression remained intensely focused.

He gently lifted the rod; the tip, pulled taut by the fishing line, bent into an exaggerated arc.

Then, slowly and rhythmically, he reeled in the line, immediately sensing a stronger surge of cold and immense force from the water.

Zhou Qing dared not let his guard down, as the rod was now bearing a tremendous strain, curving in midair like a drawn longbow.

"Fish, come!"

Zhou Qing shouted in his heart.

With a sudden burst of strength, accompanied by the splash of water, a snow-white fish thrashed its tail fiercely as it was yanked out of the lake. Droplets of water fell from its body, striking the surface and creating shallow ripples.

Watching the fish struggle on the grass and the frost rapidly spreading from it, Zhou Qing could hardly believe he had actually caught an Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish in such an unremarkable spot.

Taking advantage of no one watching, he quickly tossed the fish into his basket and hid it.

Then, he cast the rod again, lying back with a feigned air of leisure, but his heart refused to calm down.

"Jackpot, this is a real jackpot!"

Zhou Qing stole another glance to confirm he wasn't seeing things.

The Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish in the basket was pure white like snow, as if carved from the purest ice crystals. Its body had smooth lines, tightly packed scales that shimmered with a faint silver light.

Its broad, soft fins were especially striking, as light as gauze.

"Pretty nice-looking!"

Zhou Qing murmured to himself, his joy growing.

Just then, a few Core Disciples in the distance seemed to sense something and looked over.

When they saw Zhou Qing's lazy posture by the shore, they shook their heads helplessly and turned back to focus on their own fishing.

[Ignorance Points +1]

[Ignorance Points +1]

[Ignorance Points +1]

The pleasant sound echoed in his ears, lifting Zhou Qing's spirits even higher.

As dusk approached, his rod jerked again, and with it came the frozen lake surface.

Zhou Qing's eyes were full of disbelief.

"Did I use up all my luck in this life right here?"

After confirming no one was watching him, he quickly followed the same method and pulled the fish out of the water.

Sure enough, it was another Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish.

"Could this spot be a perfect fishing hole?"

He knocked the fish unconscious, stored it away, put down the rod, and began studying his surroundings. But everything looked utterly ordinary.

Could it be the talent skill Reduce Presence?

"Fourth Child, what are you looking at? I've been searching for you forever!" Third Senior Brother Yan Xiaohu's voice came from afar, accompanied by two Core Disciples chatting and laughing, seemingly on good terms with each other.

Zhou Qing immediately straightened up and said with a smile, "Nothing, just looking around. Third Senior Brother, how's your fishing going?"

Yan Xiaohu raised his empty fish basket with a sour expression and said, "This Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish is way too hard to catch—pure luck. The spot you picked isn't great either; it's obvious you don't have much fishing experience."

One of the others smiled bitterly and said, "Even if we picked good spots, what's the use? We still ended up with nothing. Come on, things are starting over there."

"I heard that Junior Sister Lu prepared little gifts for us. I'm actually looking forward to it—after all, no girl has ever given me a gift in all these years," another said with a grin.

Yan Xiaohu rubbed his stomach; after a day of fishing, he was hungry.

Then the four of them headed toward the open space over there.

A bonfire was already blazing, and the air was thick with the rich aroma of roasted meat.

Zhou Qing, like a thief, kept scanning his surroundings.

To be honest, he really wanted to leave. After all, Lu Yaoyao had ill intentions toward him, and he was too innocent—what if he accidentally fell into her trap?

Looking at the long table set up, with its delicious food and wine, he was already starting to imagine scenarios.

What if, while toasting, Lu Yaoyao suddenly stumbled and fell into his arms?

With so many senior brothers, most of them higher in cultivation than him, wouldn't they get jealous?

Or what if she pretended to be drunk and pointed at him, spouting nonsense?

Like praising him as handsome and charming, saying he was her type?

Wouldn't that make him a target for everyone?

But he had been invited here to fish, and he'd even caught two Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish—wouldn't it be too heartless to just up and leave like that?

Besides, if he left alone, others would think he was antisocial, or even that he had something to hide.

He turned around, intending to ask Third Senior Brother for advice, only to find that he seemed even more nervous than himself, even a little uneasy.

"Third Senior Brother, what's wrong?" Zhou Qing asked, puzzled.

Yan Xiaohu swallowed hard and quickly made a shushing gesture. "You might not believe this, but it was fine just now. Now, for some reason, the closer I get to this bonfire, the more I get this ominous feeling."

Hearing this, Zhou Qing couldn't help but tense up too.

"Third Senior Brother, don't scare me."

Yan Xiaohu thought for a moment, then said seriously, "My sixth sense is pretty accurate sometimes. How about we make a run for it? We didn't get anything out of this trip anyway..."

But before Yan Xiaohu could finish, the previously calm lake beside them inexplicably began to ripple layer by layer, and then an invisible pressure suddenly descended.

This pressure was like a mountain crushing down, making everyone's breathing heavy. The air seemed to freeze, and every wisp of wind carried a bone-chilling dread.

Just as panic set in, a figure slowly rose from the water.

It was an old woman. Her form was hunched, her skin like withered bark, crisscrossed with wrinkles.

Her eyes were murky and deep, her hair disheveled and strewn about, tangled with waterweed and mud. She wore a tattered black robe that flapped noisily in the wind.

In her right hand, she held a large fish that looked like an ice sculpture—it was the Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish.

When Yan Xiaohu saw the old woman clearly, his face instantly turned pale, and his throat churned as if he were about to retch.

"Greetings, Grand Elder!" The Chief Eldest Brother and others from each peak immediately recognized the old woman and hurriedly bowed.

The other disciples who snapped out of it also scrambled to bow.

"Lower your head, lower your head, quick, don't let her notice us!" Yan Xiaohu practically squeezed these words out through his teeth, pulling Zhou Qing to bend over.

Zhou Qing's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately lowered his head.

This Third Senior Brother's sixth sense was way too accurate.

In fact, back then, he hadn't seen anything at all. Yan Xiaohu said that as the senior brother, he'd take the lead and show him how it's done.

But the moment he poked his head out, he froze, and no matter how Zhou Qing called from below, he wouldn't answer.

Just as Zhou Qing got curious and wanted to climb up too, Yan Xiaohu fell straight down like he'd seen a ghost.

He landed face-first in the dirt, trembling all over, and dragged Zhou Qing away as he ran.

What happened after that went without saying—it was practically common knowledge. Even their own master couldn't resist bringing it up as a joke from time to time.

"Senior Brother, what do we do now?" Zhou Qing whispered.

Yan Xiaohu bent even lower and said, "Don't talk, or she might notice us. Just hope she doesn't pay us any attention."

Meanwhile, the old woman walked through the air. With each step, a ripple containing the principles of the Dao appeared beneath her feet.

"I didn't expect that after perfecting this divine art, even with all my effort to suppress it, I still wrecked the back mountain like this. But this lake that appeared by accident actually complements the surrounding scenery quite nicely. Not bad, not bad!"

The old woman spoke slowly, her voice echoing in everyone's minds.

Only then did they understand why this lake had suddenly appeared.

"I heard from Xiao Cao that he recently took on a new female disciple. That must be you," the old woman said, lifting her foot lightly. The next moment, she appeared directly in front of Lu Yaoyao.

Lu Yaoyao bowed respectfully again. "This junior, Lu Yaoyao, greets the Grand Elder!"

The old woman looked Lu Yaoyao up and down, then nodded in satisfaction. "Good bone structure and talent, and a pretty face to boot. Xiao Cao finally picked a good disciple this time."

Lu Yaoyao quickly replied, "The Elder flatters me. To have the fortune of joining our Taiqing Sect is a blessing this junior has cultivated over several lifetimes."

The old woman smiled and brought over the Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish in her right hand.

"An humble and good child. I came out of seclusion in a hurry, and some gifts aren't suitable for you. Seeing that you were fishing, this should be it. A pity there were three in the lake originally; two are gone now. This last one is a small token of welcome."

Looking at the Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish being handed to her, Lu Yaoyao was filled with gratitude.

The others cautiously lifted their heads. So this was the Ice Soul Dark Scale Fish. It really was huge.

But what did the Grand Elder mean by that?

What did she mean by three originally, and only one left?

Had someone already fished them out?

Who?

They were hiding it deep—no one knew a thing even now.

Hearing this, Zhou Qing's heart skipped a beat, and he subtly shifted behind Third Senior Brother.

"Don't move, don't move!" Yan Xiaohu quickly warned.

Zhou Qing froze instantly.

Then the Grand Elder swept her gaze around, pausing meaningfully on Yan Xiaohu for a moment.

Sensing this, Yan Xiaohu shuddered.

But the old woman just said, "Alright, I won't disturb you young people's fun. Enjoy yourselves. When you reach my age, even if you want to have fun, you won't have the energy."

Her words were filled with sighs and nostalgia, and then she walked through the air and left.

Everyone bowed. "Farewell, Grand Elder!"