She had a sharp tongue-and even forced kisses on men

Who had he ever offended?

[That old man's pretty handsome. Blue robes with a red sash—this little old fellow's got flair.]

The Second Elder's face twitched with anger.

The pressure around him plummeted.

The two disciples on the sparring platform were so frightened they could barely hold their swords.

The shorter boy's hand shook, and his sword clattered to the ground. He actually began wiping his tears and crying.

An expressionless sect disciple walked over. "Liu Xiaoyuan, you're eliminated. Please leave the mountain as soon as possible."

The boy cried even harder.

But the commotion did nothing to interrupt the system's gossip.

[The Second Elder was quite the romantic rogue in his youth, too. But it was all for show. He visited brothels all the time, yet the moment a woman approached him, he would blush. Later, while training on Lone Peak Mountain, a woman drugged him and forced herself on him. It only happened once, but he kept her in his heart afterward, pining for years without ever finding fulfillment.]

Perhaps those old feelings had been stirred up. The Second Elder gently stroked his red sash, his eyes growing damp.

The First Elder and Third Elder beside him both patted his shoulders.

They had never known the Second Elder had such a past.

They felt a little wistful, too. To think their second brother, that self-proclaimed romantic rogue who used to visit the Hehuan Sect every day to admire the beauties, was actually such a devoted soul.

Puzzled, Li Zi asked, [But what does any of that have to do with his red sash?]

[The Second Elder never got a clear look at that woman. Later, Immortal Ziyang of the Hehuan Sect pursued him, claiming she was the one who had spent that blissful night with him. She gave him that sash as a token of love.]

Li Zi felt the story was heading somewhere strange. There seemed to be a twist coming.

[So, was it her?]

The system's voice suddenly rose a few notches, brimming with the delight of digging up juicy gossip.

[Of course not! Immortal Ziyang only wanted to practice dual cultivation with him because he had a good constitution, so she lied. But later, she met a stronger cultivator and promptly dumped the Second Elder after winning him over. She even made the excuse that she was going down to the mortal world to train, and her master might erase her memories.]

[Ever since then, the Second Elder has wandered around the mortal world every day with that red sash around his waist, hoping his amnesiac lover would remember him when she saw their token of love. In reality, Immortal Ziyang flew off long ago to nest with her Dao companion.]

Li Zi clicked her tongue. [Poor Second Elder. She pursued him, won him over, then dumped him, and he still believed such a flimsy excuse. He really is pure-hearted—and pure stupid.]

The cultivators who had heard the whole thing were numb.

The Second Elder looked as though lightning had struck him, charred outside and tender within. He stood rigid, his gaze unfocused.

As if he had seen a ghost, his hand shook. He hastily pulled off the red sash and flung it away.

But he soon came back to his senses.

What this system said might not be true. What if it was deliberately trying to drive a wedge between him and Immortal Ziyang?

He couldn't let some inexplicable voice sow discord in their sincere love.

The First Elder sighed softly and murmured into his ear, "You mustn't take others' words at face value. This requires careful investigation. Junior brother, remain calm."

The Second Elder felt stifled. "But the first half of what it said really did match. Senior brother, do you think I..."

Before he could finish, he looked up and met everyone's gossip-hungry gazes.

Even the First Elder comforting him looked satisfied to have gotten his hands on some genuine gossip.

The Second Elder was speechless. He felt even more stifled.

Li Zi's cheerful voice soon broke the strange atmosphere.

[Ran Zirou's here! Huh? The Second Elder got so excited at the sight of her that he pulled off his sash. Didn't you just say he was deeply devoted? Isn't this pure scumbag behavior?]

[Host, Ran Zirou is actually Immortal Ziyang's daughter. The two look as though they were cast from the same mold. When the sweetheart he's been longing for appears before him restored to youth, how could he not get excited?]

She had a sharp tongue—and even forced kisses on men

Just then, a girl of about ten gracefully stepped onto the sparring platform, lifting her skirt.

Her skin was like congealed cream, her frame like jade. Her skirt swayed with her steps, like a graceful, dainty deer strolling through the woods.

Her palm-sized face was delicate and radiant, pure and lovely, drawing the gaze of every male present.

Standing on the platform, she smiled at the boy below, who was already staring at her in a daze. "Brother Tian, please go easy on me."

Her ethereal beauty blossomed with that smile. The boy snapped out of his trance and hurried onto the platform. "Okay, okay..."

His steps were a little unsteady, and he even tripped on his way up, drawing laughter from below.

At the sight of Ran Zirou's face, even the Second Elder felt his heart stir.

This little girl really did look exactly like Immortal Ziyang.

His hand abruptly clenched on his knee.

But then he remembered that voice, and his heart sank again.

That woman had deceived him, abandoned him to enjoy herself with someone else, and even borne a child. The thought left a bad taste in his mouth.

Ran Zirou twirled her sword in a beautiful flourish, then kicked the male disciple off the platform.

Thunderous applause erupted below.

A smile spread across her exquisite face, and she glanced toward the elders and inner sect disciples on the raised dais.

An inner sect disciple obligingly praised her. "Excellent! Your movements flowed like water. Very talented."

Hidden in the crowd, Li Zi snarked, [He couldn't have thrown that match more obviously. Ran Zirou's only at the first level of the Qi Refining Stage, and all she's learned are flashy moves with no substance. That guy at the third level of Qi Refining wasn't even trying, yet someone's actually praising her. This sect's beyond saving.]

[And you, boy, what are you blushing for? Why are you lingering over the spot where she kicked you? Anyone who didn't know better would think she'd done that to you.]

The handsome inner sect disciple's face instantly flushed crimson.

The elders on the dais also shot him displeased looks.

Already ten, and still at the first level of the Qi Refining Stage—he called that talented? What was he making such a fuss about?