Chapter 9

Shen Xingyan sighed and, admitting defeat, pulled out another 500 Superior Spirit Stones and stuffed them into her hands. "That should be enough, right?"

"Is that all I'm worth to you? Shen Xingyan, we're not done!" Luo Bingyao took the stones and hurled them at his head one by one.

Shen Xingyan fled in panic.

[He thought ten thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones would be enough to send a girl away. He's exactly like his stingy old man.]

[Shen Xingyan and Luo Bingyao—one a scumbag, the other a vicious woman. A match made in heaven. They should pair off now and spare everyone else.]

Ye Zhenzhen had just finished her milk and lay contentedly on the bed. She had been growing drowsy, but when she heard Ye Qingchuan describe the scene, she laughed so hard she couldn't stop. Then she accidentally hiccuped and couldn't stop that either.

[Hahahahaha... hic... hahahahahaha... hic...]

"Last time he actually showed Senior Sister that kind of movie. This time he picked up a rock only to smash his own foot. Let's see if he has the nerve to come looking for her again!" Ye Qingchuan said, clutching the Recording Stone in his hand.

He still had footage of Shen Xingyan chasing the Clothes-Stealing Beast without any clothes on. In high definition, no less—and completely uncensored.

Ye Zhenzhen: Fight magic with magic.

Let's see if that rotten scumbag dares take anyone to watch a movie again! O(∩_∩)O Haha~

Chapter 9

"Eldest Senior Brother is back! Eldest Senior Brother is back!"

Cheers rang out across Soaring Cloud Peak. Ye Qinghui, Ye Ruheng's eldest direct disciple, had returned, and inner and outer disciples who heard the news soon crowded around him.

Born with an Innate Sword Bone and a Supreme Heavenly Spiritual Root, Ye Qinghui had reached Foundation Establishment at ten and Golden Core at fourteen despite Cloudsky Sect's severe lack of cultivation resources. His swordsmanship was ingenious, swift, deft, and precise; his Sword Qi swept across the battlefield, leaving him unmatched among the sects' disciples. He was Ye Ruheng's chosen successor as sect master and a favorite to win the upcoming Immortal Sects Grand Tournament.

Unfortunately, heaven envied the gifted.

Three months earlier, during a mission to hunt demons beyond the mountain, a Charm Demon had lured him into a trap, gravely wounded him, and stolen his Inner Core. The seventeen-year-old sword cultivator had been at Golden Core Late Stage, on the verge of breaking through to Nascent Soul. In an instant, he had fallen all the way back to the beginning, unable even to reach Qi Refining.

They said Divine Healer Valley could bring the dead back to life and grow flesh on bare bones, that restoring a core and replenishing one's qi were well within its powers. Ye Qinghui had gone there to seek treatment over two months ago. No one knew whether he had recovered his Inner Core.

"Qinghui, did you gain anything from the trip?" Ye Ruheng was delighted to see his beloved disciple and stepped forward at once to ask after him.

Ye Qinghui's expression dimmed. He shook his head.

"Even Divine Healer Valley could do nothing..." Ye Ruheng patted his shoulder in comfort. "Never mind. Heaven never seals off every road. I'll think of another way. Go visit your master's wife and your little junior sister, Ye Zhenzhen, first."

The little bundle of sticky rice, just over two months old, lay on the bed sucking her thumb with all her might, making loud smacking sounds. At the sight of the white-robed young man who had burst through the door, she stopped at once.

[Oh my gosh, is this my eldest senior brother, Ye Qinghui?]

[No wonder they call him a flower blooming atop an icy peak. His features are as lovely as a painting; he's as clear as the breeze and bright as the moon, so handsome and otherworldly he looks like an immortal banished to the mortal realm.]

[Zhenzhen likes Eldest Senior Brother so much. It's just a shame he's a beautiful, powerful tragedy. First, his so-called bosom friend Ye Qingyun tricked him out of his Inner Core. Then a villain plotted to cut off his sword-wielding right hand. And when Cloudsky Sect was destroyed, he was the first to die trying to save it.]

[Eldest Senior Brother, your life is so tragic!]

"Who's speaking?" The sudden babyish voice startled Ye Qinghui, and the tragic fate it revealed shook him even more. He drew a deep breath and looked at the exquisitely adorable baby before him.

"Qinghui, that's your little junior sister's inner voice," Xie Jingshu hurried to explain. "Zhenzhen is protected by the Heavenly Dao. She can foresee the future and reveal it to us through her thoughts."

"Will the sect's destruction really come to pass?" Ye Qinghui cared deeply for the greater good. His own death did not frighten him, but at the thought of the sect being destroyed, both his hands clenched into fists.

"We've already foiled Immortal Venerable Shen's plot with Ye Rufeng to break the barrier behind our mountain and seize our sect's secret treasure," Ye Ruheng said, stroking his beard as he considered the matter. "But as long as those villains haven't abandoned their wicked ambitions, Cloudsky Sect remains in danger. We must guard against anyone connected to the Kongtong School, and we must cultivate diligently so we have the strength to resist when danger comes."

Before, he had focused only on strengthening his cultivation. Now he realized he also needed to watch what others beyond the sect were doing. He might not provoke others, but that did not mean they would leave him alone. He could not shut himself away, building a cart behind closed doors, or remain stuck in his old ways.

"Martial Uncle actually colluded with the Kongtong School." Amid his shock, Ye Qinghui suddenly recalled a crucial line from Ye Zhenzhen's thoughts. He crouched down close to her face and asked in disbelief, "Little Junior Sister, did you just say Qingyun tricked me out of my Inner Core?"

[That's right. It was him.]

Ye Qingyun was Ye Rufeng's eldest direct disciple. Close to Ye Qinghui in age and obsessed with the way of the sword, he had followed Ye Qinghui around like a little tail since childhood, constantly asking him for swordsmanship advice. But unlike Ye Qinghui, he had not been born with an Innate Sword Bone. His cultivation had stalled at Foundation Establishment Late Stage, and he had never managed to break through to Golden Core.

Some time ago, rumors spread that a Charm Demon was wreaking havoc on Dabie Mountain. She had devoured many nearby villagers and stolen the Inner Cores of countless passing cultivators. Ye Qinghui had been invited to go on Cloudsky Sect's behalf and eliminate her, and Ye Qingyun had insisted on coming along to help.

The Charm Demon carried a strange fragrance. Her eyes brimmed with allure, and a single shifting glance could leave a person's soul reeling and their body under her control. For that reason, the two men had worn specially made artifact masks that blocked both sight and air, protecting their minds from her enchantment.

They had gained the upper hand and were on the verge of capturing the Charm Demon together. Then, unexpectedly, Ye Qingyun claimed he could hardly breathe and tore off his mask. He swiftly fell under her spell. Like a puppet, he opened his mouth and leaned toward her lips, his Inner Core about to be sucked away.

To save Ye Qingyun, Ye Qinghui drew his sword and fought the Charm Demon with all his strength, driving her to flee beneath the earth. He had barely managed to get Ye Qingyun back when Ye Qingyun snatched off his mask.

After breathing in a wave of strange fragrance, he fell under the Charm Demon's spell. She tricked him out of his Inner Core and beat him until he was gravely wounded.

Rankings

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Transmigration into a Book

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Power Fantasy

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Cannon Fodder

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Doted-On Darling