Being a Master Was a High-Risk Profession

The next day, A Man was finally in somewhat better spirits.

She insisted on seeing Wei Mingchi's body, and the others could hardly keep stopping her.

Zhu Lianqing followed behind her. The instant A Man pushed open the door and saw the body, her whole body went limp. Zhu Lianqing supported her stumbling figure and walked her to the bedside, step by step.

At the sudden sight of that mangled corpse, the girl cried until her voice was hoarse.

Yet once her tears had run dry, she merely lay quietly against the bedside and said nothing more about taking her own life.

With two or three days left until the night of the full moon, Heaven refused to cooperate, and a fine rain began to fall.

By evening, the rain had grown heavier, the curtain of water beneath the eaves cascading like a waterfall.

Zhu Lianqing opened her door and saw the people who had retreated beneath the eaves to shelter from the rain.

Five people were crammed into the already narrow space, and the floor was soaking wet.

Although they were cultivators with physiques unlike ordinary people's and would not fall ill from this, such damp, cold surroundings were uncomfortable all the same.

These were the third sect leader's disciples, and they had probably never suffered like this in the sect. As for Xie Lingchuan, naturally, she felt for her own disciple.

Zhu Lianqing opened the door and beckoned them inside.

"Come in, all of you. It's wet and cold outside. At least the room will shelter you from the wind and rain."

At first, the juniors declined, but then Zhu Lianqing went out herself and pushed them inside.

"Why stand on ceremony? We've got just enough for a table of mahjong, with substitutes to spare."

"Huh? Senior, what's mahjong?"

"Haha, nothing, nothing. Just come inside."

Over the past few days, they had grown used to the strange terms that popped out of Zhu Lianqing's mouth and tacitly agreed that they only failed to understand because their own knowledge was too limited.

Once inside, the four fellow disciples sat in a huddle in the corner. Xie Lingchuan remained alone, leaning by the window and listening to the rain, with no intention of talking to anyone.

"Senior Brother, play the flute for us."

Shen Ji never refused his junior sister's requests. He untied the jade flute at his waist and took it out.

"What would you like to hear, Junior Sister?"

"Let's hear the bell that calls us to morning lessons every day."

Song Wensheng bristled at that. "Are you sick in the head? Didn't you complain every morning back at the sect about how awful that bell sounded? Now you want Senior Brother to play it? Don't pollute his flute."

Jiang Tingxue puffed out her cheeks. Not wanting to argue with Song Wensheng, she muttered, "That's because I miss the sect."

For once, she had not snapped back, and Song Wensheng was rather unused to it.

Shen Ji stepped in to soothe them. "All right, we'll listen to that, then. Wensheng, Yan Qing, tell me if there's anything you want to hear, too."

Song Wensheng said, "I'm an uncultured sort. I couldn't name anything. I'll listen to whatever you play, Senior Brother."

Yan Qing nodded in agreement. "Anything you play sounds lovely, Senior Brother."

Shen Ji glanced toward Xie Lingchuan and Zhu Lianqing. "I won't disturb you, Senior and Senior Brother, will I?"

Zhu Lianqing waved her hands repeatedly. "Of course not. Go ahead. I can pretend to be cultured for once, too."

Xie Lingchuan shook his head indifferently. "Not at all."

With his slender fingers holding the jade flute, Shen Ji was a pleasing sight even before he played.

The flute sounded particularly distant and ethereal in the rainy night.

Zhu Lianqing listened quietly. With the room full of juniors from the Luoyu Sword Sect, for a fleeting moment, she truly felt as though she were attending morning lessons at the sect.

The third sect leader really did have the most leisure and refinement. Even the disciples she taught were talented in many arts.

Zhu Lianqing had no talent for music and could only make little trinkets. Some were fairly practical, while others were purely for fun or decoration.

So Xie Lingchuan had probably inherited her knack for working with her hands, too, and could cook excellent meals.

By the time Shen Ji finished the piece, Jiang Tingxue was utterly downcast.

She had originally been resting against the wall, but now she was draped over her senior brother's knees, saying listlessly, "Senior Brother, I miss Master so much."

It was no wonder Jiang Tingxue was especially dejected. Of this generation of disciples, she was the most doted on by their master and fellow disciples.

Shen Ji chuckled and patted her shoulder. "Once we finish our training journey, we can return to the mountain. Master is thinking of us, too, so we can't disappoint her. We have to do well on our training journey."

Jiang Tingxue nodded morosely.

Zhu Lianqing watched the harmonious, affectionate fellow disciples across from her.

Such good, adorable, innocent disciples. They've only been away for a little over a month, and they already miss their master.

I wonder if Xie Lingchuan has thought of me in the two years I've been gone.

Zhu Lianqing quickly dismissed that possibility-back at the sect, Xie Lingchuan had never relied on her for anything except cultivation. He had always been independent.

After two years, Xie Lingchuan probably did not even remember what she looked like.

Zhu Lianqing picked up the cold tea on the table and looked at Xie Lingchuan, who was leaning beside the window.

Just then, a flash of thunderous lightning split the distant sky, briefly illuminating the young man's shadowed profile.

His eyes were as indifferent as ever.

That mouthful of cold tea brought many memories back to Zhu Lianqing.

When she had first "died" and learned that something had gone wrong with her return home, she had a huge argument with 191 in the void.

By the time she finished arguing and returned to this world as a soul, her funeral had just ended.

Although she had not witnessed the awe-inspiring sight of countless cultivators chanting dirges for her, the white soul banners on Mount Shangqing had covered every other color.

The green mountain had turned white-haired overnight.

Zhu Lianqing's soul made its way down the mountain, hearing others speak of her funeral and of her.

Only one thing made her stop.

Someone said that Perfected Lord Nanhua's youngest disciple truly deserved to have inherited the teachings of the foremost sword cultivator. His mind transcended worldly attachments, unconfined by partings in life and death. Even as he carried his master's sword in her funeral procession, his eyes had not reddened. In the future, he would surely reach the pinnacle of the sword Dao as well.

Although they had only been master and disciple for a few short years and their bond was shallow, Zhu Lianqing still felt a little glum.

191 even recklessly offered its assessment in her ear. "Although your disciple hasn't fallen into demonhood or increased the resentment value, his personality doesn't seem very good. He's somewhat lacking in emotion."

At the time, Zhu Lianqing's lingering anger over being unable to return home had yet to fade, and she immediately snapped, "Get lost, get lost. You're just a bunch of programmed data, and you're lecturing us humans about emotions? Do you know how much effort it takes to nurture a promising seedling? If you love giving advice so much, why don't you become a master?"

191 did not dare say a word.

It certainly would not become a master. Being a master was a high-risk profession.

That was why 191 admired Zhu Lianqing so much: she was its first host who had become a master without getting tangled up in some melodramatic master-disciple romance.

Zhu Lianqing soon made peace with Xie Lingchuan seeing her off without joy or sorrow.

After all, unlike the third sect leader, she was no warm, approachable, exemplary master. She had only her swordsmanship to teach her disciple, so it was perfectly normal that he was not close to her.

"Young Hero Shen."

Shen Ji looked up at Zhu Lianqing. "What is it, Senior?"

Zhu Lianqing said, "Could you play something a little more cheerful?"

Shen Ji smiled. "Of course, Senior. What would you like to hear?"

"Have you heard the theme song from SpongeBob?"

The moment the words left her mouth, Zhu Lianqing felt the question had been rather unnecessary.

If Shen Ji had heard it, wouldn't that mean this world had gone haywire?

To her surprise, the very next moment, Shen Ji asked, "Do you mean that piece with the very cheerful tune but very strange musical notation, Senior?"

Zhu Lianqing froze for three seconds.

Oh no. This world really does seem to have gone haywire.

Does it just have the same name?

How could anyone in this secondary world have heard it?

Then Zhu Lianqing said uncertainly, "Why don't... you play it for me first?"

Shen Ji nodded and raised the flute to his lips.

A familiar, cheerful melody drifted from the jade flute.

In that instant, the gloomy, oppressive atmosphere in the room was swept away, turning cheerful and even a little comical.