“Take it.” Xu Wanzhong tossed a storage bag into Chen Zhi’s arms.
Chen Zhi was at a loss. “Grand Martial Uncle, this…”
He hesitantly glanced at Nangong Yu.
Since Nangong Yu had been the one to demand it, the compensation was naturally meant for her. Chen Zhi didn’t dare accept it.
“You’re so long-winded.” Xu Wanzhong found his dithering irritating and waved him off. “Go back and tend to your wounds.”
He hadn’t originally intended to have Chen Zhi accompany them. He had only summoned him because he owed Nangong Yu a contribution debt to the sect.
After sending Chen Zhi away, Xu Wanzhong looked at his little junior sister and praised her. “You’ve got courage. You haven’t disgraced the reputation of Hengxu Peak.”
She had only just entered the sect and had yet to draw qi into her body. She was still an ordinary mortal, yet she had dared to stand up to a Nascent Soul elder.
Xu Wanzhong greatly admired her courage, and his voice grew even gentler. “Where would you like to go for a stroll?”
Nangong Yu thought for a moment before saying, “I want to see the dining hall.”
The sect was so vast, and who knew how abundant its ingredients were? Just thinking about it made Nangong Yu swallow repeatedly.
“The dining hall?” Hearing that long-forgotten term, Xu Wanzhong couldn’t help laughing. “Little junior sister, there’s no dining hall in the inner sect.”
She stared at him in surprise. “Huh?”
“Once you become a cultivator, you no longer have the desire to eat.” Xu Wanzhong explained, “Spiritual energy will satisfy every need of the body. Besides, worldly food is still worldly food. It contains impurities, which are detrimental to cultivation.”
Impurities? Couldn’t you just excrete them?
Nangong Yu remembered that when she had been at the Lin residence, Ruo Zhu had told her that cultivators did not defecate. They used other methods to expel impurities instead.
“Oh.” She blinked.
Xu Wanzhong couldn’t resist patting her head. Remembering that she had only just entered the sect and was still a mortal, he said, “I’ll take you to the outer sect.”
It wasn’t as though returning to Hengxu Peak would leave his little junior sister starving.
First, the new disciple gift package distributed by the Myriad Affairs Hall included Fasting Pills.
Second, any random spirit fruit would be enough to meet her bodily needs.
But his little junior sister was obedient, and she had even cheered him on during the fight just now. Xu Wanzhong couldn’t bear to disappoint her, so he immediately took her to the outer sect on a flying spirit crane.
The outer sect was not located outside the sect grounds. Instead, it occupied a separate mountain peak where all the sect’s outer disciples lived.
Many of those disciples were unable to completely abstain from food, and new disciples joined every few years, so the sect had established a dining hall there.
It served both ordinary mortal dishes and spirit rice, spirit vegetables, and other spiritual foods.
“What would you like to eat, Little Junior Sister?” Xu Wanzhong asked after they entered the dining hall.
Nangong Yu hesitated.
Perhaps the cook simply wasn’t very skilled. When she entered, she hadn’t smelled anything particularly enticing.
She passed through the fasting meals in the mortal section and arrived at the cultivators’ section, where dishes made from spirit rice and spirit vegetables were served. At last, she caught a hint of something truly mouthwatering.
“Senior Brother, what’s over there?” She looked curiously into the distance, rising onto her tiptoes. “It smells so good.”
Xu Wanzhong looked over as well and immediately found it amusing. “You really know what’s good, Little Junior Sister.”
That was the special kitchen used by the personal disciples and elders.
“Didn’t you say worldly food is still worldly food, and that its impurities are bad for cultivation?” Nangong Yu asked, puzzled.
Xu Wanzhong was briefly at a loss for words before replying, “Eating it once in a while is fine.”
Cultivators simply didn’t need to eat. They weren’t required to give up the pleasures of the palate entirely.
Besides, heavenly treasures contained special spiritual energy and traces of the Dao. Their benefits outweighed their drawbacks, to the point that the drawbacks could be completely ignored.
“Oh.” Nangong Yu nodded. “I understand now.”
Her eyes kept drifting toward that side, but looking was useless. Xu Wanzhong couldn’t exactly snatch the elders’ special dishes just for her.
“Once you draw qi into your body, I’ll treat you to a meal,” Xu Wanzhong promised.
She was still a mortal. No matter how precious the heavenly treasures were, eating them now would only be a waste.
“Thank you, Senior Brother.” Nangong Yu’s spirits immediately lifted, and she obediently went to order food from the cultivators’ section.
Whether it tasted good or not wasn’t important. As long as it was edible, that was enough.
Xu Wanzhong was paying for this meal, so Nangong Yu indulged herself. She ordered a tableful of dishes and ate without once lifting her head.
At first, Xu Wanzhong even asked, “Little Junior Sister, have you never eaten your fill before?”
Later, he understood. She definitely had never eaten her fill. With an appetite like this, who could afford to raise her?
The dishes on the table gradually disappeared.
Xu Wanzhong couldn’t help glancing at her stomach. The bowls and plates used by the dining hall weren’t particularly large, but the food on the table had been enough for three or four people—and she had eaten every last bite!
“Senior Brother…” Nangong Yu noticed him staring and felt a little embarrassed. “I only eat one meal a day.”
She held up one finger for emphasis. “I won’t eat lunch or dinner anymore.”
What was that supposed to mean? She made it sound as though Hengxu Peak couldn’t afford to feed her!
Xu Wanzhong immediately went to the dining hall manager and tossed down a storage bag. “She’s my little junior sister. From now on, deduct the cost of her meals from this.”
The manager glanced at Nangong Yu, memorized her appearance, and nodded with a smile. “Yes, Perfected Xu.”
Nangong Yu was deeply touched. “Senior Brother, you’re so kind.”
“It’s only a few spirit stones.” As he spoke, Xu Wanzhong led his full-bellied junior sister outside.
“Starting tomorrow, you’ll have classes.” After mounting the spirit crane, Xu Wanzhong pointed out the way for her. “That mountain peak is where you’ll be studying.”
The layout of the Ziyang Sect was rather interesting. Places such as the Myriad Affairs Peak, the Scripture Repository, and the Outer Sect Peak were all built around a central plaza, making it convenient for disciples to travel back and forth.
The farther out they went, the more the mountain peaks were shrouded in clouds and mist, making them impossible to see clearly. Those were the secluded abodes where the elders and Dao Lords cultivated.
As for the mountain peak where classes were held, it was called Disciple Peak—simple and easy to remember.
It was just not easy to climb.
“Senior Brother, how am I supposed to get up there?” Nangong Yu asked. “Can I ride a spirit crane there tomorrow, like I did today?”
Since the Heart-Questioning Trial had been the first hurdle, Nangong Yu didn’t believe the classes would be ordinary either.
Sure enough, Xu Wanzhong answered, “No.”
His voice held a trace of resignation, sympathy, and encouragement. “Get up a little earlier tomorrow. Classes on Disciple Peak begin during the Hour of the Snake. You must not be late.”
Nangong Yu looked toward Hengxu Peak, then at the height of Disciple Peak.
“You can ride a spirit crane here from Hengxu Peak.” Xu Wanzhong patted her head. “But once you reach the foot of Disciple Peak, you’ll have to rely on yourself. Even your senior brother won’t be able to help you.”
New disciples had to attend classes, temper their bodies, and hone their minds. These were all essential parts of the path.
It was tempering, not bullying, so Xu Wanzhong would not help her.
“I understand.” Nangong Yu nodded obediently.
Xu Wanzhong glanced at the sky and said, “I’ll take you back to rest.”
She needed to conserve her energy. After all, she might have to get up before dawn and climb Disciple Peak.
On the way back, Nangong Yu casually asked, “Senior Brother, is there a map of the sect?”
“A map of the sect?” Xu Wanzhong was surprised. “What do you need that for?”
“If I want to visit someone, like Chen Zhi, I won’t even know where Luowu Peak is,” Nangong Yu said.
Xu Wanzhong pointed out the direction of Luowu Peak. “Our eldest senior sister lives on that mountain with the reddish peak. She likes maple trees, so she planted a great many red maples there.”
Nangong Yu looked in that direction and committed it to memory. “Mm. I have other friends too. They’re all from Luoxia City. If I want to visit them, I won’t be able to find my way.”
“Then have them come visit you,” Xu Wanzhong replied with a smile.
Fine. If he didn’t want to say more, then so be it.
Nangong Yu pouted, and she made it so obvious that Xu Wanzhong smiled.
“Once you achieve qi circulation and draw qi into your body, you’ll be able to use your sect token to contact your friends. It’ll be much easier to find people then.”
A map of the sect? How had she even come up with that? Xu Wanzhong found the thought amusing.
“I understand, Senior Brother,” Nangong Yu answered obediently. “I’ll attend my classes properly and achieve qi circulation as soon as possible.”
“I believe in you.”
Xu Wanzhong escorted her to the entrance of her cave abode. Only after watching her go inside did he leave.
Luowu Peak.
After returning to his cave abode, Chen Zhi took a healing pill.
Grand Martial Uncle Xu had given him a bottle, and Elder Xuanqing had compensated him with several more. All of them were more effective than his own Rejuvenation Pills.
He circulated his spiritual power, guiding the medicinal energy through his body and slowly mending his injuries.
“Your Little Grand Martial Aunt has classes tomorrow. Find some time to look after her.”
The transmission rang out in his mind.
Chen Zhi lowered his eyes and replied, “Yes, Grand Martial Uncle.”
Xu Wanzhong was, after all, a Nascent Soul cultivator. Asking him to look after a newly initiated disciple was perhaps overly indulgent.
Originally, Xu Wanzhong had intended to send one of his own disciples. But since Nangong Yu was acquainted with Chen Zhi, he had chosen him instead.
“So hypocritical.”
“Bad boy. You won’t tell the truth.”
The girl’s mocking voice drifted across his spiritual platform.
Chen Zhi’s emotions surged, and he found it difficult to calm himself.
“Am I really hypocritical?” His eyes squeezed shut as he questioned himself inwardly. “Why didn’t I expose her?”
In front of outsiders, he had kept silent out of a sense of honor for his sect.
But now that everything had settled down—and Grand Martial Uncle Xu had just sent him a transmission—why had he still said nothing?
Why hadn’t he told him that Elder Xuanqing’s strange condition was caused by Nangong Yu?
Ever since they had met, scene after scene flashed through his mind.
“The brazier is hot. Be careful not to burn your hands.”
At first, she had merely been circling the tea brazier curiously. Chen Zhi had warned her.
After hearing him, she had simply replied obediently, “Immortal Elder, I’m here to register.”
He had rejected her, but she hadn’t thrown a tantrum or pestered him shamelessly. Instead, she had done everything she could to make her case.
It was Junior Brother Wang who had provoked her.
Yet even then, she hadn’t immediately turned hostile. She had happily gone about catching chickens and rabbits, setting up a stove on the spot, lighting a fire, and cooking food.
When Junior Sister Xie had tried to cozy up to her and coax some food from her, Nangong Yu still hadn’t refused.
“I’ve been the one in the wrong all along.”
Spiritual energy surged across his spiritual platform, and his aura churned. The cultivation level that had remained unchanged for so long began to tremble on the verge of a breakthrough.
It had been he and Junior Brother Wang who had pressed her relentlessly, looking down on a “mortal” and thoroughly provoking her.
Chen Zhi remembered everything now. He even recalled that when she spoke with other people, she might be quick-witted and mischievous, but she never took advantage of anyone and was always very polite.
It was all because they had offended her. He had, Junior Brother Wang had, Junior Brother Meng had, and Elder Xuanqing had as well.
And her revenge, from beginning to end, had been nothing more than a child’s prank.
Just as she had said: “All the things I did were only make-believe. They couldn’t kill anyone.”
That was why he had never exposed her.
When he submitted the roster of new disciples, he had left out anything suspicious about her.
When Grand Martial Uncle Xu had failed to realize that she was the very “menace” in question, he had not corrected him.
Today, when she had played another trick, he had kept silent once again.
Because although he could be muddleheaded at times, and occasionally arrogant and conceited, his essential nature had never changed.
Crack—
He faintly heard the sound of a bottleneck breaking through. Suppressing his delight and excitement, Chen Zhi focused his mind with care.
The sky grew darker and darker.
Chen Zhi was only one step away from completing his breakthrough, yet he remained unable to advance any further.
He was not anxious. He cautioned himself inwardly to proceed steadily and build a firm foundation. When his state of mind reached the necessary level, the breakthrough would come naturally.
“Chen Zhi.”
“Chen Zhi, are you there?”
A girl’s voice called from outside the cave abode, broken and indistinct as the wind carried it away.
Chen Zhi wondered if he was imagining things. He was on Luowu Peak—how could he possibly hear Nangong Yu’s voice?
“Chen Zhi, where are you?”
Under the moonlight, a cultivator in white-and-violet robes flew out and landed on the flat ground.
“Chen Zhi!” The girl raised a pair of bright, sparkling eyes. “You came out!”
Chen Zhi hesitated, then bowed first. “Chen Zhi pays his respects to Little Grand Martial Aunt.”
Only then did he ask, “Why have you come looking for me, Little Grand Martial Aunt?”
The girl smiled until her eyes curved. “Nothing much. I just wanted to ask—what’s the name of the elder who escorted the new disciples to the main peak?”
