After Wen Shubai left, Ji Zhaoxi continued practicing exactly the way he had just taught her. With every swing of the sword, she felt a sour ache seep into her very bones.
The only sound filling Ji Zhaoxi's ears was the sword slicing through air. Her movements grew steadier and steadier, and she no longer stumbled.
When she reached roughly the thousandth repetition, a strange sensation suddenly swept through her body.
Ji Zhaoxi froze for a moment. The sword that had felt so impossibly heavy just seconds ago suddenly seemed lighter.
This time, she didn't deliberately exert herself. Her waist turned, and the sword swept upward in a perfect arc. Because of the sheer speed, she heard a crisp, sharp sound as it cut through the air.
It was completely different from all the sounds before.
Ji Zhaoxi was bursting with excitement. "Liuli, I can teach you now!"
Liuli looked at Ji Zhaoxi's trembling hands and quickly shook her head. "Miss, you keep practicing on your own. I'm so tired."
Ji Zhaoxi felt a little disappointed and went back to practicing.
Why wouldn't Liuli let her teach her?
Meanwhile, the Second Elder was earnestly trying to talk some sense into Wen Shubai under a tree.
"Shubai, why did you let Miss Ji start training again? Didn't we agree yesterday to just let Miss Ji play on her own?"
Besides, Ji Zhaoxi didn't have a spiritual root, so there was no real need for her to train anyway.
Wen Shubai frowned deeply and looked at the Second Elder with a hint of disappointment. "Second Elder, since Junior Sister has come to Tianjue Sect, if every other disciple is training while she can only watch from the sidelines, how do you think that would make her feel?"
Even without a spiritual root, she shouldn't just be left to her own devices.
Wen Shubai looked at the figure still diligently practicing with her sword. Her movements were no longer stiff. Though she had no spiritual power, there was already a certain rhythm to them.
The sunlight fell upon her, making the fine fuzz on her face and the beads of sweat clearly visible. Her eyes were filled with determination and resilience. As if sensing his gaze, she turned around, and their eyes met.
Ji Zhaoxi's eyes lit up. She raised her sword and smiled at him.
Wen Shubai paused for a moment, then nodded politely in return.
"What the Second Elder said is right. Apart from her lack of spiritual power, Junior Sister really is well suited for the path of cultivation," Wen Shubai said seriously.
Second Elder: ...
That remark had been complete nonsense when he said it!
On the other side, Ji Zhaoxi trained even harder. The senior brother was talking to the Second Elder while still watching her practice—she must have real talent!
She looked toward Wen Shubai in the distance. He was guiding other disciples in their sword practice, his expression always gentle. When a disciple made a mistake, he would simply press their sword blade with his finger.
While practicing, Ji Zhaoxi wondered whether she might one day become like the senior brother—unflappable in the face of anything.
By the time she had practiced each of the four moves three thousand times, Ji Zhaoxi's arms were so sore she couldn't lift them, and they were shaking nonstop.
Her hands had really suffered for her!
"Junior Sister, let's call it a day on the sword practice. Now you just need to carry those two buckets of water to your courtyard, and today's training will be complete," Wen Shubai said with a smile.
The moment she heard she had to carry water, Ji Zhaoxi's left hand couldn't help but start trembling.
She quickly pressed her right hand over her left to calm it down.
Please, left hand, stay calm—it's just carrying water once!
Ji Zhaoxi walked over to the two buckets and tentatively tried lifting them by the handles. Neither budged an inch.
Her right hand could still muster some strength, but her left hand felt like it was dead, completely on strike and unable to exert any force at all.
"Senior Brother, do I really have to carry them?" she asked hesitantly, looking toward Wen Shubai not far away.
Wen Shubai smiled and nodded.
Ji Zhaoxi: ...
Fine then. Time to resort to a little secret technology.
She really felt she had learned more than enough today already.
Turning her back to Wen Shubai, she snuck two weight-dispelling talismans onto the water buckets. The moment the talismans were stuck on, the buckets instantly became lighter.
Ji Zhaoxi watched as the talismans glowed briefly before reverting to ordinary paper. The talismans she bought at the black market really worked!
Just as she was about to lift the buckets, a stream of cyan spiritual power suddenly covered the talismans.
Ji Zhaoxi heaved upward with all her might, but what she expected never came.
The talismans let out a sizzling sound, then went dull and turned into scraps of useless paper.
"Junior Sister, the greatest taboo in cultivation is relying on talismans."
Wen Shubai spoke gently.
Ji Zhaoxi stiffened, guiltily staring at the ants on the ground.
Wen Shubai walked over and picked up the papers from the ground. Looking at Ji Zhaoxi, who still kept her head lowered, he said softly, "But the fact that Junior Sister already knew where the black market is the moment she arrived at Tianjue Sect shows she has a very keen sense of observation."
Ji Zhaoxi looked up at him, hesitating. "Senior Brother... are you complimenting me?"
If he was being sarcastic, she'd pretend she couldn't tell...
Wen Shubai couldn't help but laugh. "I am complimenting you, Junior Sister."
The moment she heard Wen Shubai praising her, Ji Zhaoxi became a bit smug. "Senior Brother, I found out about it by asking the servants at Drunken Immortal Tavern. The stuff they sell there is so expensive. Good thing I'm rich."
Just then, a confused voice suddenly cut through.
"Hua'er?"
Ji Zhaoxi's voice died in her throat. She turned toward the direction of the sound.
"Hua'er, why are you at Tianjue Sect?" A woman in a green robe was staring at Ji Zhaoxi with a puzzled expression.
"Hua'er?" Wen Shubai's voice held a note of confusion as his gaze fixed on Ji Zhaoxi.
Ji Zhaoxi's face flushed bright red. She yelled at the woman, "What 'Hua'er'? What 'flower'? I have a name, so stop calling me flower this and flower that!"
How embarrassing!
The woman looked genuinely innocent. "Didn't you make me call you Hua'er?"
When she was little, Ji Zhaoxi had been extremely vain, convinced she was the most beautiful person in the world—more beautiful than any flower—and she had used money to force everyone around her to call her "Hua'er."
When she grew up and came to her senses, she dropped the name immediately.
"Liu Cuihua, shut up!" Ji Zhaoxi was livid.
Liu Fuyin's face soured instantly. She sneered, "You don't have a spiritual root. Don't tell me you bought your way into Tianjue Sect again with money?!"
Ji Zhaoxi snorted. "Just because I didn't have one before doesn't mean I don't have one now. Haven't you heard 'Don't bully the youth for being poor'?"
Liu Fuyin smirked mockingly. "I've only heard 'Don't bully the old for being poor.'"
Ji Zhaoxi raised an eyebrow. "Your vocabulary is way too limited! What are you even cultivating for? Go read a few more books."
Liuli leaned in and whispered, "Miss, Liu Cuihua said 'don't bully the old' to insult you."
Ji Zhaoxi gritted her teeth. "Liuli, you dummy—I told her to read books to insult her too!"
Liuli suddenly understood. "Oh, I see. Then Miss, you got the better of her."
Liuli quietly stepped back.
More and more disciples were gathering around. Liu Fuyin didn't continue the argument with Ji Zhaoxi and left with a few of her closer fellow disciples.
Ji Zhaoxi must have paid her way into Tianjue Sect with slaughterhouse money—her family was known for splashing out money like that.
The dusk gradually deepened, and indistinct blue-purple hues spread over the mountains of Tianjue Sect. The disciples had long since dispersed, and the surroundings were so quiet that only the wind whispering through the bamboo groves could be heard.
Wen Shubai was walking ahead, and just as he was about to return to his side hall, Ji Zhaoxi trotted over and blocked his path.
"Senior Brother, wait!"
She pulled out a box wrapped tightly in golden velvet cloth. As Ji Zhaoxi unwrapped it, the dimness around them was instantly illuminated by a breathtakingly resplendent glow.
It was a lamp shaped like colored glass — the Illusory Star Sea Lamp. Within its base, countless specks of spirit dust swirled and drifted, while a faint, gentle light glowed at the wick.
"Senior Brother, this is for you." Ji Zhaoxi looked up at him with eager anticipation.
This lamp was absolutely gorgeous — she had spotted it at first glance in the black market.
Wen Shubai's eyes were full of warmth as he spoke in a gentle tone: "Little Junior Sister, this lamp is very beautiful, but you need it more than I do."
"It's fine, Senior Brother. I bought three, and this one is specially for you." Ji Zhaoxi said stiffly.
Did Senior Brother not like the lamp?
She had always been a gift-giving expert since she was little — there was no way she had messed this up.
Wen Shubai paused for a moment, then said with a trace of apology in his voice: "I'm sorry, Little Junior Sister, but Tianjue Sect has rules against casually accepting gifts from fellow disciples."
"But I truly appreciate your thoughtfulness. Please take the gift back with you."
Ji Zhaoxi visibly wilted. Her eyes, which usually sparkled with light, now dimmed miserably as she let out a flat, quiet "Oh."
"Alright, Senior Brother."
She hung her head low, her eyes rimmed with red, hugging the box tightly as she hobbled forward, looking as pitiful as could be.
Wen Shubai watched her retreating figure and couldn't help but speak up.
"Little Junior Sister."
The figure ahead paused, head still bowed deeply, but she didn't turn around.
"Senior Brother..."
Wen Shubai said helplessly: "Thank you for the gift, Little Junior Sister. I do like this lamp very much."
The moment she heard that, Ji Zhaoxi, who had just been so dejected, had her eyes light up instantly. She shoved the gift into Wen Shubai's hands.
"Senior Brother, this is really so pretty! When you get up at night, you don't have to be scared either — this can be your little nightlight!"
Ji Zhaoxi chattered on and on, back to her usual lively self.
Wen Shubai couldn't help but smile as he listened. Afraid of the dark? He remembered the last time he had been afraid of the dark was when he was very, very young.
After giving the gift, Ji Zhaoxi pulled Liuli out from behind the tree, and the two of them ran off as fast as they could. But then, as if suddenly remembering something, she started hobbling along again with a fake limp.
"Miss, since when did your leg start limping? Didn't we practice swordwork today!"
"Shh, shh..."
"Oh, right!"
The sky had darkened completely. Wen Shubai watched that pale lotus-pink figure gradually blur into the night. She was holding her leg, wobbling determinedly through the countless tree shadows, putting on an exaggerated act of limping.
Now and then, the wind carried over her theatrical little "ouch" noises, along with the occasional laughter she couldn't quite hold in.
When her figure had completely vanished, the silence settled back in around him.
Wen Shubai looked at the faint glow inside the box, and the corners of his eyes curved gently. Finally, he couldn't hold it back anymore — a soft, barely audible laugh escaped his lips.
