The trial at Heaven's Ruin Sect had come to an end, and all the disciples had returned to the sect.
But Wen Shubai and Ji Zhaoxi had yet to come back.
Liuli was frantic with worry. It couldn't be—every other disciple had completed their task. There was no way her young lady hadn't finished hers.
Her young lady was a genius.
Something must have gone wrong.
Liuli hurried off to find the Second Elder, who was listlessly carrying a food box toward the courtyard. The moment he saw her, he instinctively tried to run.
"Second Elder! Second Elder!"
Liuli called out as she ran toward him, drawing the eyes of passing disciples. One of them, walking by the Second Elder, kindly pointed out, "Second Elder, someone's calling you."
Second Elder: …
Liuli finally caught up to him, panting. "Second Elder, why hasn't my young lady returned yet? Could something have happened to her?!"
The Second Elder was stricken with guilt. He stammered, "Liuli, ah… we've already sent elders to look for Miss Ji and Shu Bai."
Liuli frowned deeply. "Why did all the other teammates come back, but not my young lady and the senior disciple?"
The Second Elder's face darkened at the mention of this.
He hadn't expected those disciples to simply abandon Shu Bai and leave.
Those few disciples had been sent back by the very group they'd encountered, and they'd arrived half-dead.
He met Liuli's gaze and broke into a sweat. This girl was sharper than a needle when it came to anything about her young lady.
"Liuli, don't worry. Shu Bai is there, and he'll take good care of your young lady."
Liuli's eyes went red. "I'm going to tell the Madam!"
"Hey, hey, hey!" The Second Elder quickly blocked her way. "Don't, don't, don't. Liuli, calm down. We've already picked up Shu Bai's voice-transmission jade—only faintly, but they're definitely fine."
Liuli hesitated. "Really?"
The Second Elder nodded vigorously. "Of course, it's true. Shu Bai is very capable. He would never let your young lady get hurt."
"And whatever you do, don't tell the Madam. What if your young lady comes back in a few days? Scaring her and then delighting her would do her no good. What if the Madam falls ill too?" The Second Elder spoke with extreme seriousness.
Liuli frowned, but she had no other choice. She said reluctantly, "Second Elder, I'll come find you again tomorrow."
The Second Elder's mouth twitched. "Come, come. The first search party we sent should also be back by tomorrow."
Wen Shubai was the head disciple of the Sect Master. If the Sect Master returned, the Second Elder truly had no idea how he'd explain this.
And Ji Zhaoxi was the daughter of his biggest client—ah, what a headache.
Liuli then ran off to find Liu Fuyin, who was practicing her sword with the other disciples.
Seeing Liuli approach with reddened eyes, Liu Fuyin frowned slightly and sheathed her sword.
The two of them stood beneath a tree, and Liuli tearfully recounted the situation. Liu Fuyin's expression turned grave as well.
"The senior brother's trial grounds are indeed dangerous, but since no bodies have been found, things can't be as bad as you fear."
"Besides, the senior brother's cultivation is so high—he wouldn't die that easily. At the very least, he would die a spectacular death."
For example, there would be traces of his blood in the abyss. It wouldn't be like now, without a single clue left behind.
Liuli found herself strangely comforted by Liu Fuyin's odd way of offering consolation.
Liu Fuyin felt that Ji Zhaoxi was definitely fine, because her luck had seemed to be excellent ever since she was a child.
For example, when Ji Zhaoxi was little and got captured by a demon, the very next second a sect disciple showed up and the demon died on the spot—she hadn't even had time to react.
Another example: at the private school, other kids would immediately get caught by the teacher for misbehaving, but Ji Zhaoxi could cause trouble without ever being discovered. She never even got hit with the ruler.
The most classic example was her family's pork stall. Her father said that after Ji Zhaoxi was born, business at the Ji family's meat stall boomed without stop.
...And there were many more examples.
Liu Fuyin ran through all of this in her head, which only made her more certain that Ji Zhaoxi would come out of this fine. For some reason, though, she also had a faint sense of dread—and that feeling had to do with both Ji Zhaoxi and herself.
Liuli was now completely convinced. Her young lady was heaven's favored child; the heavens wouldn't let her get hurt.
She sat at the desk and started writing again.
[None of the disciples of Tianjue Sect realized that the disappearance of Immortal Ji would shatter the sect's existing order.]
[Immortal Ji awakened her spiritual root and became an unrivaled presence within Tianjue Sect!]
Liuli grew more and more fired up as she wrote. Maybe her young lady really had gone off to do something grand—after all, she had always been full of ideas since she was a kid.
Outside the window, the night was thick and impenetrable. Occasional footsteps of the inn's waiter drifted by, along with the sound of a cat meowing from somewhere.
Ji Zhaoxi gripped the blanket restlessly, her face flushed bright red. The spiritual power of the Ice Marrow Pill was charging recklessly through her body, unable to find an outlet, stirring up a wave of heat instead.
“Junior sister, steady your mind.”
A gentle, warm voice sounded, and a cool stream of spiritual energy flowed into her body.
But she couldn't listen to him right now. Like a drowning person grabbing hold of driftwood, she clutched tightly at the coolness beside her. Greedily, she pressed her face against the side of his neck, sobbing softly.
Wen Shubai paused at her movement. He tried to pull away, coaxing her softly, “Junior sister, let me help guide your spiritual power...”
He had barely shifted back an inch when her tears started falling. “Senior brother, I hate you.”
Her voice was thick with tears. She clung to him tightly, freezing him in place.
Wen Shubai felt something sting in his chest. He let out a helpless sigh and stopped pushing her away.
He gently drew her into his embrace, his slender fingers threading through her hair, stroking down the curve of her spine again and again. She was completely lost in his arms.
“Junior sister, don't cry...”
A thin stream of spiritual energy soothed her emotions. She pressed herself against his cool collarbone, her hand still clutching at his jade belt.
Her breathing gradually grew long and slow. Just before she slipped completely into sleep, she thought hazily to herself:
As expected, she really did have to freeze senior brother with spiritual power to make him listen to her...
Wen Shubai kept the same position, gently holding her shoulder. Under the dim lamplight, his gaze drifted down to her lips once more.
Because of the recent heat, her lips were a little redder than usual, and her breath landed against his neck in soft, steady pulses.
Wen Shubai looked at them intently. This time, he didn't look away, and he didn't recite the calming mantra. He had never paid attention to other people's lips before—such a thing would have been far too rude.
It was just that the little junior sister’s lips seemed almost too beautiful for their own good.
