Ming Ran didn't bother to pay him any attention, dragging Song Yao away in a rush.
Once they were standing outside the sword arena, Song Yao turned to look at her. Seeing that she was still puffing her cheeks in anger, Song Yao couldn't help but find it amusing. “Why are you so furious? He was trying to trouble me, not you.”
Ming Ran crossed her arms and snorted. “You're my master. Troubling you is the same as troubling me! Of course I'm angry. We of the Ming family pride ourselves on loyalty. Not just me—even if my parents were here, they'd have exchanged a few harsh words with Jiang Jin too.”
Priding themselves on loyalty.
Yet she called her master.
It seemed a bit off.
Song Yao lowered her eyelashes slightly. Remembering something, she paused before saying, “Don't call me that next time. I can't really be considered your master.”
Ming Ran blanked. “Why?”
Previously, she had insisted on calling her that, and though her master hadn't agreed back then, hadn't she already tacitly accepted it by now? She had even given her so many pointers and taught her so much.
Song Yao tucked her hands into her sleeves and walked toward the sword arena, saying casually, “No reason. If you say it too much, you'll regret it in the future.”
For a young mistress raised in a sword cultivator clan that valued loyalty, taking her as a master was not a wise choice.
She quite liked Ming Ran. If her true identity were ever exposed, there was no need to drag Ming Ran down with her.
Ming Ran stood frozen in place for only a moment before snapping out of it, hurriedly chasing after her. “Regret? Regret what? What is there to regret? What do you mean by that?”
Song Yao had never liked explaining things too much. Once she gave a brief, concise warning, she was usually too lazy to say more.
Yet Ming Ran, while feeling a bit down, also sensed something was off. Her curiosity piqued, she leaned in close and kept guessing. “Are you afraid people will mock me for taking a disciple of the same generation as my master? Or did you offend some top expert of the Tianshu Realm and fear dragging me down? No, that can't be. All the top experts of the Tianshu Realm were probably already defeated by the former Hall Master. But besides those reasons, what else could it be...”
The more she guessed, the more worked up she became, as if she absolutely had to get to the bottom of it.
Song Yao's ears buzzed from her chatter. She stopped in her tracks and turned to look at her, her gaze clear and calm.
Staring into those beautiful, misty eyes, Ming Ran blanked again, suddenly feeling an illusion that she was being seen right through.
Her eyes suddenly darted away, and her cheeks grew strangely warm. “W-What's wrong? Master, I'm not really used to you looking at me like this...”
The person in front of her had absolutely no idea how direct and candid her gaze was, or how flustered it made others feel.
In the next instant, the girl curved her lips into a smile and said in a gentle voice, “Because I am Song Yao.”
Ming Ran: “?”
With those words, Ming Ran's heart stopped racing, her eyes stopped darting, and she stared blankly at her. “S-Song Yao? That Third Senior Sister?”
Song Yao nodded. “Yes, I am.”
Ming Ran: “...”
After a moment of silence, a layer of anxiety finally welled up in her eyes. Lowering her voice, she whispered with slight concern, “Master, is there something wrong with your body? Why are you starting to talk nonsense?”
Song Yao: “...”
Ming Ran chose her words carefully and said tactfully, “I know you're very strong, but she was the number one figure in the sword path. Besides, besides, her reputation out there isn't very good. Even if you admire her, don't go around saying this, or people will gossip about you.”
“Like my cousin—even though she has admired her for a long time, she only dares to secretly hide her sword manuals and portraits. If the elders at home found out, she'd definitely be punished...”
Song Yao suspected she had misheard. “H-Hide her portrait?”
Hiding sword manuals was one thing, but hiding portraits... wasn't that a bit perverted?
Ming Ran nodded. “Exactly! You have no idea. Although people curse her name outside, there are actually plenty of people who admire her and want to follow her. I heard that as long as you keep her portrait under your bed, your swordplay will improve by leaps and bounds!”
“My cousin is considered quite restrained. Those sword cultivators who've gone down eccentric paths are truly crazy. I heard some even sculpt statues of her in their homes and worship them daily.”
“Right after her incident, quite a few cultivators popped up claiming to be Song Yao's reincarnation, just like you, selling sword manuals and swindling people outside. In the end, they were caught by the Nine Saints Hall and severely punished.”
Song Yao: “...”
Why were people competing to impersonate her?
Fair enough.
She had indeed been rather high-profile in her past life.
Ending up like this was her own doing.
For a moment, she didn't even know how to prove her identity. She let out a soft sigh, and Ming Ran added with regret, “Besides, when I first wanted to join the Nine Saints Hall, it was because I wanted to spar with her. It's just a pity that before the recruitment period even started, news of her demise arrived...”
Song Yao hesitated, but in the end, she could only offer a word of comfort. “Perhaps there will still be a chance.”
She then cleanly gave up on revealing her identity and stepped into the sword arena.
...
On the vast sword arena, hundreds of disciples stood in neat formations. Spiritual swords, both long and short, rose and fell in unison, and the sound of breaking air echoed continuously.
Silver-white sword shadows crisscrossed, and the sword qi swept up bits of grass and dust from the ground. The howling wind resounded in all directions, creating an earth-shattering scene.
Standing straight on the high platform, the Second Elder had a solemn expression as his heavy gaze swept across the field.
Clearly, after the recent crisis, the Nine Saints Hall was determined to thoroughly train its disciples, lest they remain entirely defenseless if trouble struck again in the future.
Ming Ran had been talking endlessly once Song Yao was mentioned, but she finally managed to stop herself.
She instinctively lowered her voice, leaning in close to Song Yao's ear to whisper a suggestion, “Why don't we look for the Second Elder later? When he's teaching the sword, he has always detested being interrupted.”
Before she could finish her sentence, Song Yao had already walked up to the high platform in full view of everyone.
The Second Elder was currently staring at a flaw in the formation, his brow deeply furrowed as he prepared to raise his voice to scold the disciple who had made the mistake.
When his peripheral vision caught Song Yao walking toward him, the scolding at the tip of his tongue abruptly stopped, and his expression instantly turned complex.
Before she could speak, the Second Elder forced a stiff smile and spoke in a strained tone, “Little Wood, why are you here? Is your body feeling better?”
Song Yao nodded. “Much better.”
The Second Elder nodded along. “Much better? That's good then. That's good.”
After the pleasantries, Song Yao went straight to the point. “I was the one who opened the array core. Do you know about this?”
The Second Elder hadn't expected her to be so direct. He covered his mouth and coughed violently twice. “The... the array core was opened by you? Little Wood, you're amazing.”
He was completely missing the point, so Song Yao decided to be even more direct. “Don't you think there's something wrong with me? Don't you have anything you want to ask me?”
The Second Elder let out a slightly awkward but hearty laugh. “A problem? What kind of problem could Little Wood possibly have?”
Song Yao wrapped her cloak tighter and looked up at him. “Don't you recognize me? I am—”
“If you don't want to practice properly, then get the hell back home!”
An extremely loud and booming roar interrupted her words in the next instant.
The Second Elder suddenly leapt past her and flew hurriedly toward a disciple in the arena. Materializing a sword in his hand, his face turned serious. “Master will demonstrate one last time for you all! Watch closely!”
Rate on N.U.
