Xin Jiuxian replied, “Oh... That’s good then.”
Jiang Nianyao lowered the curtain, creating a barrier between them. She took off her shoes, reclined on the chaise lounge, and closed her eyes, preparing for a new round of musical healing.
The next second, she realized she had spoken too soon.
“Twang~~~ Crash~~~ Buzz-buzz~~ Plink~~~ Toot~~~~~~ Boom!”
“Toot-toot-toot-toot~~~ Thrum-crack~ Thud!”
“Boing~~ Ting~~ Clang-clang-clang~~~ Boing!”
A series of bizarre notes, which could only be described as a physical assault on the ears, erupted from the zither strings. To put it into words, it sounded as if a dead mouse were stuck inside the guqin, with a squeaking toy chicken clenched in its mouth, and a cicada trapped inside the chicken’s throat.
There was no melody, no rhythm; even funeral mourning music sounded more harmonious than this.
“?!” What in the world was that death rattle?
Jiang Nianyao was so startled by the music—no, by this soul-destroying noise—that she instantly snapped her eyes open and sat up, staring at Xin Jiuxian behind the curtain.
“Fellow Daoist, are you... experiencing a cultivation deviation?”
She instinctively reached under her soft pillow and drew her long sword, her gaze wary.
“No.”
Xin Jiuxian, whose head was wrapped in grey cloth making her look like an Indian snake charmer, looked up and answered seriously. She stopped her movements.
“I’m performing music.”
She tilted her small head slightly, her eyes filled with expectation. “Don’t you feel a surge of vibrant energy rushing through your blood?”
That shouldn't be right. When she watched the Second Elder practice his sword, he was always passionate and spirited, completely immersed in his own world.
The Supreme Elder had also said her path of musical cultivation was very unique and encouraged her to explore it further.
Jiang Nianyao: “...” She realized in an instant that the girl was actually playing seriously. It turned out her earlier warning hadn't been a modest disclaimer.
Vibrant energy? Not necessarily. But it was true that anyone listening would feel a nameless rage boiling in their blood.
She couldn't help but ask, “Fellow Daoist, who sent you here?”
She rarely went out, and when she did, she never provoked trouble. No one should harbor enough resentment toward her to specifically send a music cultivator like this to torture her.
Xin Jiuxian used her shield without hesitation.
“Bai Songxu.”
Upon hearing that name, Jiang Nianyao knew who he was, and she began to wonder when she could have possibly offended him.
As Xin Jiuxian prepared to resume her playing, Jiang Nianyao hurriedly stopped her.
“Wait!!!”
“There is no need to continue! I feel better! You truly are a miraculous doctor!” She scrambled to her feet and pulled back the curtain to step out, fearing that a second longer would mean the end for her ears.
“Really?”
Xin Jiuxian looked up in pleasant surprise. So the Supreme Elder hadn't lied to her; Jiang Nianyao, whom none of the other Guest Elders could cure, had actually been healed by her!
Jiang Nianyao couldn't bear to crush her spirit. With a firm expression and a praising tone, she said, “Yes, really. I feel a fire burning in my chest right now, and my spirit feels much stronger.”
This girl must have offended Bai Songxu, so he specifically sent her here to use her status to reprimand and humiliate her musical skills. How cruel of him.
Clear joy flashed across Xin Jiuxian’s normally expressionless face. “Actually, I have a minor cultivation path as well. I’m quite talented at it.”
“What is it?”
“I’m a pill cultivator!”
Xin Jiuxian quickly took out a small medicine bottle and handed it to Jiang Nianyao. “This is a medicine I developed specifically for your symptoms. It will definitely be useful!”
“...” Jiang Nianyao was caught in a dilemma. Should she take it or not?
On one hand, she didn't want to hurt the girl’s confidence; on the other hand, if her primary path of music was like this, her secondary path as a pill cultivator would surely be lethal.
Forget it, I just won’t eat it.
She gave an awkward smile. “Alright, thank you, Fellow Daoist.”
She slowly reached out to take the bottle when a black shadow suddenly flashed by.
A pair of short legs kicked the bottle away with such speed that it flew off to the side before anyone could react. Then, the shadow pounced toward the bottle.
Clatter!
Snap!
A round black fur ball with two small horns on its head stomped on the bottle, crushing it. His evil fleeceball nature had flared up.
A pungent smell of chicken manure spread as the bottle shattered.
“Hah!”
The black fur ball bared its teeth in a triumphant grin before immediately jumping back into the hole it had dug and vanishing.
The entire process took less than four seconds.
Xin Jiuxian: “...”
Jiang Nianyao: “...”
A silent awkwardness filled the air. Xin Jiuxian, whose reaction time was a bit slow, suddenly darkened with rage. That was Hua Cishu’s true form; he dared to ruin her work!
Jiang Nianyao spoke up awkwardly, “I’m so sorry. That’s Little Black, whom I recently took in. He’s usually fine, but I don’t know what’s wrong with him today. Whenever someone gives me a pill, he rushes out to stomp on it.”
“Little Black? You took him in?”
“Yes. I found him injured outside this morning, so I brought him back to treat and raise him.”
However, Xin Jiuxian noticed another key point. “Whenever someone gives you a pill... Did someone else give you a pill today besides me?”
Who? Yao Dai or Xie Tinglan?
“Yes. I met a friend yesterday who is also a pill cultivator. I went herb-picking with her this morning, and she said she had a pill she wanted me to try, saying it might cure me. But the result was the same as just now; as soon as I was about to take it, Little Black rushed out and crushed it.”
Jiang Nianyao nodded with a smile, but her eyes flickered as she looked at the foul-smelling, broken pill on the ground. That stench was exactly the same as the one from the pill Yao Yaoling had given her this morning. Was it a coincidence?
When Little Black appeared, the expressions on both women’s faces suggested they recognized something, yet they both pretended not to know.
Xin Jiuxian understood. That damned Old Five couldn't complete the mission because he had no spiritual energy, so he decided to tear everyone else’s umbrellas so that no one could succeed! The pill cultivator from this morning must have been Yao Dai. She had arrived a step ahead, but Old Five had sabotaged her just the same.
Her breathing became light as she suppressed her anger and forced a smile. “Oh, what a coincidence. Since the pill is broken and Miss Jiang feels better, I’ll take my leave.”
Jiang Nianyao didn't try to make her stay. “Alright, farewell, Fellow Daoist.”
“Farewell.”
As Xin Jiuxian turned to leave, a shallow curve appeared on her lips. When she, who was usually expressionless, smiled, it meant someone was in for a bad time.
The task Master had given her had ended prematurely with the broken pill, but a session of free-style wrestling was now waiting for her.
Hua Cishu, you just wait.
...
Watching Xin Jiuxian emerge from Guest-Greeting Peak with a dark face, Zongzheng Huangyue, who was sitting in a tree on the opposite peak reading a book, looked up. A subtle glint of calculation danced in her eyes.
This morning, Yao Dai had come out with the same expression. If Jiang Nianyao had simply refused the pill, they wouldn't look like this; there would at least still be a chance. This look was clearly the result of being pushed to their limits by a total failure.
But given Jiang Nianyao’s personality, if she had discovered someone close to her was responsible, the Eldest and the Sixth wouldn't have walked out so peacefully. So it wasn't her...
Zongzheng Huangyue’s mind raced as she suddenly raised an eyebrow.
Old Five.
He had never shown his face, and his human form couldn't enter Guest-Greeting Peak, but his original form could ignore barriers by digging holes.
Zongzheng Huangyue let out a cold laugh. He had no intention of succeeding himself; he just wanted to make sure no one else did. Without a winner, no one would be considered the loser. He really wasn't afraid of death.
With a graceful leap, she left the tree branch and landed on the ground.
Taking out the two bottles of powder Yao Dai had given her, she turned and left the area.
...
At that same time.
A young man dressed as a white-clothed scholar emerged from the Interprovincial Passage guarded by the Beast Taming Sect.
He headed toward the nearest Teleportation Pavilion in the Beast Taming Sect.
“That Second Elder said Master is at Tingyin Pavilion. Oh, how convenient; there’s a teleportation array here that goes directly to Tingyin Pavilion.”
“Master’s five other disciples are all there; I’m the only one missing. I wonder if they’ll like the gifts I brought them.”
Rate on N.U.
