“How did you get injured?”
Lin Zhixue looked at the bandages on Gu Yanqing’s body, her brows knitting slightly.
Gu Yanqing fell silent for a moment.
Only then did he realize he probably should offer an explanation.
“I competed in the Sect Grand Tournament over the last couple of days.”
“In the first match, I ran into a senior sister at early Golden Core and managed to win by luck.”
“In the second match, I ran into Senior Brother Lu, who is at mid Golden Core.”
At that point, he paused slightly. “We both ended up falling out of the arena stage.”
Lin Zhixue merely looked at him. “So... a tie?”
“Mm.” Gu Yanqing nodded.
“By right, both of us should have advanced.”
“But since we were both severely injured, the elders didn't schedule us for any more matches.”
His tone was calm, and his eyes showed no change.
Yet Lin Zhixue said nothing.
She continued to look at him.
Her cool, distant eyes remained fixed on Gu Yanqing, her gaze never shifting.
Gu Yanqing felt somewhat uncomfortable under her gaze.
For some reason, even though Lin Zhixue had always looked at people like this in the past, this time it made him feel inexplicably odd.
“What is it?”
“...”
Lin Zhixue still did not answer.
She merely remembered what Xu Muhe had said earlier—Gu Yanqing was already at Golden Core.
Yet she remembered clearly.
His breakthrough to Golden Core must have happened not too long ago.
Right after breaking through, he had gone straight into competing in the Sect Grand Tournament.
And he had even fought to a tie with a sword cultivator at mid Golden Core.
At this thought, she finally opened her mouth.
“Why didn't you wait until after the tournament to break through?”
Gu Yanqing was taken aback.
“Well...”
He thought about it.
“I can't really control when a breakthrough happens.”
“When it came, I just broke through.”
“And since I'd broken through, I figured I might as well participate.”
He seemed not to care about winning or losing the tournament at all.
Lin Zhixue merely pressed her lips together slightly.
“Then healing pills...”
She stopped mid-sentence.
Gu Yanqing looked down at the wound on his shoulder.
“I've already taken them.”
“The injuries aren't severe.”
“I should recover in a few days.”
“...”
Lin Zhixue said nothing more. At some point, her hand had rested beside her storage bag.
Her fingertips paused there, making no further move.
She seemed to have wanted to pull something out, but now didn't know whether she should, and ultimately withdrew her hand.
Her gaze lingered on the bandages covering Gu Yanqing.
Gu Yanqing looked at her again.
He could not help but feel that Lin Zhixue was somewhat different today.
She still had that cool, distant expression.
She still had those calm eyes.
And yet... something felt different.
He could not put his finger on it.
He only felt that the current atmosphere was rather peculiar.
Should he say something?
Right at that moment.
A tiny figure suddenly poked out from the Soul Jade.
“Pfft...”
The moment Xiaoyu popped its head out, it caught sight of the bandages on Gu Yanqing.
In the next instant, it could not help itself.
“Hahahahaha!”
“Gu Yanqing, what happened to you?!”
“Didn't I tell you not to push yourself too hard?!”
It flew in a circle around Gu Yanqing.
“Look at you now, beaten black and blue!”
Gu Yanqing: “...”
Lin Zhixue: “...”
Xiaoyu was clearly oblivious to the strange atmosphere between the two as it babbled on.
“And another thing!”
“Why didn't you tell us you reached Golden Core already?!”
“Were you trying to give us a surprise when we got back?”
“And look at you now...”
Xiaoyu looked at the bandages on him.
Once again, it failed to contain itself.
“Hahahahahahaha...”
Lin Zhixue finally raised her eyes.
She cast a faint glance at it.
Xiaoyu's laughter cut off instantly. It looked left and right, finally picking up on something.
“Uh...”
“Did I come out at a bad time?”
“Then I'll head back in first, you two take your time chatting.”
With those words, Xiaoyu zipped back into the Soul Jade, leaving the room quiet once more.
Gu Yanqing stood in place.
After Xiaoyu's sudden commotion, he actually felt quite a bit relieved.
At least it was not as awkward as before.
He looked at Lin Zhixue.
After pondering for a long while, he finally came up with something to say.
“Your cultivation went up quite fast during this trip out.”
“Congratulations.”
Lin Zhixue gave a light nod.
“Mm.”
Her expression still showed little change.
Yet after a moment, she seemed to finally realize something.
Why am I standing here?
She had already asked what needed asking, and learned what needed knowing.
Gu Yanqing had already taken healing pills.
Moreover, he had practiced body cultivation techniques, making his recovery ability naturally superior to that of ordinary cultivators.
There seemed to be nothing for her to worry about.
Lin Zhixue fell silent for a moment. “Get some good rest.”
“Mm.”
Gu Yanqing nodded.
Lin Zhixue turned and left.
After walking out of the courtyard gate, her steps slowed down.
She kept her head down.
It was as if she were contemplating something.
After a moment, she whispered ever so softly, “Worrying...?”
Her voice was so faint it was nearly swallowed by the wind and snow.
She stood there for a while.
In the end, she did not dwell on it any further.
...
Inside the room.
Looking at the closed courtyard gate, Gu Yanqing finally breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
When Lin Zhixue had stood there in silence earlier, it had really felt somewhat suffocating.
He had not even remembered to ask why she had suddenly returned.
At this thought, he knit his brows slightly.
It couldn't be that she had rushed back specifically to participate in the Sect Grand Tournament, could it?
Yet she hadn't even joined the tournament.
Then why?
To watch him get beaten up?
Gu Yanqing thought about it for a bit before ultimately shaking his head.
“Forget it.”
There was no point pondering things he couldn't figure out.
He sat back down cross-legged and began to regulate his breathing.
...
On the other side.
Lin Zhixue returned to her own residence.
Pushing open the room door.
Everything inside remained unchanged: the table and chairs, the bed, and that small wooden shelf by the window.
It was as if she had only been gone for a few days.
Lin Zhixue stood at the doorway watching for a moment, then walked over to the wardrobe and opened the door.
Inside rested several neatly arranged garments.
Her eyes rested on the innermost piece, where a pale green dress lay. Its color was subtle, and its style simple.
She reached out and took the dress out.
Her fingertips gently brushed over the fabric.
This was the dress she and Gu Yanqing had picked out together at the market back then.
Lin Zhixue looked down at it, remaining still for a long while.
In the end, she merely put the dress back inside.
Closing the wardrobe door.
She turned around and walked to the window.
Pushing it open a crack, the light reflected off the snow outside brightened the room.
Lin Zhixue quietly gazed at the distant mountain peaks.
Yet without her realizing it, her gaze drifted toward the other side of Qingzhu Peak.
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