Chapter 13: Studying the Ice Spirit Root

Ling Xi raised her hand slightly. The red thread tightened taut, its blood-red and brilliant glow constricting her slender wrist, accentuating the cold whiteness of her skin.

She tugged on it twice but failed to remove it; instead, the red thread grew hot, scorching her skin.

The heat spread upward along her wrist, the spiritual veins throbbing painfully, as if a branding iron was moving from her wrist to her chest. Finally, all the heat surged into her dantian.

The blood-red thread was interwoven with a certain law, binding her to Wen Jue.

“The master just tied a thread for fun. Senior Brother Chu has no reason to make such a fuss. It’s not even tied on your hand. If it truly bothers you, just don’t look at my hand,” Chu Xinghe said casually.

A violet glow spread in Ling Xi’s eyes, her gaze deep yet indifferent, not particularly bothered as she responded to Chu Xinghe’s words.

Her eyes then turned toward the cave entrance; her ear twitched slightly beneath her loose strands of hair. Her expression became intensely focused as her smile gradually faded.

Chu Xinghe’s eyes trembled slightly and he hastily averted his gaze, stepping a few paces away from Ling Xi.

He had the strange feeling that this young girl was radiant with intelligence, her eyes capable of seeing through everything.

Had he just been too harsh?

So it wasn’t that she was ignoring him, but rather that she felt wronged inside.

Chu Xinghe clenched the sword’s hilt, fingers tracing the texture, then sheathed his blade, making an effort to suppress the anger within. He adopted the usual tender tone he used to soothe Lin Rou.

“Ling Xi, stop making trouble. Untie the contract and come back with me. From now on, get along well with the junior sister. I’m still your senior brother. Come on, let senior brother help you!”

A gentle yet stiff smile curled at the corner of Chu Xinghe’s mouth as he reached out to grasp Ling Xi’s wrist.

Wen Jue’s lips curved slightly. With a firm grip on Chu Xinghe’s wrist, he unceremoniously shook off his hand, speaking with a sarcastic tone and rolling his eyes.

“Ling~ Xi~ Come~ Senior~ Brother~ Help~ You~

Your hand is tainted with dead rat’s blood—don’t touch her recklessly. My Xi Xi’s clothes must not be dirtied.

You share only a fellow disciple bond with her. I’m her rightful senior brother. Should I remind you of what Sect Leader Gu said?”

Chu Xinghe pressed his lips together and looked at Ling Xi, his eyes steadfast but tinged with blame, as if reproaching her for being unreasonable.

He believed that as long as he offered a way out, Ling Xi would take it.

It had always been like this over the years.

Ling Xi yawned, as if recalling something, and suddenly her eyes brightened. The burning gaze fixed on Chu Xinghe, and her lazy demeanor vanished entirely.

“Senior Brother Chu, I won’t go back. If you miss me, come to our Danbo Peak. The master will probably take you in.”

Clang—

A sword embedded with spirit stones slammed down, sending a spray of black soil mixed with blood into the air.

***

Chu Xinghe was stunned. His mouth, once slightly open, snapped shut, his face full of disbelief.

Ling Xi wouldn’t do such a thing.

She always obeyed him.

Whatever he said, she followed—even if it harmed herself.

Ling Xi brushed the dust off her clothes and revealed an innocent smile.

“We can talk about trivial matters later. I need Senior Brother Chu to help me with a small favor. You wouldn’t refuse, right?”

“Of course not.” Chu Xinghe breathed a silent sigh of relief.

“We’re not forcing you—this is voluntary~”

“Of course. A gentleman’s word is his bond...”

Before Chu Xinghe could finish, a white figure leapt up, tracing a graceful arc, and struck directly at his neck.

With a clang, Chu Xinghe collapsed, hitting the ground with the back of his head.

Ling Xi pocketed the lingering shadow stone in her hand and gave the little fox a thumbs-up. “Well done! When we get home, ask Master to give you an extra chicken leg.”

Wen Jue’s lips twitched, his expression darkening instantly. “You knocked me out just now, didn’t you?”

“You’re so heartless—I can’t just wait for you to kill me.

And I’m telling you, now it’s too late to try. Not only is there the master’s red thread as a guarantee, but I’ve learned the fox cub’s method of forming contracts and made one with you.

If you try to kill me, you’ll die too. Hee hee hee~” Ling Xi raised her eyebrows proudly and rolled up her sleeves. Two pink peach petals appeared on her forearm, lifelike, though lacking a faint fragrance.

“Fine, you’re my senior brother, but don’t casually form contracts with all sorts of people. Be careful of backlash,” Wen Jue said through gritted teeth.

Ling Xi was oblivious, responding with a perfunctory “okay” twice, then crouched down, fumbling to roll up Chu Xinghe’s sleeve.

“It’s been so long, and there’s not a single spirit plant treasure. Truly no ambition.”

Wen Jue hurriedly grabbed Ling Xi’s hand, his tone changing. “What are you doing?!”

“Can’t you tell? I’m looting treasures! Although we don’t need to take first place, we at least need some points to save our master’s face.

Oh, by the way, his spiritual root is excellent—an exquisite ice spiritual root. Want to study it? I’ll help you undress; you handle the rest. I won’t dig into the root.”

Ling Xi brushed off Wen Jue’s hand and reached again for Chu Xinghe.

Secretly taking one of Chu Xinghe’s clothes and selling it would definitely be a big hit!

Though Chu Xinghe’s cold demeanor could freeze passersby, some female cultivators had a soft spot for this style.

***

Beside them, a person and a fox pounced, pulling the restless Ling Xi away.

“Don’t even think about selling anything. Go stand guard over there! No peeking!” Wen Jue had a black expression.

“Such a miser. You just don’t want me to learn,” Ling Xi sniffed, then sat aside with her back to the two, observing the surroundings with her spiritual power while her soul wandered afar, pondering how to reap more benefits.

The sect’s senior brother, Qian Chongxue, was noble and should have plenty of good things—at least he must have gathered many spirit plants and immortal flowers.

He was a decent person; better to stay behind and reap the rewards from him.

In the icy snow forest,

Qian Chongxue led his junior brother Dongfang Cheng in searching for spirit plants.

Qian Chongxue held a sword, taking a few steps and sweeping his gaze around, wary of stepping into any formations.

He had done his homework before coming; this secret realm was filled with layers of formations, mainly illusions. Falling into one could mean losing not only a good ranking but one’s life to a ferocious beast.

Suddenly, Qian Chongxue sneezed and absentmindedly rubbed his nose, his expression puzzled.

At his late foundation-building stage, a mere snowstorm shouldn’t give him a cold.

Could someone be targeting him?

Carefully shifting some snow, he released spiritual sensing to scan the surroundings but shook his head in disappointment.

No spirit plants.

Glancing at the spirit plants in his realm bag, he sighed.

Five or six poorly conditioned spirit plants lay inside, their leaves withered and curled, riddled with wormholes, stinging Qian Chongxue’s eyes.

It was still the first round; he couldn’t embarrass the sect leader and master.

“Senior brother, do you smell something? It’s fragrant—sweet with a hint of floral scent.” Dongfang Cheng sniffed, closing his eyes cautiously to locate the source.

“No, I don’t. Could you be trying to comfort me?” Qian Chongxue sighed after a moment, feeling a bit melancholy.

“No, really. A faint, fresh fragrance—like chrysanthemums mixed with lotus. It’s subtle but can’t escape my nose,” Dongfang Cheng said, pointing to his nose with sparkling eyes.

“The snow lotus is ripe! This spirit plant is rare, at least third rank.”

The two eagerly searched for the snow lotus, unaware that outside the secret realm, the sect leader and elders stood with hands on their chests, eyes wide as they stared at the points ranking.