Chapter 34
Chapter 34: Not an Inch Forward
Jiang Li Sheng left the Medical Hall. The cold wind hit her face, and her head cleared a little.
Only then did it sink in—she had lost her temper at Wei Qing Lan again.
But he was infuriating. She didn’t regret it for a second.
How long would favors keep stacking up like this?
If she kept getting entangled with him, it would end in disaster. She didn’t want to drag trouble onto him one day and have him thrown into the Ten-Thousand-Year Hopeless Cliff. If that happened, even her master swallowing his pride and groveling to Kun Lun Sect’s Sect Master Qin might not save her.
When she first arrived, her master had warned her harshly: behave. If she caused a major disaster in Kun Lun Sect, he wouldn’t be able to protect her.
She drew in a breath, shivering as she faced the wind, then mounted her sword and flew back to her residence.
She flew too fast. Si Shao arrived only a step behind and chased her all the way to her door. When he saw her about to shut it, he called out urgently, “Junior Sister Jiang, wait!”
Jiang Li Sheng turned back. Seeing it was him, she forced her emotions down. “Senior Brother Si. You followed me—does Hall Master Ying have orders?”
Si Shao put away his sword. Her face was blue-white from cold. Even her new disciple robes had a thin layer of frost. He frowned. “Junior Sister Jiang, why didn’t you use spiritual power to cast a dust-clearing spell? You’re soaked through. Kun Lun Sect is cold. Be careful you don’t catch a chill and end up with a high fever. Even cultivators are still half-mortal bodies.”
Jiang Li Sheng stiffly cast a dust-clearing spell. Warmth spread through her limbs as the ice melted away. Only then did she say, “I forgot. If you hadn’t reminded me, I wouldn’t have thought of it.”
Si Shao sighed. She really had been furious—furious enough to let herself freeze the whole way back.
He produced a bundle of Spirit-Replenishing Pills and offered it to her. “Master told me to bring this. He said the rest of these Spirit-Replenishing Pills are all for you.”
Jiang Li Sheng’s eyes lit up. “Free?”
“Yes. Master said to give them to you.”
She snatched them happily and tucked them into her storage pouch. A smile immediately bloomed across her face. “Thank you, Hall Master Ying. And thank you, Senior Brother Si, for running all this way.”
Si Shao froze for a moment, as if dazzled by her smile. Then he hurriedly looked away. “N-no need. I’ll go back now. Junior Sister Jiang, rest.”
“All right,” Jiang Li Sheng said, nodding. “Take care, Senior Brother Si.”
Si Shao left on his sword. Jiang Li Sheng turned back with the pills in hand, and the anger in her chest eased by more than half.
An Ru Xu heard the commotion. He couldn’t help himself—injury or not. He climbed out of bed, went outside, and scrambled onto the wall. Seeing Jiang Li Sheng, he lifted a hand and called, “Junior Sister Jiang, you’re back! How did it go? Is Junior Brother Wei’s injury treated?”
“It’s treated,” Jiang Li Sheng answered.
An Ru Xu blinked. “Treated?”
“Yes.”
He processed it, then thrust up his thumb, full of admiration. “Even Martial Uncle Ying in the Medical Hall couldn’t fix it, but you could. Junior Sister Jiang, your spiritual power is incredible.”
It was the first time anyone had praised her spiritual power like that. All these years, her spiritual power had only given her master headaches. Progress had always felt like climbing to the heavens.
Jiang Li Sheng looked up at An Ru Xu, face solemn. “Senior Brother An, you’re really good at praising people. Praise me a couple more times.”
An Ru Xu burst out laughing. “It is incredible. No one else has it—under all heaven, you’re the only one. With that kind of favor from fate, you must have heaven’s luck behind you. If you cultivate to great success one day, maybe you won’t just become immortal. You might even become a god.”
Jiang Li Sheng went silent. That was… a little too much.
Then she grinned widely. “It sounds impossible, but I’m still happy. Thank you, Senior Brother An.”
“No need,” An Ru Xu said, pleased that she looked pleased. He waved. “Go rest. Seven days from now, I’ll call you and we’ll go together. The two of us will be a team.”
“Okay.” Jiang Li Sheng nodded. “Senior Brother An, you should rest too. Heal properly.”
An Ru Xu hummed agreement and slid down from the wall. Jiang Li Sheng, steps light, went back into her room.
This time, she didn’t collapse into bed immediately. She sat cross-legged and looked inward.
Her spiritual mansion’s small reservoir really had expanded by a full ring.
So it hadn’t been her imagination.
Wei Qing Lan’s spiritual power could pry at her spiritual mansion.
Her master had tried for years—every method, every approach—and still couldn’t budge her dead, stagnant spiritual mansion. Yet by sheer accident, Wei Qing Lan had done it.
No cultivator could remain unmoved by something that benefited their spiritual mansion. She was no exception.
But the one who could do it wasn’t her master.
It was Wei Qing Lan.
The Wei Qing Lan she could never afford to provoke.
She tried to imitate his method, forcing her spiritual power to churn the same way he had. Pain flooded her body. She was still damp from earlier, her limbs aching as if the cold had seeped into her bones. She pushed until her vision swam—yet her reservoir didn’t move at all.
Not a ripple.
Forget expanding by a ring.
At last, she slumped and gave up, angry enough to scold herself out loud. “What useless trash.”
Wei Qing Lan left the Medical Hall without using his sword, walking step by step through the snow-bright paths.
Yun Duan was returning from the foot of the mountain and heading toward the Medical Hall when he happened to spot him. “Junior Brother Wei!”
“Senior Brother Yun,” Wei Qing Lan replied, saluting.
Yun Duan studied him, surprised. “Your spiritual mansion injury is fully healed?”
“Yes.”
“Congratulations.” Yun Duan looked genuinely happy. “That injury had Martial Uncle Ying in the Medical Hall deeply worried. I didn’t expect Martial Uncle Ying to find a solution so quickly.”
He took out a brand-new storage pouch. “These are the things you asked me to buy on behalf of Junior Sister Jiang. I bought everything and packed it here. Should I deliver it to her, or will you give it to her yourself?”
Wei Qing Lan accepted it. “Thank you, Senior Brother Yun. I’ll give it to her myself.”
Yun Duan hesitated, gaze flicking to his face. “You and Junior Sister Jiang…”
Wei Qing Lan’s expression remained calm. “She healed my spiritual mansion.”
Yun Duan looked startled.
Wei Qing Lan didn’t elaborate. “Senior Brother Yun just returned from the mountain? Are you heading to the Medical Hall?”
“Yes.” Yun Duan nodded. “I ran into a pill down there. I can’t identify it, but it feels like something valuable. I’m taking it to Martial Uncle Ying to look at.”
Wei Qing Lan inclined his head. “Go ahead.”
They parted.
Yun Duan mounted his sword and flew off, but after a short distance he glanced back. Wei Qing Lan still walked forward at the same measured pace, his back as cold and silent as Kun Lun Sect’s snow. Nothing about him looked different.
Yun Duan felt his worry loosen. Junior Brother Wei had been raised under the Sect Master’s guidance. He would shoulder the sect’s future responsibility. A person like that had only the great Dao in his heart and wouldn’t be shaken by worldly distractions.
Besides, Yun Duan still remembered the day Wei Qing Lan returned to the mountain gate and first met Jiang Li Sheng. He had passed her without even asking a question. Clearly, he hadn’t been interested in her at all.
Reassured, Yun Duan continued on to the Medical Hall.
Wei Qing Lan arrived outside Jiang Li Sheng’s residence and knocked.
Not too many, not too few—three knocks. Enough that even someone asleep inside would hear.