Chapter 76
Chapter 76: Me or Her
Grasping Moon Peak was impossible to mistake—steep, towering, and sharp enough to cut the sky.
From the foot of the mountain upward, camphor trees and purple locust covered the slopes. Looking up, its center dipped while its edges jutted outward, splitting into five finger-like peaks that stabbed into the clouds.
Yin qi clung to the mountain like a shroud. Even from far away, a nameless chill seeped under the skin. By the time Shao Heng reached the higher paths, the wind was already howling. When it slapped her face, even her strong blood and vitality couldn’t keep her from shivering.
She pinched her fingers in calculation. “Seven days left,” she thought. “That’s when we ascend the moon, according to Ji Fei Guang.”
She started climbing at once.
The lower trail was manageable. In less than half an hour, she passed through the dense forest. The path grew steeper, rock biting at her boots. To reach the summit, she was about to use a spell to fly—
A clear, pleasant female voice cut through the wind, bright with surprise.
“Shao Heng, Junior Sister?”
A woman rode a spirit shuttle from the mountain foot and swept upward, fast as a streak of light.
She was beautiful and graceful, dressed in dazzling embroidered colors, like an Immortal Maiden stepping out of legend.
Shao Heng looked up, startled. “Senior Sister Xuan Yin!”
Ji Xuan Yin flicked her sleeve. A strip of silk shot out, wrapped Shao Heng’s waist, and yanked her neatly onto the spirit shuttle.
As the shuttle rose, Ji Xuan Yin glanced at her sideways, eyes sparkling. “Junior Sister Shao Heng, have you decided? You want to go with us and take a shot at Ling Jiang’s inheritance land too?”
Shao Heng answered without a hint of awkwardness about changing her mind. “After hearing you and Senior Brother Ji that day, I said I’d rather use Shattered Moon to raise my cultivation. But I couldn’t stop feeling unwilling.”
“So I thought it through. The secret realm opens once every 60 years. Later, I can still negotiate with other disciples and trade for Shattered Moon. There will be chances.”
Her voice tightened with something sharper—hunger, ambition. “But an inheritance left by a great expert of Late Third Realm? I’m afraid I’ll only get one chance in my life to even see it.”
“Even if I don’t fight for it,” she added, “it’s worth it just to broaden my horizons.”
Ji Xuan Yin clicked her tongue. “Everyone says that, but it’s still talk. We’re risking our lives to go in, and we’re spending three Shattered Moon. Do you really not want to pull out a few treasures?”
Shao Heng only smiled, neither agreeing nor denying.
Ji Xuan Yin suddenly turned, beaming like she’d decided something. “But I really like you, Junior Sister. In just a few months, you went from mid stage to late stage. That’s shocking.”
“I want to be friends with you, Junior Sister Shao Heng. Since we’re entering the inheritance land, why don’t you join our team?”
Shao Heng’s heart lifted—real warmth, not performance. “Since I met Senior Sister Xuan Yin, you’ve shown me nothing but kindness. Weren’t we already friends?”
“My spiritual power is a bit weaker,” she said frankly, “but in the inheritance land, I’ll do my best. I won’t drag you down.”
They chatted as the spirit shuttle cut through damp clouds that smelled faintly of rain.
As they neared one finger-shaped peak, Ji Xuan Yin lowered her voice. “This time our two sects are only cooperating for now, to build the yin altar. The plan is to use our combined spiritual sense to push open the Bronze Gate.”
“Once we enter, the illusion trial begins, and we’ll split into separate teams.”
“Besides me and my brother, there are two more in our team,” she continued. “They’re on the peak working on the altar. When we arrive, I’ll introduce you.”
Shao Heng nodded.
They landed on the peak.
Brown-yellow rock walls rose around them, bare and harsh. No plants grew here. The wind was sharper, carrying the bite of old yin.
Ji Xuan Yin took Shao Heng’s hand and led her toward two cultivators.
One was a woman with a cold, proud air, thick dark brows, and a fit, sharp body that made her seem heroic.
The other was a plain-looking man. His eyes lingered on Shao Heng for a breath too long before he spoke. “Senior Sister Ji, who is this?”
Ji Xuan Yin answered at once. “This is Junior Sister Shao Heng. Her spiritual sense is outstanding, and she’s quick-witted. My brother already told her about the moon ascent. She’s coming with us.”
Then she turned slightly. “Junior Sister Shao Heng—this is Senior Sister Meng Ling Zhi. This is Senior Brother Feng Shao Hu.”
Shao Heng cupped her hands. “Greetings, Senior Sister Meng. Greetings, Senior Brother Feng.”
Her spiritual sense—already capable of splitting into eight threads—brushed lightly over their auras.
Feng Shao Hu was around 800 to 900 cauldrons. Meng Ling Zhi was stronger. Though she wasn’t at Ji Xuan Yin’s level, she still carried over 900 cauldrons—peak First Realm.
Meng Ling Zhi’s gaze lifted, cool and weighing. “Hello, Junior Sister Shao Heng.”
She clearly had doubts, but she didn’t voice them.
This team was led by Ji Fei Guang. Meng Ling Zhi had some friendship with the Ji siblings and knew their tempers. If Ji Xuan Yin said Shao Heng had Ji Fei Guang’s approval, then pushing back now would only sour the air.
Feng Shao Hu, however, made no effort to hide his displeasure.
His lips curled into a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Junior Sister, your aura says you just broke into late First Realm. You must have some special strength to earn Senior Brother Ji and Senior Sister Ji’s favor.”
Shao Heng pressed her lips as if considering. Then she said, mild as spring water, “I may not match Senior Sister Meng and Senior Sister Ji. But I definitely have quite a few strengths that beat you, Senior Brother Feng.”
She tilted her head. “I just don’t know which one you want to hear about.”
The smile on Feng Shao Hu’s face cracked.
“Even though Senior Brother has cultivated longer than I have,” Shao Heng continued, voice still calm, “it seems that aside from cultivation level, I’m better than you at everything else.”
“You—!”
“Arrogant!” Feng Shao Hu’s face went ugly.
“Hey.” Ji Xuan Yin stepped in quickly, smoothing the air with practiced ease. “Junior Sister Shao Heng, Junior Brother Feng, we’re all fellow disciples. There’s no need to get angry.”
But her tone, despite the words, leaned toward Shao Heng.
Feng Shao Hu heard it. Fury rose, but he didn’t dare truly offend the Ji siblings. He swallowed it—hard.
A female voice sounded not far away.
“Shao Heng?”
Shao Heng whipped her head toward the voice. A cold smile tugged at her lips. “What a small world.”
Two people were approaching. The handsome man in front was naturally Ji Fei Guang.
Behind him walked a woman in a fluttering green dress, her beauty calm as a lotus.
If she wasn’t Jiang Yun Jiang, who else could she be?
Ji Xuan Yin sensed the tension at once. “Brother,” she said quickly, “I’ve invited Junior Sister Shao Heng to join our team.”
She turned politely. “This must be Junior Sister Jiang?”
“Do you and Junior Sister Shao Heng have some misunderstanding?”
Ji Fei Guang’s brows drew together. His eyes flicked to the woman behind him.
On Jiang Yun Jiang’s plain, elegant face, a smile appeared—gentle as ever, and somehow colder for it.
“You must be Senior Sister Ji.” Her voice was soft, but each word carried a sharp edge. “It’s not a misunderstanding. Shao Heng and I have plenty of old debts to settle.”
Then she lifted her gaze to Ji Fei Guang.
“Senior Brother Ji, only one of us can stay. If Junior Sister Shao Heng is in this team, I’m leaving.”
Her smile didn’t move. “If I’m here, she isn’t.”
The words were flat, like she was discussing the weather. But the violet in her eyes pinned Ji Fei Guang with unmistakable resolve.
Feng Shao Hu’s face flashed with open delight. He looked at Shao Heng with mocking satisfaction.
Meng Ling Zhi stayed silent, watching.
Shao Heng and Ji Xuan Yin both turned to Ji Fei Guang.