Zhu Zhao seemed to suddenly remember something, her brow furrowing slightly. “I forgot that this courtyard hasn't been tidied up yet.”
She raised her hand to point at another empty courtyard to the east. A half-worn bronze bell hung under the eaves. It was also very close to the main courtyard, though its layout was slightly smaller. “You stay there.”
That courtyard had originally been empty, sometimes used to pile up miscellaneous items.
Song Yao had once wanted to seize it as her third courtyard. She had fought Zhu Zhao over it, only to give up in the end.
Though Jiang Jin was puzzled, even at its worst, this courtyard wouldn't be worse than the one on the western cliff. He immediately accepted. “Yes. Thank you, Second Senior Sister.”
Song Yao thought of something else.
The courtyard hadn't been tidied up?
Did that mean...
her things hadn't been burned yet?
She had quite a few treasures in her room.
Song Yao had a premonition that she was about to make a massive fortune. Suppressing her delight, she asked Zhu Zhao, “What about me?”
If this courtyard hadn't been tidied, the other one likely hadn't been either.
Zhu Zhao cast a puzzled glance at her, then glanced at the courtyard by the cliff. “Aren't you going to live there? Although there are some miscellaneous items inside, they aren't anything important. Deal with them yourself.”
With that, she raised her hand and tossed over two keys. “I might not be on the main peak lately. Even if I am, do not bother me. If you have nothing to do, you can go wander around the study room in the back mountain.”
As soon as she left, Jiang Jin also impatiently headed toward his small courtyard.
Song Yao stood where she was, clutching the keys.
The snow seemed to fall heavier, with only the whistling of the wind in her ears.
She was extremely familiar with every plant and tree here, yet at this moment, she felt a trace of strangeness.
Had the main peak always been this quiet?
Wasn't it usually in absolute chaos?
Though the culprit behind all that chaos seemed to have been her...
She shifted her steps and walked toward the western courtyard.
She didn't even need the key; the door swung open with a wave of her hand.
The tables and chairs in the yard remained the same, and two plum trees bloomed brilliantly—she had dug them up from Xie Zhou's courtyard in the middle of the night with great difficulty.
A fence also enclosed a corner.
She had originally raised a brood of chicks and ducklings there. Once, she forgot to feed them when she went out to fight. When she returned, Fifth Junior Sister told her they had all starved to the point of escaping and jumping off the cliff.
She had been sad for a long time back then, only getting over it by furiously devouring three roasted ducks and three roasted chickens.
...
The room was fully furnished, looking exactly as it did when she left, without a single speck of dust.
It was just that she hadn't lived in this courtyard much in the past, so there weren't any treasures inside.
The truly good stuff was all hidden over there.
She paced around a couple of times, concealed her figure, and hurried toward that other courtyard, preparing to loot it thoroughly.
However—
Outside that courtyard, six trees were linked together, and various stones were arranged on the ground.
It was clearly a barrier set up by Fifth Junior Sister.
Looking at the setup, it seemed to be a lethal array. If she tried to force her way in, her life might very well be in danger.
Song Yao felt utterly despairing.
What was the meaning of this?
She was already dead, yet they still had to seal her courtyard.
Did they think she was bad luck?
But Fifth Junior Sister seemed to have taught her how to break her arrays before.
Flipping her hand, she gathered a wisp of clear, gentle spiritual energy. Following her memory, Song Yao lightly brushed her hand against the tree trunk in front of her.
Just as her fingertips touched the bark—
Buzz!
Two poison darts gleaming with cold light pierced through the air from the branches and leaves, shooting straight toward her heart.
Song Yao's face changed dramatically, her pupils shrinking as she hurriedly dodged to the side.
The poison darts grazed her cheek and embedded themselves deeply into the courtyard wall behind her, shaking loose a layer of snow.
A thin layer of cold sweat broke out on her back.
This array was not only set up by Fifth Junior Sister, but it also had Eldest Senior Brother's handiwork in it.
Going to such great lengths, who were they trying to keep out?
The urgent sound of stepping on snow suddenly came from the side, and Jiang Jin hurried over. “I heard some noise over here. What happened?”
Song Yao withdrew her dispersing spiritual energy, her expression returning to calm. “It's nothing. I accidentally triggered the array here.”
Jiang Jin's gaze focused, only now noticing the six surrounding trees and the scattered stones. He said with some surprise, “No wonder Second Senior Sister suddenly changed her mind and told me to stay elsewhere. Could this be the legendary former courtyard of Third Senior Sister?”
The more he spoke, the more excited he became, taking a step forward. “I've learned some methods for breaking arrays. Maybe I can...”
Song Yao's voice coldly interrupted him, “This array is filled with lethal intent and laced with poison. If you accidentally touch it, you'll die on the spot.”
Jiang Jin's hand froze mid-air, and he retracted it sheepishly.
He turned to look at Song Yao, his brow furrowing. “Then what do we do now? Master is in seclusion, and our senior brothers and sisters aren't in the sect. Who is going to teach us swordplay and mental cultivation methods? We can't just wait around like this, can we?”
Song Yao shook her head.
Too naive.
Even if Master were here, no one would teach them.
The old man only gave pointers; the rest depended entirely on one's own efforts.
She reluctantly pointed out a path for Jiang Jin: “You can go back to Wangyun Peak to learn. If all else fails, isn't there a library in the back mountain?”
Jiang Jin's eyes lit up. “The main peak's library must have exclusive secret techniques. Shall we go take a look together?”
“No.”
Back when reading didn't make her dizzy, she had already devoured almost all the sword manuals she could get her hands on.
They were all standard sword techniques, nothing worth seeing.
As for other techniques, she could learn them with a single glance, which was equally boring.
Seeing her walk toward the western courtyard, Jiang Jin's brow furrowed even tighter. “Then what are you going to do?”
“What else?”
Her voice drifted lazily into the wind and snow. “Go back and sleep.”
...
She had thought entering the main peak would be a major test, but it turned out to be unexpectedly leisurely.
Master was in seclusion, and not a single one of her senior brothers or sisters was around.
Previously on Baicao Peak, she had to attend the various daily classes for new disciples. Now that she was a personal disciple, there were no hard requirements, and she didn't even need to ask for leave.
Her monthly allowance had even increased by five hundred, reaching a staggering one thousand five hundred spirit stones.
Every day, she only needed to sleep until she woke up naturally, then head down the mountain to find Seventh Elder or Fifth Elder for a meal.
After eating, she would wander around, then come back to read medical books and pill manuals.
The only downside was that her path to leaving the sect was completely blocked.
The Great Elder ruthlessly informed her that personal disciples only answered to the Hall Master. If she wanted to leave the sect, she had to obtain the Hall Master's consent to remove her personal disciple mark.
Song Yao was bewildered. “But the Hall Master is in seclusion, and I don't even have a personal disciple mark yet.”
The Great Elder replied, “Then you must first receive the personal disciple mark before it can be removed so you can leave the sect.”
Song Yao: “...”
Song Yao gave up struggling. She went down the mountain and spitefully bought five chicks, five ducklings, five little fish, and a puppy that was almost sent to a meat shop, deciding to start her retirement life early.
Aside from worrying about someone returning, her days were quite comfortable.
On the other hand, Jiang Jin was somewhat lost.
He had originally thought that once he entered the main peak, he would receive personal guidance from the Hall Master and spar with his senior brothers and sisters, allowing his cultivation to progress by leaps and bounds.
Who would have thought that after a month, he hadn't even seen a shadow of anyone else?
He had only run into Zhu Zhao twice, but she was always elusive, and they couldn't strike up a conversation when they met.
The texts in the library were profound and obscure, filled with runes and incantations. To a disciple who had just entered the Golden Core Stage, reading them was no different from reading a heavenly script.
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