“Slow down, slow down! We're going to fall!”
No sooner had the words left her mouth than the scarlet bird plummeted, its massive body slamming into the ground with a loud bang, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Ye Qiao stood up by holding onto the bird's back, turning to Mu Zhongxi with a sigh of emotion. “That was way too thrilling, Fifth Senior Brother. But next time, let's stick to sword-riding.”
Mu Zhongxi nodded in quick agreement. “Indeed, Junior Sister. If we're talking about looking cool, nothing beats sword-riding.”
Just as Ye Qiao raised her head, her gaze froze. Standing ahead of them were Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother, and two unfamiliar women, all of whom were staring at the two of them with utter astonishment.
Ye Qiao quickly waved her hand and greeted them with a smile, “Hi, Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother! We're back!”
Hearing her, Mu Zhongxi stood up and patted the dust off his clothes. But the moment he looked up, he caught the eye of Elder Zhao, who was standing nearby.
Elder Zhao furrowed his brows and spoke in a deep voice, “You two little rascals, you actually remembered to return to the sect?”
“Where is Xiaoyu?”
Before he could finish, Luo Qingyu, who had been following behind them, rapidly descended on her Somersault Cloud and landed gracefully on the ground.
As she looked up, several gazes landed on her simultaneously. A trace of embarrassment flashed across Luo Qingyu's face, and she offered a light laugh while waving her hand. “Hi, Elder Zhao. Long time no see.”
Elder Zhao let out a cold snort. “It is good that you are back. It must have been hard on you these past few days, having to keep an eye on these two little rascals.”
Luo Qingyu nodded and took the opportunity to say, “Elder, I've felt another surge of inspiration for artifact crafting over the past few days, so I plan to go into secluded cultivation for a while.”
Upon hearing this, Elder Zhao waved his hand dismissively. “Go on then. Your lessons can be put on hold for now.”
Watching from the side, Ye Qiao and Mu Zhongxi were dumbfounded, inwardly marveling that Fourth Senior Brother could actually skip class like this.
Mu Zhongxi's eyes darted around, and he decided to follow suit. Stepping forward, he asked Elder Zhao tentatively, “Elder, I have also gained some sudden insights just now and wish to go into secluded cultivation for a few days. What do you think...”
Before he could even finish his sentence, Elder Zhao raised his hand and smacked him right on the head, snapping irritably, “You're a sword cultivator! What kind of inspiration are you talking about? Do you really think you're an artifact cultivator?!”
Not far away, Si Miaoyan and Miaomiao witnessed this scene, their lips twitching in unison. They murmured in astonishment, “Is this how you people of the Changming Sect usually interact?”
Xue Yu waved his hand dismissively and replied calmly, “You'll get used to it.”
Inside the Green Bamboo Courtyard.
Luo Qingyu returned to her courtyard. Just as she sat down, 007 emerged from the system space and broadcasted.
【Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the main quest: Enter the secret realm with Ye Qiao.】
【Rewards obtained: Card draw ×10, 1,000 points.】
Looking at the quest rewards on the system panel, a faint smile curved the corners of Luo Qingyu's lips.
These rewards were incredibly sweet, but the effort required was truly exhausting.
Still, Ye Qiao, Mu Zhongxi, and the others should be a lot more well-behaved for the next period of time. After all, the Five Sects Tournament was drawing near, so they would likely be busy focusing on their cultivation.
Luo Qingyu let out a soft sigh of relief.
007 sat to the side, quietly watching its host sigh while munching on a spiritual fruit.
【Host, there are no mandatory quests for the next period of time. You can prepare for the tournament in peace.】
Luo Qingyu swept her divine sense through her storage ring, taking stock of the demon beast bones and various artifact crafting materials she had gathered in the secret realm, a glint of light flashing in her eyes.
“Perfect. The primary materials for crafting are all ready. It's time to try forging a few new magic tools.”
Without wasting any more time, she turned and walked straight into the artifact crafting room within the courtyard, closing the door to officially begin her secluded cultivation.
The courtyard instantly fell silent, leaving only 007 sitting lonely on a stone bench, munching on the spiritual fruit.
It shook its head and mumbled to itself, “Well, since my host is working so hard, I can't just idle around either.”
Its eyes lit up as a thought struck. “I'll go play games with the neighboring system! I must defeat it this time!”
007 casually tossed the half-eaten spiritual fruit aside and vanished back into the system space.
...
One month later, the day before the Five Sects Tournament.
Luo Qingyu sat alone in her courtyard, looking down as she meticulously drafted and refined her crafting designs.
Suddenly, with a loud bang, the courtyard gate was thrown wide open.
Ye Qiao and Mu Zhongxi rushed into the courtyard, one after the other.
Ye Qiao called out impatiently, “Fourth Senior Brother! Is the handgun I asked you to make finished?”
Luo Qingyu looked up, gently setting her designs aside on the stone table as she smiled. “It's been done for a long time. I was so busy looking for you guys in the secret realm that I forgot all about it.”
With a wave of her hand, she retrieved an exquisite talisman handgun from her storage ring and handed it over to Ye Qiao.
Mu Zhongxi immediately leaned in from the side, his eyes filled with curiosity as he carefully examined the magic tool in Ye Qiao's hands.
Ye Qiao held the talisman handgun in both hands, her fingertips tracing the barrel, which felt smooth and warm to the touch.
She couldn't help but marvel inwardly, This grip, this material, this luster! As expected of Fourth Senior Brother, he used nothing but top-grade materials!
Luo Qingyu smiled at Ye Qiao. “How is it, Junior Sister? Do you like it?”
Ye Qiao nodded vigorously, her eyes curving into crescents. “I absolutely love it! Thank you, Fourth Senior Brother!”
Mu Zhongxi then chimed in, “Fourth Senior Brother, let's go find Senior Brother and the others. I heard they are all at the Main Peak's grand hall.”
Luo Qingyu thought about it and nodded in agreement.
Well, it really is time for me to get out and walk around.
The three of them then boarded the Somersault Cloud and headed straight for the Main Peak.
As soon as they arrived at the Main Peak, they spotted Zhou Xingyun, Ming Xuan, and Xue Yu from afar, squatting on the ground in a tight circle, completely engrossed in whatever they were looking at.
Luo Qingyu was slightly surprised. She hadn't expected their Senior Brother, who was usually nowhere to be found, to be joining in on the fun here.
At that moment, Xue Yu was the first to notice the three of them approaching. He quickly waved to greet them, “Junior Brother, Junior Sister, Fourth Junior Brother, you're here! Come over quick, we have something good to show you.”
Ye Qiao's curiosity was instantly piqued. She hurried over and asked, “What is it, Third Senior Brother?”
Ming Xuan looked up at them, a slow smile playing on his lips as he drawled, “It's the latest gossip in the cultivation world.”
Ye Qiao quickly took the transmission jade slip Xue Yu handed her and swiped through it. She couldn't help but marvel silently.
She hadn't expected this transmission jade slip to be so similar to a modern smartphone, allowing one to browse various forum posts with ease.
As Ye Qiao read on, she became increasingly engrossed. Suddenly, her pupils dilated, and she blurted out:
“I can't believe Ye Qinghan's underwear is actually worth this much!”
Ming Xuan glanced at the post on the jade slip, pondered for a moment, and said, “Ye Qinghan is highly popular, so it's only natural that his personal garments are worth a lot.”
Hearing this, Ye Qiao suggested, “In that case, why don't we buy it?”
Hearing this, Luo Qingyu choked on her own saliva. “Cough, cough... Junior Sister, why on earth would you buy his underwear?”
Ye Qiao blinked and said earnestly, “Fourth Senior Brother, I'm buying it to give to you.”
As soon as those words left her mouth, everyone present widened their eyes, their gazes locking onto Luo Qingyu in unison.
Stared down by everyone, the tips of Luo Qingyu's ears instantly flushed red. She frantically tried to defend herself, “I don't! I'm not a pervert! Let me explain!”
Mu Zhongxi quietly added fuel to the fire from the side, “But back in the secret realm, when you and Ye Qinghan parted ways, you two were totally making eyes at each other.”
Hearing this, Luo Qingyu almost coughed up blood. She quickly retorted, “That was a farewell! Just a farewell, okay?!”
Ye Qiao looked entirely unconvinced, muttering to expose her, “Who bids farewell with such a tender, lingering look?”
Ming Xuan chimed in as well, his smile full of deep meaning. “There's no need to explain, Fourth Junior Brother. We all understand.”
Luo Qingyu: ...
I'm tired. Just destroy the world already.
Rate on N.U.
