After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 108

The days of being the Sect Master were not exactly leisurely. At least for the first few days, Qin Qingyi was so exhausted that her eyes were glazed over, and she couldn’t squeeze out a smile while facing the piles of affairs every day.

Whenever this happened, Zhou Zhixue would silently come to her side, pour her a cup of clear tea, and then very naturally take the affairs that Qin Qingyi couldn’t finish, lower her head, and begin to work for her.

“Junior Sister, you’ve really worked hard.”

Qin Qingyi, who had slept for an entire afternoon on the soft couch by the bed, opened her eyes, looked at the nearly finished sect affairs, and then looked at Zhou Zhixue, who was willingly working for her, and a rare sense of guilt arose in her heart.

After all, she was the Sect Master. Dumping these things on her Junior Sister was truly inexcusable.

Touching her aching conscience, Qin Qingyi walked up to the desk flatteringly and considerately massaged Zhou Zhixue’s shoulders.

“Take a break. I’ll handle the last bit.”

Zhou Zhixue paused, first looked at the remaining three volumes of affairs on her right hand, and smiled helplessly: “Senior Sister, there are only three left. What’s the difference if you handle them or I do?”

Qin Qingyi chuckled sheepishly.

Fortunately, Zhou Zhixue did not feel annoyed by this. She quickly finished the remaining affairs, got up and stretched, and then took Qin Qingyi’s hand, her eyes lowered and full of tenderness: “Senior Sister, let’s go for a walk outside.”

Qin Qingyi let out an “Oh” and turned her head to look out of the hall.

It was already dark. Day after day, the affairs were suffocating, and it had been a long time since she had seen the scenery outside.

She wondered how her Martial Uncle managed to handle so many things back then.

Qin Qingyi muttered, and then agreed to Zhou Zhixue’s request.

“Alright, it is time to go out for a walk.”

The two walked along the bamboo forest path on the Sword-Wielding Peak.

The bamboo forest path was exceptionally fresh. Just as the moon was at its zenith, casting down silver-white moonlight, the two held hands and walked among the patchy light and shadows which stretched their figures long, looking particularly harmonious and well-matched.

“Senior Sister, are you accustomed to your new identity now?”

Walking side by side, Zhou Zhixue initiated the conversation and asked Qin Qingyi somewhat teasingly.

This brought a resentful and helpless look from the other party.

“And you still ask.”

Qin Qingyi grumbled.

“Didn’t you see how busy I’ve been these days? Getting up earlier than a rooster and sleeping later than a dog every day. Even a cultivator can’t handle it.”

Once the floodgates opened, Qin Qingyi couldn’t help but start complaining.

It wasn’t that she had a lot of grievances, it was just that the matters of the Sword Sect were too many and too trivial.

Especially since Shangguan Yu had just ascended not long ago, she had just taken over, and she hadn’t studied by Shangguan Yu’s side before. Unlike other sects where the next successor is personally trained and mentored by the Sect Master, how could their Sword Sect choose her to be the Sect Master? Could this be right?

Speaking of this, Qin Qingyi was still depressed.

She thought that Feng Ning, who was perfectly capable of being an Immortal Sect disciple and didn’t want the position of Sect Master, insisted on running off to some East Continent, Divine State, to live in seclusion. Truly a great oddball.

Furious, Qin Qingyi broke off a section of bamboo branch that was growing out and tilted towards her, plucked off all the bamboo leaves on it, and angrily whipped the surrounding bamboo trees.

A truly infuriating pair of master and disciple, only picking on her to pit!

Zhou Zhixue just pursed her lips and smiled, not stopping her.

She knew that Senior Sister had accumulated too much anger these days. If whipping the bamboo could help her vent, then these bamboo trees were still useful.

Since Qin Qingyi took over the position of Sect Master, the Sword Sect had only been lively for two days, and then it returned to its former tranquility.

The Sword Sect was a major sect after all, with a complete system of sect regulations. From the Sect Master to the elders, and then to the disciples below, as long as they abide by the sect regulations, nothing major would go wrong.

Therefore, even though many elders fiercely opposed Qin Qingyi taking the position of Sword Sect Master at first, once she actually took office, the elders stopped speaking.

Because as long as what Qin Qingyi did did not conform to the identity of the Sword Sect Master, naturally she would not be qualified to continue bearing this identity. As long as she did not do anything outrageous, with the Sword Sect’s regulations in place, she probably wouldn’t cause a disaster.

Hence, regarding Zhou Zhixue handling affairs for her, even if many elders knew about it, they all turned a blind eye—

It was better for someone to handle them than no one at all.

Moreover, Zhou Zhixue’s efficiency in handling them was much higher than Qin Qingyi’s.

As for how many elders were sighing behind her back about why Zhou Zhixue wasn’t allowed to be the Sect Master, instead benefiting Qin Qingyi, Qin Qingyi acted as if she hadn’t heard even if she knew.

A joke! Did they really think she wanted to be this Sect Master?!

She also wanted to give the position to her Junior Sister, but her Martial Uncle wouldn’t allow it!

She wouldn’t allow it!!!

Qin Qingyi was furious when she recalled this matter.

The person was about to ascend, yet she specifically sent her a voice transmission telling her not to mess around, and that she would be watching the Sword Sect at all times.

Qin Qingyi was so angry that she wanted to toss her sleeves and leave right there and then.

However, after only a few whips, Qin Qingyi suddenly sensed that the surrounding bamboo forest was not right.

The rustling sound of the surrounding bamboo leaves was getting louder, obviously no longer sounding like the movement of leaves blown by the wind, but more like the bamboo trees themselves shaking, which caused the leaves to sway.

“Junior Sister, this bamboo…”

Her voice trailed off, but her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at the clearly bizarre bamboo trees around her, her heart becoming vigilant.

Zhou Zhixue naturally also noticed the unusual state of the surrounding bamboo forest. She took half a step forward to shield Qin Qingyi behind her: “Senior Sister, don’t be afraid.”

Both of them drew their swords. Only when “Liubai” was in her hand did Qin Qingyi feel a little more composed, allowing her to observe the bamboo forest more calmly and carefully.

Under the moonlight, the originally lush green bamboo forest seemed to be instantly tainted with a decaying aura. The bamboo leaves turned yellow, and cracks appeared on the bamboo stalks.

The crisp sound of bamboo stalks colliding with each other was incessant. Large patches of bamboo leaves fell, forming a thick layer around the two of them.

Qin Qingyi watched the changes in the bamboo before her, her eyes narrowing: “The bamboo is… flowering…”

The large patches of bamboo in front of them had shed almost all their leaves before their eyes, and on the bare bamboo stalks, fine, withered yellow branches grew horizontally, and then flower spikes grew on the branches.

Zhou Zhixue saw it too. She stepped forward two steps, cut down the bunch of flower spikes closest to her with her sword, and brought it to Qin Qingyi.

“Senior Sister, look.”

Zhou Zhixue held the bunch of bamboo flower spikes and whispered, “Bamboo flowering means it is about to die.”

“Bamboo is root-based. If one bamboo flowers, the surrounding ones will inevitably suffer the same fate. This entire patch of bamboo forest will soon wither completely.”

Sure enough, in just a few breaths, the bamboo forest before them withered in large patches, showing a decaying appearance.

However, Zhou Zhixue looked around and found no other anomalies. It was just that the bamboo withering was too strange. But apart from that, there were no other movements in this bamboo forest. After searching to no avail, Zhou Zhixue returned to Qin Qingyi’s side.

Looking at the withered scene around her, and then thinking about the scenery that was completely different just half an hour ago, Zhou Zhixue sighed:

“What a pity. Such tranquility will probably be difficult to find again in the future.”

Qin Qingyi, however, thought deeper than she did.

She thought of the bamboo leaves that unfolded beneath Shangguan Yu’s feet on the day of her ascension.

It was too strange.

Others never had any unusual phenomena when ascending, but when Martial Uncle ascended, there was a different situation.

Those bamboo leaves…

——————

“You’re right, she is a bamboo spirit.”

With such an anomaly in the bamboo forest, Qin Qingyi no longer had the interest to continue strolling. She returned to the main hall of the Sword-Wielding Peak, holding the section of bamboo spike and examining it again and again.

She truly couldn’t figure it out, and she was genuinely curious. Since there was no one else in the hall at the moment, she couldn’t help but awaken the Immortal Venerable Wuwang, trying to find answers from her.

Of course, the Immortal Venerable Wuwang did not disappoint her.

Although being awakened late at night made the Immortal Venerable Wuwang very dissatisfied, seeing Qin Qingyi’s new identity made the Immortal Venerable Wuwang extremely fresh. Not only was it fresh, but she also felt a sense of honor.

“Tsk tsk, amazing! A little demon not only became the Demon Emperor, but in the blink of an eye, she also became the Sect Master of the Sword Sect. Truly a young talent, enviable.”

She praised and clicked her tongue, but it made Qin Qingyi feel extremely helpless.

“Senior, please don’t joke. I was forced into this Sect Master position. If I have the chance, I will definitely hand this position over to someone else.”

She only wanted to follow her Master and earn a living in the Sword Sect, and by the way, escape the duties and responsibilities of the demon race.

But now, not only did she fail to escape the responsibilities of the demon race, but she also took on the responsibilities of the Sword Sect. Speaking of it, she was the pitiful little fox.

Seeing her truly dejected, the Immortal Venerable Wuwang stopped laughing at her and returned to the previous topic.

“You’re right, Shangguan Yu is not human.”

“She is a section of purple bamboo from ancient times. After absorbing the essence of the sun and moon for tens of thousands of years, she gained spiritual energy and eventually transformed into a human. She was then taken in as a personal disciple by the previous Sword Sect Master. With the heavenly treasures and earthly wonders given by the former Sect Master for protection, no one discovered her true form.”

The Immortal Venerable Wuwang leaned lazily on the imperial consort couch, sighing as she looked at the grapes placed on the small table next to her.

If only she could eat one bite.

It was a pity that she was only a remnant soul. She could only look, but eating was out of the question.

After spending a long time with Qin Qingyi, the Immortal Venerable Wuwang no longer had the detached and lofty airs of an otherworldly expert as she did at the beginning. Instead, she seemed to have reverted to her ancestral state, fully exhibiting the characteristics of a fox. When she wasn’t out, she was in a deep sleep, and when she was out, she was also lazy and scattered, never sitting when she could lie down.

Qin Qingyi leaned against the door, still holding the section of bamboo flower spike that Zhou Zhixue had cut down from the bamboo stalk not long ago.

She twirled that section of flower spike in her hand, her lowered gaze fixed on the flower spike.

So Martial Uncle was indeed a bamboo spirit.

If that was the case, it made sense.

The bamboo on the Sword-Wielding Peak was another one of her incarnations. The bamboo forest was lush, and the bamboo roots beneath were crisscrossed, probably having completely entrenched themselves beneath the Sword-Wielding Peak.

“If that’s the case, now that the bamboo has flowered, does it mean… something happened to Martial Uncle?”

Qin Qingyi’s voice softened a bit when she said the last part.

The Immortal Venerable Wuwang nodded: “Of course. Every bamboo on this Sword-Wielding Peak is symbiotic with her. If the main body is safe, these bamboo trees will naturally thrive. If the main body is damaged, one can glimpse a fraction of the main body’s condition by looking at the state of the bamboo.”

“With this bamboo flowering, it means she’s probably close to death.”

Qin Qingyi’s heart sank suddenly.

Martial Uncle is close to death?

But there was no unusual movement when she ascended…

Seeing the change in her expression, the Immortal Venerable Wuwang knew what she was thinking at a glance and sneered: “Do you truly think the Upper Realm is a good place to go?”

Qin Qingyi gritted her teeth: “What do you mean?”

In an instant, the Immortal Venerable Wuwang was close before her eyes. The illusory white figure pressed tightly against Qin Qingyi’s forehead, and a voice transmission reached Qin Qingyi’s mind the next moment.

“I told you before that the current Xuantiant Realm is shrouded in falsehood, and ascension is naturally also false.”

“Ascending to the Upper Realm is nothing more than an illusory beautiful dream created by the Demon God to achieve his own purpose.”

“It’s laughable that you people would desperately introduce the demon seed into your bodies just for the sake of ascension. You truly don’t mind dying fast enough.”

The Immortal Venerable Wuwang mocked her a bit, and after finishing her words, she returned to the soft couch to stare at the grapes.

Only Qin Qingyi remained standing in place.

Seeing that she hadn’t moved for a long time, the Immortal Venerable Wuwang thought she couldn’t accept the current situation and was about to comfort her, telling her that this world was already rotten, so she might as well accept the reality and enjoy herself for a few years.

But before she could speak, Qin Qingyi looked at her, her eyes inexplicably flashing.

The next moment, the words she spoke made the Immortal Venerable Wuwang, who was just a wisp of a remnant soul, feel a chill down her spine for the first time.

She said: “What if we had known all along that these were fake?”