After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 127

It was already late morning when Qin Qingyi completely regained her composure.

This return to the Demon Clan was truly different.

Not only had her strength greatly improved compared to before, but her temperament had also become much calmer.

—If she hadn’t just had a sore spot poked, she wouldn’t have lost her composure like that.

Moreover, the three years spent in the killing formation were not without gain.

She had learned a lot from Immortal Venerable Wujiu.

Things about herself, and also about her junior sister.

Qin Qingyi flipped over, wrapped in the quilt, and fell back into contemplation.

Immortal Venerable Wujiu said her junior sister’s path was wrong, that she had gone astray in her cultivation. What could she do to set her junior sister back on the right track?

It had been a long time since she had received any news about her junior sister. She wondered what Yanli was doing that she hadn’t come to report in such a long time.

And Junior Brother Xie, she wondered how he was doing as Sect Leader.

And her Master, who hadn’t contacted her either. One by one, they all seemed to have forgotten her.

Once she was idle, Qin Qingyi couldn’t help but think of these people again.

These people who once had ties to her, suddenly being withdrawn from her life, made her distinctly uncomfortable.

She hadn’t felt lonely when she was trapped in the killing formation, but now she felt a sense of solitude.

After pondering for a long time, Qin Qingyi suddenly realized that she had been thinking about the Jianmen Sect! Thinking about the people and events of the Jianmen Sect!

As a fox, she actually found it exceptionally enjoyable to mingle with human cultivators.

How could this be?

How could this be?!

Qin Qingyi immediately sat up in bed. Reflecting on her years, as a fox, she had lived and cultivated in Jianmen, making a bunch of friends in the Dao.

But she didn’t have a single confidant in the Demon Clan?!

She didn’t even have someone to have fun with!!

What kind of miserable life had she been living these past few years?

All day long, it was either cultivating or draining her demon power to the point of collapse to light up the killing formation. It brought tears to her fox eyes.

No, no, no! Qin Qingyi shook her head frantically, her eyes resolute. She was a fox, a fox who was accustomed to being sly, cutting corners, and shirking work!

Now, she was starting to miss the hard life of the Jianmen Sect! How could this be right?!

She wanted to play, to indulge! To be drunk and dreaming! To be free and unfettered!!!

As a fox, if she didn’t crave pleasure, would she still conform to a fox’s nature?!

No!

The little fox was deeply remorseful and decided to visit the most famous beautiful fox cave in the Fox Clan tonight, to properly soothe her empty heart.

No sooner said than done, Qin Qingyi quickly changed her clothes into a set that was uniquely Fox Clan aesthetic: a luxurious, seductive dress fit for a noble fox lady. It was gorgeous, but… tsk, Qin Qingyi circled the water mirror a few times. What was going on?

Something wasn’t right.

One hundred percent not right!

Was the mirror broken? How come the clothes she used to wear looked so different on her now?

Why did she look so respectable?

Qin Qingyi was utterly baffled.

But the next moment, she realized something, furrowed her brow for a long time, and finally, with a look of difficulty, took out a set of plain clothes from her Qiankun bracelet.

This was the disciple uniform she wore at the Jianmen Sect, from before she became the Sect Leader. As for the Sect Leader robes—

They were destroyed on the day she faked her death.

She didn’t know where the body she had conjured from her severed tail had gone. She woke up after three days of feigning death and saw nothing. Perhaps it had already been buried.

Not to mention the clothes that were already tattered in the great battle; they were probably long gone.

What a pity, Qin Qingyi pouted, those robes were quite beautiful.

She turned to look at this set of disciple uniforms, and just a glance made her tilt her head and sigh.

Because it was just a disciple uniform, the clothes were so plain they had virtually no embellishment, save for a horizontal plum branch embroidered on the hem, which served as the mark of the Jianmen Sect.

The white robes were simple and elegant, giving her quite the air of an immortal.

In her Master’s words, it was suitable for putting on airs.

After all, too many immortal sects wore white robes to look aloof and detached, but the Jianmen Sect was the most distinctive. The eighteen peaks of Jianmen all competed in their disciple attire, each with its own features, and the patterns embroidered on the hem and shoulders of the disciple uniforms were all different.

As a major sect, other minor sects dared not imitate it, so the Jianmen Sect’s attire was unique in the entire Xuan Tian Realm.

She hesitantly put on the disciple uniform, and when she looked in the mirror again, she covered her eyes in agony.

Heavens, had she only been at Jianmen for a few years and already been assimilated into the image of an immortal sword cultivator?

The little fox clutched her face and wailed.

She secretly peered through her fingers again, wearing an even more pained expression.

Good heavens, had she actually become this respectable?

The person in the mirror, in white robes and a jade crown, had an elegant demeanor. Every lowered gaze and dropped head spoke of compassion for the world, and a long sword placed behind her—so utterly proper it was almost fanatic—marked her as an immortal disciple who revered the sect’s tenets.

Help!

What should she do after being an undercover agent in an immortal sect and getting turned?!

The little fox stomped and rolled for a while before accepting this reality, but in any case, her former clothes were definitely unwearable.

Qin Qingyi deflated, lost her interest in going out, and decided to continue lying dormant in her room.

It was at this moment that Qin Qingyi’s gaze fell on the door, and she narrowed her eyes.

There was someone standing outside.

“Come in. You’ve been standing outside for so long, don’t you know how to knock?”

Qin Qingyi slowly got up and put on her outer robe.

The person outside paused, then respectfully acknowledged, gently pushed the door open, and dared not use her eyes to profane the person by the bed, behind the curtain.

Yanli walked silently to Qin Qingyi, gracefully bowed: “Your Majesty.”

Qin Qingyi gave an “Mhm.”

“What is it?”

Yanli slightly lowered her head, adopting a very submissive posture: “Your Majesty, news from Jianmen. Zhou Zhixue is critically ill and may not have long to live.”

“What?!” Qin Qingyi’s eyes widened. Not only did her previous composure vanish, but her voice also became sharp.

It was loud enough to make Yanli’s cat ears twitch three times.

“What do you mean she is critically ill?!” Qin Qingyi took two steps, pulled Yanli up, and then pressed her down to sit by the bed. “Tell me properly. She was fine when I left, wasn’t she? How is she dying now?”

Yanli carefully sat down, with only a third of her bottom on the edge of the bed. Her red-tipped ears twitching, she quickly and quietly explained the entire sequence of events.

“What is she going crazy about?”

After hearing the whole story, Qin Qingyi was so angry she pulled at the fur on the tip of her tail.

She spoke wildly: “Is Zhou Zhixue’s brain broken?”

“I went to such lengths to raise her up, used I don’t know how many rare treasures to temper her body, and even her Dao path was one I introduced to her! Now you’re telling me she’s about to ruin herself?!”

“Wastefulness isn’t supposed to be this wasteful, is it?!”

“If I had known this, I would have been better off feeding those immortal herbs and spirit medicines to pigs!!!”

Qin Qingyi paced back and forth in anger: “Brainless idiot. I knew she was foolish, but I never expected her to be this stupid. Why did it have to be her? I even sacrificed myself, and now you’re telling me she’s a complete idiot?!”

She spoke with no reservations, but the listener paid close attention.

Yanli twitched her ears.

What did she mean… she sacrificed herself?

But Qin Qingyi clearly hadn’t realized what she had accidentally blurted out.

She was completely consumed by her anger.

It had only been three years! Only three years since she faked her death and escaped!!

For cultivators, that’s just a blink of an eye. How could Zhou Zhixue have gone mad?!

Didn’t anyone stop her when she sought death?!

Why force her way into the Netherworld Ghost Realm for no reason?!

That place is full of demons now. Doesn’t she have a brain?!

Are her junior brothers all dead?!

Didn’t a single one try to stop her?!

Looking up at the tall plaque of the Jianmen Sect, Qin Qingyi sighed, her expression troubled.

Why was it that this junior sister of hers became more worrisome the older she got?

She was less adorable than when she was a child.

She finally convinced herself that since she had nothing to do in the Demon Clan anyway, she might as well come to Jianmen to see what was going on. After all, Yanli had made it sound so scary, and if something really did happen, she would be the one who suffered the loss.

Qin Qingyi concealed her presence, transformed into Yanli’s appearance, and successfully blended into Jianmen with her disciple token.

She had initially thought Yanli insisting on coming to Jianmen to protect her was unnecessary, but now she was tasting the sweetness of it. Qin Qingyi tossed the outer disciple token a couple of times and couldn’t help humming in a good mood.

Along the way, she saw many inner and outer disciples, talking and laughing, appearing exceptionally relaxed and leisurely.

Qin Qingyi raised an eyebrow.

The atmosphere at Jianmen was quite good now.

At least it lacked the depressing numbness that had afflicted the Jianmen disciples from prolonged demon-slaying during her tenure.

They had been at a truce for three years now.

They were recovering well.

Perhaps Qin Qingyi’s gaze was too benevolent, as many disciples who passed by her looked at her strangely, not understanding why this young outer disciple would have such an expression.

Qin Qingyi followed them, wandering all the way to the Martial Arts Stage, and smoothly squeezed into the crowd of disciples watching the excitement.

Jianmen was still the same, Qin Qingyi commented. Since entering the sect, she hadn’t seen any new changes.

But then again, with the resistance against the Demon Race outside, her junior brother probably didn’t have time to do any useful construction for Jianmen.

Unlike her, although her tenure was short, she still achieved some merits, such as at the Martial Arts Stage—

Wait! Where had the fireworks dispenser she had ordered to be installed next to the Martial Arts Stage gone?!

Who took it down?!

That thing was so great. There were fireworks and cheers every time a winner was decided. Which blind idiot took down such a good thing?!

Looking at the empty Martial Arts Stage, which was just a platform with no surrounding decorations, Qin Qingyi gritted her teeth in anger.

Don’t let her find out which scoundrel did it!!!

Just as she was furiously trying to find the culprit, the two junior brothers fighting on the arena, who had been making a very dull and unwatchable fight, finally decided a winner. Sparse cheers rang out, clearly indicating that everyone was bored.

Qin Qingyi propped up her chin, rather boredly looking at the ever-changing clouds in the sky.

The Jianmen Sect was situated on very high terrain, which meant that to become a Jianmen disciple, one first had to climb over several Blade Peaks before successfully participating in the disciple selection assessment. Because of this, Jianmen disciples were almost all devoted cultivators, and any one of them pulled out was a standout among their peers, with few cases of being overshadowed by disciples from other sects.

But this also had a downside. Perhaps because they were peerless among their contemporaries outside the sect, individual Jianmen disciples would occasionally become lazy and negligent. For example, now, even practicing swordsmanship on the Martial Arts Stage was so weak.

Qin Qingyi curled her lip, somewhat disdainful of the surrounding disciples. Every one of them looked like half-dead catfish, devoid of youthful vitality.

She flexed her wrist, deciding to give her junior brothers and sisters, whom she hadn’t seen for half a year, a little spiritual shock.

After all, so much time had passed, they must have forgotten the fear of being dominated by her.

And… Qin Qingyi narrowed her eyes, clearly seeing the person on the arena. Wasn’t it her good junior brother, Hu Yu?

Good. She hadn’t been gone long, and Hu Yu, this lazy bum, was already taking the lead in slacking off. She’d beat him until he was rolling on the ground!

Qin Qingyi flew onto the Martial Arts Stage with a sneer, raising her sword to take down the flag that represented a challenge:

“Outer disciple Yanli, I request instruction from Senior Brother Hu Yu!”

Her voice, transmitted by spiritual power, reached every disciple present. Instantly, the spectators, who had been like dead fish, perked up and looked towards the arena.

“It’s an outer disciple. Which peak is she from? Why haven’t I seen her?”

“An outer disciple challenging an inner disciple? That’s Hu Yu. Who can beat him?”

“I bet she’ll be beaten down in two or three moves.”

The disciples discussed amongst themselves.

Hu Yu was even more surprised. Usually, he was the one challenging others, not the other way around.

After all, who didn’t know he was a famous Martial Arts Stage fanatic? This little outer junior sister actually had such courage.

Regardless of her strength, her bravery was truly commendable.

Hu Yu’s surprised and admiring gaze swept over Qin Qingyi. One who faced difficulty was brave. He just wondered if this little outer junior sister had the capability to survive a few moves under his hand.

“Good!” He accepted Qin Qingyi’s challenge. “Junior Sister’s courage is commendable, so Senior Brother naturally cannot go easy.”

Hu Yu took his stance and suppressed his strength to the same Late-Golden Core stage as the opposite Qin Qingyi. Only then did he motion to Qin Qingyi: “Hidden Snow Peak, ranked third, Hu Yu.”

“Please make your move, Junior Sister!”

Qin Qingyi was not in a hurry to act. She first weighed the sword in her hand. This sword was the lowest grade mortal sword, and it was very awkward to use.

She casually made two sword flourishes before slowly channeling her spiritual power and stabbing towards Hu Yu.

Seeing her unsteady footwork and soft, weak use of the sword, the crowd booed, certain she wouldn’t last ten moves against Hu Yu.

Even Hu Yu himself thought so.

Out of the friendly thought of not knocking her down in one move, he reduced the spiritual power on his sword by another thirty percent, using only fifty percent of his usual strength to respond.

The moment their swords met, he smiled.

This little junior sister was too weak. Judging by her spiritual power fluctuation, she was only in the Early-Golden Core stage. He should be even more gentle with her.

Qin Qingyi didn’t have as many complex thoughts as he did. She never intended to expose her true strength from the start.

After all, “Qin Qingyi” was already “deceased.” She wasn’t an idiot and wouldn’t expose her true strength and identity. Yanli’s strength in Jianmen was only Late-Golden Core, so she would just fight with Golden Core strength.

Moreover, to prevent anyone from noticing clues from her sword style, she was using the Jianmen’s most common low-level disciple sword technique.

One sword after another, Hu Yu handled it with ease. He didn’t even actively attack, but instead focused on defense, watching this little junior sister he didn’t know treat the battle so seriously. He couldn’t help but feel the urge to instruct and practice with her.

Qin Qingyi also noticed this. She couldn’t help but inwardly sneer twice. Her junior brother was quite appreciative of talent. She didn’t expose him but instead went along with Hu Yu’s intentions, practicing a few moves. Of course, she also had some other mischievous thoughts.

Back and forth on the Martial Arts Stage, they had already passed countless tens of moves.

The disciples watching the two fight so fiercely had changed from merely spectating to genuinely observing. Some disciples had already taken out recording stones to record the fight, preparing to study the moves later.

“Why is it so lively?”

Outside the Martial Arts Stage, Zhou Zhixue heard the fervent cheers inside and asked the person beside her, “Is today some important day?”

Xie Su smiled: “Rather than guessing outside, why don’t we go in and see?”

Zhou Zhixue thought about it. That made sense.

She didn’t refuse and walked in with Xie Su.

Once inside, the cheers were even more deafening, the entire scene incredibly vibrant.

“It’s Junior Brother, then it’s not so strange.”

Xie Su looked at Hu Yu on the platform, whose face was excited and who was clearly in a tough battle. He shook his head helplessly: “That boy, he’s practically sleeping on the Martial Arts Stage these days.”

Hu Yu was indeed excited. It was his first time encountering a fellow disciple with such formidable learning ability!

Although he wasn’t the most talented in the Dao of the Sword among his peers, he was still ranked within the top ten and was not an ordinary person. But the person before him—he had only demonstrated a few moves, and the other party could almost perfectly replicate his techniques and execute them with greater power.

Was this little junior sister usually very reserved about her skills, or was she truly an unpolished gem waiting to be discovered?!

Hu Yu blocked Qin Qingyi’s attack once more. He shook his numb tiger’s mouth, his eyes flashing with admiration.

Again! The other party had once again used the move he taught her to contain him!

“Junior Sister, is this truly your first time encountering this type of swordsmanship?”

He couldn’t help but ask.

Qin Qingyi raised her sword again, strongly suppressing the urge to tease, and only shook her head earnestly at Hu Yu: “I must thank Senior Brother for the instruction.”

Of course, she wouldn’t tell him the truth. Was she supposed to tell him that the person standing before you is your “deceased” senior sister, and you are currently being played for a fool by your senior sister?

Let’s not do that. She should maintain the child’s fragile self-esteem a little.

Thinking of how Hu Yu used to cry when he was teased as a child, Qin Qingyi forcefully held back her laugh, released her Late-Golden Core spiritual power, and attacked Hu Yu again.

Her good junior brother, properly feel the pleasure of being crushed by a “genius.”

After a few more moves, Hu Yu couldn’t hold on any longer. Just as he was considering whether to unlock his spiritual power seal and continue fighting, he momentarily lost concentration and was accidentally knocked off the Martial Arts Stage by Qin Qingyi’s sword.

“Thank you, Senior Brother, for holding back.”

Qin Qingyi stood on the Martial Arts Stage, smiling as she cupped her hands to Hu Yu.

The surrounding cheers engulfed the Martial Arts Stage like a tidal wave.

Qin Qingyi smugly accepted the accolades from the crowd. She looked at Hu Yu, who had fallen off the stage and looked quite dejected, and couldn’t help but curve her lips.

Junior Brother, you’re still too green to mess with your Senior Sister.

Xie Su, standing below the stage, couldn’t help but smile at the sight: “I didn’t expect there to be such a genius in the outer sect. It seems the Jianmen disciple screening system needs to be revised again, or geniuses will be buried.”

Zhou Zhixue, beside him, didn’t speak. She looked at the graceful figure remaining on the Martial Arts Stage, her gaze almost solidifying.

After a long while, she still hadn’t spoken. Just as Xie Su was about to call her, she turned her head, her expression calm:

“Senior Brother, did Senior Sister really die that day?”

Xie Su was startled, not having expected her to suddenly ask, but then his voice was gentle, giving the same answer as before: “Junior Sister, didn’t you see it that day as well?”

Zhou Zhixue stared at him. After a moment, she said nothing, turned her head, and walked away.

This wasn’t the first time she had asked this question.

The answer she received every time was the same as the last.

Xie Su stood behind her, not trying to stop her, but his expression was thoughtful.

Zhou Zhixue walked all the way out. At first, her back was straight, and she could still nod in response to the greetings of the surrounding disciples.

But when she reached a secluded place, she reached out to lean on a large tree, and her whole body began to tremble violently. In the end, she actually spat out a mouthful of blood.

Zhou Zhixue lowered her head in silence, looking at the pool of bright red blood. She calmly raised her sleeve to wipe the blood from her mouth.

Yes, she saw it.

On Cliff Mountain that day, her Senior Sister blocked a sword for her and died instantly.

She had also checked the Soul Lamp in Jianmen, and the one belonging to her Senior Sister had long been extinguished.

She should have accepted it already.

It’s just, it’s just…

Zhou Zhixue covered her chest, hiding the sorrow in her eyes.

It was just that, why was the half-demon core here still beating?

Senior Sister, the demon core you left me is still beating. Then where are you?

Senior Sister, where are you?

Why have I searched the Underworld, yet I cannot find a trace of you?

She staggered to her feet, once again concealing the emotion in her eyes, raised her hand to clear away the surrounding blood, and then straightened her back, walking toward the Hidden Snow Peak once more.

When she was far away, Qin Qingyi appeared from behind a nearby tree.

Through the layers of leaves, Qin Qingyi watched her little Junior Sister from afar.

She had sensed Zhou Zhixue even before the fight on the stage had ended.

As for why she could sense her, it was naturally because…

Qin Qingyi unconsciously touched her chest and couldn’t help letting out a light laugh.

It was naturally because of—the resonance of the demon core.

The Fox Clan’s most precious treasure, the demon core that was tied to the Fox Clan’s lifeblood, half of it was with her, and the other half… was inside Zhou Zhixue.

Walking to the place where Zhou Zhixue had just coughed up blood, Qin Qingyi quietly gazed at the base of the tree.

There was a drop of blood there that hadn’t been wiped away.

Perhaps sensing the same source, the demon core in her chest suddenly became restless.

Qin Qingyi touched her chest, gently comforting the half-demon core that was restless due to mutual attraction: “Be quiet, don’t make things difficult for me.”

The demon core perhaps understood and gradually calmed down.

Qin Qingyi gazed deeply at the drop of blood. After a moment, she reached out and wiped it away for Zhou Zhixue.

The thing that her Junior Sister didn’t want others to find, she, as her Senior Sister, should naturally clean up the mess for her.

However, after three years of not seeing her, her Junior Sister seemed much more unfamiliar. Her aura was colder, carrying a hint of deathly stillness.

These changes…

Were they because of her?