After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 131

“Take your hand away!”

A voice faintly carrying anger came from beside her.

Qin Qingyi finally realized, belatedly, what the softness she had touched in the darkness was.

Her face flushed crimson in the dark, and she hurriedly withdrew her hand.

“S-sorry.”

Hearing the other party’s deep breathing, Qin Qingyi didn’t dare to breathe loudly.

In the past, her junior sister was close to her and dependent on her; occasional intimate contact was normal. But the identity she was using now was completely different—Yan Li was not familiar with her junior sister, and in fact, she remembered the two of them being somewhat at odds before.

Now that she had accidentally offended her junior sister again, would her junior sister silence her?

Probably… not?

The next moment, the darkness before her suddenly scattered, and a faint brightness appeared around them.

Qin Qingyi looked towards the source of the light.

It was her junior sister, who had taken out the night-luminescent pearl she used to keep in her room for illumination.

The pearl’s luster was warm, lighting up the area within ten steps.

At the same time, she also saw her junior sister’s extremely unpleasant expression, clearly indicating her annoyance over the recent incident.

Just one look made Qin Qingyi feel awkward again.

She really hadn’t meant it just now, but it seemed that no matter how she explained it, her junior sister wouldn’t believe her.

However, fortunately, Zhou Zhixue only gave a cold snort and didn’t pursue the matter any further.

“Yan Li, is that right?” Zhou Zhixue asked.

Qin Qingyi quickly nodded.

Then, for fear that Zhou Zhixue would notice any flaw, she deliberately pretended to be foolish and scared: “Senior Sister Zhou, where is this place? It’s so dark, I’m so scared~”

The affected, overly-delicate voice echoed in the pitch-black cave.

Scared~ Scared~

Qin Qingyi was struggling to hold back her laughter; she didn’t feel any shame, but speaking like this was truly sickeningly sweet.

To act the part, and also to hide her laughter, Qin Qingyi grabbed Zhou Zhixue’s sleeve, shuffled her feet, and pressed against her, leaning her whole body against Zhou Zhixue’s shoulder.

The warmth of her body transmitted through the fabric to Zhou Zhixue, whose back stiffened slightly, before she subtly relaxed.

As if to avoid the topic and not engage with Qin Qingyi, Zhou Zhixue deliberately lowered her voice, saying:

“This place absorbs light. Stick close to me; I’ll lead you out.”

Qin Qingyi readily agreed, watching Zhou Zhixue with a smile, pressing her body even closer and not letting go of her sleeve.

Zhou Zhixue pursed her lips, eventually said nothing, and just held the luminescent pearl to look around.

After walking about ten steps, she touched a stone wall. She closed her eyes to sense the movement of the air currents within, then felt along the wall and headed in one direction.

Qin Qingyi didn’t speak again the whole time, just followed obediently beside Zhou Zhixue, holding her sleeve without letting go.

They continued like this, one after the other, with Zhou Zhixue lighting the way with the pearl, following the stone wall for about half an hour, before finally seeing light not far away.

Seeing the light and feeling the increasingly dense spiritual energy, Zhou Zhixue let out a small sigh of relief: “We found the exit.”

Qin Qingyi didn’t spare the praise: “Senior Sister Zhou is truly amazing.”

Now that they had found the exit, there was no longer such urgency.

Zhou Zhixue finally had time to look at the outer sect junior sister before her, one she had been quite at odds with in the past. She narrowed her eyes, feeling something was not quite right.

“Your strength barely qualifies you to enter the secret realm. Aren’t you afraid of being bullied by people from other sects after coming in?”

The Xuan Tian Realm operates on the law of the jungle. Outside, in the Sword Sect, they still had the sect to back them up. Now that they were in the secret realm, this was not the Xuan Tian Realm; there were fewer rules and sect restrictions. Many people expose their vicious nature upon entering, ganging up to bully weaker disciples from other sects. Some would even use this opportunity to settle personal grudges.

This junior sister seemed incredibly bold. She was clearly the weakest in the secret realm, yet she didn’t appear worried.

Qin Qingyi curved her eyes: “Doesn’t Senior Sister plan to protect me?”

Zhou Zhixue raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise on her ice-like face.

She reminded Qin Qingyi: “Don’t forget, our relationship wasn’t that great before. I practice the Emotionless Dao, and you just offended me. If I don’t protect you, it would be reasonable, and I wouldn’t have any guilt on my conscience.”

Qin Qingyi stopped talking.

She was unhappy.

Her junior sister’s words were truly unpleasant.

She just touched her chest, and now she’s ignoring her.

She must have gone foolish from practicing the Emotionless Dao to say such a thing.

However—

Qin Qingyi huffed.

Even if her junior sister didn’t protect her, it didn’t matter. She figured there was no one in this secret realm who could make her suffer a loss.

Seeing the curve of her lips fade, Zhou Zhixue knew her words had upset her.

But she believed she hadn’t said anything wrong, so she had no intention of apologizing.

In the Xuan Tian Realm, status was clearly defined. As an inner sect disciple of the Hidden Snow Peak, she naturally didn’t need to humble herself and apologize to others.

Especially since she hadn’t done anything wrong.

Qin Qingyi grew even angrier at this, but she had no reason to lash out and could only forcibly restrain herself.

Can’t be angry, can’t be angry.

She didn’t have the status to be angry right now.

Watching the person walking ahead of her, who didn’t seem to think she had said anything wrong, Qin Qingyi tried to bear it, her chest rising and falling several times, before forcefully suppressing her resentment.

It was all her own fault. Why did she insist on using Yan Li’s identity? Now, enduring this cold shoulder was her own making.

Although she consoled herself this way, the look she gave Zhou Zhixue’s back almost burned through the fabric, leaving deep scorch marks on her back.

Yet, Zhou Zhixue seemed completely unaware.

By the time they reached the cave entrance, Qin Qingyi felt like her back teeth were about to shatter.

“We’re out,” Zhou Zhixue said, reaching back to grasp Qin Qingyi’s wrist and leading her out.

Stepping out of the cave, the light was dazzling. Qin Qingyi uncomfortably raised her hand to shield her eyes, squinting through her fingers to let herself adjust to the suddenly very bright environment.

“Senior Sister Zhou?”

The voice of someone else was heard.

Qin Qingyi felt the hand that was tightly gripping her wrist release when the voice sounded.

She heard Zhou Zhixue speak to the people: “Yes, are all of you here?”

Qin Qingyi finally adjusted to the light outside the cave. She lowered the hand covering her eyes and looked towards the source of the voices.

They were several young girls wearing the Sword Sect disciple robes, now excitedly talking to Zhou Zhixue.

One of them said, “We were quite lucky; the places we landed after entering the secret realm were not far apart, so we quickly gathered. We sensed some activity nearby and thought to come over. We didn’t expect to meet Senior Sister Zhou; it’s truly a stroke of luck.”

The other two also agreed.

Zhou Zhixue nodded after listening, “Since that’s the case, it’s good. At least you weren’t separated.”

Based on their robes, these few were all inner sect disciples, and among the stronger ones.

“Senior Sister Zhou, can we follow you?” one of the female disciples looked at Zhou Zhixue expectantly.

Zhou Zhixue didn’t answer immediately, but looked in Qin Qingyi’s direction.

Qin Qingyi: ?

Why look at her?

Could she actually make a decision?

Qin Qingyi pretended not to see Zhou Zhixue’s gaze, looking left and right, at the sky, the ground, the flowers, and the grass—just not at people.

“Oh, the light is so blinding. Oh, I can’t open my eyes. What are you saying? I can’t hear you. Don’t look at me.”

Qin Qingyi squeaked loudly.

She didn’t want to walk with this group of children; she wasn’t here to pick flowers and grass.

Seeing her exaggerated demeanor, regardless of what Zhou Zhixue thought, the other three female disciples genuinely hadn’t expected such a dramatic outer sect disciple to be in their Sword Sect team.

One of them froze and looked at Zhou Zhixue for help: “Senior Sister Zhou, this is…”

The other two had the same expression.

Zhou Zhixue said softly, “She’s an outer sect disciple, Yan Li.”

The three immediately looked enlightened.

That name was familiar to them.

Yan Li, the lucky outer sect girl who managed to advance to the Nascent Soul stage on the last day of the secret realm selection, and then, with extreme luck, defeated several outer sect disciples stronger than herself to successfully secure a spot in the secret realm.

Seeing that she didn’t want to respond, Zhou Zhixue could only communicate with the three disciples herself: “I don’t know the current state of the other disciples. You shouldn’t go too far. If you notice anything unusual, remember to come find me in time. Don’t put yourselves in danger.”

The three disciples naturally nodded in agreement.

Before entering, they had been instructed to listen to Senior Sister Zhou in all matters and not to leave the group without permission. Now that Zhou Zhixue had spoken, they naturally wouldn’t disobey.

Watching the three reluctantly leave, Qin Qingyi immediately wanted to leave too.

Her goal was not the flowers and plants of the secret realm; she needed to find the remnants of the Demon God. If she acted with Zhou Zhixue, not only would she struggle to find the Demon God remnants, but her identity would also be exposed sooner or later.

With this thought, Qin Qingyi knew she couldn’t stay long. The further away she was from Zhou Zhixue, the better.

Once she found a place her junior sister couldn’t see her, she could change her identity, and naturally, she could openly search for the Demon God’s remains.

“Senior Sister Zhou, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving too.”

Qin Qingyi said, intending to leave.

But after just two steps, a strong force around her waist trapped her, making her unable to move.

Qin Qingyi didn’t know what Zhou Zhixue was plotting, and she couldn’t get angry at the moment, so she could only pretend to be confused: “Senior Sister Zhou?”

Why won’t she let her go?

Who knew Zhou Zhixue would slowly walk over, first smile at her, and then say, “You can’t go.”

Qin Qingyi widened her eyes: “Why? Those three could just now—”

“Those three are much stronger than you. I’m comfortable with the three of them leaving together, but you… had better stay by my side.”

Zhou Zhixue suddenly paused towards the end, seemingly swallowing some words, but Qin Qingyi understood.

She thought she was too weak and was afraid she would die in the secret realm, so her junior sister intended to keep her tied to her side.

Qin Qingyi wanted to say that she was very strong and didn’t need special care from others.

But now, she was using Yan Li’s identity, with only the strength of the early Nascent Soul stage.

To say she could navigate this secret realm without problems…

Qin Qingyi thought about it in reverse. If it were her, she probably wouldn’t agree either.

Seeing that she had no rebuttal, Zhou Zhixue released the restraint around her waist.

“Alright, follow me. I explored this area some time ago, so I’m somewhat familiar with it.”

Ancient trees, some thousands of years old, grew tall inside the secret realm, blocking most of the sunlight. Under the trees were rare exotic plants rarely seen in the outside world, but both walked past them without looking, seemingly ignoring them.

Zhou Zhixue was secretly observing the outer sect junior sister with her peripheral vision the entire time.

For some reason, she felt that the person before her had many inconsistencies.

It was as if… she shouldn’t look like this.

But what should she look like?

Zhou Zhixue didn’t know.

She recalled the past when she and this junior sister, whom her senior sister had rescued, were always at loggerheads, viewing each other as a thorn in the side.

But now, the other party seemed completely indifferent to it.

Was it because her Senior Sister was no longer around?

Zhou Zhixue suddenly felt empty inside. Ever since her Senior Sister left, she felt a piece was missing from her heart.

She had anticipated it before, when her Senior Sister was still there: if her Senior Sister were gone, leaving without a word again, what would she do?

At that time, she thought she would be heartbroken to death, would be devastated, would faint from the pain.

But when that day truly came, she found that she wasn’t heartbroken to the point of fainting as she had imagined. She simply calmly wiped the blood from her Senior Sister’s face and carried her down the mountain.

She was unprecedentedly calm at that time.

After settling her Senior Sister in the ice coffin, she immediately returned to the Cliff Mountain with everything necessary for summoning and searching for souls. She had to bring her Senior Sister back to life.

Or rather, she never believed her Senior Sister had died.

How could her Senior Sister die?

Her Senior Sister was so strong, how could she die so easily, so hastily?

But the soul-summoning banner hung there for three days and three nights, the oil in the soul-guiding lamps burned out several times, and she almost turned the entire Cliff Mountain upside down.

But there was nothing.

Not even a trace of a remnant soul was left for her.

But clearly!

But clearly… her half-demon core was still in her heart. Senior Sister, where exactly did you go?

Zhou Zhixue suddenly couldn’t stand still. She staggered two steps, leaning on the nearby ancient tree to steady herself. Her vision blurred, darkening intermittently. Sweat beaded on Zhou Zhixue’s forehead, and she gasped for breath, slowly sliding down against the ancient tree.

Qin Qingyi noticed her abnormal state but didn’t know why she had suddenly become like this. She could only stand a step away and call out, “Senior Sister Zhou? Are you alright?”

Zhou Zhixue’s eyes were unfocused, and a buzzing sound echoed in her ears.

The surrounding scene twisted into strange shapes, appearing particularly terrifying.

Receiving no answer, Qin Qingyi could only helplessly step forward. She squatted down to check Zhou Zhixue’s condition: “Senior Sister Zhou, what’s wrong?”

Zhou Zhixue didn’t actually hear what she was saying. Her vision was blurry, like it was covered in thick fog, preventing her from clearly seeing the person in front of her. She only knew that her demon core in her heart was rapidly spinning, causing her own heart to pound loudly.

“Senior Sister Zhou? Senior Sister Zhou?”

After a long silence without response, Qin Qingyi felt helpless.

Looking at Zhou Zhixue, who was empty-eyed and completely unresponsive to her voice, Qin Qingyi hesitated, then reached out, attempting to lightly pat the other person’s face to see if she could wake her up.

“Senior Sister Zhou, wake up.”

Just as her hand touched her face, it was suddenly seized by the other party.

Qin Qingyi raised an eyebrow. Was she awake?

But the other person’s eyes were still vacant; it seemed she was only refusing to let her get close.

Qin Qingyi didn’t believe this prediction. She extended her other hand, but similarly, before it got close, it was seized and held up in the air.

How strange. Both of her hands were awkwardly held up.

Well, she wasn’t wrong at all. This brat just didn’t want anyone to touch her.

Stinky girl, being so fussy now.

Qin Qingyi cursed under her breath, using a bit of skillful force to free her hands.

Seeing that the other person was still in a daze, Qin Qingyi felt a little worried.

She hadn’t forgotten that Yan Li had said Zhou Zhixue was about to die. She also thought of Xie Su sending her medicine that day, as well as the occasional abnormalities appearing now.

Something was very wrong.

But this stinky girl’s mouth was incredibly stubborn. She used to be a closed book to her, and now that she had changed her identity, she didn’t know how to pry any truth out of her.

But letting things go on like this wasn’t an option. Qin Qingyi thought for a moment, carefully activated the half-demon core within her, guiding the half-demon core within Zhou Zhixue to start spinning as well.

This move was effective. The next moment, Zhou Zhixue suddenly snapped back to attention. She clutched her heart, her expression slowly revealing a palpable ecstasy.

“Is it… Senior Sister?”

She murmured, her breathing becoming rapid.

She quickly looked towards the direction where Qin Qingyi had been standing—

It was the direction where a resonance had just occurred with the demon core in her body.

Could it be Senior Sister?

Zhou Zhixue didn’t dare to think.

She had experienced too many shifts from hope to disappointment before. Every time, every time the demon core stirred, nothing came of it in the end.

This time, perhaps it was also a false alarm.

But… what if?

What if this time, she could truly find her Senior Sister?

Zhou Zhixue couldn’t hide the excitement in her heart. Her previously pale face was now flushed with excitement, and she stared intensely into the distance.

Senior Sister, this time, will it be you?

Seeing her return to her senses, Qin Qingyi immediately sealed the demon core again, not letting a single wisp of demonic energy escape.

She didn’t want her identity to be exposed right now.

“Senior Sister Zhou, are you alright?” Qin Qingyi deliberately put on a worried expression.

“You suddenly leaned against the tree and collapsed just now. You looked very weak. Were you injured before?”

As she spoke, she approached Zhou Zhixue, trying to touch her shoulder.

However, before her hand could land, it was slapped away by the other party, who immediately let out a low growl at her: “Don’t touch me!”

Qin Qingyi froze in place, not moving for a moment.

Is this little brat that fierce now?

Seriously? She didn’t mind when we were pressed against each other in the cave a while ago, and she even held my wrist when we came out of the cave. How did her face change in less than an hour?

The next moment, as if realizing her emotional outburst was inappropriate, Zhou Zhixue turned her head away, seemingly trying to excuse herself: “Sorry, I’m just not feeling well.”

Qin Qingyi gritted her teeth and smiled: “Senior Sister doesn’t need to apologize. It was my rashness. I shouldn’t have touched Senior Sister without permission.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Qin Qingyi coldly snorted: “It was Junior Sister’s fault. Why is Senior Sister apologizing?”

The sarcastic tone was almost unbearable.

“I apologize. I just… thought of Senior Sister.”

Her voice was very low. Fortunately, Qin Qingyi, as a fox, had sensitive hearing; otherwise, others might not have heard it.

She thought of her?

Now she remembers her good points?

Too late!

Qin Qingyi huffed angrily, determined to quickly leave Zhou Zhixue. She hadn’t forgotten her mission to find the Demon God remnants.

Since the other party didn’t seem too happy about bringing her along, she would just leave.

If she wasn’t welcome here, there were other places for her.

Hmph!