After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 18

Looking at the sword suspended in mid-air, Zhou Zhixue hesitated, unsure how to get up.

Seeing her repeatedly falter, Qin Qingyi realized that every previous time she had taken her on a sword flight, the sword was laid flat on the ground. Since the sword was now hovering, getting on might be a little difficult.

However, Zhou Zhixue was already in the late Foundation Establishment stage. Once she reached the Golden Core stage, she would eventually have to practice sword flight.

With this in mind, Qin Qingyi extended her hand to her: “Come, Junior Sister, I’ll pull you up.”

Hu Yu, standing behind Xie Su, looked at the still-hesitant Zhou Zhixue and couldn’t help but goad her: “Hurry up, Junior Sister, or we might be late.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of. I just easily jumped up back then.”

Hu Yu was also in the late Foundation Establishment stage and had not yet practiced sword flight. Xie Su, on the other hand, had entered the Golden Core stage half a year ago and was very proficient in sword flight. Therefore, the two of them often rode the same sword. Since Hu Yu hitched rides so often, he was used to it and never had trouble jumping onto the suspended sword.

Zhou Zhixue stood before the sword. The sword’s height reached her waist. If she could truly jump up easily, she wouldn’t have been hesitating for so long.

It was… just a little too high.

Zhou Zhixue wavered.

But she absolutely couldn’t be late for today’s class. Thinking this, she gritted her teeth and placed her hand in the one Qin Qingyi offered.

Seeing her look as if she were facing death, Qin Qingyi chuckled. Her hand closed, clasping Zhou Zhixue’s wrist, and with a gentle pull, she lifted her up. With that easy tug, Zhou Zhixue’s feet left the ground, and in the blink of an eye, she was standing steadily on the sword.

The sudden ascent made Zhou Zhixue feel dizzy. She instinctively hugged Qin Qingyi’s arm tightly, closing her eyes and daring not to look.

“You weren’t scared last time, so why are you so timid now?”

Looking at Zhou Zhixue, who had her eyes tightly shut and was clinging to her arm, Qin Qingyi’s tone was teasing. She clearly remembered the little girl snatching her sword and chasing her all the way to the Sword-Wielder Peak, hacking at her.

Zhou Zhixue’s face flushed red, and her lips moved a few times, but she didn’t utter a word.

It was too high. She was genuinely afraid of opening her eyes and falling off.

Fortunately, Qin Qingyi wasn’t entirely heartless. After a couple of playful remarks, she lowered the sword’s altitude a bit to help Zhou Zhixue adapt.

“Don’t be afraid, you won’t fall.”

Qin Qingyi comforted her, taking Zhou Zhixue’s hands and placing them around her waist: “If you’re really scared, just hold me tight.”

Zhou Zhixue was certainly obedient. She nodded, wrapping her arms tightly around Qin Qingyi’s waist, even pressing her body closely against hers.

Qin Qingyi’s breath caught from the tight squeeze. When she recovered, her voice carried a hint of helplessness: “You don’t have to hold on that tightly.”

With that, she took a piece of white silk from her Cosmic Bracelet. The silk seemed to possess a spirit, wrapping around Qin Qingyi’s arm twice, and the other end winding around Zhou Zhixue’s wrist.

Zhou Zhixue lifted her wrist, observing the item with novelty. Silver light constantly flowed over it, as if alive. From afar, it looked pure white, but closer inspection revealed the shimmering silver light.

“This is called Silken Radiance Brocade. It’s considered a low-grade immortal artifact. It doesn’t have much function, but it’s very suitable for tying things.”

Qin Qingyi explained.

The Silken Radiance Brocade was a low-grade immortal artifact. As long as spiritual energy was injected, it could be controlled. It could be as soft as a snake or as hard as iron, and it was quite useful—one of the most common immortal artifacts in the Profound Heaven Realm.

However, though this item was common, the materials required for its forging were all high-grade, and yet its use was limited. Therefore, few people forged it.

After all, not everyone was as wealthy as the Hidden Snow Peak. Everyone on Hidden Snow Peak owned one of these.

“This way, you don’t have to worry about falling off.”

She raised her hand and rubbed Zhou Zhixue’s face. Seeing her eyes fixed on the Silken Radiance Brocade, Qin Qingyi simply said, “Do you like it? Then I’ll give it to you, Junior Sister.”

Seeing that she was about to refuse, Qin Qingyi leaned slightly forward, and her pale fingers pressed against Zhou Zhixue’s lips, blocking the words she was about to say: “No refusing. If I give it to you, you must take it.”

It wasn’t a big deal to give it away. She still had the materials and could simply find someone to forge another one.

Zhou Zhixue nodded obediently.

Seeing her so well-behaved, Qin Qingyi’s smile widened. She tugged at the Silken Radiance Brocade, confirmed it was tied securely and wouldn’t come loose easily, and then stood up to address Xie Su and Hu Yu, who were waiting on the side: “Let’s go. Don’t be late for class.”

She took the lead, flying off on her sword. Xie Su followed, controlling his sword with spiritual power, and chased after Qin Qingyi down the mountain.

The cold wind whistled in her ears, yet Zhou Zhixue felt no chill. She looked down at the vast, high expanse below her feet. The Hidden Snow Peak was extremely high; looking down, all she could see were clouds and mist, and lush, dark green foliage.

After about a quarter of an hour, their speed finally slowed. When more disciples began to appear, the four of them slowly landed, tucking their swords behind their backs or at their waists.

The path wasn’t wide. The stone-paved road was packed with disciples coming to class. Most were carrying small satchels, and upon jumping off their swords, they walked non-stop toward the front.

So many people.

Zhou Zhixue looked left and right, but her small hand tightly held onto Qin Qingyi’s.

How many people were there?

Zhou Zhixue couldn’t quite describe it, but she had truly never seen so many people, all wearing the uniforms of the Sword Sect disciples.

Was the Sword Sect really this large?

She stretched her neck to look into the distance but couldn’t see far due to her height, only managing to see the area immediately surrounding her.

Numerous Sword Sect disciples were gathered here, all walking in the same direction.

Some people were selling various mortal-world snacks along the street: vividly drawn sugar paintings, and fragrant, roasted melon seeds. Judging by their clothing, they were also Sword Sect disciples. She saw many disciples gathering around, using spirit stones to buy things.

“Those are mostly Outer Sect disciples,” Hu Yu suddenly interjected, walking beside her, holding a bag of freshly bought, steaming chestnuts.

He scooped a handful for Zhou Zhixue and happily started peeling and eating his own.

“Outer Sect disciples. Why aren’t they going to class? Why are they setting up stalls here?”

Zhou Zhixue didn’t understand, so she asked directly.

“Attending class at the Sword Sect requires paying spirit stones. To obtain spirit stones, you need to go to the Hall of Ten Thousand Affairs to accept and complete missions. Most Outer Sect disciples are weak, and the missions they receive offer pitifully few spirit stones. If they want to attend more classes, they have to find a way to earn spirit stones themselves.”

Hu Yu’s cheeks were puffed up as he ate, explaining the survival methods of the Outer Sect disciples to Zhou Zhixue.

“They came up with a way to earn extra money by making snacks that aren’t available in the Sword Sect. This doesn’t violate the sect rules, and most disciples haven’t reached the abstention from grains stage yet and still need to eat. Even those who have abstained from grains sometimes crave a treat, so our Sect hasn’t thought about stopping this practice.”

Zhou Zhixue nodded, half-understanding. She looked down at the warm chestnuts in her hand. The chestnuts were thoughtfully scored, so she could easily break them open and take out the kernel. She peeled one and put it in her mouth, immediately squinting her eyes in delight at the sweet fragrance.

So delicious.

“Good, right?” Hu Yu said proudly. “I tried a lot of stalls before I picked this one as the best. Fair prices, only two spirit stones for one bag.”

Zhou Zhixue nodded repeatedly. Such delicious chestnuts, she had never eaten them before.

Xie Su was also walking by their side. Although he always tried to act like a little adult, he was still a child at heart, and eventually couldn’t resist. He started snatching chestnuts from Hu Yu.

“If you want to eat, why don’t you go buy your own?”

Hu Yu was unwilling to share, guarding his chestnuts and shouting.

“I’m your Senior Brother!” Xie Su pouted angrily. “You came here riding on my sword! What’s wrong with sharing some of your food?!”

He was bringing up his contribution now.

But Hu Yu still refused to share. The two of them playfully squabbled and ran ahead.

Zhou Zhixue giggled watching them.

Qin Qingyi was relieved to see that Zhou Zhixue was no longer as reserved as she was at first.

As if remembering something, she still offered a warning: “You mustn’t get too close to those two mischief-makers. They’re a couple of nuisances, causing trouble in the Sect all the time.”

As she walked, she recounted the various messes those two brats had created in the Sword Sect over the years. Seeing Zhou Zhixue listen intently, Qin Qingyi couldn’t help but clear her throat and secretly straighten her back.

She had been trying hard to portray herself as a reliable and gentle Senior Sister all these days. She couldn’t lose her composure now; she absolutely had to maintain her dignity.