After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 29

Hearing the call from within, Zhou Zhixue hesitated for a moment but still pushed the door open and entered.

“Master.”

Zhou Zhixue bowed, but before she could bend down, a rush of clear wind lifted her knees and elbows, raising her up in a manner that allowed no refusal.

Zhou Zhixue knew this was her Master’s ability, so she didn’t insist further, just stood there obediently.

Looking up, her eyes met those of Venerable Wen Qing.

By this time, a bright moon had long been suspended above Hidden Snow Peak. The scattered moonlight streamed through the partially open window, some of it falling upon Venerable Wen Qing, who was currently meditating cross-legged on a prayer mat.

The moonlight was pure, the posture of an immortal.

For a moment, the questions Zhou Zhixue had intended to ask suddenly froze in her mouth, unable to be spoken or expressed.

She felt a little flustered, her fingers clasped behind her back, and she quietly lowered her head.

Perhaps she shouldn’t have come.

She thought.

But Venerable Wen Qing was unaware of her thoughts.

Looking at the child before her, the uncontrollable anger in her heart gradually subsided.

“Coming so late at night, what is it for?”

Zhou Zhixue didn’t answer, but instead raised her head and looked at her with a pair of moist eyes. Venerable Wen Qing’s heart softened a bit. She beckoned, signaling Zhou Zhixue to come closer.

“Come over here, come closer to your Master.”

Zhou Zhixue obediently said yes and came to her, but her eyes were still full of doubt.

Seeing her state, Venerable Wen Qing guessed a few things but didn’t expose them. She patiently asked, “Did you come to see your Master because you wanted to ask something?”

Zhou Zhixue looked up at her, seeming to secretly cheer herself on. After a long while, she finally spoke:

“This disciple does have one matter I wish for Master to resolve.”

Zhou Zhixue finally summoned up her courage. She clenched her fists and asked Venerable Wen Qing the question that had troubled her for so long.

“Master, that day when you were talking with the Sect Master Uncle-Master in the corridor, this disciple heard my own name.”

“This disciple dares to ask what matter it is that has recently caused Master distress?”

She raised her small face and looked directly at Venerable Wen Qing.

Hearing her question, Venerable Wen Qing first let out a gentle laugh, reached for the tea cup beside her, and took a light sip before raising an eyebrow and saying, “You want to know what caused the conflict between me and the Sect Master, and whether it has something to do with you, is that right?”

Seeing that Venerable Wen Qing was not angry, Zhou Zhixue felt a little more confident.

She nodded, confirming Venerable Wen Qing’s counter-question.

“This disciple does not wish to cause Master and the Sect Master to turn against each other because of me. If that is truly the case, then it is this disciple’s fault.”

Zhou Zhixue blinked, waiting for Venerable Wen Qing to resolve her confusion.

“Is that the only question?”

Venerable Wen Qing did not answer immediately. Instead, she looked at her with gentle eyes, kindly persuading her.

“If you have other doubts, you can speak them out as well.”

Zhou Zhixue’s eyes lit up, but darkened the next moment. She lowered her head, torn between choices.

“This disciple… this disciple…”

The wind rustled the branches, breaking up the shadows of the trees outside the window.

Venerable Wen Qing subtly glanced outside the window, then turned her gaze back to comfort Zhou Zhixue.

“You don’t need to be conflicted, you can tell me everything.”

“Your Master will surely not conceal anything from you.”

Her words greatly comforted Zhou Zhixue, allowing the child to finally put down her guard and speak the doubts hidden in her heart.

“In the mortal realm… was my rescue by Master truly just a coincidence?”

With this sentence spoken, Zhou Zhixue felt as if the doubts accumulated in her heart had finally been released, and she immediately felt much lighter.

She knew that asking this question was questioning her Master’s genuine, deep-felt love and protection for her, but if she didn’t ask…

Zhou Zhixue thought, if she didn’t ask it out loud, she would surely go mad.

“Master said that day that this disciple and you have the destiny of master and disciple. Did you already calculate the calamity this disciple would face that day?”

Zhou Zhixue’s eyes were pleading, and her voice even softened.

If it were truly so, if she had indeed calculated her impending disaster so early, why…

Why was she unwilling to save her mother a step earlier?

Large tears rolled down onto the ground from Zhou Zhixue, soaking a patch of the floor.

Venerable Wen Qing remained silent for a long time, not speaking for a while.

She silently watched the crying child before her, watching as Zhou Zhixue’s cries gradually diminished and finally stopped.

Just when Zhou Zhixue thought she would not receive an answer from Venerable Wen Qing, she heard Venerable Wen Qing let out a soft sigh.

“Your Master did not calculate these things so early. At that time, your Master was traveling in the mortal realm and just happened to pass through the imperial city.”

“Saving you was also unexpected; it was not calculated beforehand.”

Zhou Zhixue’s eyes were blurred with tears.

The girl’s face was tender, but her features were delicate. Venerable Wen Qing looked at her with regret. Through Zhou Zhixue’s eyes, she seemed to see the scene of that day again.

The woman at the end of her road was covered in demonic energy and fresh blood. Although critically injured, she clung desperately to her arm, entrusting the child to her.

“Your mother… I am very sorry.”

“She had already injured her heart meridian at that time, and there was nothing that could be done to save her.”

Zhou Zhixue nodded, whimpering, and gradually regained her composure.

Outside the window, Qin Qingyi, who had been hiding under the tree, having followed Zhou Zhixue, heard everything.

After listening, she quietly left.

However, Zhou Zhixue was unaware of this. The small child swallowed all her emotions back into her stomach, still not forgetting her first question.

“Master still hasn’t told me, why exactly did you and Sect Master Uncle-Master have a dispute?”

……

As the moon reached its zenith, the person who should have long since returned to sleep only arrived late.

Carrying a sense of light chilliness, Zhou Zhixue gently pushed the door open, finding no movement in the room and the bed curtains already lowered.

A figure lying on their side was vaguely visible inside.

Senior Sister must have fallen asleep first.

Zhou Zhixue let out a small sigh of relief, then turned around to close the room door.

“Creak—”

The wooden door made a slight sound when it closed. Zhou Zhixue’s spine stiffened with a fright, and her heart beat a little faster.

She held her breath, listening intently behind her. After a few breaths, there was no movement, and she finally let out that breath.

She tiptoed as she took off her outer robe, lifted the bed curtains, and prepared to pretend that nothing had happened tonight, planning to find some excuse to muddle through when her Senior Sister woke up tomorrow.

However, things did not go as she expected.

“You’re back?”

Qin Qingyi, resting her head on her hand, spoke softly from within the bed curtains.

Her eyes were clear; where was there any trace of sleepiness?

Zhou Zhixue was so startled that she nearly spat out her heart.

With one hand still holding the bed curtain open, she froze in place, looking at Qin Qingyi and stammering.

“Senior… Senior Sister, why aren’t you asleep?”

Hearing her not explain why she was late, but instead turning the tables and asking why she wasn’t asleep.

Qin Qingyi narrowed her fox-like eyes, hiding the dangerous glint that flickered within.

But seeing Zhou Zhixue’s expression of guilt and unease, Qin Qingyi’s heart softened a bit. She couldn’t bring herself to say any harsh words, only letting out a soft hum:

“Some little kids don’t sleep in the middle of the night and run around in the mountains.”

“There are quite a few wild beasts on the back mountain of Hidden Snow Peak that haven’t developed spiritual intelligence yet. You might get eaten one day.”

Zhou Zhixue didn’t dare to argue, only quietly said that she hadn’t gone to the back mountain.

Her voice was muffled, and as she spoke, she carefully looked up to observe Qin Qingyi’s expression.

The soft, warm light of the luminous pearl in the room flowed through the darkness, enveloping the two people within the bed curtains.

Qin Qingyi noticed the child’s slightly red eyes. Recalling what she had overheard not long ago, she couldn’t help but close her eyes.

This little whelp is even more heavy-hearted than I thought.

Qin Qingyi sighed inwardly, then opened one eye to look at Zhou Zhixue, reaching out her hand to beckon her.

“Come up and sleep. If you don’t sleep now, you won’t get many hours of rest.”

This meant she was no longer going to hold it against her.

Zhou Zhixue immediately smiled with delight, muttering, “Senior Sister is the best,” and quickly let down the bed curtains and climbed up.

She rested her cheek in Qin Qingyi’s neck, whole body snuggled on Qin Qingyi, her voice soft and sweet: “Senior Sister, aren’t you going to ask me why I came back so late?”

The little girl lifted her head from her neck, her eyes sparkling, the tear stains still visible at the corners of her eyes.

Qin Qingyi looked down at her, knowing this was a test.

So, she replied vaguely, “Just don’t go to the back mountain and don’t get eaten by a wolf, that’s enough.”

The child then truly let down her guard, hugging her arm and waist and beginning to cling and act spoiled again.

But the child’s energy was ultimately insufficient. After a little while, her voice lowered, and she gradually fell into a deep sleep.

Even though she was asleep, the arm she was hugging around Qin Qingyi remained tight. She was even clinging tightly, even resting one foot on Qin Qingyi.

The night was tranquil, but Qin Qingyi was awake, unable to sleep.

She stared at the top of the bed curtains, and after a long while, she blinked.

The next day when Qin Qingyi woke up, the side of the bed was empty.

She reached out to touch it, and that side of the bed was already cold.

Where did she go?

Perhaps because she had slept too late last night, Qin Qingyi’s mind was a little fuzzy.

Just then, the sound of a sharp sword cutting through the air, along with Zhou Zhixue’s uneven panting, came from outside the door, right on cue.

Oh, she’s practicing her sword outside.

Qin Qingyi’s mind was still half a beat slow.

But why is she up so early?

She shook her head, threw on a robe, and got up to walk outside.

It was already the tail end of summer, and the middle slopes of Hidden Snow Peak were neither cold nor hot. She hadn’t washed yet, and her hair was messily draped over her shoulders, not tied up as it usually was.

Qin Qingyi reached up to pull the garment that was about to slip down, leaned against the door, and watched Zhou Zhixue practicing her sword in the courtyard, unable to stop herself from yawning.

“Senior Sister!”

Seeing her come out, Zhou Zhixue’s eyes shone brightly. She put away her sword and ran towards her.

“You’re awake?”

Stopping in front of her, Zhou Zhixue lifted her rosy little face, clearly in a very good mood.

Looking down at the child who was only slightly taller than the sword, Qin Qingyi paused, barely managing to control herself from laughing out loud.

It wasn’t that she deliberately wanted to mock her, but truly…

Ultimately, she managed to pull back the laugh that was already on her lips.

She nodded, confirming Zhou Zhixue’s question about whether she was awake.

“I’ve already swung my sword a thousand times!”

Zhou Zhixue said proudly, blinking her eyes, clearly waiting for praise.

A child is precisely at the age when they crave recognition and praise.

So, Qin Qingyi, drawing on her past experience raising young fox cubs in her clan, applauded with no real emotion, only technique, and praised her: “Aiya, how amazing! As expected of my little Junior Sister, not only is your talent high, but you’re also so diligent. It’s truly Master’s luck to have accepted you as a disciple~”

Zhou Zhixue was so praised that her non-existent tail nearly wagged into the sky.

But right after praising her, Qin Qingyi asked, “Why are you so diligent, getting up so early to practice the sword? Doesn’t the Elder usually teach you?”

Zhou Zhixue smiled brightly at her words, facing the morning sun, and explained: “Senior Sister, I plan to participate in the Inner Disciple Assessment two years from now!”