After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 43

“It’s me, Junior Sister.”

Qin Qingyi stood outside the door, her voice soft.

She had originally planned to find a peach tree to make do for the night, but when she passed by here, she heard subtle movements and voices.

There was also agitated spiritual power.

So, she decided to come over and check.

Since there was no movement inside, Qin Qingyi had no choice but to speak up: “Junior Sister, did something go wrong with your cultivation?”

Hearing the inquiry from outside, Zhou Zhixue felt relieved. She suppressed the coppery taste in her mouth and tried her best to make her voice sound normal.

Qin Qingyi then saw the candlelight flickering inside the room, accompanied by a rustling sound of clothes rubbing together.

After a moment, a voice from within finally replied: “No, thank you for your concern, Senior Sister.”

The tone was cold and indifferent.

But as long as she was fine, that was good.

Hearing Zhou Zhixue’s voice was no different from earlier in the day, Qin Qingyi felt reassured.

She turned to leave, but a gust of wind blew over, making her shiver from the cold.

The air on Hidden Snow Peak was still so crisp and clean, completely different from her cozy sanctuary in the demon realm.

Next time she came out, she would have to wear an extra layer; even a Nascent Soul cultivator wasn’t completely immune to the cold.

As she was thinking, the door was pulled open the next second.

Half of Zhou Zhixue’s hair was loose, and the other half was tied up high. She was still wearing the same clothes from the daytime.

It was clear she hadn’t slept yet.

Qin Qingyi looked at the suddenly appearing Zhou Zhixue in astonishment, momentarily speechless.

Zhou Zhixue also knew her action was a bit sudden. She pursed her lips before speaking:

“It’s late, Senior Sister. Why are you out and not resting in your room?”

Since she asked, Qin Qingyi naturally wouldn’t hide the truth: “There is only one bed in my place. If I sleep in it, she naturally won’t have a place to sleep.”

The implication was that she had nowhere to go tonight.

There were other residences on Hidden Snow Peak, but none had been cleaned, and she certainly didn’t want to go to those.

Zhou Zhixue naturally understood. Her expression shifted slightly, she lowered her gaze, and her voice was faint: “Senior Sister has nowhere to go tonight. If you don’t mind, you can share my bed.”

Qin Qingyi had been waiting for exactly that sentence.

“Of course, I don’t mind. Thank you, Junior Sister, for taking me in.”

After saying that, she moved to bypass Zhou Zhixue and walk inside.

However, Zhou Zhixue’s body, which was supporting itself on the door frame, suddenly stiffened because of her words. Her body stood rooted to the spot, unmoving.

To enter the room, Qin Qingyi had to pass her. Qin Qingyi tried, but couldn’t push her aside.

She was slightly exasperated and amused:

“What’s wrong? Was Junior Sister just saying that?”

“Do you actually not welcome me inside?”

She was the one who had just invited her to share the bed, and now she was the one blocking her entry.

What exactly did she want?

Yet, Zhou Zhixue’s face suddenly turned red. The dim candlelight shone out from the room. If Qin Qingyi hadn’t had a pair of fox-like eyes, she might not have noticed it in the nearly pitch-black surroundings.

Qin Qingyi immediately lost her annoyance and became intrigued instead.

Why did she suddenly blush?

Thinking of this, she directly asked: “Are you perhaps feeling shy?”

Zhou Zhixue did not show displeasure because of her words; instead, she looked even more bashful. A hint of difficulty flashed across her face before she spoke with effort: “It’s not that I don’t want to…”

“Then why is it?”

Qin Qingyi pressed on, giving her no chance to catch her breath.

Zhou Zhixue stammered a few times, then finally made up her mind and quickly blurted out the words: “Junior Sister was only focused on cultivation today, and the room is a bit messy. I’m afraid Senior Sister will mind.”

“I won’t mi—”

Before the word “mind” could leave her lips, Zhou Zhixue stepped back, closed the door behind her, and even slid the bolt shut.

“Please wait for a moment, Senior Sister. I will invite you in once I’ve tidied up the mess in the room,” she announced loudly from inside.

Qin Qingyi blinked, her outstretched hand suspended in the air.

She didn’t seem to have said anything about minding… right?

But in any case, she couldn’t go in now.

Seeing the busy shadow reflected on the window, cast by the candlelight, Qin Qingyi simply leaned against the column under the eaves, waiting for Zhou Zhixue to finish tidying up.

She rested her chin in her hand, her thoughts running wild.

Could it be that she was so busy cleaning her room today that she didn’t get around to tidying up her own?

Meanwhile, inside the room, Zhou Zhixue clutched her wildly beating chest, momentarily panicked and unsure of what to do.

First, she looked at the table and chairs. Zhou Zhixue frowned, finding them too simple and not worthy of Senior Sister.

The table and chairs currently in Senior Sister’s room were made of high-grade pear wood that she had personally sourced.

Zhou Zhixue frowned, put the long-placed, slightly wobbly table and chairs into her storage bracelet, and then took out a new set to place there.

Next, she looked at the bed. Zhou Zhixue’s face showed distaste; it was too small and too old, and not worthy of Senior Sister.

She was oblivious to the fact that this was the very bed she had been sleeping on since coming to the Sword Sect. It had been perfectly fine on normal days, but today she suddenly found it objectionable.

If the bed had a spirit, it would probably scoff at her for favoring the new and disdaining the old.

Unfortunately, while she had replacements for the table and chairs, there was truly nothing she could do about the bed.

Helplessly, Zhou Zhixue moved the luminous pearls (East Pearls) further away. This way, the room was dimly lit and less clear, making the bed seem less small and old.

After surveying the room one more time, Zhou Zhixue finally nodded.

It was clean now.

So, she opened the door and gestured to Qin Qingyi: “Senior Sister, please come in.”

Perhaps because she tidied up too quickly, a thin film of sweat beaded at her temples, which, paired with her slightly flushed cheeks, made her look particularly pitiful and charming.

Qin Qingyi, who had been waiting for a long time, looked at her, her eyes shifting, and in the blink of an eye, she was standing before her.

Qin Qingyi picked up a handkerchief and gently wiped away the bead of sweat, her voice so soft it could melt steel: “Let Senior Sister see what this room you worked so hard to clean looks like.”

With that, she smiled faintly, tucked the handkerchief into Zhou Zhixue’s hand, and turned to walk into the room.

Zhou Zhixue was left behind, holding the handkerchief, her earlobes quietly turning red.

She pursed her lips, followed, and closed the door securely before finally looking at Qin Qingyi.

“It’s very clean. Where was the mess you spoke of?”

Qin Qingyi commented.

Zhou Zhixue walked over, looking submissive: “I don’t know what conditions Senior Sister has been living in these past years, but since you’ve returned to Hidden Snow Peak, Junior Sister cannot let Senior Sister live simply.”

She intended to return the handkerchief, but Qin Qingyi had already taken off her outer robe and was about to take off another layer.

Zhou Zhixue froze on the spot, her breathing becoming shallow.

Having heard no movement behind her, Qin Qingyi turned around and saw Zhou Zhixue still standing frozen. She couldn’t help but urge her: “Hurry up and take them off. It’s already very late. If we don’t sleep now, the sky will soon be bright.”

Zhou Zhixue snapped back to attention and quickly turned her head away, but her peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of a white robe still lying on the bed.

That was…

After realizing what that piece of clothing was, Zhou Zhixue’s mind felt instantly struck by lightning. Her body reacted extremely quickly, and she immediately rushed over and sat down on the bed.

She sat facing Qin Qingyi. In the dimly lit area of the bed out of Qin Qingyi’s sight, Zhou Zhixue’s other hand fumbled frantically.

How could she have forgotten to put that away?

Zhou Zhixue couldn’t help but feel annoyed.

What would Senior Sister think if she saw it?

Senior Sister had only just returned; how could she be so unrestrained? If Senior Sister knew what she did every night…

Thinking of this, Zhou Zhixue’s expression turned grim.

She was afraid Senior Sister would find her disgusting, sickening.

No, absolutely not!

It absolutely couldn’t happen!

It would scare Senior Sister away.

At this thought, Zhou Zhixue’s face turned pale, and her heart immediately leaped into her throat.

Even her breathing became lighter and lighter.

However, she had sat down too quickly, and the robe was right in the innermost part of the bed, so she fumbled for a long time but couldn’t reach it.

“Hmm?” Qin Qingyi didn’t know what was happening. Seeing her move so quickly, yet still fully clothed, she couldn’t help but frown: “Why did you sit down without taking off your clothes?”

Zhou Zhixue looked tense, terrified that Qin Qingyi might notice something amiss. And since the person was now looking at her, she froze in place, unable to utter a single word of defense.

Fortunately, Qin Qingyi didn’t seem too bothered. After just one comment, she focused on taking off her own clothes again.

Zhou Zhixue secretly sighed in relief, but her hand dared not relax. She continued to observe Qin Qingyi’s movements while quickly fumbling for the item.

Not until her fingertips touched a piece of soft fabric, different from the bedding, did Zhou Zhixue’s spirit lift. She knew she couldn’t be mistaken.

She touched this undergarment daily; how could she misidentify it? So she quickly activated her storage bracelet and put it away.

Zhou Zhixue looked back again, confirmed that the garment had indeed been put away, and only then did she relax.

She looked up and saw that Senior Sister had completely taken off her outer robes, leaving only a thin, loose gown. Zhou Zhixue’s earlobes felt hot, and she lowered her head to begin unfastening her own clothes.

But for some unknown reason, she fumbled for a long time, not only failing to unfasten them but also tying them into a dead knot.

As a result, she grew more flustered and broke out in a sweat.

“Why are you still as clumsy as when you were a child?”

A light chuckle came from in front of her, rescuing Zhou Zhixue from her embarrassing predicament.

Qin Qingyi gently brushed Zhou Zhixue’s hands aside and took over the task: “Let me do it.”

Zhou Zhixue lowered her head, feeling somewhat dejected.

She stole glances at her Senior Sister, whom she hadn’t seen for many years, and gazed in a daze.

The luminous pearls were soft, illuminating the side of Qin Qingyi’s face like a piece of flawless white jade.

Zhou Zhixue couldn’t help but trace and outline her features with her eyes.

“What are you looking at?”

Sensing her gaze, Qin Qingyi asked.

It wasn’t that she had to ask, but the girl’s gaze was too blatant; those two burning looks were practically searing through her.

She couldn’t stand being stared at so intensely for so long.

“Looking at how beautiful Senior Sister is,” the girl answered honestly.

Qin Qingyi chuckled, her hands still busy.

Zhou Zhixue looked as well. The dead knot, which had been so tight, somehow became completely docile and obedient under Qin Qingyi’s fingers, and in just a few motions, the knot was completely undone.

Qin Qingyi replied: “Of course, Senior Sister knows she’s beautiful.”

She was naturally born with a stunning and gorgeous appearance, and she had been one of the top beauties in the Sword Sect even before. Ten years later, her features had only grown more alluring, easily captivating a person’s soul with every smile and movement.

Who knows how many hearts she had captured over the years.

Zhou Zhixue’s heart instantly turned sour.

“Alright, come over and sleep.”

Qin Qingyi felt like she was playing the role of a mother hen again; she came to borrow a room but ended up having to make the bed herself.

That was fine, but she had diligently made the bed and called for the girl to sleep, yet she was still slowly undressing and hadn’t come over yet?

Truly, it was like looking after a child again.

It seemed she needed to retract her previous thought that “Junior Sister has taken good care of herself.”

She even tied her clothes into a dead knot, suggesting her life these past years wasn’t great.

Qin Qingyi suddenly felt a headache coming on.

Under her slightly urging gaze, Zhou Zhixue finally slowly changed into her sleepwear.

“Okay, hurry up and lie down to sleep.”

Qin Qingyi urged her again.

She lay down first, leaving the outer side of the bed for the slow-moving Zhou Zhixue.

Zhou Zhixue lay down obediently, eyes fixed straight ahead. Since there was only one thin quilt, she was afraid of doing anything inappropriate while asleep, so she was especially tense. She lay on the bed, staring at the canopy above, not daring to say a word.

But just because she wasn’t moving didn’t mean Qin Qingyi wasn’t.

Seeing the girl lying down, she intentionally snuggled closer.

Not only did their bodies press together, but she also leaned close to Zhou Zhixue’s neck and ear, whispering softly:

“My good Junior Sister, is there nothing you want to say to Senior Sister? You ran away so fast during the day. Could it be that Senior Sister is some kind of monster?”

As soon as she said this, Zhou Zhixue’s body stiffened even more.

Her whole body was like a block of wood, lying stiffly on the bed.

She completely ignored Qin Qingyi’s question.

It was as if she truly intended to play the part of a wooden dummy.

Qin Qingyi laughed out of annoyance and couldn’t help but pinch the soft flesh on the inside of Zhou Zhixue’s arm: “I’m talking to you. Why are you playing dumb?”

Zhou Zhixue remained silent, looking at her with a wronged expression.

“Speak!”

“Senior Sister, it hurts.”