After Faking Her Death and Escaping, the Junior Sister Fell to the Demonic Path - Chapter 53

“Then this Venerable One… will take your demon core for use.”

It was only as the words faded that Qin Qingyi slowly began to feel the pain.

It spread from her abdomen, a subtle, dense ache that seemed to penetrate her very bones.

She belatedly lowered her head.

Just in time to see the Venerable One’s white phantom hand withdrawing from her abdomen.

Although there was no wound, she felt the pain tear at her very soul.

And then, the demon core was extracted.

It was bright and lustrous, strikingly beautiful.

But seeing the demon core leave her body, fine beads of cold sweat broke out on Qin Qing’s forehead. The forceful extraction of the core caused a splitting headache.

She gritted her teeth and squeezed out a few words: “If you… need the demon core… just tell me… I… wouldn’t refuse…”

After speaking, with her demon core taken and her demon power depleted, Qin Qingyi’s eyes rolled back, and she fainted.

Seeing her unconscious, the Venerable One’s white phantom let out a soft laugh.

“What a silly fox.”

In Qin Qingyi’s last hazy view, she saw the figure holding her demon core and walking towards Zhou Zhixue.

This time, surely, her junior sister would be cured…

By the time Qin Qingyi woke up, it was the next day.

She vaguely recalled the past two days—she had been at Black Water Cliff, investigating the movements of the demon race. Then her junior sister came, and she was with her junior sister—

Where is Junior Sister?

How is Junior Sister?!

The thought made Qin Qingyi suddenly snap her eyes open and sit up straight, her voice laced with panic:

“Junior Sister!”

A huge, indescribable fear immediately gripped her heart.

Qin Qingyi’s breathing became rapid; she climbed up from the stone slab, her face pale.

Junior Sister……

“Stop shouting, she’s fine.”

A voice interrupted her.

Qin Qingyi looked towards the sound. She saw the Venerable One’s phantom standing not far away, with the still-unconscious Zhou Zhixue beside her.

Qin Qingyi’s heart immediately settled.

“Her Dantian has been repaired,” the Venerable One’s white phantom walked over when she saw her awake. “Half of your demon core was used, and the other half has been put back into you.”

Put back?

Qin Qingyi lowered her head, gently placing a hand on her lower abdomen, carefully sensing.

Sure enough, the originally radiant demon core was now only half its size, and her demon power was significantly weaker.

But at least her junior sister was saved.

Qin Qingyi felt much relieved at this thought.

If she had caused her junior sister to be unable to cultivate again, that would have been a truly great sin.

She got up and walked towards Zhou Zhixue. When she reached her side, she slightly bent her knee, placed her finger on Zhou Zhixue’s wrist, and felt the smooth and abundant flow of spiritual energy in her body. Qin Qingyi’s eyes curved into a smile.

That’s great. Junior Sister’s injuries are completely healed.

The Venerable One’s white phantom, seeing her expression of joy, couldn’t help but pour cold water on her:

“Although the person is saved, I must tell you that her current Dantian and meridians are entirely sustained by that half of your demon core. The moment you take the demon core away, her meridians will immediately rupture, and her magic power will vanish.”

“Furthermore, with half a demon core missing, your cultivation will also be hindered, and it will be much harder for your future cultivation to make any progress.”

The Venerable One’s voice was cool. Her eyes, deep and profound, watched Qin Qingyi, awaiting her reaction.

Unexpectedly, Qin Qingyi merely smiled easily upon hearing this: “Trading half a demon core for her boundless future is more than enough.”

“Besides, she was injured so severely because she acted on my reckless decision and took a fatal blow for me. I’ve only given her half a demon core; how could I ever take it back?”

As she spoke, Qin Qingyi gripped Zhou Zhixue’s wrist and looked up, her eyes filled with determination and not a trace of regret.

The Venerable One’s white phantom nodded, saying nothing more.

She had just experienced a massive depletion of spiritual energy. The phantom she was maintaining with spiritual energy was now much fainter, looking as if a gust of wind could scatter it, extremely fragile.

“As long as you don’t regret it.”

With that, she yawned, looking extremely sleepy.

Waving her hand, she adopted a gesture of dismissing them: “I’ve saved the person for you. When she wakes up, hurry up and get out. Don’t disturb my peace.”

Qin Qingyi, however, spoke up to stop her: “Venerable One, please wait.”

The other party turned back impatiently, speaking gruffly: “What else do you want?”

Qin Qingyi wasn’t intimidated by her, but instead chuckled: “Since the Venerable One is of the same clan as me, why the need for such an attitude?”

She was practically saying she wasn’t afraid of the other party’s dark look.

Hearing this, the Venerable One’s white phantom’s face grew even darker: “I saved your person, and not only do you show no gratitude, but you also provoke me like this. Aren’t you afraid that I’ll get angry and keep both of you here permanently?”

She used “this Venerable One” repeatedly, maintaining a very imposing stance.

Yet, Qin Qingyi was least afraid of people who were cold on the surface but warm at heart.

It was still the same point: if she were truly evil, why wouldn’t she have stood by coldly, or simply let the two of them die silently right here, from the moment they entered the cave?

The result was that she not only didn’t kill them but even offered a helping hand. Could Qin Qingyi possibly believe that such a person was evil?

How could that be?

She leaned in with a cheeky smile, becoming slightly more serious as she bent down: “Junior has one more favor to ask of Senior. I hope Senior will grant this small request, considering we are of the same clan.”

The Venerable One’s white phantom frowned: “What is it this time?”

Qin Qingyi turned to glance at Zhou Zhixue behind her, then looked back at the Venerable One: “Could the Venerable One please cast a spell on my junior sister to make her unaware of the demon core’s existence?”

The Venerable One’s white phantom frowned: “Why?”

Then, as if she realized something, she sneered: “You saved her with your demon core, and now you want to hide it from her, not let her know?”

Qin Qingyi spoke earnestly: “That is indeed my intention.”

“Junior Sister was injured because of me. I am merely doing my utmost to save her, which is what I ought to do. How can I let her feel guilt over what I have done?”

Qin Qingyi gently shook her head: “That’s no different from emotional blackmail. My Junior Sister cultivates the Path of Emotionless Dao. I don’t want her to be burdened by this. I hope the Venerable One can help.”

After she finished speaking, the other party showed no reaction.

Qin Qingyi instinctively looked up, sensing a complex emotion on the figure’s indistinct face.

She blinked: “So… is it possible?”

The other party was silent again for a moment, then said: “It is possible, but do you really intend to keep it from her?”

“Yes.”

Qin Qingyi insisted.

“Very well.”

The Venerable One’s white phantom raised an eyebrow, lifted a hand, and placed a restriction upon the distant Zhou Zhixue; a white light shimmered.

The Venerable One’s fingers moved slightly, and just as the restriction was about to be completed, she reminded Qin Qingyi: “Is there anything else you need her to forget at the same time?”

Qin Qingyi thought for a moment and said: “The memory of my demon race identity, please let her forget that as well. That way, it’s safer.”

The Venerable One’s white phantom nodded. The restriction was completed in one stroke, slowly descending and silently integrating into Zhou Zhixue’s body.

However, on the side unseen by both of them, a tear escaped from Zhou Zhixue’s eye corner.

It quickly slid down, disappearing into her temple.

“In ten breaths, she will forget your identity, as well as everything that happened in the past two days,” the Venerable One withdrew her hand and slowly said to Qin Qingyi.

“But you must remember, these memories are only sealed within her body along with your demon core. She can’t perceive them, but they are not completely erased. If one day her strength far surpasses mine, she will recall everything.”

Qin Qingyi nodded softly.

“That is already very good.”

To have her junior sister forget the experiences of the past two days, and also forget her own demon race identity, would lessen many ties between them. She believed this would also be beneficial for her cultivation of the Path of Emotionless Dao.

“Now you can think about how to deceive her when she wakes up.”

This time, the Venerable One’s white phantom did not give Qin Qingyi a chance to keep her, directly dissolving her form, leaving only her voice to echo in the air:

“I need to sleep. You two should leave as soon as possible. Do not disturb me without cause again.”

Qin Qingyi’s words were caught in her throat. Hearing the other party’s eagerness to send her away, she felt no disappointment. Instead, she bowed solemnly towards the cave entrance: “Qingyi thanks Senior for the help.”

But no one answered.

She wasn’t annoyed, knowing that the other party had been benevolent enough, and did not demand a response.

Walking to Zhou Zhixue’s side, feeling her peaceful breathing, Qin Qingyi took out her disciple token, wanting to send a message to True Person Wen Qing to come and take her and her junior sister back.

But she didn’t know where this place was. She had been disoriented when escaping and didn’t know the direction, let alone where she was now.

Perhaps seeing her scratching her head in frustration, a voice faintly spoke: “This place is the Inverted Mountain.”

Qin Qingyi’s eyes immediately lit up, and she looked up and thanked: “Thank you, Venerable One.”

Then, she sent a message to the Hidden Snow Peak.

“Master, please come quickly.”

She included the name of the Inverted Mountain.

Afterward, she waited with peace of mind.

“You are quite at ease, not anxious at all.”

That voice seemed unable to bear her composure. Seeing her carefree manner, it spoke with a tone of sarcasm.

“Now that you’ve lost half your demon core, you might never be able to advance your cultivation and will eventually exhaust your lifespan and turn into dry bones.”

Qin Qingyi was only silent for a moment upon hearing this, then retorted softly: “I never loved cultivating in the first place. This situation is just seeking one’s own peace. As for cultivation, plenty of people can’t even cross the Golden Core stage. I am already a Nascent Soul stage powerhouse, with the demon race and the Sword Sect as my backing. Even if my strength is a bit lacking, it makes no difference.”

“I used to gain cultivation simply by sleeping. Later, it was my own choice not to be that way, so my cultivation slowed down. With Mother in the demon race, I don’t need to do much. The same is true here in the Xuan Tian Realm. I just need to eat well and live well. Why must I strive to be the number one in the world?”

“Don’t you know that those who are number one are often the ones who die the fastest?”

Her murmuring words reached the Venerable One’s ears, eliciting only a sigh of disappointment.

“You are truly broad-minded.”

Qin Qingyi did not speak.

Feeling the demon core, which had shrunk by half, inside her body, sensing the sudden drop in her strength, and the barrier that had abruptly appeared on her cultivation path, she still slightly lowered her eyes.

It was false to say she wasn’t disappointed, but as things stood, the disaster was her own making, and the person was injured while saving her.

She had only paid half a demon core; it was already a very light price.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you, because splitting the demon core in half is a forbidden technique, and to ensure the demon core can exert its maximum power, this Venerable One has also placed a Gu on both of you.”

The Venerable One’s voice came again, still light and without any emotional fluctuation.

But the profound meaning contained in the words made Qin Qingyi suddenly look up.

“A Gu?” she confirmed.

“What kind of Gu?”

“Soul-Link Gu.”