After My Death, the Female Lead Breaks the Heartless Path - Chapter 13

When the sword came down, blood splattered across Wen Banxia’s face.

In a daze, she caught the collapsing, unconscious Xu Jingqiu and instinctively broke into a run. As she fled, she tried desperately to press on the wound, hoping to stop the bleeding but it was futile. The blood only flowed more sluggishly.

Fortunately, they encountered a passing cultivator, a sect elder, who happened upon them. He dealt with the malevolent cultivator and stabilized Xu Jingqiu’s condition. Taking pity on their plight, the elder brought them to the Duyun Sect and personally tended to Xu Jingqiu’s injuries. By a stroke of fate, this elder turned out to be an old friend of Xu Jingqiu’s parents.

“Alas, perhaps this is destiny,” the sword-cultivating elder remarked, shaking his head regretfully. “In that case, you may stay. Once the child awakens, I will test your spiritual roots and constitutions. But given the severity of her injuries, I’m afraid she may no longer be able to cultivate. What a pity.”

Xu Jingqiu’s parents had both possessed exceptional talent, and as their biological descendant, she was undoubtedly gifted as well.

About a month later, Xu Jingqiu finally stirred awake. As expected, her constitution was extraordinary, a once-in-ten-millennium Yang Extreme Body, the most ideal for cultivation. Yet, her spiritual roots had been completely destroyed, leaving her with no possibility of ever cultivating again.

Wen Banxia, on the other hand, recovered swiftly. She possessed a single water-element spiritual root, marking her as a prodigy in her own right.

Observing Wen Banxia’s stubborn insistence on staying by Xu Jingqiu’s side, and considering Xu Jingqiu’s background, the elder eventually relented under the pressure and nodded. “Very well, child, you may stay by her side. At the very least, you can assist her in some way.”

Wen Banxia let out a sigh of relief and wrapped her arms around the silent, bowed figure of Xu Jingqiu. Choking back tears, she whispered, “It’s alright, it’s alright… At least you’re still here with me. I have no one else but you now…”

Xu Jingqiu let out an almost imperceptible sigh and returned the embrace, murmuring softly, “Mm.”

After that, Wen Banxia became a disciple under the sword-cultivating elder, while Xu Jingqiu stayed with her in the small courtyard allocated to inner disciples.

Every day, Wen Banxia attended classes, while Xu Jingqiu remained in the courtyard, lost in thought, unsure of what to do or what she could possibly achieve. As a mere mortal, she stood out like a sore thumb.

She wasn’t the only one who felt this way. Outer sect disciples, unable to enter the inner sect, shared similar sentiments.

The inner sect offered superior living conditions and resources, which was why outer sect disciples strove desperately to join their ranks. The fact that Xu Jingqiu, a person incapable of cultivation, resided in the inner sect naturally bred resentment.

Moreover, although Wen Banxia had joined the sect late, her exceptional talent allowed her to quickly catch up with disciples who had been cultivating for years, inciting envy in many.

Unable to target Wen Banxia directly, these discontented individuals turned their attention to Xu Jingqiu. However, openly harassing a defenseless mortal was beneath their dignity. Even if they refrained, there were always others willing to take action.

One day, as usual, Wen Banxia left for her classes. In her mind, the sect was a safe place where no one would harm Xu Jingqiu, so she bid her farewell and departed without worry.

Shortly after she left, a knock sounded at the courtyard gate.

Xu Jingqiu knew that if Wen Banxia had returned, she wouldn’t have knocked so forcefully. Whoever was doing this definitely meant no good.

Cautiously, Xu Jingqiu picked up the iron sword Wen Banxia had left for her protection. Just then, the door burst open, and a group of outer sect disciples stormed in aggressively, demanding she leave the place “knowing what was good for her.”

But she had nowhere else to go, and her staying here had been approved by the sect leader himself. When Xu Jingqiu refused, they attacked without hesitation.

Recalling the swordsmanship her father had taught her in her childhood, Xu Jingqiu, who had never fought anyone before, picked up the sword for the first time in her life and fought back with all her might.

By the time Wen Banxia, who had inadvertently received word of the situation, rushed back, the assailants had already been subdued. However, Xu Jingqiu’s condition was far from good.

The elder was furious when he learned of the incident. Outer sect disciples were strictly forbidden from entering the inner sect unless someone had granted them unauthorized access.

He resolved to investigate the matter thoroughly, but in the end, nothing came of it. Wen Banxia and Xu Jingqiu only knew that the elder had been enraged that day, yet no results followed.

“The instigator is one of the candidates chosen by the sect leader to succeed him. The sect leader is protecting her, so I can’t touch her,” the elder sighed, seeming to have aged considerably. “If you want justice and to prevent such things from happening again, you must also become one of the candidates for Young Sect Leader.”

Wen Banxia nodded, determined to secure that position. It was also on that day that she learned the elder, in order to protect Xu Jingqiu, had promised the sect leader to contribute double the amount of spirit stones every year.

The sect leader had long been dissatisfied. To him, allowing an ordinary person with no cultivation ability into the sect was a stain on its reputation.

From then on, Wen Banxia doubled her efforts in cultivation. One day, returning to the courtyard early during a break, she accidentally discovered Xu Jingqiu’s exceptional talent for swordsmanship.

When the elder learned of this, he personally took up a sword to train Xu Jingqiu. To his astonishment, she could replicate his entire sword form with near-perfect accuracy after just one demonstration. Overjoyed, the elder immediately accepted her as an unofficial disciple. After she defeated the top outer sect disciple, she earned the right to reside in the inner sect.

As for Wen Banxia, she defeated the disciple who had initially caused trouble and became one of the candidates for Young Sect Leader.

That year, during the New Year, they were finally able to go down the mountain together. Once again, they stepped into the lively, mundane streets despised by cultivators, where they could still feel a trace of the warmth of home.

“Back then, as soon as we reached the street, you pestered me to buy you a stick of candied hawthorn. You ate it while crying,” Wen Banxia said, her gaze drifting toward the street vendors as if lost in a daze. “When we were young, Mother only let you have one stick a month, afraid you’d get cavities. So, every New Year, you’d beg me to secretly buy you an extra one to eat on the sly.”

“Once, we got caught, and Mother was furious. She made us stand in the snow as punishment, but it wasn’t long before she felt sorry for us and let us back inside, worried we’d freeze.”

“That time, it felt like the last time we ate it together.”

Xu Jingqiu licked the sugary coating, no memory of it remaining. “Really? But I don’t remember. So why was I crying back then?”

Wen Banxia watched her dreamily reach out to pat her head, but her hand paused midway. In that moment, she sensed a dangerous aura someone was glaring at her, seething with jealousy. “Perhaps she’s homesick,” she thought. “We had been away from home for far too long by then.”

Xu Jingqiu suddenly bit into something sour and realized she had finished the sugary coating, leaving only the tart hawthorn beneath. Just as Wen Banxia was about to offer to help, someone abruptly appeared beside Xu Jingqiu, blocking her hand. The newcomer took away the sugar-coated hawthorn skewer without its sweet shell and handed her a new one. “Eat less sugar,” they said.

Yet, despite those words, they couldn’t bear to let her taste the sourness.

Wen Banxia couldn’t hold back an eye roll. “Do you really have to be so guarded against me?”

Yin Ruolan took a bite of the hawthorn skewer, wincing at the sourness, and replied earnestly, “Yes, I do. Who knows what ulterior motives you might have?”

Wen Banxia: …

“Are you done talking? If so, I’m taking her away.” Even as she spoke, Yin Ruolan had already grabbed Xu Jingqiu’s arm, ready to make a quick exit.

Xu Jingqiu patted her hand, signaling her not to rush. She still had a few questions to ask. “Who told you about my memories?”

“The people from Tianzhi,” Wen Banxia replied. “Are you really alright? They said it would be best for you to seek treatment.”

Xu Jingqiu waved her hand dismissively. She had a rough idea of what “Tianzhi” was but wasn’t particularly concerned about herself. “No need. It’s been a long time there’s no point in worrying about it now.”

Wen Banxia tried to persuade her further. “But…”

“It can’t be cured. This is the price I paid, so I’ve let it go. Sometimes, forgetting is for the best, don’t you think?” Xu Jingqiu lowered her gaze, her voice calm. “People like us only have one ending.”

“Either we die on the battlefield, or we’re tormented by painful memories for eternity. We’ve all lost something important, I just don’t remember what it was.”

As Xu Jingqiu spoke, both of them thought they saw a flash of crimson in her golden eyes or perhaps it was just an illusion.

Without another word, Xu Jingqiu took a bite of the skewer, sugar coating and hawthorn together. First came the sweetness, followed by the sourness, a sensation that mirrored her feelings whenever this topic arose.

The Seven Kings of the Otherworld were beings capable of rivaling gods, and their golden eyes were a symbol of that. They hadn’t become kings because they possessed golden eyes; rather, they gained those eyes after losing something and ascending to kingship.

When the golden eyes were completely overtaken by blood-red, it signaled the fall of a king.

Wen Banxia fell silent, then stole a glance at Yin Ruolan, only to find her staring back. She mouthed the words, “We’ll discuss this later.”

Yin Ruolan’s eye twitched, suppressing the urge to hit someone. She reached out and took Xu Jingqiu’s hand. “Do you want to go back?”

Coincidentally, Xu Jingqiu felt a bit tired and nodded, calling for Xiao Bai to return. “Yes, I’m a little weary.”

Upon hearing this, Yin Ruolan scooped her up in a bridal carry. “Then let’s go back.” With that, they vanished.

Wen Banxia stood still for a moment, lost in thought, before sighing bitterly and returning to her room to wait patiently. Sure enough, within the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, Yin Ruolan arrived, making herself at home as she sat across from her. “She’s asleep now, and sleeping soundly.”

“So, can you tell me now?”

Wen Banxia didn’t answer immediately, instead weighing the pros and cons in her mind. Soon, her concern for Xu Jingqiu overrode her internal calculations: “She was injured before.”

Yin Ruolan immediately thought of the sword strike she had delivered back then.

Wen Banxia naturally knew what she was thinking and ultimately told her the truth: “It wasn’t your sword strike, but an injury she sustained at some unknown time before that, which never fully healed. One of the symptoms is the fading of her memories.”

“At first, I thought the memory loss was related to the injury, but now I have a new theory.”

Yin Ruolan knew exactly what she meant: “That price, right? Why would Tianzhi tell you all this?” Instead of coming to her?

Wen Banxia raised an eyebrow and shrugged: “Who knows?”

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