After the Demon Lord was Reborn, She Switched to a Master-Disciple Romance Script - Chapter 22

Five years passed in the blink of an eye.

Zhu Jiyun spent these years in remarkable peace and tranquility. She and her Master cultivated and meditated together on Forgotten Solitude Peak. Under her Master’s guidance, she had already reached the early stages of the eighth layer of the Carefree Sword Manual.

Her cultivation realm had advanced from the Foundation Establishment Stage to the Late Spirit Silence Stage.

In just five years, she had leaped two major realms and showed signs of achieving Golden Core Formation. Even Xun Juexue, upon seeing such a talented disciple, couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.

Truly extraordinary talent.

One day, Zhu Jiyun went to see her Master as usual, only to learn that she would be leaving Forgotten Solitude Peak for some time.

“Master, are you going to Kangtuo again?”

Xun Juexue noticed her disciple’s unconsciously furrowed brow. “It’s been five years since my last visit to Kangtuo,” she said. “The matter remains unresolved, so I must investigate.”

Though Xun Juexue hadn’t visited Kangtuo herself during these five years, her Junior Sister had been monitoring the situation surrounding their former eldest disciple. Whenever the disciples went out for training, she always reminded them to pay close attention to any movements by Demon Cultivators.

Recently, her Junior Sister reported renewed activity near the Kangtuo border. Xun Juexue naturally felt obligated to investigate.

Zhu Jiyun remembered how her Master had left for just two months shortly after she became a disciple. When she returned, her lips were pale and dry, and she looked far thinner than when she had left. The memory filled Zhu Jiyun with heartache.

If I don’t worry about my own Master, who else should I care about?

Unable to dissuade her Master, Zhu Jiyun pressed her lips together, her expression earnest. “Then you must take care of yourself on this journey, Master. When the time comes, you absolutely mustn’t push yourself beyond your limits.”

Xun Juexue smiled, her demeanor as clear and bright as the moonlit sky. “I will be careful, of course.”

Zhu Jiyun stared at her, speechless.

I might as well just let it go, she thought. After five years, she’d come to understand that whenever matters concerning the world’s people arose, her Master would immediately sacrifice herself, forgetting all about self-care and caution.

The only comfort was that her words, as her only disciple, still carried some weight.

So she repeated her warning: “You must be careful!”

Seeing her earnestness, Xun Juexue’s heart softened. She reached out and gently stroked her little disciple’s forehead. “I still have a disciple to teach,” she said. “Naturally, I’ll take care of myself.”

The corners of Zhu Jiyun’s lips twitched upward.

That’s more like it.

Still, her Master sometimes treated her like a little girl, occasionally giving her a head pat. Zhu Jiyun still found it a bit awkward.

She reached up again to remove her Master’s hand from her head, holding onto it as usual.

The weather was sweltering, but her Master’s body temperature ran low. Holding her hand was wonderfully cooling!

After years of companionship, Xun Juexue naturally understood her disciple’s intentions. But since her disciple was usually so independent and capable, she didn’t mind the occasional moment of affection.

But she couldn’t indulge too much.

So Xun Juexue allowed Zhu Jiyun to hold her hand for only a moment before withdrawing it, saying calmly, “Proper decorum must be maintained.”

A disciple must always respect her master!

Zhu Jiyun understood her master’s restrained indulgence perfectly. She felt a slight pang of regret but resolutely released her hand.

“Master is absolutely right,” she agreed, ever so tactful.

The atmosphere was just right, but as she watched her master prepare to leave, Zhu Jiyun couldn’t help but worry.

Will everything be alright with Master gone?

She gazed absently at the scattered white clouds in the distance, her mind elsewhere.

With her master gone and no one else on Forgotten Solitude Peak, Zhu Jiyun considered her current cultivation level, which was stuck at the Golden Core Formation stage. She decided to descend the mountain and visit the Hall of Myriad Affairs to see if there were any suitable missions she could undertake.

Just as she reached the foot of Forgotten Solitude Peak, she ran into Ji Nianyan, who had come looking for her.

After hearing Ji Nianyan’s purpose, Zhu Jiyun nodded. “Since Headmaster Bai has already approved, you can check the Hall of Myriad Affairs for a suitable mission to the Human Realm.”

This “mission” was, of course, to settle old scores.

Ji Nianyan nodded. “I just wanted to ask, Sister, if you’d join me. If we pass through Liulan Mountain, we could visit Granny Zeng.”

When Granny Zeng’s name was mentioned, Zhu Jiyun’s expression shifted slightly. “Let’s go to the Hall of Myriad Affairs first,” she said.

The Hall of Myriad Affairs was where the Sect posted missions. Most of these missions came from disciples within the Sect. If they needed something gathered or a treasure found but didn’t have the time themselves, they’d come to the Hall, post their request, set a reward, and hang a notice. Then they’d wait for someone interested to take it on.

There were also missions issued by the Sect itself, usually involving punishing evil or promoting good. These were categorized into various levels of difficulty.

When Zhu Jiyun arrived, there were still some disciples in the Hall’s main hall. Those who recognized her greeted her as “Senior Sister Zhu.”

After all, Zhu Jiyun had become a disciple of Immortal Venerable Qingwu, making her seniority higher than most disciples.

Moreover, disciples of Immortal Venerable Qingwu still carried an enviable aura.

Zhu Jiyun glanced past the gazes and walked to the mission posting area.

She quickly scanned the other notices, focusing first on any missions related to the Human Realm.

Having not seen Granny Zeng for many years, Zhu Jiyun felt a lingering concern, just as Ji Nianyan had said. After all, time passed differently in the cultivation world. If she missed this opportunity, who knew when the next chance would come?

Before long, Zhu Jiyun found a mission that caught her interest.

“Cultivator missing?”

Xia Lianjiao had just leaned closer when she overheard Zhu Jiyun’s murmured remark. Her eyes lit up instantly.

“I know about this!”

Zhu Jiyun turned to see Xia Lianjiao. “Then tell me about it.”

Xia Lianjiao squeezed in, Han Banmeng standing awkwardly beside her.

“I heard that in recent years, some young cultivators sent to the Human Realm on missions haven’t returned. At first, no one paid much attention, but later everyone realized they had all disappeared without a trace!”

“Missions related to the Human Realm are usually quite simple and shouldn’t take so long. Their continued absence is definitely suspicious.”

“Zhu Jiyun, are you going to take this mission?”

Xia Lianjiao glanced at the mission reward: a thousand mid-grade spirit stones. Not particularly generous.

Zhu Jiyun picked up the mission wooden tag. “Compared to the others, I’m quite interested in this Human Realm mission.”

Ji Nianyan had already chosen her mission. Since her goal was revenge, she had selected a solo task.

The mission Zhu Jiyun had chosen required two to three people.

Xia Lianjiao stretched her neck and suddenly smiled. “Zhu Jiyun, can we team up with you?”

Zhu Jiyun glanced at Xia Lianjiao’s cheerful face and then at the somewhat reserved Han Banmeng. Her voice was calm. “I’m fine with either.”

Xia Lianjiao declared decisively, “Then it’s settled!”

After choosing their missions and completing the registration, they left the Hall of Myriad Affairs together.

Ji Nianyan’s solo mission was simple, so Zhu Jiyun didn’t bother to examine it closely. Instead, she focused on the description of her own mission, trying to uncover the reason for the two disciples’ disappearance.

As she held the mission plaque in her hand and glanced at it, Zhu Jiyun shifted slightly. Suddenly, Xia Lianjiao took a few steps away from her.

“Hey! Don’t even think about making me Team Leader,” Xia Lianjiao protested. “The plaque’s in your hand, so no slacking off!”

Zhu Jiyun stared silently.

She actually anticipated my move.

Lifting her eyelids lazily, Zhu Jiyun glanced at Han Banmeng beside her and abruptly tossed the mission plaque into her hands.

“Team Leader, it’s all yours.”

Han Banmeng was stunned.

Xia Lianjiao’s cheerful voice faltered.

She knew Han Banmeng’s personality well. Past experiences had made her timid and sensitive. Although there had been some misunderstandings between them before, once Xia Lianjiao realized Han Banmeng had mistaken gratitude for affection, the misunderstanding had been resolved.

Not to mention, it was because of Han Banmeng that Xia Lianjiao and Ji Chengyu had finally confessed their feelings to each other.

Ever since then, Xia Lianjiao had often invited Han Banmeng to join her in her activities.

Zhu Jiyun said without a change in expression, “Why are you looking at me? What? Can’t Junior Sister Han handle a simple three-person team?”

Xia Lianjiao didn’t mean that at all. She was just a little worried about Han Banmeng.

Turning to look at Han Banmeng, she saw the dazed look in her eyes fade away. Han Banmeng stared at Zhu Jiyun’s calm, almost matter-of-fact expression and unconsciously tightened her grip on the token in her hand.

Han Banmeng’s initial nervousness had surprisingly dissipated after seeing Zhu Jiyun’s demeanor.

“I… I can do it,” she said.

The corner of Zhu Jiyun’s mouth curved upward as she glanced at Xia Lianjiao. “See? Problem solved.”

Xia Lianjiao pouted, wanting to say, Just admit you’re too lazy to do it yourself and are dumping the work on others. But then she remembered that there really wasn’t much work involved for three people anyway it was mostly just a formality. And since Han Banmeng had agreed, she swallowed her words.

With the temporary team formed, Zhu Jiyun turned to Han Banmeng.

Han Banmeng seemed to understand the meaning in her eyes. She pursed her lips and asked, “Do you need to go back and pack? Since we’ve already accepted the mission, we should hurry and prepare to leave.”

“I don’t have anything to pack,” Zhu Jiyun said, patting the Cosmic Pouch at her waist. “Everything I own is right here.”

“Me neither!” Xia Lianjiao exclaimed. “Let’s get going then!”

Zhu Jiyun didn’t move. She glanced at Xia Lianjiao, a faint smile playing on her lips. “Aren’t you going to say goodbye to Junior Brother Ji?”

Xia Lianjiao’s cheerful expression instantly soured. “Why should I tell him where I’m going?” she huffed. “I’m not going!”

Zhu Jiyun’s eyebrows twitched slightly, her eyes gleaming with understanding. “So you two had a fight.”

Xia Lianjiao stubbornly denied it, her face tight. “Who said I fought with him?”

Ji Nianyan and Han Banmeng exchanged knowing glances.

“If you hadn’t fought,” Zhu Jiyun drawled, “you wouldn’t have come to accept this mission and joined us.”

With that, she stretched languidly and strode ahead, leaving Xia Lianjiao rooted to the spot, stunned by her words.

Turning her back on the others, Zhu Jiyun tilted her head back to gaze at the cloudless sky, a faint smile curving her lips.

If this world is a novel and the Male Lead is the Heavenly Dao’s favored son, then the Female Lead is practically the Heavenly Dao’s daughter-in-law.

Even if their fortunes can’t be evenly split, if Ji Chengyu gets eight parts of the Heavenly Dao’s favor and Xia Lianjiao gets two, pulling Xia Lianjiao closer might just let me fleece the Heavenly Dao’s wool.

Oh dear, why didn’t she think of this sooner?

While she couldn’t be certain if her fate could be altered, the progress of the Male and Female Leads’ relationship, combined with the Male Lead’s current status, made it clear that the original plot remained largely unchanged.

The only discrepancies were minor details involving her interactions with the Male Lead.

However, Zhu Jiyun had a theory about the past five years. Perhaps these changes were due to subtle deviations caused by her rebirth, compounded by her benefiting from her Master’s immense Fortune?

After all, by all accounts, her Master possessed the greatest Fortune in the Cultivation World at this time.

Though she no longer harbored the desperate desire to defy fate from her previous life, sometimes when she encountered a particular situation, she would casually take action, just a simple matter of convenience.

Thinking this, Zhu Jiyun suddenly realized she missed her departed Master.

Ah, if only I’d known Master was leaving, I would have snuggled up to her more.

After all, I’m her only disciple. Who else would she dote on if not me?

Zhu Jiyun thought with righteous conviction.

I’m Master’s only treasure!

Support After the Demon Lord was Reborn, She Switched to a Master-Disciple Romance Script