The Cold, Aloof Senior Sister Deserves To Be Paired With A Peerless Beauty - Chapter 34

Today, she encountered a “dog.”

Since the day she took Mu Zhi to select her Dharma weapons, Chi Li and Mu Zhi had rarely left their place of cultivation. Mu Zhi had already achieved Inedia (fasting), so they only needed to focus on their cultivation.

Mu Zhi possessed high innate comprehension, so her cultivation speed was naturally extremely fast. Meanwhile, Chi Li, possessing memories of her past life, carefully helped her avoid trivial matters that might hinder her progress.

However, during this period, Chi Li constantly detected a trace of aura lingering around the boundary of the barrier, an aura so familiar it filled her with loathing.

Once Chi Li identified exactly who was skulking outside, she left for the duration of an incense stick. Upon her return, she buried something at the edge of the barrier before strengthening the formation.

Chi Li showed no mercy. While maintaining the protective nature of the barrier, she added an aggressive element specifically targeted at one person. Should Mo Fan approach within a hundred meters, he would inevitably suffer a backlash from the formation, ranging from a broken bone at best to a life-threatening injury at worst.

Soon enough, Mo Fan discovered the anomaly of the barrier.

However, since this was Chi Li’s domain and he had neither reported his presence nor been summoned by her, his constant loitering was inherently unjustifiable. Consequently, even when he was injured, he dared not tell anyone the truth.

Yet, Mo Fan remained hopeful. After several repeated attempts resulting in the same outcome, he became cautious and terrified with every approach, yet he never received a single shred of pity. He did not know that every time the barrier attacked him, Chi Li felt only one regret. She regretted that he wasn’t dead yet.

As for the Scrying Pearl that Chi Li had swapped out, it was not only useless in Mo Fan’s hands, but Chi Li had also placed a curse upon it. Whenever he attempted to use it to spy inside the barrier, he would immediately suffer a backlash, rendering him blind for half a day.

Perhaps knowing his actions were despicable, Mo Fan didn’t dare let Immortal Yilin or anyone else know. He could only pretend to be ill and rest in his room during his bouts of blindness.

On one such day, when Mo Fan’s world was plunged into darkness, he failed to realize in his panic that the person inside the barrier was standing right in front of him. Her expression was icy, and the killing intent surging in her eyes was like a tide threatening to drown him.

Despite countless urges to strike, Chi Li only tested a result that left her unsatisfied, no matter how hard she tried, Mo Fan would not die. Even when she felt the barrier’s power was enough to kill him, he would reappear outside the barrier three days later, completely unharmed.

Back and forth it went, as if he possessed an immortal body. Chi Li loathed it, yet she was entirely powerless against it.

Eventually, however, Chi Li discovered a potential breakthrough. Although the injuries from the barrier and the backlashes always recovered, the pain and damage inflicted were real unlike before, when she couldn’t even graze him with her sword.

After long deliberation, Chi Li finally realized the reason. The biggest difference between the two scenarios was that previously, she had initiated the attacks. Recently, it was Mo Fan who was actively approaching danger.

In short: Mo Fan only got hurt when he was actively seeking death.

Under circumstances where the Heavenly Dao did not intervene, Mo Fan was bound to be injured by the “law of the jungle” in the cultivation world. But the moment his life was truly endangered, the Heavenly Dao would step in.

It was both logical and nonsensical.

Thinking of this, Chi Li’s expression darkened, her eyes clouding over. Just then, a voice pulled her thoughts back.

“Senior Sister.”

The voice was sweet and laced with a smile. As Chi Li regained her senses, she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. The person was running fast, with an urgency mixed with joy that seemed to bring a touch of warmth to the surrounding cold wind.

Chi Li reined in her emotions. The moment she turned around, a figure threw herself into her arms. Chi Li didn’t push her away instead, she habitually supported the girl’s waist to steady her. A helpless, slight smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she spoke.

“Why the rush?”

As she spoke, Chi Li reached out to brush away a withered leaf stuck in the girl’s hair, unaware that their actions had become excessively intimate.

Mu Zhi habitually clung to Chi Li’s embrace for a moment before speaking with a smile. “I learned a new type of pastry.”

“Pastry?”

“The one you said was quite tasty last time.”

With Mu Zhi’s reminder, Chi Li recalled a pastry she had randomly selected from the many servants back in Phoenix City. At the thought, Chi Li’s movements stiffened slightly, only to hear Mu Zhi continue.

“But I couldn’t find much sugar, so I don’t know if you’ll like it.”

Hearing this, Chi Li secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She knew her act of hiding the sugar was childish, but she couldn’t stop Mu Zhi’s interest.

“Having less sugar is actually quite good,” Chi Li comforted her. Seeing Mu Zhi still deep in thought and fearing she might become suspicious, Chi Li quickly changed the subject. “Today’s cultivation…”

Before Chi Li could finish, Mu Zhi interrupted her earnestly. “I practiced well today.”

To prove it, she stepped out of Chi Li’s arms. With a flick of her fingers, she performed a decisive hand seal. Her long sword whistled through the air, every move carrying a sharpness similar to Chi Li’s.

The blade reflected a cold light. As the sword qi swept past, leaves rustled and fell around them like a rain shower. As the leaves settled, Chi Li looked at her.

Mu Zhi’s calm and collected expression gradually overlapped with a figure from her memory, the same pride, the same high spirits. It wasn’t until Mu Zhi sheathed her sword and turned to look at Chi Li that her innate arrogance melted into a bright, radiant smile that made even the distant sun pale in comparison.

Mu Zhi took Chi Li’s hand and spoke coaxingly. “Was my swordplay good?”

Chi Li snapped out of her daze. She didn’t reject Mu Zhi’s intimate gesture and chuckled. “Very good. Your strikes are beautiful and the sword qi is sharp.”

Coming from Chi Li, this was an exceptionally high evaluation.

Mu Zhi then hugged Chi Li’s arm directly, leaning her head on Chi Li’s shoulder. She mumbled, “I’m always worried I’m not learning well enough.”

“You’re already doing very well. Your cultivation speed is much faster than others,” Chi Li said.

“But I want to catch up to Senior Sister even more,” Mu Zhi replied.

Hearing this, Chi Li felt as if a feather had brushed against the softest part of her heart. The smile in her eyes deepened, like a winter sun melting ice into a pool of water, the ripples existing only for the person beside her.

“Am I not right here? You don’t need to ‘catch up’.”

“I do.”

Mu Zhi looked up, meeting Chi Li’s gaze with a persistence and seriousness that left Chi Li stunned. Then, as if remembering something, Mu Zhi looked toward the edge of the barrier and frowned. “Senior Sister has been coming here often lately. Are you looking for something?”

Chi Li hid the coldness in her eyes and smiled at Mu Zhi. After weighing her words, she said, “Lately, there’s been a dog barking outside the barrier. It’s annoying. But every time I come over, the dog slinks away dejectedly.”

Mu Zhi didn’t realize the “dog” was a person. She thought about it for a moment and asked, “Are there dogs in the sect?”

Chi Li took Mu Zhi’s hand and led her back toward their small courtyard, laughing. “There are. A new one was raised recently. That dog is quite fierce, you must stay far away from it.”

Mu Zhi showed no fear. She raised her sword enthusiastically and said, “If it’s a fierce dog, then it can’t be tamed. If it dares to jump out and bite me, I’ll stand my ground and skewer it with my sword.”

They chatted idly, like an ordinary couple talking after a meal. Chi Li listened to the girl beside her speak with animated gestures, her cold face holding a tenderness reserved only for her companion.

Under the high sun, the warm light bathed them as they walked home hand in hand. Within the undisturbed barrier, they accompanied each other from sunrise to sunset. When tired, they leaned on one another; they only had to look up to see the other in their sight.

That day, before the sunset arrived, the world was already bathed in golden light. The only sound was the wind brushing through the green grass at their feet. The lovely young girl gazed into the distance, looking at the same sky as the person beside her. She couldn’t see much, but in her peripheral vision was the silhouette of the other woman, tinged with a hint of loneliness.

After a long silence, Mu Zhi spoke. “Can we… stay here forever?”

Her voice held its usual smile, yet a sliver of hope was buried deep within, making it hard for others to hear the underlying meaning. In the distance, a goshawk soared past, its cry piercing the air like tearing silk. It spread its wings and vanished into the golden horizon before their eyes.

“Mu Zhi, you won’t be confined to just one place,” Chi Li said. Like that hawk, she deserved a much wider future.

Mu Zhi’s eyes lowered. After thinking for a while, she changed her phrasing, making it even more direct. “Then, will Senior Sister be in the place where I am?”

“Yes. As long as you want me to be, I will always be there,” Chi Li promised.

Chi Li did not realize that this seemingly ordinary promise was worth more than a thousand words; it was like a crashing wave that left the other’s heart unable to settle for a long time.

The twilight crept to their feet, turning the ground into a field of gold. Beneath their lowered eyes, both were lost in their own thoughts.

The peaceful days had lasted so long they almost forgot about the world outside. The sun that hadn’t yet set suddenly vanished, covered by thick, black clouds that blocked everything out. Muffled thunder rolled within the clouds, carrying an invisible sense of oppression.

Chi Li narrowed her eyes. After watching for a while, she turned to Mu Zhi. “Are you about to form your Golden Core?”

Mu Zhi nodded truthfully. “During cultivation today, I felt something was different from usual.”

However, the pale lightning remained hidden in the black clouds, refusing to strike. It was like a beast lying in wait for the perfect moment. As time passed and before any preparations could be used, the transmission jade charms at their waists chimed with an irrepressible excitement.

“The Secret Realm is about to open.”

Hearing this, Chi Li’s expression shifted. She looked at the lightning that still refused to fall, lost in thought.

Without Mo Fan’s interference, Mu Zhi’s cultivation speed was faster than in the previous life. Chi Li had originally thought Mu Zhi would successfully reach the Golden Core stage before the Secret Realm opened.

However, this small change still failed to escape the eyes of the Heavenly Dao.