The Villainess Always Tries to Seduce Me - Chapter 42

What on earth was Bai Fenghe playing at now? Had she lost her mind to bring up the matter of marriage so out of the blue?

Though Yun Chuanzhi had thought about leaving the mountain, she certainly would not do so just to get married. She had not enjoyed her freedom nearly enough yet; being forced into such a cage would be worse than jumping off the cliffs of Mount Buxi.

In just a few moments, Yun Chuanzhi’s face turned from dark to pale, and then to a sickly green, before she finally let out a long sigh. “I do not want to.”

“Why not?” Bai Fenghe continued to stare at her, her gaze unreadable. “Is it that you are unwilling, or that you are unable?”

“Unwilling,” Yun Chuanzhi shook her head, picking at a piece of peeling red lacquer on a pillar. “The Sect Leader treats me very well. I do not wish to leave your side.”

Bai Fenghe sneered. “Stop talking nonsense.”

Had she realized how perfunctory that sounded? Yun Chuanzhi could only press the peeling lacquer back into place and act a bit more honest. “I do not want to marry. Marriage is the loss of freedom. I would rather grow old and die alone on this mountaintop.”

Eating delicious iced treats, feeling the cool mountain breeze, smelling the fragrant flowers, and being surrounded by a group of beautiful immortal servants massaging her back and legs until she died of old age; thinking about it, that sounded like quite a luxury.

“Even if I were to spend the rest of my life with someone, it should be someone I truly love, not just some random person of a similar age. That is too boring,” Yun Chuanzhi added, shaking her head.

Bai Fenghe nodded, her dark eyebrows arching slightly. “You have no one you love? Not even in the past?”

“None,” Yun Chuanzhi answered quite readily. There were not many living people in Wujian City to begin with, only demons, ghosts, and vengeful spirits. Where would she find someone to love?

Bai Fenghe did not ask further. She let out a faint smile, quickly shifted her gaze, and turned to continue walking.

It seemed she had dodged a bullet. Yun Chuanzhi breathed a sigh of relief and followed behind. Under the long corridor, only the rhythmic sound of their footsteps echoed as they walked one after the other.

Why did Bai Fenghe seem to be in a better mood after being rejected? Yun Chuanzhi jogged along, feeling puzzled.

Soon, Bai Fenghe tossed a silk ribbon toward Yun Chuanzhi. Once she gripped it tight, they ascended into the sea of clouds. Perhaps because the air was calm and windless, the usually gentle wind-riding technique felt even more stable than before, with no hint of dizziness.

They crossed the hundred-fathom cataract and landed on the main peak of Mount Buxi. The moment her feet touched the ground, Yun Chuanzhi felt remarkably refreshed; not even a strand of her hair was damp.

But Bai Fenghe did not seem like the type to be so slow and steady. She and Bai Xiaochen were from the same sect, so their wind-riding techniques should have been learned from the same teacher. How could there be such a huge difference? Could it be that she flew so steadily just for her sake?

The moment that thought cropped up, Yun Chuanzhi crushed it back down. She could not help but laugh at her own growing audacity. Bai Fenghe was a Sect Leader who was used to being arrogant and overbearing; why would she be so considerate for a mere immortal servant?

While she mocked herself internally, her feet had already entered the grounds of Mingcun Hall. The grand golden roof pierced the blue sky as usual. Today, the clouds were thin, leaving the golden roof fully exposed and dazzling under the clear autumn sun.

The light radiated outward, coating everything it touched in a faint golden glow, giving the place the appearance of a celestial palace.

“Sect Leader Bai,” a tall, blue-robed immortal cultivator with a high bun and a silver phoenix-tail hairpin stepped forward to salute. Her voice was clear and bright. “My Master and the other two Sect Leaders have been waiting for some time. Sect Leader Bai, please follow me.”

Behind her followed another woman with a face as round and bright as a moon, wearing a charming peach-pink short shirt. However, upon seeing Bai Fenghe and Yun Chuanzhi, her smiling expression immediately turned into one of sheer terror.

She clearly wanted to leave but did not dare to. She could only follow the blue-robed cultivator with her head bowed, not daring to look up.

Oh, isn’t this the little junior sister under Bai Xiaochen, Qi Rongyin, who was once scared to tears by Bai Fenghe? Yun Chuanzhi stood behind Bai Fenghe, quietly observing her.

“The Autumn Instruction is not until tomorrow. Why was I summoned today?” Bai Fenghe asked indifferently.

The blue-robed cultivator bowed and replied, “Sect Leader, the content of this year’s Autumn Instruction is slightly different. In addition to mental cultivation, formations, and Daoist techniques, a few other things have been added. That is why my Master invited everyone here to discuss it.”

“Understood,” Bai Fenghe frowned impatiently, her hairpins swaying as she strode into the hall. The blue-robed cultivator and Qi Rongyin followed closely behind.

Yun Chuanzhi wanted to follow as well but was stopped by two immortal servants at the door. They said politely, “The Autumn Instruction involves important matters. We ask that unrelated persons wait outside the hall.”

Yun Chuanzhi had no desire to listen to those long-winded immortal sect conversations anyway, so this suited her perfectly. She waved to Bai Fenghe, turned around, and walked into the endless Yizhenyuan garden nearby, which was filled with flowers and greenery.

Compared to her last visit, the courtyard now featured many flowers unique to autumn. Paths paved with pebbles crisscrossed through the garden, many of them disappearing into forest-like thickets of shrubs.

Yun Chuanzhi walked aimlessly along one path. After passing through two arched gates, the view suddenly opened up to reveal a vast, shimmering blue lake. Several white geese with intertwined necks floated on the water, occasionally taking flight and scattering pearl-like water droplets with their wings.

The place was very quiet. Yun Chuanzhi walked to a pavilion by the lake, intending to take a nap while enjoying the scenery, but as soon as she closed her eyes, she remembered what Bai Fenghe had said earlier and sat up abruptly.

It was not the marriage thing, but that phrase, “a lifespan as short as a mortal’s.” It was truly deafening.

A cultivator’s lifespan is closely tied to their cultivation level. The higher the cultivation, the longer they live. As someone in the Tribulation Transcendence stage, Bai Fenghe could easily live for a thousand or eight hundred years. If she one day reached the Mahayana stage and finally became an immortal, she would become one of the legendary “undying,” living as long as heaven and earth.

For the Yun Chuanzhi of a few months ago, a short lifespan would not have been a big deal since she was tired of living anyway. But life now was quite good. She spent her days eating, drinking, and having fun. If she really grew old and died after only a few decades, she would truly miss it.

Thus, Yun Chuanzhi sighed toward the clear lake. She took a charcoal pen from her small wooden box and began drawing a formation on the white jade floor of the pavilion.

She might be a bit of a “salted fish,” but she was still someone whose name was recorded in the history books of Wujian City. She knew quite a few shortcuts for cultivation. However, given the limited talent of this body, she was not sure if they would work.

Cultivation is like planting a tree. Beginners do not know which soil is fertile or how to use the mountain wind and rain. Even with guidance, it is easy to make mistakes and difficult to achieve success quickly.

But Yun Chuanzhi was different. She had long ago reached the state of being one with the tree. She knew exactly which root absorbed water, how much water was enough, and how that water traveled through the stem to reach the branches and bloom into flowers.

It took a full hour for the Spirit-Gathering formation to take shape. The complex and eerie lines had even spread onto the pavilion’s pillars. Yun Chuanzhi tossed away the half-inch bit of charcoal left in her hand, clapped her hands clean, and sat down cross-legged.

In just a short moment, the flow of spiritual energy in the mountains quietly shifted. Even the tips of the trees in the forest changed their direction, forming a protective wrap to channel the pouring spiritual energy.

This was the Spirit-Gathering formation that many Mahayana-level cultivators had never mastered. Once the formation appeared, spiritual veins converged and the local “Feng Shui” changed abruptly.

Yun Chuanzhi entered a meditative state, reciting her mental charms, and soon sank into the deep sea of her spiritual consciousness.

As time passed, the spiritual energy around her became increasingly active and dense. Her five senses were expanded by the spiritual energy, eventually encompassing the entire mountain peak and even showing signs of spreading further. In just one hour, the spiritual energy within her body had grown several times over.

“Senior Sister, why are all these birds flying toward Huangliang Lake? And there are so many shy mountain spirits we don’t usually see. Look, they’re so beautiful!” Qi Rongyin’s charming voice rang out from behind an arched gate. A hand brushed aside the vines hanging over the gate, and her moon-like face peeked through.

The person she called Senior Sister was the blue-robed cultivator from earlier. Her voice was much steadier as she replied with a smile, “It is indeed strange. I have been on this mountain for decades and have never seen so many mountain spirits.”

Those mountain spirits looked like semi-transparent mist, hopping around in mid-air, occasionally turning into points of light that vanished and then reappeared in the distance.

“It looks like someone is cultivating by the lake,” Qi Rongyin pulled her senior sister’s hand and shook it gently. “I want to go see who it is that can attract all the spirits of the mountain while cultivating.”

“Rongyin, if it’s an Elder undergoing a tribulation, it would not be right to disturb them,” the blue-robed cultivator consoled her patiently. “Let’s wait nearby instead. We can ask for guidance once the Elder finishes their cultivation.”

Qi Rongyin pouted, but she agreed. The two of them stepped quietly toward the lakeside.

“Why does that person look a bit familiar to me?” Qi Rongyin whispered, looking back at the pavilion.

Although Yun Chuanzhi was in a deep meditative state, she could hear the footsteps of the newcomers. Conveniently, the spiritual energy had just finished a full cycle within her body and had been absorbed into her spiritual foundation.

She rotated her palms through a final cycle and then slowly pressed them down. When she opened her eyes again, she felt as if even her fingertips were light and powerful. The impurities had been expelled, leaving her feeling refreshed all over.

If Bai Fenghe were here, she would certainly be shocked. Given the natural talent of this body, achieving such a cultivation speed was practically a fairy tale.

But Yun Chuanzhi was not particularly excited. If she were in her original body, cultivating for this long on a mountain as spiritually rich as Mount Buxi would have already seen her break through the Qi Refining stage. Actually, if it were her original body, even if she did not cultivate and just lay on the mountain for these few months, she would have broken through Qi Refining regardless.

But at least there was progress. One should not ask too much of oneself. Yun Chuanzhi had a very good attitude. She soon patted the dust off her clothes with satisfaction. The glowing formation beneath her feet dispersed with the wind, and the mountain spirits that had been feasting on her spiritual energy vanished silently into the void.

Everything returned to a quiet state as if nothing had happened. Yun Chuanzhi walked out of the pavilion and nodded to the two people by the lake. After seeing her face, Qi Rongyin jumped behind her senior sister like a frightened rabbit.

It seemed Bai Fenghe had truly traumatized the child that day. Yun Chuanzhi arched her eyebrows and smiled.

“I wondered which Venerable was cultivating here, but it turns out to be the immortal servant under Sect Leader Bai,” the blue-robed cultivator seemed to be a person of status, yet she was polite even to a lowly servant. “My junior sister and I came here uninvited. Did we disturb you?”

“No,” Yun Chuanzhi smiled as well. “I was just being lazy here. Seeing that the spiritual energy was abundant, I took the opportunity to cultivate for a while.”

The blue-robed cultivator walked forward, her voice soft. “I am a cultivator under the Grand Sect Master, ranked second. My name is Mo Liuzheng.”

“Venerable Liuzheng,” Yun Chuanzhi bowed. “I am”

“I know your name, Cui Ergou. You are quite famous,” Mo Liuzheng smiled as warmly as a breeze.

For her name as an immortal servant to reach the ears of the sect’s Second Senior Sister was quite a feat. Yun Chuanzhi gave a wry smile and corrected her, “The Sect Leader has now given me the name Yun Chuanzhi.”

“Yun Chuanzhi?” Mo Liuzheng was surprised for a moment, then showed a look of realization. “Mountains stand still, rivers flow, and the winds flatten the grain (Feng He). It is a good name.”

Was this their sect motto? How did everyone know it? Yun Chuanzhi pretended not to see the realization in her eyes and simply smiled to herself.

It seemed it was not she who was famous, but the rumors involving her and Bai Fenghe.

“The Grand Sect Master, the Sect Leaders, and the Elders still need to deliberate for a long time. I see it is now noon. Would you like to go to the dining hall with us?” Mo Liuzheng added.

Yun Chuanzhi waved her hands repeatedly. She was already this famous; if she went to eat with a group of cultivators, would she not be pierced by their stares?

“You two go ahead. I brought some food,” Yun Chuanzhi said, sitting on a stone by the lake. She pulled out a small ceramic jar and twisted it open. Inside were small bean-like pieces that looked like malt candy, smelling sweet and fragrant.

“What is this?” Mo Liuzheng was curious.

“A snack I made. I dried and crushed some vegetables and fruits, then concentrated them into these small grains. They are not only filling but also nutritious,” Yun Chuanzhi handed the jar to Mo Liuzheng, her eyes curving. “Want to try?”

Mo Liuzheng carefully tasted one, and then her eyes lit up as she nodded repeatedly. “Delicious.”

And so, one thing led to another. Mo Liuzheng and Qi Rongyin did not go to the dining hall either. The three of them sat together on a large rock, enjoying the breeze and snacking on the beans.

Although Mo Liuzheng seemed steady, she was quite talkative. As they ate, she spoke up, “Have you seen my Senior Sister lately?”

Yun Chuanzhi was stunned for a moment before realizing she was talking about Cheng Jinshu. She nodded. “I saw her just yesterday.”

Mo Liuzheng nodded, her eyes dimming slightly. “I haven’t seen her in a long time. She lost half her cultivation. I wonder if her life is difficult.”

Yun Chuanzhi recalled Cheng Jinshu’s daily carefree attitude and shook her head with a smile. “She is fine. She spends her days wandering about leisurely. Do you not see each other normally?”

“She is unwilling to see us. It was a rare occurrence to even catch a glimpse of her from afar on the day of the Sect Entrance Ceremony,” Mo Liuzheng sighed. “After that incident, a gap formed between her and us. Even if she encounters Master, she only turns away to avoid her and no longer bows.”

Yun Chuanzhi crunched a bean in her mouth. She recalled Cheng Jinshu when they were in Youji City. She had not thought much of it then, but now that she considered it carefully, she realized Cheng Jinshu indeed never proactively spoke to Bai Xiaochen. Even when Yun Chuanzhi begged Bai Xiaochen to save Bai Fenghe and Cheng Jinshu offered a few words of support, every sentence had been distant.

“After that incident?” Yun Chuanzhi became curious and asked tentatively.

Talking about this, Qi Rongyin’s fear had also faded. She emboldened herself to join the conversation. “It is about how Eldest Senior Sister was expelled from the sect a few years ago. The whole sect knows about it. You didn’t know?”

Yun Chuanzhi shook her head.

Mo Liuzheng reached out to try and stop Qi Rongyin, but once Qi Rongyin started gossiping, she was far too excited to be stopped. Her speech was faster than flowing water. “當年大師姐被逐出師門，是因為她偷偷在臥房飼養妖物！” (Back then, Eldest Senior Sister was expelled because she was secretly raising a demon in her bedroom!)

A demon? Hearing such a secret about someone close to her, Yun Chuanzhi was suddenly very surprised. Cheng Jinshu although she was a woman of character, she was fundamentally gentle and not rebellious. Why would she raise a demon?

As Qi Rongyin spoke, she seemed to recall the events of those years and actually shuddered. “In all my years of life and cultivation, that was the first time I ever saw such a high-level Great Demon. When it transformed into its original form, it blotted out the sun. The pressure was so intense that even my Master’s spine nearly snapped.”

Wasn’t Bai Xiaochen at the Mahayana stage? A Great Demon that even she feared was something Yun Chuanzhi had not seen in her previous life either. She could not help but be even more curious.

“How did such a demon end up in Cheng Jinshu’s hands, and why would she raise it?” she asked.

“According to Eldest Senior Sister, she picked the demon up. At first, she did not detect any demonic energy, so she just treated it as a pet. But later, the demon took on a human form. It was delicate and beautiful, acting very ignorant and pitiful. She felt a twinge of pity and simply released it back into the forest.”

“Who would have thought that the Great Demon later could not hide its animalistic nature and ate the villagers of several villages? That was when the truth came out,” Qi Rongyin said in a low voice.

“At that time, various Venerables from the sect went to capture the demon. When Eldest Senior Sister heard about it, she actually risked everything to block her fellow disciples. That was how my Master found out and expelled her from the sect.”

So, Cheng Jinshu had such a past. Yun Chuanzhi was so engrossed in the story that she lost track of time, until Mo Liuzheng gave a light cough.

“This matter is not honorable in any way. It is fine for you to know, but do not spread it around,” Mo Liuzheng warned Yun Chuanzhi.

Yun Chuanzhi nodded. “Rest assured, I certainly”

Before she could finish her sentence, the ground beneath her feet suddenly shook three times. At the same time, a sound like a thunderclap came from behind her. The lake surface, which had been as smooth as silk, rose in waves taller than trees. The white geese on the lake fled for their lives, flapping their wings as they scrambled ashore and disappeared into the patches of reeds.

Mo Liuzheng opened a giant umbrella to block the splashing water, which was the only reason Yun Chuanzhi was spared. The three of them turned around together to look toward the sky where the golden roof of the grand hall stood.

Mo Liuzheng said with a worried frown, “Could it be that Master and Sect Leader Bai”

“Are fighting again?” Qi Rongyin muttered, finishing the sentence.

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