There Is No Romance Between Me And My Junior Sister - Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The next day, the preliminary arena matches at the Tianwaitian Discourse Assembly were still in full swing. Since every match was a one-on-one duel, it was estimated to take at least three or four days to conclude this stage.

Fortunately, Shang Can and Yun Duan had both been scheduled for the first day, sparing them much of the tedious waiting.

Cultivators who had already finished their matches weren’t strictly required to watch the remaining duels, but Shang Can showed up anyway. Her real goal was to meet up with Wan Shao naturally and discuss the previous night’s events.

That’s basically what happened. Do you have any leads?”

“Hmm, vanished into thin air?” Wan Shao, who had lived a long time and seen much of the world, rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Did you see their face?”

“No.” Shang Can shook her head. “They wore a mask the whole time.”

“Well, that makes it hard to guess.”

Wan Shao furrowed her brows and leaned closer to Shang Can, whispering: “It’s highly likely it wasn’t a real person, probably just an empty shell or a ‘skin.’ There are too many spells like that—not just the crooked paths of demonic cultivators, but even the righteous sects have them. Tianwaitian has puppetry, the Luoxuan Sect has paper-warriors… even your Qingyu has Spirit Summoning, right?”

 Shang Can sighed and leaned back. “So, no leads then.”

“That’s because you gave me too little information!” Wan Shao felt slightly offended and stuck her hand out as if to prove her worth. “Didn’t you say you brought back those clothes? Let me see them!”

“I don’t have them.”

Shang Can turned her head away, suddenly appearing intensely interested in the duel on stage.

“They’re not with me.”

There was no helping it. Since both she and Yun Duan were present at the scene—and regardless of whether you measured by (apparent) martial prowess or reputation—Yun Duan far outranked her. Such a crucial piece of evidence naturally had to be kept by Yun Duan.

“They might have already been handed over to the Sect Leader of Tianwaitian for all I know.”

She spoke nonchalantly. Wan Shao’s face went through a brief internal conflict before she finally slumped back into her chair in defeat.

“Fine, fine. If they can figure it out, that works too. Saves me the brainpower.”

“Also!” Wan Shao suddenly snapped her head back, her eyes burning as she stared at Shang Can. “How do you keep running into Yun Duan? Nothing… happened, right?”

Shang Can didn’t answer immediately. She slowly poured herself a cup of tea. She didn’t drink it; she just held the cup, gently swirling the liquid while keeping her eyes lowered.

Nothing happened.

After eating the roast chicken last night, she and Yun Duan returned to Tianwaitian without any trouble. When they parted, they just gave each other a plain nod and went their separate ways. It felt like a perfectly ordinary outing where they just happened to run into each other. There was nothing worth mentioning.

But the fact that nothing happened was exactly what made it strange.

Her behavior yesterday was clearly suspicious. She was caught by Yun Duan during her second attempt to scout Tianwaitian, and after being let out, she headed straight for the “Canzhe” in the outskirts. Even those two moves she exchanged with the imposter—though she had hidden her strength and used no spiritual energy—were suspicious. A cultivator who flies a sword so clumsily should not have been able to coordinate so perfectly with the Lord of the Clouds’ strikes.

Yet, Yun Duan asked nothing.

Not about Shang Can’s purpose, nor her strength. Yun Duan accepted everything as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Though Yun Duan was a woman of few words, she had always been meticulous and observant. Treating a suspicious stranger this way… was completely irrational.

Shang Can’s gaze darkened. She spoke in a low voice.

“…The report we heard earlier, that she has forgotten everything—can we be absolutely sure it’s true?”

“I wouldn’t joke about something like that!”

Realizing the implication of Shang Can’s question, Wan Shao’s eyes widened in alarm. She frowned, mentally double-checking her sources, and then nodded firmly.

“There’s no mistake.”

She cautiously scanned the surroundings and lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper: “It was your Master who personally sealed her memories. There’s a strict order across Qingyu forbidding anyone from mentioning you in her presence. My spies in the Underworld didn’t even have to work hard for this; any Qingyu disciple from that time knows about it.”

“If you’re still worried, there are plenty of Qingyu cultivators here. Why don’t we—”

“No need.”

Shang Can closed her eyes and slowly drained her tea.

“…I’m likely just overthinking it.”

After all, Yun Duan had said last night that she couldn’t quite remember. There was no reason for her to lie.

As for the reason behind Yun Duan’s attitude…

Shang Can pursed her lips, a sudden sense of indifference washing over her.

Forget it.

Whatever the reason, this version of Yun Duan was far more convenient for her than a strictly impartial one. If it was a good thing, why dig for the roots?

Their interaction would only last until the Discourse Assembly ended—or rather, until the moment Shang Can seized the Heart-Dao Lotus Seed.

Aside from the fake Canzhe incident, there were only two things she needed to focus on: winning the lotus seed and breaking the Tianwaitian barrier so Wan Shao could leave.

Everything else… let nature take its course.

Having reset her mindset, Shang Can decided to handle things professionally.

However, if she wanted to settle the matter of the fake Canzhe, she couldn’t bypass Yun Duan. The imposter’s clothes were in Yun Duan’s possession, and Shang Can was still wondering if any clues could be found on them.

She decided that since things had reached this point, she might as well be direct. The sooner it was settled, the better. She would go find Yun Duan and ask. After all, as one of the participants in last night’s fight, asking for a follow-up was perfectly logical.

But as soon as the thought occurred to her, Shang Can realized a major problem—she had no idea where to find Yun Duan.

Right… every time I ran into her, she just appeared out of nowhere. Now that I actually want to find her, I have no clue where she stays.

Hoping that Yun Duan might come to watch the arena matches, Shang Can sat in front of the stage for the entire morning. She drank three and a half pots of Tianwaitian’s “Cloud-Mist Tea” but didn’t catch so much as a glimpse of Yun Duan.

By the time the sun was high and the midday bell rang, Shang Can slowly stood up and took a long, lazy stretch. She nudged Wan Shao, who was fast asleep on the stool next to her.

“Ugh, these matches are so dull.” Wan Shao yawned, her eyes bleary. “If this is the standard, you could probably just go snatch the prize right now… Oh, it’s lunchtime.”

At the mention of food, she immediately perked up and headed happily toward the Tianwaitian dining hall, not forgetting to beckon Shang Can.

“Hurry up! Free food!”

“Coming, coming.”

Shang Can was in no mood to tease the great Demon Lord of the Underworld for being so excited about a few free meals. Her mind was still occupied with how to locate Yun Duan.

Should I sneak out again tonight? It wasn’t a bad idea. Even if she didn’t run into Yun Duan, she could check the outskirts again for clues. But she risked running into other patrols, and she doubted anyone else would be as easy-going as the strangely tempered Yun Duan.

By the time she snapped out of her thoughts, she was already holding a tray. The dining hall was spacious but crowded. In addition to the Tianwaitian disciples, there were all the participants of the Discourse Assembly. The line was long, and vacant seats were scarce.

Fortunately, she saw Wan Shao, who had already claimed a table, waving at her vigorously. Trust the food-loving Demon Lord to be impeccably prepared.

She sat down across from Wan Shao and began picking at the standard Tianwaitian meal with a look of distaste. It hadn’t improved at all since her student days—consistently bland. It couldn’t even compare to the roast chicken she made yesterday. She wondered how Wan Shao could eat it with such gusto.

As she was marveling at the unique palate of the demon race, a few low gasps rippled through the hall, followed by a sudden hush.

Shang Can noticed that even the cultivators at the neighboring table had suddenly started eating much more politely.

She and Wan Shao exchanged a look and pricked up their ears, filtering through the whispered murmurs of the crowd.

“It’s Lord Yushan!”

“It’s my first time seeing him in person… truly a refined gentleman…”

“Is the ‘Feng Shui’ in Qingyu just better than ours? Why do they always produce such… beautiful cultivators?”

“Well, maybe the food in Qingyu is different from ours…”

So even the Tianwaitian disciples think their food sucks.

Shang Can wanted to laugh but forced a neutral expression. She looked around blankly and asked the sour-faced Wan Shao.

“…Who is Lord Yushan? Does Qingyu even have such a person? Is he new?”

Wan Shao stared at her as if she were some bizarre specimen. Her lips parted, and she whispered in disbelief: “You… you don’t know Lord Yushan?”

“Should I…?”

Shang Can asked innocently. She searched her memory but found nothing. Honestly, aside from being familiar with the fact that Yun Duan was called the Lord of the Clouds, she knew almost nothing about the titles of others from Qingyu—

“It is merely a hollow title. It is only natural that this Fellow Daoist does not know.”

A warm male voice suddenly came from across the table. Shang Can’s entire body stiffened as a very bad premonition washed over her. Across from her, Wan Shao’s expression became extremely complex as she tried her best to signal Shang Can with her eyes.

Before Shang Can could decode the frantic blinking, another person stepped up beside her. She had changed her clothes today—no longer the familiar white silk, but still in white, with a faint pattern of green bamboo. Her green jade plaque hung neatly at her waist, her posture as straight and disciplined as ever.

A familiar cold fragrance drifted over. Shang Can’s throat tightened, and she swallowed a large mouthful of rice dryly, making her wince.

“Drink some water.”

A cup was pushed toward her hand. Shang Can didn’t pick it up immediately. She slowly raised her head.

Yun Duan, holding a tray, was looking at her calmly. Her ice-carved features were unruffled. She gave a slight nod as a greeting and pushed the cup closer, repeating: “Drink.”

In a state of mental chaos, Shang Can took a sip of water. Only then did she hear a satisfied “Mhm” from Yun Duan.

“Aside from this table, there seem to be no other vacant seats. Would you mind if the two of us joined you?”

The strangely familiar male voice spoke again. Shang Can finally remembered there was a second person. She quickly reined in the mind that had been scattered by Yun Duan’s appearance. Thinking fast, she looked up: “Not at all, please—”

“That’s wonderful.” Lord Yushan nodded genially, set down his tray, and gave a friendly smile. “I am Chu Ming of Qingyu.”

The refined face before her slowly merged with her memory of the hardworking friend at Qingyu who used to help her cover up her truancy and let her copy his homework. Shang Can barely managed to swallow her gasp of horror. Even after the two of them sat down, she couldn’t fully process it, causing Yun Duan—who was now sitting beside her—to glance at her several times.

S-so Chu Ming’s title is Lord Yushan! This is the first I’ve heard of it!

Maybe she had heard it back at Qingyu and just completely forgotten.

Shang Can finally understood what Wan Shao’s weird behavior meant. She looked at Wan Shao, who was currently burying her face in her rice. She could practically hear the message: “Where were you when I was trying to warn you? I’m helpless now.”

I’m really making things hard for myself. Shang Can chewed her rice silently, worried she would get a stomach ache after this meal.

Even if Yun Duan didn’t remember her, Chu Ming’s memories weren’t sealed. Although she was wearing a mask… she had to be extremely careful.

Originally, when the Underworld spies reported that Chu Ming would be attending the assembly, Shang Can had planned to avoid him entirely. Yet here she was, before the second round of matches was even over, sitting at the same table with both Yun Duan and Chu Ming.

Shang Can sighed deeply in her heart and stuffed a forkful of scrambled eggs into her mouth.

Pah. There’s eggshell in this.