Transmigration! The System Wants Me to Pursue the Abstinent Senior Sister - Chapter 32

Qin Yiqiu naturally noticed his master standing nearby with a darkened expression, but compared to Luo Yunhuan, who was startled, Qin Yiqiu’s reaction was rather indifferent. This was just the kind of person he was unfazed by anything, as calm as an ancient well. So when others saw him with Luo Yunhuan, displaying expressions he rarely showed, it was as startling as seeing a ghost.

“Master, you’ve come.”

Having sent out a distress signal, Qin Yiqiu was not surprised that his master would rush over.

“This is the wilderness!”

Qin Wangyu took a deep breath, and it took a long while for him to force out those words through gritted teeth. Luo Yunhuan hung her head in shame, afraid that the sect leader might devour her alive.

After all, openly coveting someone else’s prized possession was an unforgivable offense.

“It’s nothing serious, and no one saw us anyway. Master, please don’t be angry.”

Qin Yiqiu stood up, straightened his slightly disheveled robes, and then bowed respectfully. He was always very courteous toward his master.

He had been an orphan since birth, raised by Qin Wangyu, who had even given him his name. To call Qin Wangyu his true father was not an exaggeration.

After all, the grace of upbringing often outweighs the grace of birth.

“I’m not angry…”

Qin Wangyu gritted his teeth until they creaked, finally suppressing his temper. He knew this was his disciple’s trial of love and that he shouldn’t interfere too much. But his eyes remained fixed intently on Luo Yunhuan.

“Do you think just because Qiu’er dotes on you, you can go anywhere you please? Even a forbidden place like the Lotus Pond, you dare to trespass without a care?”

In truth, the Lotus Pond wasn’t exactly a forbidden area far from as severe as Qin Wangyu made it out to be. However, the Cloud Sword Mountain Sect did have rules: picking lotuses and entering the water were strictly prohibited.

All of this was because of that gluttonous golden toad.

“I…”

Luo Yunhuan lowered her eyelashes, a feeling she hadn’t experienced in a long time. It was like being called out by the school disciplinarian for a one-on-one lecture in the hallway, her heart filled with tension and a touch of grievance.

She bit her lip so hard that it turned pale, presenting a truly pitiable sight that could soften anyone’s heart.

If it were someone more tender-hearted, whether man or woman, they might have refrained from further scolding. Unfortunately, Qin Wangyu was the type to reprimand someone severely, regardless of gender.

“Master, this is my fault. I failed to inform my junior sister that the Lotus Pond is a restricted area and didn’t stop her in time.”

But Qin Yiqiu stepped forward, his robes swaying slightly as he moved, carrying that unique sandalwood fragrance that never failed to bring an unparalleled sense of calm.

He bowed his head, looking as though he had committed the offense himself.

Yet, his tall frame shielded Luo Yunhuan perfectly, keeping her completely out of his master’s line of sight. It was clear favoritism.

Qin Wangyu was momentarily speechless. Honestly, he hadn’t expected his disciple to take the blame so readily, and all for the sake of this girl.

Though he was aware of the trial of love, he hadn’t realized its influence could be this powerful.

“This is not your fault!”

Qin Wangyu raised his voice, his tone turning fierce. Gone was the usual smiling tiger; now he resembled a man-eating tiger.

“If she hasn’t familiarized herself with the sect rules, she doesn’t deserve to be an outer disciple. And if something goes wrong, the responsibility shouldn’t fall on you.”

Qin Wangyu clearly wanted to devise a harsher punishment but hesitated, glancing at Qin Yiqiu with some uncertainty. Remembering that Luo Yunhuan still had more important tasks ahead, she decided it wasn’t the right time to impose excessive penalties.

With a soft huff of breath through her nose, she declared, “Go kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment.”

“You may only rest after three thousand long incense sticks have burned to completion!”

Three thousand long incense sticks! Luo Yunhuan was dumbfounded upon hearing this. Burning so much incense would surely ruin her knees before she could leave. But since this was the sect leader, she couldn’t openly defy the order. She could only press her lips together and nod in acknowledgment.

“This disciple understands.”

With that, Qin Wangyu vanished, leaving the two of them standing beneath the tree. Though Qin Yiqiu, as the young sect leader, held considerable authority within the sect, even she couldn’t overturn her master’s decision.

She could only look at Luo Yunhuan with a hint of regret. “I’ll take you to the ancestral hall. Don’t worry three thousand incense sticks won’t take too long.”

Luo Yunhuan:

Eldest Senior Sister, you make it sound so easy! For native cultivators like you, who can meditate for months on end, three thousand incense sticks might be nothing. But for someone like me, who could barely sit through a 45-minute class back in my school days, this is practically a death sentence!

Internally, Luo Yunhuan was already weeping uncontrollably.

“Don’t cry.” Qin Yiqiu found herself feeling somewhat flustered. Perceptive as she was, she could clearly see the redness forming around Luo Yunhuan’s eyes, a sign of her deep distress and sorrow over the master’s punishment.

“I have a way to get you out within seven days.” Qin Yiqiu extended her index finger and gently wiped away the glistening tear clinging to Luo Yunhuan’s eyelashes.

“Eldest Senior Sister, I know you’re capable, but three thousand long incense sticks, they can’t possibly burn out in just seven days, right?”

These were no ordinary incense sticks. Each long incense stick stood nearly half a person’s height and burned at an extremely slow rate. In the world of cultivation, they were primarily used for grand ceremonial rites.

If burned one by one, Luo Yunhuan estimated she’d be trapped inside for years before completing the punishment.

“Don’t you trust me?” Qin Yiqiu’s voice was gentle as she summoned her flying sword once again. As the saying goes, “first time clumsy, second time skilled” Luo Yunhuan had already grown adept at hopping onto the sword with ease.

Wrapping her arms around Qin Yiqiu’s slender waist, Luo Yunhuan pressed her cheek against the senior’s back, savoring the faint, cool aura that emanated from her. It was as if all the resentment from being reprimanded by the sect leader had dissipated in that moment.

“No, I trust you, Senior Sister.” The resolute tone of her reply took Qin Yiqiu by surprise. A slight smile tugged at the corners of Qin Yiqiu’s lips as she soared through the air on her sword, her mood noticeably lifted.

Though breaking sect rules was generally frowned upon, Qin Yiqiu felt a sense of guilt toward the woman clinging to her from behind. For her, bending the rules just this once seemed acceptable.

Qin Yiqiu guided the flying sword at a leisurely pace, as if deliberately savoring the moment, the gentle breeze brushing against their faces.

They soon arrived at the ancestral hall. The Yun Jian Mountain Sect’s ancestral hall was grand and divided into numerous chambers. A casual glance around revealed many disciples kneeling in penitence.

It seemed violating sect rules was a common occurrence. Luo Yunhuan breathed a sigh of relief, grateful she wouldn’t be the only one kneeling. Otherwise, it would have been terribly awkward for others to see her there while they came to offer incense.

As Qin Yiqiu walked through the hall, disciples from the enforcement division greeted her respectfully along the way, bowing and murmuring, “Greetings, Eldest Senior Sister.”

Qin Yiqiu merely nodded politely and made her way to the innermost room of the ancestral hall. This space was more refined, with a portrait and statue of the revered founder, depicted with flowing white hair, placed prominently within.

Luo Yunhuan sighed and resolutely knelt on the prayer cushion.

She watched as Qin Yiqiu retrieved several long incense sticks and inserted them one by one into the incense burner until it was nearly overflowing.

Luo Yunhuan:

So this was the method the senior sister had mentioned?

But by burning one long incense stick in this manner, it was as if hundreds were being burned at once truly achieving twice the result with half the effort.