Chapter 46.2

A golden light tore through the pitch-black spiritual vein. Chi Lu floated in mid-air as countless invisible hands reached up from below, trying to grasp her.

She flipped her hand and formed a seal, sending the wailing spirit creatures into the nearby spiritual vein.

As soon as the spiritual vein was disabled, the evil energies scattered in all directions, some attacking the Cloud Boat, while others lunged at Xu Shiling and Jing Luoyun.

Chi Lu raised her hand, and the barrier swiftly moved upward, lifting them to the outer edges of the cultivation world.

As she flipped and ascended, she heard Jing Luoyun shout, “Sister Yun!”

There was no one beside him; a small figure had fallen outside the barrier, plummeting continuously.

Chi Lu gritted her teeth, flew forward, and sent out her long whip, wrapping it around Yun Pianpian’s waist.

“Don’t move,” she commanded, then used her spiritual power to lift the two back up.

As she pulled Yun Pianpian upward, Chi Lu noticed the stunned expression on her face. The perpetually fake smile on that face showed cracks for the first time.

Ripping open the space, they escaped from the spiritual vein. Chi Lu, panting heavily, pressed her fingers together and commanded, “Close!”

The void let out a creaking scream as the rift slowly and heavily closed. The evil energies squeezed out from the gap were frantically slashed down by Jing Luoyun.

He shrieked in fear at the sight of the black evil energies, but luckily, he was unharmed.

Chi Lu collapsed onto the ground, leaning against the soft Cloud Boat. She took a deep breath, then retrieved a medicine bottle from her space pouch to replenish her spiritual energy.

The sound of Yun Pianpian’s crying reached Chi Lu’s ears. The young girl clung to Jing Luoyun, wiping her tears with his sleeve while continuously voicing her fears and helplessness.

A faint glow appeared at the tip of the Red Soul Whip—it was Xu Shiling after leaving the spiritual vein. She was barely maintaining her soul using the techniques of the Linghua Sect, but once outside the spiritual vein, her form dispersed.

Chi Lu carefully placed Xu Shiling into a warm jade vessel and struggled to stand. She lifted a bright lamp formed from condensed spiritual energy.

“Everyone, do not panic. I will use spiritual energy to find our way,” she said, her voice gentle yet firm, like a reassuring remedy.

Through her tear-filled eyes, Yun Pianpian looked up and saw the beautiful young girl holding a lamp in one hand and a whip in the other, a smile on her lips. Her gaze was like the warm sun of a spring day in March.

Chi Lu walked from the center to the front of the group. Her clothes and black hair were slightly disheveled, but her eyes shone brightly like stars or lantern flames, sparkling with brilliance.

A wisp of dark evil energy slowly crawled towards Chi Lu’s feet.

Before it could reach her, Chi Lu lashed it away with a flick of her whip.

She put away the Red Soul Whip and said towards the Cloud Boat, “Thank you.”

Amid the layered gaps of the Cloud Boat, Jing Shuxing stood out in his red robe, strikingly visible against the snow-white cloud.

He had just woken from sleep, his eyes still slightly moist, and his expression somber.

Contrasting with his cold demeanor, his hand, white as fine jade, gently parted the soft curtain. His fingertips were slightly reddened, and his movements were extremely graceful, yet irresistibly captivating.

Jing Shuxing glanced at Chi Lu, then lowered the curtain and retreated back into the Cloud Boat.

Puzzled by his actions, Chi Lu approached with her lamp, lightly tapping on the cloud curtain with her fingers.

The cloud curtain was lifted again, but before she could see him, she heard a slightly disgruntled complaint: “Why didn’t you call me?”

“Do you really dislike using me that much?”

“What?”

It was then that Chi Lu noticed Jing Shuxing glaring at her.

He was looking at her with a gaze that was resentful, reproachful, and desolate.

Jing Shuxing leaned weakly against the soft cushions of the Cloud Boat, his tone resembling that of a spirit beast left behind in the sect, waiting forlornly for its master’s return.

“Those evil energies—I could have cleaned them up for you in the blink of an eye. Why didn’t you let me help?”

With that, he turned his head to the side, ignoring Chi Lu.

Chi Lu held the Cloud Boat’s door curtain with both hands, stretching her arms wide to block Jing Shuxing’s line of sight.

She asked with a cheerful smile, “Are you upset?”

Jing Shuxing didn’t respond, his eyes flickering slightly, silently reprimanding her with his gaze.

Chi Lu glanced back at the others—Jing Luoyun was doing his best to comfort the frightened Yun Pianpian, and Xu Shiling’s soul was within the warm jade, maneuvering the stone around. Time wasn’t particularly pressing.

She smiled brightly and bent down to step into the Cloud Boat. “You’re lying; you’re not angry at all.”

Sinking into the soft, cotton-like Cloud Boat, Chi Lu spoke with a knowing tone, “If you were really angry, I would have already ended up like those cultivators from Fengyue City who bullied you, ‘whoosh—bang,’ exploding into a string of fireworks. How could I still be here talking to you face-to-face?”

She didn’t get to finish her sentence as a slender fingertip pressed against her lips, stopping her words.

The curtain fell down with a “swish”, blocking Chi Lu’s way out. She turned her head in confusion, only to have her face forcibly turned back.

“Young Sect Leader, you’re mistaken.”

Jing Shuxing looked at her with a smile, like he was watching a silly snow rabbit that had just run headfirst into a tree trunk.

“There’s a difference between anger and hatred.”

Chi Lu pointed at herself. “You’re really angry—ah!”

Her view flipped upside down, the world spinning as her head went down, landing squarely on the pillow she had shaped herself.

Inside the Cloud Boat, which Chi Lu had molded into a cozy warm bed, she lay there, her gaze falling upon the red wedding robe, with the person dressed in red lying right next to her.

—So close!

Ever since Chi Lu had read the storybook and understood how inappropriate her previous actions had been, she had never been this close to Jing Shuxing again. She should have quickly gotten up and distanced herself from him, but her eyes first wandered over his entire form before settling on his face, and she found herself unwilling to look away.

She wanted to look a few more times, to just keep staring without blinking.

Jing Shuxing had no intention of making Chi Lu avert her gaze.

“Young Sect Leader, you’re the one who didn’t want me to use my powers.” He squinted his eyes, like a fox whose cunning plan had succeeded. “I followed your instructions and didn’t set up a barrier. To prevent others from overhearing, I can only speak to you this way.”

What nonsense was that? If Jing Shuxing couldn’t set up a barrier, couldn’t she just do it herself?

Chi Lu noticed the flaw in his words and was about to question him, but before she could speak, Jing Shuxing’s index finger again silenced her.

“Why didn’t you just kill them?”

“What?” Chi Lu’s eyes widened, doubting her ears.

She quickly dismissed her doubts as Jing Shuxing moved closer, his expression heavy. “That female ghost’s father is a guest elder of the Linghua Sect; sparing her is fine. But what about the other two? They are from Fengyue City, and Jing Luoyun is still Jing Yi’s son.”

“Even if they’re quiet now, who can guarantee they’re not pretending? Keeping them around is an absolute threat.”

Jing Shuxing curled his fingers, making a gesture. “Just give the command, and I will eliminate the threat.”

He spoke with certainty, then fell silent, waiting for Chi Lu’s response.

After a long wait, all that was heard was a long sigh.

“While what you say makes a lot of sense…”

Chi Lu spoke softly, lying on her side inside the Cloud Boat. The space inside was not large, so even when she tried her best to curl up, she still ended up touching Jing Shuxing’s skin.

Like her knees and elbows, after bending her joints, her fingers brushed against his.

Mindful of the annotations in the storybook, Chi Lu initially tried to avoid contact. But when she noticed that Jing Shuxing didn’t seem to mind at all, she relaxed, ignoring Ying Lianyi’s earnest teachings.

Letting go of her concerns, she simply curled her fingers and intertwined them with Jing Shuxing’s.

Unlike Jing Shuxing, Chi Lu’s memories of growing up were beautiful and precious, making her naturally inclined to think positively in any situation.

She hoped Jing Shuxing could be the same, instead of having his heart twisted by his experiences in Fengyue City.

“I’ve grown up being taught by my uncle and the elders to repay grievances with kindness and to treat others with goodwill. I can’t go against my conscience and harm them,” Chi Lu said.

Jing Shuxing gazed at Chi Lu’s fingers intertwined with his, his long brows relaxing, and a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “You don’t need to take action, or even look. You can leave this matter to me.”

Suddenly, her fingers were firmly squeezed, and Chi Lu looked up displeasedly, warning Jing Shuxing with her eyes.

She instinctively tightened her grip as usual, but the method that had always worked before was now ineffective.

The hand she was holding suddenly twisted, and Chi Lu, caught off guard, was firmly seized by Jing Shuxing.

His cool and broad palm instantly enveloped her hand.

“Young Sect Leader truly has a kind heart,” Jing Shuxing spoke warmly. “A place that could nurture someone as virtuous as you must be completely different from Fengyue City.”

Then his tone shifted: “But others won’t recognize your good deeds. Even if you help that female ghost find the person she’s looking for, how could she possibly repay you? You risked your life to save Jing Luoyun and Yun Pianpian, but would they truly feel grateful to you?”

He reached out with his other hand, gently brushing away the stray hairs from Chi Lu’s forehead. “You nearly exhausted all your spiritual energy to bring them out of the spiritual vein, but has anyone really noticed what you’ve done?”

His hand, which had been tidying her messy hair, suddenly paused. Beneath his palm, he saw the girl’s bright, jet-black eyes, staring at him without blinking.

He heard a string of laughter as Chi Lu leaned forward a little closer, with her tone carrying an unprecedented closeness.

“Don’t I still have you?”

She cupped her own face, and her cheeks glowing brightly. “I thought I was doing a good job of pretending, perfectly hiding the fatigue of managing my spiritual energy, but it seems I still gave myself away.”

Though she said this, Chi Lu didn’t feel the least bit upset. In fact, she even felt that being pulled onto the Cloud Boat’s bed was quite a delightful event.

Jing Shuxing was puzzled by Chi Lu’s sudden laughter. He was still concerned about the two people outside the Cloud Boat—Jing Luoyun was one thing, but Yun Pianpian, an otherwise ordinary maid, being able to maneuver through various events made Jing Shuxing even more suspicious.

His brows nearly knitted into a knot.

“I’ll mark them,” Chi Lu said after pondering for a long time, finding a balanced approach. “If they deliberately try to get close, my spiritual energy will alert me.”

“I am the Young Sect Leader of the Linghua Sect, carefully nurtured since birth—I am definitely not weak.” She reached out and smoothed the furrow between Jing Shuxing’s brows. “Besides, don’t I still have you to protect me?”

As she spoke, her expression suddenly turned curious. “Your clothes… are gone?”

Her dark eyes stared unblinkingly, fixated directly on Jing Shuxing’s chest.

Author’s Note:

Another update is coming later!