Chapter 5

After finishing the meal with Mu Chongxi, the two parted ways.

Ye Qiao summarized her routine after a day: in the Outer Sect of Changming Sect, all she needed to do was train with her sword on time. Even if she spent the whole day sleeping or being lazy, no one would say anything.

Her cultivation level couldn’t be too low; otherwise, being expelled from Changming Sect would not be worth it. So, Ye Qiao locked herself in her room for two months to study the breathing techniques for cultivation.

Lazy people have their own ways of cultivation. The breathing techniques in the cultivation world are essentially about guiding spiritual energy to circulate within the body.

Ye Qiao tried using talismans to create a spirit-gathering array. Before she transmigrated, she was an architectural designer and was very good at utilizing the surrounding layout to make the spiritual energy flow automatically into her body. The process was not only fast but also didn’t require strenuous daily training.

In these two months, she progressed from the third to the fifth level of Qi Refining.

…

As dawn broke, Ye Qiao opened her eyes and gently exhaled a breath of stale air. Before she could smooth out the spiritual energy in her body, Du Chun excitedly dragged her to the back mountain.

“Senior Brother Ming and Senior Brother Xue are coming to select inner disciples from our Outer Sect. Elder Zhao asked us to gather at the back mountain.”

Ye Qiao responded with a faint “Oh.”

“Were you sleeping again?” Du Chun looked at her lethargic state, at a loss for words.

In just two months, everyone in the Outer Sect knew Ye Qiao’s name.

It wasn’t because of her high talent or hard work, but because she spent all day sleeping and being lazy.

“Yes.” Ye Qiao followed the group to the back mountain, indifferent. The selection of inner disciples had nothing to do with her.

Changming Sect held a collective assessment every month, similar to a modern monthly exam. From her years of social experience, Ye Qiao understood one thing clearly: people only remember the top and bottom rankings. She maintained her performance precisely in the middle, not outstanding but not the worst either.

Even if they were selecting, they would choose from the top ten in the assessments, not someone ranked in the hundreds like her.

However, it’s human nature to join in the fun. Du Chun pulled Ye Qiao to the front of the crowd, enthusiastically introducing, “The one in front is Senior Brother Xue, and behind him is Senior Brother Ming.”

She had met Xue Yu before.

Ye Qiao’s gaze fell on the young man behind.

Dressed in snow-white clothes, Ming Xuan’s features were exceptionally handsome. He held a folding fan, tapping it lightly in a somewhat flamboyant manner.

“Is that Ming Xuan?” she asked.

Du Chun stared straight at the two in front, looking like a fanboy, “Isn’t he handsome? Many female cultivators in Changming Sect want to marry him.”

Ye Qiao raised an eyebrow, “They might be disappointed.”

“Why?”

Ye Qiao casually replied, “Because his mental state is unstable. He might go berserk one day.”

“Don’t joke about that.” Senior Brother Ming’s mental state unstable? Impossible.

Ye Qiao shrugged. She wasn’t joking. In the novel, Ming Xuan turned to the demonic path because he couldn’t break through for many years.

Their voices weren’t loud, but Ming Xuan, with his higher cultivation, still heard them. He wasn’t paying attention to Ye Qiao initially, but the girl’s remark about his “unstable mental state” made him narrow his eyes and look in her direction.

How did she know?

Xue Yu, standing beside him, also heard her. He chuckled softly, “That’s the Outer Sect disciple I mentioned to you earlier.”

“Isn’t she interesting?”

Ming Xuan tilted his head, looking at Ye Qiao, “Is she the one with the potato landmine?”

Xue Yu sighed, “You can’t talk about girls like that, Second Senior Brother.”

Ming Xuan sneered, “She cursed me to go berserk in the future, and I can’t call her a little runt?”

“No, you can’t,” Xue Yu shook his head, always thinking girls were the cutest beings in the world. If he had a little sister, he would give her everything.

Ming Xuan clearly didn’t have the consciousness to be gentler to girls.

He was curious about how Ye Qiao knew about his unstable mental state. Pointing in her direction, he asked the elder beside him, “What’s her cultivation path?”

The Outer Sect elder glanced over, “Ye Qiao?”

He was puzzled as to why Ming Xuan would notice such an unremarkable disciple, “This child is a sword cultivator. Her performance is neither particularly good nor bad. Compared to the outstanding ones in the Outer Sect, she’s still far behind.”

“The key is that after training, she goes back to her courtyard to sleep every day. I don’t understand what she finds to sleep so much.”

The great path is clear, and the immortal road is long. How can one not work hard?

These words made Ming Xuan ponder.

He couldn’t figure out how such an unmotivated disciple knew about his unstable mental state.

“Maybe it was just a coincidence,” Xue Yu shrugged helplessly, thinking he was too sensitive. How could a low-level Qi Refining disciple know such a thing?

On the other side, Ye Qiao was contemplating whether to ask Mu Chongxi to go down the mountain with her tonight.

She had almost used up the talismans for her spirit-gathering array.

She needed to go down the mountain to buy some talisman paper.

…

After selecting the inner disciples for this year, Xue Yu and Ming Xuan returned to the main peak to report to the sect leader.

The two slightly bowed, “Master.”

Qin Fanfan paced back and forth, looking at his two disciples with an unreadable expression. “I heard that Yueqing Sect recently accepted a direct disciple with a supreme water spiritual root.”

Ming Xuan was slightly surprised. “A supreme water spiritual root?”

That talent was indeed exceptionally high.

“Yes,” Qin Fanfan said, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “I heard Yun Hen brought him back from the mortal world. Supreme spiritual roots are incredibly rare, and Yueqing Sect got to him first.

“Yueqing Sect has been in the spotlight lately,” Qin Fanfan said, glaring at his unmotivated disciples. “When will you do something to make me proud?”

Xue Yu let the words go in one ear and out the other.

Qin Fanfan didn’t expect these disciples to achieve anything earth-shattering. In fact, he had already lost hope for next year’s competition.

Changming Sect wasn’t short of geniuses; the ones who could participate in the competition were always the most talented. But they never matched up to other sects, and the disciples were all difficult to manage.

Mu Chongxi and Ming Xuan didn’t get along, leading to internal strife before the competition even started. The outcome was predictable.

Zhou Xingyun was another story. Despite being the most powerful, he always looked like he was at death’s door, as if he could leave the beautiful world at any moment.

Xue Yu was relatively the most normal among the four.

“Why is it so lively today?”

Speak of the devil, Mu Chongxi walked in with a swagger and raised an eyebrow at his two senior brothers, “Master, is there something you need us for?”

Seeing this disciple made Qin Fanfan angry, “Can’t you cause less trouble? Always running down the mountain with that Outer Sect disciple named Ye Qiao. Do you have family down there?”

Mu Chongxi cried out in grievance, “But no one else will play with me except Ye Qiao.”

He pointed at Xue Yu and Ming Xuan, “These two are always together, Senior Brother Zhou is never around, and the Outer and Inner Sect disciples are scared of my direct disciple status. Only Ye Qiao is willing to go down the mountain with me.”

Sometimes Mu Chongxi found Ye Qiao quite strange.

She didn’t seem like someone from the cultivation world, showing no fear towards direct disciples. But he liked her indifferent attitude.

After all, he was looking for friends, not servants. He didn’t want someone who always yielded to him.

Qin Fanfan was choked by his series of complaints.

He cleared his throat, not expecting his youngest disciple to harbor such resentment. “So, I called you here today to ask if you want a little sister or a junior brother.”

With only nine months left until the big competition, he couldn’t find suitable disciples. He thought he might as well ask his disciples’ preferences.

“Of course, a little sister. Other sects all have little sisters, but our sect is full of men,” Mu Chongxi said. “Even the sword cultivators of Wenjian Sect have a little sister.”

Ming Xuan glanced at him mockingly, “As if you’re not a sword cultivator yourself.”

Xue Yu, who usually stayed out of things, raised his hand, “No junior brothers. Even the big yellow dog at the sect gate finds Mu Chongxi annoying. I prefer girls.”

Thinking about having four male disciples, Qin Fanfan felt he had a point. Maybe it was time to accept a female disciple.

“Who do you think would be good?”

He pondered, “There are a few talented ones in the Outer Sect this year from some prominent families.”

“And there are also a few inner disciples with excellent spiritual roots.”

Mu Chongxi and Xue Yu said in unison, “Ye Qiao.”

Surprised, Qin Fanfan looked at them. Xue Yu maintained his composure and smiled, “Master, I think she’s pretty good.”

For some reason, he had a feeling this little sister would bring liveliness to the sect.

And he loved liveliness.

Ming Xuan frowned but didn’t object. He didn’t care much about talent. Little sisters were usually pampered in every sect.

So he reluctantly agreed, “Do whatever you want.”

The three had no objections. As for Zhou Xingyun?

His opinion didn’t matter.

Qin Fanfan frowned, “You mean that Ye Qiao from the Outer Sect?”

He remembered her because her talent wasn’t high, she lacked the dedication of a cultivator, slept all day, and often dragged Mu Chongxi down the mountain.

“Yes, that’s her,” Mu Chongxi said idly. “We’re always last anyway. I don’t think we’ll find any geniuses this year. Ye Qiao is good enough, lively, and interesting.”

Qin Fanfan was silent for a few seconds, oddly persuaded by this reasoning.

Technically, the position of a direct disciple was crucial as it affected the sect’s ranking in future competitions. But Changming Sect had been last for a hundred years. The fifth direct disciple didn’t seem that important anymore.

No matter how strong others were, they remained unshakably last.

Why compete?

Changming Sect had completely given up!

…

Ye Qiao, who was already targeted, was just about to lie down to sleep when the sudden summons from the sect leader startled her, making her roll off the bed.

The sect leader?

She had been in the sect for two months and only knew some Outer Sect disciples and elders.

Why would someone of the sect leader’s level summon her?

She instinctively felt it wasn’t good news but had no choice. She got up, hastily dressed, and dragged her tired body to the main peak where the sect leader resided.

The peak towered into the clouds, with nine hundred stone steps. Since Ye Qiao couldn’t fly on a sword, she had to walk up step by step.

Rubbing her eyes, she walked and thought.

Not bad.

Every time she paid respects to the sect leader, it felt like she was attending the emperor’s court.

“Sect Leader, Senior Brothers,” she said, slightly bowing, not daring to look up the entire time.

The old man sitting above was undoubtedly her boss.

Ye Qiao had no idea why he summoned her in the middle of the night. She stood with her head bowed, her eyes almost closing from exhaustion.

Qin Fanfan discreetly sized her up and then sighed slightly.

Indeed, the rumors were true.

This child was indeed unmotivated.

The night was when the spiritual energy was most abundant, yet she used such precious time to sleep.

The sect leader, standing with hands behind his back, asked gently, “Do you want to be a direct disciple?”

Ye Qiao was stunned.

What had she done to deserve becoming a direct disciple?

The girl remained silent, and Qin Fanfan assumed she was shy. Smiling slightly, he pointed to the three people standing nearby, “These are your three senior brothers.”

“You’ve met them before, right?”

Ye Qiao looked up and met Mu Chongxi’s gaze.

Indeed.

They had gone down the mountain together just a few days ago, and now he was her senior brother?

Ye Qiao remained silent. Mu Chongxi winked at her, thinking she was too happy to speak.

Except for Xue Yu, who noticed something odd, no one else thought that Ye Qiao might not want to be a direct disciple.

“Pack up and move to the courtyard tomorrow,” Qin Fanfan paused, then added, “Don’t forget.”

Ye Qiao took a deep breath and forced a smile that looked worse than crying. “Yes, Master.”

Qin Fanfan thought she was moved to tears, feeling very gratified. He hadn’t expected that, despite her low talent, she knew how to be grateful.