Chapter 138. 1: The Choice (Part 10)

“Wrong again.” Hua Qingyu poked Xu Qianyu on the back of the head with her finger.
At the moment the brush touched the paper, the talisman ignited in a blazing flame. Xu Qianyu flicked her sleeve and extinguished it.

Hua Qingyu looked at the pile of wasted paper. “Oh, we can’t live without a man, can we?”

Her words were laced with disdain, and the finger she had poked Xu Qianyu with seemed to grow sharp and unbearable. Xu Qianyu slammed the table. Hua Qingyu took half a step back, her voice softening. “What? Are you going to hit me?”

Xu Qianyu pressed her lips together.

Since Shen Shuwei left, she hadn’t returned to Zhaoyue Palace. She had styled her hair back into the usual twin buns and was living at Hua Qingyu’s place. She didn’t hate Hua Qingyu. What frustrated her was that the irritation caused by her own emotions hadn’t dissipated for many days.
Nothing was going right.

The talisman paper crumbled into ashes under her fingers.

A figure in black appeared, stepping between the two women, pushing Hua Qingyu half a step back. His cold voice rang out: “If you can’t speak properly, don’t say anything.”

Hua Qingyu snorted.

Wuzhen’s gaze fell on Xu Qianyu’s darkened face, as if in thought. Xu Qianyu raised her head and looked at him indifferently. Suddenly, she saw an illusion of a three-tailed black flood dragon rise from his shoulders, its enormous mouth opening wide, roaring and shaking the air, scattering dust and leaves in all directions. Instinctively, she reached for her sword; her battle spirit stirred.

But Wuzhen was now a ghost, and the illusion soon vanished like smoke.

Xu Qianyu asked, “What is that?”

Wuzhen answered, “My Daoist manifestation. A ‘manifestation’ is the most fundamental trait of a cultivator. It represents the Dao heart you’ve condensed through your journey. I can be human, ghost, or demon, changing appearances at will. But once my manifestation appears, its malevolent power remains unchanged.”

He asked, “What do you think?”

Xu Qianyu was confused. “It seems impressive.”

“Once you’ve reached the half-step transformation stage, you can summon your manifestation.” Wuzhen paused before adding, “How about it? If you think it’s impressive, from today on, you’ll practice ‘From Golden Core to Half-Step Transformation.'”

Upon hearing this, Xu Qianyu’s gaze dimmed once again with doubt. She turned and walked out.

Wuzhen: “…”

Hua Qingyu: “…”

After a moment Hua Qingyu snickered, her whole body shaking with laughter. “I thought you were really something.”

Xu Qianyu didn’t want to practice right now. In an unprecedented move, she went to see Shui Weiwei.

The attendants had always prevented her from seeing Shui Weiwei. They said her presence would upset Shui Weiwei. Naturally, she had had enough of the days at home when Shui Weiwei used to grab and hit her, so she would only glance at her through the window every now and then.

The attendants reported that Shui Weiwei’s condition had greatly improved.

From outside the window, Xu Qianyu could see Shui Weiwei chatting and laughing with her maid, looking as usual. Having taken immortal pills for her health at the Immortal Sect, Shui Weiwei, who should have been over forty, appeared even younger than when she first arrived at Penglai.

She had a long, porcelain-white neck, and her back seemed aloof and unapproachable. This was the Shui Weiwei who no longer tilted her head when speaking, and Xu Qianyu found her somewhat unfamiliar.

“Send her back,” Xu Qianyu suddenly said.

On that day, Xu Qianyu sent a letter to Xu Binglai, requesting that Shui Weiwei be sent back home. Shui Weiwei had recovered from her madness, and with her grandfather aging, she asked for Shui Weiwei to return home so that her family could be reunited and her grandfather could enjoy his old age.

Xu Binglai quickly approved and arranged for transportation, setting off that very day.

Shui Weiwei was overjoyed and deeply grateful when she learned she could return home.

Xu Binglai also displayed the grace of the immortal sect’s sect master. Although he didn’t like Shui Weiwei, he treated her as a guest, and the magical tools and pills accompanying her were packed into two large chests.

The attendants helped Shui Weiwei pack her belongings, stuffing many white porcelain vials into the boxes.

Xu Qianyu thought the triangular-shaped pill bottles looked familiar, and it reminded her that the pills Luo Shui had sent her were also in the same bottles. She hurriedly grabbed an attendant.
“Are these the pills she normally takes? Why are they from Lingyue Immortal Sect?”

The attendant was unaware. “Lingyue Immortal Sect is a major sect for alchemy. Half of the immortal pills used by the Four Great Immortal Sects are from Lingyue. There’s nothing strange about it. This white clay triangular bottle was made by Lord Luo Shui back then. It keeps the immortal pills from decaying, rotting, or breaking, and can even resist water. So, all the precious pills are stored in these triangular bottles instead of ordinary boxes.”

Xu Qianyu didn’t say anything further.

After tidying up, Xu Qianyu stepped into the pavilion for the first time and walked up to Shui Weiwei.

Shui Weiwei, who had been laughing with the maid, looked up. Her gaze passed over Xu Qianyu’s face, not showing the usual hatred but instead a distant and polite attitude, as though looking at a stranger.

Xu Qianyu stared at her without shifting her gaze, suppressing her emotions as she said, “I’ve come to see you off from the sect.”

Shui Weiwei was taken aback for a moment before nodding.

Xu Qianyu escorted Shui Weiwei all the way to Mengdu.

Perhaps feeling estranged, Shui Weiwei didn’t speak to her at all. She turned her head and chatted with the maid, commenting on the fine weather today and mentioning how she hadn’t returned home for many years and wondering what it was like now. She also expressed a desire to go back soon to see her father.

Xu Qianyu also didn’t speak to Shui Weiwei. She thought to herself that it made sense, as for the past two years, it had been the maid who had been accompanying her every day, so they should have become more familiar with each other.

It wasn’t until Shui Weiwei boarded the boat that the vessel tilted slightly with her movement.

Xu Qianyu steadied her, and Shui Weiwei immediately grasped her hand in return. Xu Qianyu caught a whiff of a strange fragrance from her, noticing that her fingers were slender and cold, and quickly slipped her hand out of Shui Weiwei’s grip. Shui Weiwei tightly twisted her handkerchief and gave a reserved smile, “Thank you.”

Xu Qianyu pulled her hand back into her sleeve, “No need to be polite.”

A sail in the sea gradually grew smaller.

Xu Qianyu couldn’t clearly say what she hoped for by seeking out Shui Weiwei today, nor what she expected to gain. But she was very clear that she hadn’t gained anything.

A sudden, muffled thunder rumbled, and the sea breeze stirred her clothes. A fine rain began to fall from the sky.