Chapter 351: What Do You Want?

The woman called Abbess Jiunan gracefully landed. She threw the umbrella sword towards Ye Wenxin, and said, “If I didn’t come, how would the guests know about your misdeeds?”

Unlike other immortal sects, the Southern Dipper Temple was jointly managed by Abbot Shimie and Abbess Jiunan. Abbot Shimie oversaw the monks, and Abbess Jiunan was naturally in charge of the nuns.

Ye Wenxin watched with great curiosity, finding it very strange that Abbess Jiunan had hair. She looked left and right, trying to determine if Abbess Jiunan was wearing a wig, but Abbess Jiunan’s gaze was already turning towards her, sweeping over her face before quickly looking at Fairy Fengya.

“School Master Fengya, long time no see.” She made a slight ceremonial gesture, to which Fairy Fengya responded with a nod, indicating some degree of acquaintance between them.

Ye Wenxin found it even more astonishing that someone like Fairy Fengya actually had friends. She couldn’t help but look back and forth between Fairy Fengya and Abbess Jiunan, her thirst for gossip evident on her face.

Abbess Jiunan noticed Ye Wenxin’s curiosity but didn’t explain. Instead, she continued with a smile, “This young lady, did you find this umbrella sword in the secret realm?”

Her smile was elegant and composed, exuding a natural air of nobility that made Ye Wenxin suspect Abbess Jiunan might have been a princess of some dynasty before becoming a nun.

Seeing that Abbess Jiunan was speaking to her, Ye Wenxin clasped her fist in respect. “Yes, senior. I happened upon it by chance in the secret realm.”

The Southern Dipper Temple was generally managed by Abbot Shimie, while there were very few rumors about Abbess Jiunan in the Martial World. Now, seeing her in person, Ye Wenxin felt an indescribable elusiveness about her.

“Could you describe the process of how you found it?” Abbess Jiunan continued to ask. Her expression indicated that her intent was similar to that of the abbot, but she was more tactful. Ye Wenxin thought for a moment and then began to elaborate on the story.

“The junior entered an illusion where there was a man in white, floating gracefully. He wanted me to learn demon subjugation from him, but I refused.” Hearing this, everyone’s lips twitched slightly, thinking Ye Wenxin was quite eccentric.

As they understood it, the man who had appeared in the illusion was undoubtedly an avatar of the secret realm’s master. By refusing the master’s offer, Ye Wenxin had essentially turned down a great opportunity.

Nearby, Jin Xiaoqin almost couldn’t resist rolling her eyes. She had long known that her disciple was skilled at fabricating stories, and today’s performance certainly lived up to her reputation. Seeing Ye Wenxin treat Abbess Jiunan with such eagerness, Jin Xiaoqin felt that the Souther Dipper Temple was in for a tough time.

However, Ye Wenxin was oblivious to Jin Xiaoqin’s thoughts. When Jin Xiaoqin gently nudged her, she mistook it for a kind reminder and continued, “So, the man said if I kowtowed two hundred times, he would be willing to give me the umbrella sword.”

At this, everyone’s eyes lit up. They all longed for such a priceless divine weapon. They wished they could turn back time, return to the secret realm, and kowtow several hundred times if it meant obtaining such a treasure.

Abbess Jiunan listened intently, scrutinizing Ye Wenxin’s expression to see if she was lying. After Jin Xiaoqin’s guidance, Ye Wenxin had become adept at lying spontaneously. She continued, “I thought two hundred was too many, so after some bargaining, I ended up kowtowing ten times, and then the man threw the umbrella sword at me.”

The drastic change from two hundred to ten kowtows sparked discussions, and people began to praise the secret realm master for his magnanimity.

“He’s really too gentle. If it were me, I would have chopped Ye Wenxin into pieces first.”

“Yeah, that’s a divine weapon. I’d have no problem kowtowing a thousand times for it.”

Ye Wenxin listened with a wry smile, while Abbess Jiunan nodded. “Would you be willing to give the umbrella sword to me, young lady? This is a treasure the Southern Dipper Temple lost many years ago. Although it doesn’t have immense power, it holds great significance for us.”

Abbess Jiunan’s attitude was sincere, but her words were far from honest. This divine weapon had the ability to absorb Yin and replenish Yang, making it the perfect dwelling for the Yin-Yang ghosts.

According to the memories, Celestial Master Zhong had indeed taken the umbrella sword from the Southern Dipper Temple. At that time, he had already paid respects to (thrashed) Abbot Shimie, so it was inevitable that he took it.

Incidentally, Demon Lord Gu Qingcheng had also obtained Southern Dipper Temple’s manual and the abbot’s golden pen in the same manner. Fortunately, Abbot Shimie was too proud to admit defeat, and everyone still believed that his golden pen wouldn’t be easily used in combat.

Seeing Ye Wenxin remain silent, Abbess Jiunan assumed she wasn’t being sincere enough and added, “Naturally, I would offer you an equivalent divine weapon.” As she spoke, she produced a folding fan.

The folding fan was of a gentleman’s style, made of refined iron, and capable of slicing through iron like mud. Ye Wenxin glanced at it, and thought it would be perfect for Ling Jue. However, the umbrella sword was equally important to her, as it was crucial in keeping her Qi Deviation under wraps. She couldn’t possibly give it up. After a brief look, she decisively shook her head.

“Then what about this White Tiger¹ Dagger?” Abbess Jiunan then produced a dagger.

Ye Wenxin was somewhat tempted; it would complement the Vermilion Bird Dagger. However, everything in Celestial Master Zhong’s memories kept reminding her to be extremely cautious.

Ye Wenxin continued to shake her head. Abbess Jiunan then produced more treasures, and Abbot Shimie looked on with envy, as if recalling his various unfortunate encounters with robbery.

Naturally, Abbess Jiunan was the only one who knew the full story, so she was now handling the aftermath for Shimie. Faced with Ye Wenxin’s steadfast refusal, however, Abbess Jiunan’s expression turned helpless, and she asked, “Then what do you want?”

The conversation got back on track. Ye Wenxin thought for a moment and replied, “I don’t want these divine weapons. I only want you to kowtow two hundred times, and I’ll give you the umbrella sword.”

Abbess Jiunan’s expression changed slightly. Although monks and nuns were typically people of self-cultivation and patience, Ye Wenxin’s provocation had clearly angered her. This wasn’t a fair exchange but an outright insult to the dignity of the Southern Dipper Temple.

Seeing the situation becoming increasingly difficult to manage, Jin Xiaoqin planned to step in to smooth things over. Before she could, however, the Sect Master of Azure Wings Sect intervened.

He stepped forward with a smile and said, “My disciple can be rather frank, so please don’t take it to heart. However, to be fair, this is Wenxin’s fate. She got the umbrella sword by kowtowing ten times, something that no amount of divine weapons could buy.”

With that, the Sect Master turned his gaze towards Ye Wenxin, smiling confidently.

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Footnotes:

1. The White Tiger, also known as Byakko in Japanese, is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese Constellations. It is sometimes called the White Tiger of the West. It represents the west in terms of direction and the autumn season. ↩︎