Chapter 39: Gu Xiangsi

“Sorry, sorry, I meant no offense. By the way, what’s your sister called, young master?” Ye Wenxin suppressed her smile and continued to inquire of the red-haired youth.

“My sister’s name is Gu Xiangsi.”

“Hm? That’s certainly a rare surname. And what about you, young master? What’s your name?” Ye Wenxin thought the red-haired youth should be called Long Aotian, but upon hearing his sister’s surname, she felt something was odd.

“Ah, me? I’m called Gu Aotian.” The red-haired youth stated his name, but it sounded somewhat awkward.

Perhaps his name was genuine, but that surname might be the key to the secret he concealed. For example, this youth might bear deep-seated enmity against the country.

Ye Wenxin hid her growing interest and continued, “It’s truly a good name.”

Gu Aotian remained silent, whether because he was not good at lying or he did not want to establish more interaction with Ye Wenxin.

“Alright, I’m going in now. Please wait here.” Ye Wenxin waved to the two individuals and entered the female dormitory.

Large signs reading “Male Visitors Prohibited” were posted on this side. Two female disciples dressed in outer disciple robes stood guard, vigilant and scanning their surroundings.

The Azure Wings Sect’s recruitment occurred once every three years, making it the sect with the longest recruitment interval among the Great Ten Immortal Sects. The lodging area at the foot of the mountain was originally designated for outer disciples. However, due to a disaster in the past, outer disciples were also accommodated within the sect.

Ye Wenxin entered without any surprises. Inside, the quarters were quite simple, with neatly arranged beds lined up in rows. Groups of girls gathered in twos and threes, making friends and discussing tomorrow’s recruitment assembly.

“Excuse me, does anyone know someone named Gu Xiangsi?” Ye Wenxin approached for a chat, but all she received were shaking heads. Helplessly, Ye Wenxin continued to the next room, one after another.

The temporary lodging area was quite large, accommodating over a thousand participants for the recruitment assembly. With every ten people sharing one room, Ye Wenxin searched through about seven or eight rooms before finally hearing a faint voice from a corner.

“I… I’m Gu Xiangsi. Um, may I ask, what does this sister need me for?” Gu Xiangsi stared timidly at Ye Wenxin. When she stood up she was a full head taller, making Ye Wenxin wonder whether this was Gu Aotian’s so-called sister or a legendary sister.

“Oh, your brother Gu Aotian asked me find you, and to ask what you want to eat tonight.” Though puzzled, Ye Wenxin refrained from prying too much for now.

Upon hearing Gu Aotian’s name, Gu Xiangsi took two steps closer to Ye Wenxin, her eyes still betraying fear and unease, like a small animal targeted by a predator.

“Um, sister, could you please tell my brother that I don’t want to eat tonight?” After hesitating for a few seconds, Gu Xiangsi gave her answer, lips pursing slightly.

The more Gu Xiangsi spoke, the softer her voice became, and her head lowered gradually. She appeared somewhat hunched, as if trying to conceal the turbulent emotions within her chest. Despite her height, she possessed delicate features that invoked a strong desire to protect.

Naturally, such vulnerability might also provoke a desire to exploit it.

“Not eating? But you’ll be competing tomorrow, you must eat.” Coincidentally, Ye Wenxin belonged to the latter category. She took Gu Xiangsi’s hand, intending to lead her out directly.

Gu Xiangsi instinctively struggled and managed to shake off Ye Wenxin, who, despite putting up a guard, was still sent flying quite a distance by the impact.

“I’m sorry, sister, I didn’t mean to!” Gu Xiangsi was frightened and hurriedly went forward to help Ye Wenxin, who gestured for her to stop. “It’s okay, just come with me.”

With that, Ye Wenxin once again took Gu Xiangsi’s hand and pulled her outside.

Gu Xiangsi struggled even harder, and the girls nearby had already begun to gossip, thinking that Ye Wenxin was bullying Gu Xiangsi. Ye Wenxin felt a bit annoyed and glanced at the group of chatty girls.

The girls who had been chattering immediately fell silent. Although Ye Wenxin appeared unremarkable, the intense pressure from her gaze just now made the girls fearful, even instilling a sense of worship, as if they wanted to kneel down.

But that imposing aura dissipated in an instant as Ye Wenxin turned her gaze back to Gu Xiangsi.

“Be obedient, little sister.” Her voice softened considerably, and Gu Xiangsi seemed dazed for a moment, only snapping out of it a few seconds later. But in those few seconds, Ye Wenxin had already led her to the main entrance.

“Don’t… it’s too scary outside…” Gu Xiangsi began to struggle again, but this time, no matter how hard she tried, she could not break free from Ye Wenxin’s grip.

“It’s alright, I’ll stay with you. If any boys come near you, I’ll beat them up,” Ye Wenxin replied casually, her gaze offering a reassuring sense of security.

Gu Xiangsi suddenly stopped struggling. She unexpectedly felt a strong sense of safety with someone she had just met.

“Let’s go, your brother and the others are still waiting for you.” Seeing Gu Xiangsi calm down, Ye Wenxin finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She felt like she was getting herself into trouble, but this was the male protagonist’s younger sister. No matter what, Ye Wenxin had to seize the opportunity to interact with the male protagonist until she escaped her death flag.

“Sister, what’s your name?” Gu Xiangsi also calmed down at last, but she held onto Ye Wenxin’s hand tightly.

“I’m Ye Wenxin. You can call me Big Sister Wenxin,” Ye Wenxin responded with a smile, catching sight of several men staring intently at Gu Xiangsi. Their gazes were unabashed, and Gu Xiangsi’s presence seemed to evoke both protective instincts and desires to exploit her vulnerability.

And that surging chest was just too conspicuous.

Ye Wenxin silently lowered her head and glanced at herself, quietly activating her Bone-Shrinking Technique to make her concealed chest appear slightly fuller, at least enough to not lose too miserably in appearance.

As Ye Wenxin silently adjusted herself, Gu Xiangsi, who was originally holding Ye Wenxin’s hand, suddenly hid behind her. Upon closer inspection, the men who had been staring at Gu Xiangsi just now were approaching.

They had smiles on their faces, but were clearly asking for trouble.

Ye Wenxin gently reassured, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. Watch Big Sister take care of them.”

Gu Xiangsi nodded heavily, her trust in Ye Wenxin growing stronger. The men had already arrived in front of Ye Wenxin, wearing ill-intentioned smiles as they scrutinized the girls.

“Young ladies, we’re just about to head down the mountain for a meal. Would you like to join us?”

“Yeah, we can also have some fun along the way.”

As they spoke, they moved closer. Just as Ye Wenxin was about to act, she saw Gu Aotian sprinting towards them from a distance. The chubby guy was behind him, but he was not running as fast as Gu Aotian and was desperately panting halfway.

Ye Wenxin naturally took a step back, and a fist slammed fiercely into the leader’s face.

But the man did not fall, instead, he sent Gu Aotian flying several meters away.

“Oi, look at this little bug, still trying to play the hero.” The man looked at the miserable Gu Aotian, laughing even more scornfully, not bothering to hide his disdain.

“You touch my sister, I’ll make you pay with your life!” However, Gu Aotian had already leaped up, attacking the man again.

But even though Gu Aotian had the protagonist halo, he was just starting out. There was no way he could be a match for the opponent in front of him, who appeared to be at second-stage Qi Refining.

As for his followers, the two were also at first-stage Qi Refining.

If Gu Aotian really fought them, he would definitely lose.

Ye Wenxin could not intervene. This was a dilemma that Gu Aotian had to overcome. If she intervened, it would only change Gu Aotian’s future.

Time and again, no matter how many times he was knocked down, Gu Aotian kept getting back up. Gu Xiangsi was already crying, begging Ye Wenxin to hurry up and save her.

“It’s okay, Xiangsi, Big Brother doesn’t have many strengths, but I can take a beating!” Gu Aotian could still smile and comfort his sister, showing no fear in his eyes, only stubbornness.

He struggled to get up again, his small figure showing resilience.

“Come on, bring it on!”

“This kid is quite resilient! But this time, you won’t be so lucky!” With these words, the leader pulled out a dagger from his bag of holding¹ and stabbed towards Gu Aotian.

Gu Aotian’s eyes finally showed a hint of surprise, but he still gritted his teeth and prepared to fight the man. Ye Wenxin could wait no longer. Just as she was about to intervene, a black shadow flashed by.

Everyone stood still, but the man realized that his arm had fallen to the ground, still holding the dagger he had just wielded. Upon closer inspection, a woman stood there gracefully.

Wearing the attire of an inner sect disciple, her originally beautiful face seemed even more stunning. As she sheathed her sword, a pair of amber-colored earrings gently swayed.

Ye Wenxin immediately recognized the woman’s identity—it was her five-minute disciple, Huang Hanyan.

All eyes focused on Huang Hanyan, as if puzzled by why an Azure Wings Sect inner disciple would appear here.

“You heartless woman, you actually cut off my hand!” The man belatedly realized this most important thing, even though Huang Hanyan was beautiful, it could not quench his anger.

“If you attack the weak, you must be prepared to be killed by the strong.” Huang Hanyan remained indifferent, but Gu Aotian, who heard these words, could not help but lower his head and tightly clenched his fists, appearing extremely unwilling.

Seeing this interaction, Ye Wenxin suddenly realized.

If she guessed correctly, Huang Hanyan might be one of the male protagonist’s future concubines, and her appearance now was probably to push Gu Aotian’s awakening.

“Eat this pill.” Huang Hanyan, seeing Ye Wenxin’s eyes shining as she looked at Gu Aotian, felt a bit unhappy, but still approached and gave him a Healing Pill.

“Is this a superb first-grade Healing Pill?” Gu Aotian looked astonished, unable to believe that Huang Hanyan could produce such a good item.

“Yes, it was a gift from a friend. I think she would be very happy to know that you’ve taken it.” Huang Hanyan mentioned Ye Wenxin in a roundabout way, considering Ye Wenxin’s current status, it was not appropriate for her to produce such a valuable item.

“Although I don’t know who you’re referring to, I really appreciate your help, senior sister.” Gu Aotian said, then carefully took the Healing Pill and swallowed it.

Seeing this, Huang Hanyan stood up and looked at the three men behind her.

“You guys, still not leaving?”

The leader wanted to say something, but in the end, with a resentful look, he was forcibly carried away the other two.

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1. Most translators leave this as just Qiankun pouch, and I’ve been using the term spatial pouch, but then ChatGPT and TVtropes give me this coinciding term “Bag of Holding”, so I’ve decided to change it to that. This is definitely the final change, so I’ll be editing all previous chapters with this. Thank God for control+F. ↩︎