“Qu Wei Yin smiled and picked up a bun, offering it to the Qiongqi with a gentle gesture.
The Qiongqi continued to ignore her, absorbed in grooming himself. Qu Wei Yin’s smile turned to a scowl as she sternly commanded, “Eat it!
Startled, the Qiongqi let out a howl and ran with all its might. Its legs flailed as it tried to climb onto the bed, almost crushing Luo Jinxiang against the wall.
Struck by this force, Luo Jinxiang nearly coughed up blood. She stumbled and fell off the bed, clutching her chest and saying, “Witch… I mean, Senior Apprentice, it’s a Qiongqi, not a dog. It eats raw meat.”
Qu Wei Yin looked at the buns in her hand, then at the Qiongqi, and with an “Oh,” she turned and left the room.
Before she left, she tossed the basket of buns to Luo Jinxiang, “You can have them.
As the door slammed shut, Luo Jinxiang sat with the basket of buns, feeling a sense of desperation and helplessness.
She reached out and touched the Qiongqi’s fur, feeling too weak to even push back her disheveled hair. Forbidden techniques were definitely not to be used carelessly; it was fortunate that she hadn’t lost her life. And to think that she could summon an ancient wild beast with her mediocre talents – it all felt like a dream. She poked the Qiongqi once more and then sank into a chair to catch her breath.
It was said that ancient wild beasts were almost extinct; they hadn’t been seen for centuries. The one Qu Wei Yin had was said to have been taken from the far reaches of Donghu, and judging from the fur and the slanting red eyes, it seemed to be the same one.
Luo Jinxiang frowned, finding it hard to believe that it was all just a coincidence.
After not bathing for several days, she felt uncomfortable and sticky. She was about to leave the room when she suddenly remembered that she was in Qu Wei Yin’s room and couldn’t use her own sword. How could she leave?
But as she thought about it, she noticed a large wooden tub filled with hot water in the next room, and a set of clean clothes, presumably Qu Wei Yin’s, laid out. Some flower petals were sprinkled into the water, emitting a pleasant scent that was identical to Qu Wei Yin’s scent. Luo Jinxiang felt a slight warmth in her cheeks, whether it was from the steam or her still weak body, she didn’t know.
Obviously, the witch had been very thorough in her preparations.
She took off her outer clothes and slowly slid into the hot water, the petals swirling and converging with each ripple, enveloping her in warmth. Even her joints instantly relaxed, and Luo Jinxiang let out a contented sigh as she leaned back against the tub.
It seemed she couldn’t resist the comfort of the hot water and stayed a little longer than planned. After a while, she lazily grabbed a nearby towel to wrap herself up and stood up.
Coincidentally, the door opened at that moment and Qu Wei Yin walked in, holding a sword in her right hand and a large piece of fresh beef hanging from it.
The two of them shared a distant look, frozen in place. Suddenly, Luo Jinxiang felt a chill and raised the towel to offer a friendly smile. However, she saw Qu Wei Yin press her lips together tightly and quickly retreat out of the door, slamming it shut in one swift motion.
Blinking, Luo Jinxiang didn’t understand Qu Wei Yin’s intentions and continued to get dressed, ignoring the encounter.
Outside the room, Qu Wei Yin couldn’t get the scene out of her mind. She snorted and mocked herself for feeling embarrassed when she saw a young girl taking a bath.
The girl’s physique was different from hers – her limbs were long and thin, her shoulders were sloping, and her face was steamed to a bright shine by the mist. Her eyes were moist and her lips were bright red, exuding a dazzling and charming allure.
Qu Wei Yin closed her eyes tightly, and when she opened them again, she was calm. When she came back into the room, Luo Jinxiang was already dressed, her skirt slightly short and her ankles exposed. Qu Wei Yin’s gaze lingered on the exposed skin for a moment before she quickly entered the inner room, speeding up her pace.
“Senior apprentice, how shall we clean up?” Luo Jinxiang followed barefoot, smiling as Qu Wei Yin walked ahead. But before she could finish her sentence, Qu Wei Yin raised her hand, and the messy room immediately returned to order as if nothing had happened.
Seeing the meat, the Qiongqi eagerly rushed out, grabbed the meat, and happily devoured it.
“Come here,” Qu Wei Yin sat down on the bed with an imposing air, not even looking at Luo Jinxiang.
Confused, Luo Jinxiang stood up and obediently walked over to her.
“Abusing forbidden techniques, do you know how dangerous that is? If it weren’t for me and the elders here, with your cultivation level, you would have already met Yama,” Qu Wei Yin scolded. Her face barely changed, but the deep tone and sharp gaze were enough to send shivers down anyone’s spine.
“If you really want to die, you don’t need to go through all this trouble. Just say the word, and I’ll make it happen right now,” Qu Wei Yin said as she raised her finger, and the Crescent Star Sword flew into the air, aiming directly at Luo Jinxiang’s throat.
Luo Jinxiang’s pupils constricted, but she didn’t flinch. Somehow, she felt confident that Qu Wei Yin wouldn’t actually hurt her.
True to her instinct, the sword stopped inches away from her skin.
Qu Wei Yin looked surprised, obviously not expecting Luo Jinxiang to show no fear.
“But if I don’t, won’t you get hurt?” Luo Jinxiang muttered sulkily.
Qu Wei Yin was at a loss for words when she heard her answer. She stared at Luo Jinxiang for a moment, then loosened her grip, and the Crescent Star Sword slowly floated back to its original position.
The room fell into a deep silence. Luo Jinxiang kept her head down while Qu Wei Yin looked at her still damp hair. She felt a bittersweet feeling wash over her, as if something was melting away.
She coughed, averted her gaze, and asked, “Where did you learn this forbidden technique?”
“Elder Xie gave me a book,” Luo Jinxiang replied honestly.
“Bring it to me,” Qu Wei Yin started, but then shook her head as she stood up and walked over to the Crescent Star Sword. She tapped her joints lightly, and a red-haired baby doll appeared on the sword, exuding a spirit.
“What do you want with this old sword? Qu Wei Yin, this old sword spirit of the Crescent Moon Star Sword, are you going to make us pick beef?” The sword spirit stood on the sword, his hands on his hips, fuming.
“Go to her room and get the book,” Qu Wei Yin said.
“Am I just a messenger now?” the sword spirit fumed.
Meanwhile, the Qiongqi who had finished eating the meat seemed to smell something and approached, trying to bite the spirit. Startled, the sword spirit jumped onto Luo Jinxiang’s head and screamed in fear.
“You scared me! How can that old thing be here? It should be dead!” The sword spirit opened its mouth wide in disbelief.
Qu Wei Yin frowned at this revelation and coughed heavily. The sword spirit realized its mistake and quickly closed its mouth.
“Go quickly, and if you dawdle, I’ll have you chop the meat from now on,” Qu Wei Yin said coldly.
Without another word, the sword spirit vanished on the spot.
Luo Jinxiang couldn’t help but notice Qu Wei Yin’s evasiveness. She wondered how the sword spirit knew that the Demon Lord had a Qiongqi two thousand years later. The name Old Thing sounded quite familiar.
“Your heavenly veins are damaged, and you must take good care of yourself. Remember, for these few days, you can’t use any forbidden techniques or spiritual energy, otherwise even the gods won’t be able to save you,” Qu Wei Yin said, casting a longing glance at the Qiongqi. “But without using spiritual energy, what if someone bullies me? What should I do?” Observing Qu Wei Yin’s longing expression and her attempts to hide it, Luo Jinxiang suddenly found her somewhat endearing and teased her jokingly.
“I’ll protect you,” Qu Wei Yin said without thinking, but as the words came out of her mouth, she immediately stopped as she felt a wave of heat rise to her cheeks.
She hesitated and quickly avoided eye contact, her tone becoming fierce. “You are truly useless, not even able to defend yourself, allowing others to bully you. You’re beyond redemption.”
Chapter 15: Little Sweetie
The scolding left Luo Jinxiang speechless. She had no choice but to remain silent, wondering why the witch was always in such a bad mood.
At that moment, the sword spirit appeared once again, holding a small book in her hands that was no bigger than the palm of her hand, but felt as heavy as a mountain as she struggled to lift it.
“Here,” the sword spirit said and threw the book at Luo Jinxiang’s face.
Luo Jinxiang skillfully caught it and found the page on forbidden techniques before respectfully handing the book to Qu Wei Yin.
Qu Wei Yin casually flipped through the book, but after only a few pages, she stopped, flicked her finger, and the book burst into flames, turning into ashes.
“Truly misleading,” she muttered, shaking off the ashes in annoyance.
Luo Jinxiang kept his head down, not daring to speak.
“Your friend has arrived,” Qu Wei Yin said, her eyes flitting to the window before looking at Luo Jinxiang. “Quite a network of friends you’ve gathered in just a few days.”
Comment