Chapter 24: Yujing City in the Sky-Part 2

Li Bu was gasping for air, but his eyes were shining brightly, and he chuckled until he started coughing.

Li Bu gasped, “So it turns out you’re still like this… I thought the Ye Sha nowadays had turned over a new leaf and become a sick cat…”

There was a gleam in Li Bu’s eyes.

Four years ago, the Duansheng Dao was wiped out.

At that time, he was on a mission outside when he learned of the tragic massacre of his sect, feeling intense shock and pain and swearing to seek revenge and dispel hatred. But as he pursued the truth, he discovered that the perpetrator of the massacre was none other than his beloved brother, Ye Sha.

Why?

Ye Lang had been tracking him all the way, knowing that he couldn’t defeat Ye Sha and also knowing that after practicing the secret method of the Duansheng Dao, Ye Sha’s talent would surpass that of most cultivators in the world.

But Ye Lang didn’t really want to kill him—

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Jiang Xuehe had become a “Clay bodhisattva,” compassionate and kind-hearted, and had even developed vulnerabilities.

Li Bu despised this version of Jiang Xuehe.

And he also despised the person who had turned Jiang Xuehe into what he was today… undoubtedly that little Ti Ying.

With these thoughts in mind, Li Bu chuckled, and suddenly, a bright red flame appeared from his forehead, causing his physique to suddenly strengthen.

He shouted loudly and threw off Jiang Xuehe’s shackles with a backward motion.

Jiang Xuehe’s figure flew like snow, his black robe fluttering, his hood blown open by the wind, and once again he attacked Li Bu.

Li Bu: “Why did you betray the Duansheng Dao?”

Jiang Xuehe replied calmly, “I am willing to explain slowly. Are you willing to listen slowly?”

Li Bu licked the blood from between his teeth and grinned. “Brother, now that you’re bound by curses, you don’t even have half the strength you used to… how can you kill me?”

Jiang Xuehe narrowed his eyes and said, “Little Bu, you talk too much.”

Behind him, the bamboo forest transformed into vines, strangling towards Li Bu.

Li Bu’s mind shook upon hearing “Little Bu,” momentarily distracted, and Jiang Xuehe gained the upper hand in the fight once again.

Li Bu: “You still have no taboos. Clearly, you hate me to the extreme and want to get rid of me, yet you still call me ‘Little Bu.’ You want to take advantage of my weakness to kill me… Does little sister Ti Ying know what you’re like?”

Jiang Xuehe replied gently, “She doesn’t need to know.”

He lifted his gaze and said, “Because I will kill you.”

Despite his techniques being sealed to some extent and his body suppressed by curses, he still grew up in the Duansheng Dao until he was fourteen… In this world, there was no one who understood better than Ye Sha how to strike at the heart and how to kill.

The fluctuations of spiritual energy between the two during their fight caused the bamboo forest to rustle and the weather to change.

Jiang Xuehe cast a shielding formation with a flick of his hand, enveloping the area, ensuring that the commotion here wouldn’t be transmitted outside.

Li Bu intended to disrupt this formation—

With each strike of his Mighty Vajra Fist wrapped in flames, he pounded against the formation. While he was evenly matched with Jiang Xuehe below, cracks had already begun to form on the formation.

Li Bu spoke with malice: “If this commotion gets out, the Yujing sect won’t accept you as a disciple, and you won’t be able to follow Ti Ying anymore.”

Jiang Xuehe remained unmoved.

His resilient and cold temperament made Li Bu both annoyed and fearful.

This senior brother’s robe fluttered, his face was beautiful, and he always attacked where the opponent was weak.

Li Bu, relying on his current strength being stronger than Jiang Xuehe’s, was infuriated with the amount of killing intent stirred within him as he brought the battle between the two to such a balanced state. 

Li Bu fell to the ground once again, quickly flipping back up.

Just then, the cracks in the formation widened, and the formation began to slowly break apart. Li Bu wasn’t concerned about the Yujing sect discovering them; when the formation shattered, his eyes were fixed only on Jiang Xuehe.

But it was Jiang Xuehe who seemed somewhat frozen in this moment.

With a single attack from Li Bu, this senior brother stumbled backwards, his breath disorderly and his spiritual energy beginning to waver.

Li Bu frowned.

He heard the delicate and brittle voice of a young girl outside the formation.

“Senior brother, are you here?”

“Chen Da, are you sure my senior brother took this path?”

“Is my senior brother mad at me, ignoring me?”

It was Ti Ying!

Seeing Jiang Xuehe’s unstable state, Li Bu’s eyes instantly reddened with anger. His brother didn’t care whether the Yujing sect discovered their fight or not, but as soon as Ti Ying arrived, his brother became unsettled.

Why should that be?

How can a fellow disciple who has been together with him in Duansheng Dao for fourteen years not be as good as Ti Ying, whom he only met recently?

Facing Ti Ying, Li Bu’s murderous intent soared to its peak.

He chuckled coldly, withdrawing and intending to seize this opportunity to kill Ti Ying.

But spells came at him from behind.

Li Bu initially disregarded them, but the spells were powerful and filled with killing intent. He had to turn around to counter them, only to find a golden shackle flying towards him.

The wind roared, his hood thrown into the grass, while Jiang Xuehe sat cross-legged on the ground, forming seals with his hands. A drop of blood trembled as it was drawn from his heart, following the virtual line of the golden shackle between the two and heading towards Li Bu’s forehead.

It was heart blood.

Li Bu had some knowledge of curses: this was a formation set up with blood from the heart, intending to cast a curse on him, known as the “Spring and Autumn Heart Curse.”

Jiang Xuehe glanced at the cracked formation in the sky.

There was no time left.

Li Bu was formidable; before Ti Ying could arrive, there was no time to kill him, so they could only find another way to restrain him.

Consuming immense spiritual energy and shedding another drop of heart blood…

As Jiang Xuehe cast the spell, the blood color on his face gradually dissipated. His neck and hands were bound by the curse, and the surrounding air flowed madly. The power of the ghostly curse made the sky here begin to darken.

Li Bu screamed in agony, almost able to see the ghosts behind Jiang Xuehe about to appear in broad daylight.

Filled with hatred, Li Bu shed tears. “Aren’t you afraid of attracting the elders of the Yujing sect to come and kill you? If they find out you’re a villain from Duansheng Dao, you won’t live through today.”

“You even cast such a curse on me… Is a cultivator’s heart blood so cheap?”

But no matter how he cursed, that drop of blood indeed drilled into Li Bu’s forehead.

With a loud “boom,” the formation enveloping the two completely shattered.

Jiang Xuehe’s clear but hoarse voice sounded like a curse in Li Bu’s ears:

“I wield the power of the heavens, rivers, sun, moon, mountains, seas, and stars. I command clarity and darkness. Under my command, the thirty-three heavenly gods obey. I use my heart’s blood to command you…

“From this moment on, you are not allowed to pursue Ti Ying. If you disobey, you will suffer unbearable torment, and heavenly thunder will strike, ending your life!”

Before Li Bu passed out from the intense pain, his vision blurred by blood and tears, he saw Jiang Xuehe’s clear, pale face, with crimson blood seeping from the corner of his lips.

That blood, like the drop that penetrated Li Bu’s forehead, burned him with agonizing pain, piercing his heart and soul.

…Why?

The sky darkened as Ti Ying and Chen Da walked along a bamboo forest path, searching for Jiang Xuehe.

They had been searching for a long time along this road, but to no avail.

Ti Ying bit her lip tightly, her eyes growing increasingly gloomy. She hadn’t spoken for a while now, and this atmosphere of low pressure made Chen Da anxious.

Chen Da lowered his head in reflection. “I thought since we had just arrived at the Yujing sect, Senior Brother wouldn’t have gone far. Besides, when he goes out, he must, he must…”

He stole a glance at Ti Ying: He must be looking for you.

Who knew…

Chen Da was nervous and scared, “It’s all my fault for being too weak. I didn’t dare to go out and follow Senior Brother…”

Ti Ying snapped, “Shut up! Shut up! You’re so annoying! I want to listen for senior brother’s voice; don’t disturb me!”

She was so fierce that she didn’t even spare a glance at Chen Da. But the slap from Ti Ying in Chen Da’s imagination, fueled by her rage, never came.

Chen Da was puzzled.

He followed behind Ti Ying, stealing glances at her pale and tense profile. She was indeed very angry, almost fainting from anger.

Suddenly, Ti Ying’s voice softened. “Senior brother!”

Chen Da looked up and saw, in front of the bamboo forest, a young man in a gray robe and hood, leaning against the bamboo trees, stepping out of the deep forest.

The sunset fell on the young man, giving him a lonely and ethereal beauty.

Before Chen Da could react, Ti Ying had already rushed over.

Her voice became even sweeter: “Kind-hearted Senior Brother.”

Jiang Xuehe embraced her.

The previous battle had drained his spiritual energy, and now, weakened by the backlash of the curse, he was exhausted. When Ti Ying ran over, she actually pushed him back a step.

Ti Ying looked up in confusion.

After a moment’s thought, she tiptoed over, intending to lift his hood.

Her hand was held by Jiang Xuehe.

Jiang Xuehe spoke gently, “Are you going to be mischievous again?”

Ti Ying’s neck shrank back.

She realized that it was because she had run off in a fit of temper that she had lost her senior brother.

So she obediently let her senior brother hold her hand and lead her out of the bamboo forest.

Unable to resist her curiosity, Ti Ying asked, “Senior Brother, why are you here?”

Jiang Xuehe replied softly, “To find you.”

His voice was very soft. After spending a few days with him, Ti Ying could already discern a hint of weakness in his harsh voice.

Huh?

What’s wrong with him?

Is he very sad because of her tantrum?

Feeling uneasy, Ti Ying silently encouraged herself to be more obedient.

But she couldn’t help but complain to him after a moment of silence: “You’re so silly. Did you get lost?”

Chen Da caught up to them and exclaimed, “Little Ying?”

…You’re scolding your senior brother right after meeting him?

Ti Ying gave him a blank look and ignored him. She didn’t know how to comfort her senior brother. After wracking her brain, all she could come up with was, “Next time, don’t make me search for you for so long.”

Jiang Xuehe remained calm and composed.

“I often worry about you, but if you worry about me only once, does it make you unhappy?”

Ti Ying’s momentum weakened, “It’s not that… then I’ll continue looking for you.”

She felt a bit aggrieved.

Jiang Xuehe smiled.

He had resolved the big problem of Li Bu and accompanied his junior sister to this point without any issues. And his junior sister was so sensible…

Although he was tired, his mood was good. He asked Ti Ying, “What do you want from me?”

Ti Ying naturally didn’t admit that she came specifically to find her senior brother. She hemmed and hawed, unable to say it.

Chen Da reminded from the side, “We haven’t registered with the steward yet.”

Ti Ying exclaimed, “Right! This is a big deal. I came for this!”

Jiang Xuehe raised his eyebrows, took her hand, and led her and Chen Da to find the steward.

As Ti Ying was led out of the bamboo forest by Jiang Xuehe, she couldn’t help but glance back, looking behind her: it seemed like there was some kind of secret hidden there.

She glanced lightly at Jiang Xuehe.

Was there a secret belonging to her senior brother that he didn’t want her to know?

Feeling a bit mischievous, Ti Ying bit her lip, pondered for a while, and let go of the matter: forget it, she wouldn’t tease her senior brother today.

—

As the sun set in the west, the sky was filled with red clouds.

There were a few people left at the registration place. Unexpectedly, when the three of them arrived, they ran into Hua Shi.

It turned out that Hua Shi also found too many people bothersome. She had gone to cry to her father for a while and only then came to register at the registration place.

Seeing Ti Ying, Hua Shi glared angrily.

Ti Ying made a funny face at her.

Ti Ying taunted, “Senior sister, are you still going to fight me?”

Jiang Xuehe calmly said, “Junior sister.”

Ti Ying reluctantly lowered her head.

Hua Shi gave her a disdainful look and arrogantly said, “I’m also participating in the inner sect competition. Don’t think you can really beat me, little junior sister…”

She leaned in, smirked wickedly, and said, “I won’t let you off.”

…After all, this is the only clue related to Suan Yu.

Ti Ying sneered, “Then be careful, senior sister.”

Hua Shi snorted and, reminded by the steward nearby, went to register her name. But after finishing, she didn’t leave either.

Ti Ying was suspicious. “What are you doing?”

Hua Shi said, “Now that you are an inner disciple and I am too, and we live together, naturally I’ll wait for you to go back together.”

Ti Ying boasted, cupping her face, “Ah, I’m so tired.”

Hua Shi looked bewildered, “Tired? Tired of what?”

Ti Ying complacently said, “You and I don’t know each other. You like me now and want to live with me.”

As soon as she said this, there was silence all around.

Jiang Xuehe, who was feeling down, was taken aback, suppressing a smile.

Chen Da, who was nervous about Hua Shi, burst into laughter, finally showing a bit of a youthful demeanor.

Hua Shi’s face turned red, and she became furious, “Are you childish! Who wants to live with you? We’re not even roommates… How conceited you are!”

Ti Ying suddenly realized,”It turns out you were just trying to show that you wouldn’t use the back door.”

She had heard about Hua Shi’s identity during the day.

Hua Shi stomped her foot and ignored her.

Hua Shi stood still on the side, and Chen Da’s palms started sweating again.

The steward registered them while fearing they might start a fight and quickly spoke to divert their attention: “The inner sect competitions will start tomorrow, so you all need to be prepared. Oh, starting tomorrow, all new disciples will have their spiritual roots tested, so make sure you’re not late.”

Testing spiritual roots…

Ti Ying’s eyes trembled.

She noticed that Jiang Xuehe had already gone ahead to register, so she followed suit.

Jiang Xuehe didn’t know what she was up to, but Ti Ying clung to his arm and peeked around from behind him. Jiang Xuehe paused for a moment, allowing her to look.

The registrar glanced around and remarked, “You two have such a good relationship.”

Jiang Xuehe replied, “She’s a bit mischievous, my younger sister. She wants to cultivate, but I’m worried about her, so I have to follow.”

The registrar praised with a smile, “Then you two are both impressive, passing the trials and entering the inner sect together…”

Hua Shi interjected softly from the side, “We still don’t know how Suan Yu died.”

The registrar quickly changed the subject, fearing they might start arguing again.

But this time, Ti Ying didn’t start arguing following Hua Shi’s words. Instead, she watched as Jiang Xuehe registered his name.

During registration, Jiang Xuehe had to take off his hood to let the registrar see his face. Seeing the injuries on the boy’s neck and hands, the registrar sympathetically assumed that he had been seriously injured during the trial.

Wanting to befriend the inner sect disciples, the steward said, “Up in the Lin Chifeng area is Elder Ge’s territory, which is our sect’s Medicine Sect. There are many spiritual medicines there, some hundreds or thousands of years old. If the junior brother wants to heal his injuries, he can go there to seek medicine.”

Jiang Xuehe thanked him politely.

Ti Ying lowered her head to look at the elegant handwriting of Jiang Xuehe’s name. She couldn’t help but follow along as she read, “Jiang… Xue… He.”

These three characters, with the unique innocence of a girl, rested on her tongue, soft and tingly.

Jiang Xuehe’s wrist stiffened, and he looked down at her. “What?”

Ti Ying suddenly felt a bit shy, turning her head away. “Just calling out names randomly.”

But in her heart, she thought, “So, Brother is called ‘Jiang Xuehe’, not just ‘Jiang Xue’. Ah, she’s so clever.”

She had always wanted to understand what senior brother was called, but she was too embarrassed to ask. Luckily, she was clever, and now she understood.

Although Jiang Xuehe didn’t know what Ti Ying was thinking, he allowed her to continue. He was somewhat injured and drained of spiritual energy at the moment; just standing here was already a struggle, and he didn’t have the energy to care for Ti Ying.

Following Jiang Xuehe, Chen Da hesitated.

Seeing him hesitating, Hua Shi began to doubt.

Chen Da had always been afraid that Hua Shi would recognize him. Now, with a flushed face, he stuttered, “I… I can’t read…”

Hua Shi sneered.

Jiang Xuehe said, “I’ll register for you.”

In fact, Chen Da could read, but he was in a panic, afraid that Hua Shi would recognize the name “Chen Da.”

With mixed feelings, he watched as Jiang Xuehe wrote a name in the registration book —

Chen Zichun.

Chen Da was stunned.

Even with his hood on, he felt Jiang Xuehe’s clear gaze on him. “Chen Zichun, is that what you’re called, right?”

Chen Da’s eyes welled up, touched by Jiang Xuehe’s thoughtfulness, and he nodded repeatedly.

Ti Ying was alert: Why is he looking at senior brother with that kind of gaze? Is he trying to steal senior brother?

Ti Ying pushed Chen Da aside and hugged Jiang Xuehe’s arm. “senior brother, can you help me write my name too?”

She gestured, “My ‘Ti’ is quite rare…”

Jiang Xuehe said, “senior brother knows how to read.”

Ti Ying gave Jiang Xuehe an annoyed glance before proudly looking at the man who now called himself Chen Zichun.

Chen Zichun: “…”

Even he, who was burning with anxiety, was amused by Ti Ying.

—

Anyway, after entering the Yujing sect, the male and female disciples of the inner sect were housed separately. At night, Ti Ying could only go to the female disciples’ courtyard with Hua Shi.

Since recognizing her senior brother, the two had never been apart. Moreover, after leaving Qianshan and fleeing all the way, Ti Ying always felt somewhat scared.

She walked reluctantly, constantly looking back.

But tonight, for some reason, her senior brother became indifferent. He and Chen Zichun walked briskly without even turning back to check on her.

Ti Ying felt lost.

And to add insult to injury, Hua Shi teased her along the way.

—

Arriving at the female disciples’ courtyard, Ti Ying, holding her jade token, learned that Hua Shi lived alone in one room, while she would share a room with a girl named Nan Yuan.

Hua Shi: “It’s not like I have anyone looking after me. They just happened to have one room left, so I took it.”

Ti Ying ignored her and went back to her room, feeling dejected.

Hua Shi stood there for a moment, feeling bored. She had wanted to ask about what happened with Suan Yu, but… the girl seemed to be in poor spirits, probably because she was injured during the day. She decided she would ask another time.

Inside the room, Ti Ying saw a blindfolded girl sitting by the window on the bed, with a spiritual candle lit and a book spread out on the table in front of her. She sat upright, perfectly composed.

Ti Ying thought: Even a blind person wants to read?

But she didn’t want to ask. Feeling drained, she climbed onto her own bed, buried her head in the pillow, and kicked her legs in frustration.

Nan Yuan noticed that her roommate had returned.

She hesitated about whether to greet her, but then she noticed that her roommate, who didn’t bother to wash up, wear slippers, or care about tomorrow’s competition, simply fell asleep like that.

Nan Yuan, feeling cold, decided that since the other person was ignoring her, she would just continue reading.

But Ti Ying didn’t sleep well.

She tossed and turned, feeling uncomfortable everywhere. The poisonous dragon formation she had set up during the Five Poison Forest was causing her discomfort in the middle of the night. The intense depletion of her spiritual energy during the day, coupled with the excitement and nervousness of fighting, kept her restless.

At times, she drifted into shallow dreams, half asleep and half awake, suddenly opening her eyes to find the candle burning brightly, illuminating the room.

Ti Ying jumped out of bed in a fit of anger: “It’s the middle of the night! Can’t you sleep? Annoying!”

Nan Yuan was taken aback: …the middle of the night?

Although her eyesight was impaired, according to her perception, it wasn’t that late…

Nan Yuan replied indifferently: “Sorry, give me another moment. We have a literary test tomorrow, and I don’t know what Yujing sect usually examines, so I want to prepare more.”

Ti Ying woke up completely.

Her eyes suddenly brightened: “Are we having an exam? Sister, where did you get the book from…”

Ti Ying’s eyes darted around, her gaze softening. “Sister, take your time with your reading; I won’t disturb you. But I’m not good at studying either; I need someone to explain…”

Nan Yuan didn’t know what Ti Ying meant. Fifteen minutes later, after Ti Ying persisted, she reluctantly lent her a few books, and Ti Ying flipped out of the window with them.

Perched on the windowsill, Ti Ying raised her chin proudly: “Since you gave me these books, I’ll allow you to stay up late studying!”

Nan Yuan: “…”

Oh well, back to reading.

—

Chen Zichun was dozing off when he suddenly heard a knock on the door.

Ti Ying’s soft voice came from outside: “senior brother, senior brother…”

Chen Zichun opened his eyes, and, in the next instant, the spiritual candle lit up, revealing Jiang Xuehe sitting up on the opposite bed.

Chen Zichun noticed that Jiang Xuehe’s complexion wasn’t good, and there was blood on his neck…

But Jiang Xuehe didn’t seem to notice.

Under the moonlit night, with lanterns swaying gently, stood a petite figure at the door.

In a moment of slight daze, Jiang Xuehe saw Ti Ying holding a stack of books, her hair tousled by the wind, and her colorful hairband fluttering. “There’s an exam tomorrow, and I don’t like reading…”

She looked up at the thinly dressed youth.

The night breeze tousled Jiang Xuehe’s robe sleeves, and the blood streaks on his neck, meandering up from his chin, looked eerie and beautiful against the backdrop of blood and snow. Suddenly, she forgot what she wanted to say.

Jiang Xuehe silently watched her, thinking of the hairband belonging to the girl in his sleeve.

For some reason, there was a slight evasion in his heart.

Ti Ying looked up in confusion, holding the books tightly to her chest — she stared directly at her senior brother without his usual hood.

The jackdaws stopped crowing, and the two of them forgot to say anything for a long time.

Chen Zichun, who had moved closer in confusion, coughed awkwardly: “It’s the middle of the night, what are you… doing…”

After a moment, Jiang Xuehe took Ti Ying’s hand and led her into the room: “I happen to have something to teach my junior sister; come in.”