Chapter 37: Eating, Sleeping, and Listening to a Beautiful Fairy Sing
“Yuehan Senior Sister!”
Qiu Yuehan gave a faint “mm” in reply, not even pausing her gaze on the disciples who had just called out to her.
Today, she wore a black cross-collared long robe, with a pure white undergarnt beneath.
Her slender Chu-palace waist was bound by a black lozenge-patterned waist seal, accentuating her narrow waist even more.
“I want to enter the tower.”
Walking past the drifting-cloud, pale-purple flower grove, Qiu Yuehan stopped beneath a massive shadow.
Before her stood a towering dark-brown pagoda, layer upon layer rising skyward.
The upturned flying eaves and lively roof corners combined with the ancient patterns to radiate majestic solemnity.
Most eye-catching of all was the ink-wash landscape painting hung at the tower’s top, lending the structure an even stronger aura of antiquity.
The Jade Palace’s Scripture Repository.
This was not her first ti here.
The collection of texts within was vast—records and techniques accumulated from as early as the Feather Moon Immortal Palace up to the present Jade Palace—all locked within this tower.
The guardian only cast her a glance before saying, “Granted.”
Qiu Yuehan entered the tower without another word.
Now that she was the Jade Palace’s only True Disciple, her authority was nearly equal to that of an elder.
She could access most areas within the Scripture Repository.
Yet she did not ascend to the higher floors, but instead wandered the first level.
After a while, she finally reached the most secluded corner.
Several rows of bookshelves stood there, the dense fragrance of books filling her nose, carrying with it the freshness of paper.
Qiu Yuehan reached out and drew a scroll.
“Record of Spiritual Herbs”
She had naturally co here today because of Lu Changyuan’s instructions.
That handso yet unscrupulous old monster had left a demon mark within her body, leaving her no choice but to obey.
Yesterday, she had already searched through all the directories of dicinal pills but had found no ntion of the so-called Drunken Red Luan.
So she could only co here instead.
This bookshelf contained the Jade Palace’s collected rumors from various lands, as well as accounts of rural tales.
Another hour passed.
Qiu Yuehan put “Record of Spiritual Herbs” back.
There was no ntion whatsoever of the Drunken Red Luan.
“What exactly is this Drunken Red Luan?”
Her slender, pale hand brushed along the shelves.
Despite years of sword practice, her right hand bore no calluses, only smooth, snow-white fingers with distinct joints, strikingly beautiful.
“Mm?”
Her hand paused on a book.
This was a volu without a title, with only a scrawled, illegible character on the cover.
Qiu Yuehan pulled it down and opened it.
“The Immortal Palace always emphasized fate in its discipleship… today, in Great Yellow Village, three disciples were accepted, naly…”
Immortal Palace?
This seed to be a record left from the Feather Moon Immortal Palace.
Back when the Jade Palace was still the Feather Moon Immortal Palace, aside from the triennial grand disciple-recruitnt ceremony, Immortal Masters would sotis bring back children of promising roots they encountered outside.
“Beneath the Northern Palace Snow Mountain, a child was born with a Glazed Heart…”
Qiu Yuehan idly flipped through the volu, reading it as one might a story.
After all, in the cultivation world, those so-called born-with-such-and-such constitutions almost never actually attained the Dao in the end.
Her lazy glance skimd a line.
“In the Great Wei Kingdom, a female was found, older in years, seemingly a Red Luan Calamity Body, her roots exceedingly rare… she had worldly ties, a mortal fiancé, so her worldly ties were severed in her stead, and the Palace Mistress confined her for three years, forbidding her return ho… her fiancé was sought a new bride, who refused.”
This was the usual trick of the Feather Moon Immortal Palace.
They would take in a talented girl, then deceive her family, claiming the girl had perished in a secret-realm trial, and then compensate the family in other ways.
And they would prettify it by calling it “severing worldly ties.”
Later, after being reprimanded by Daoist Chang’an, they restrained themselves sowhat.
Qiu Yuehan stroked the page, the aged paper carrying the warmth of ti.
Curiously, the girl’s na seed blurred, the ink faded beyond recognition.
“Red Luan Calamity Body? Seems irrelevant.”
She had never heard of such a constitution.
So she continued reading, but found nothing further recorded.
Qiu Yuehan paid it little mind.
After all, the Red Luan Calamity Body and the Drunken Red Luan only shared two characters in common.
And this was who knew how old a record—Feather Moon Immortal Palace dated back five hundred years.
The girl recorded in this docunt had most likely died in the upheavals since.
“Forget it, that old monster always has endless things.”
Qiu Yuehan decided not to continue searching for the so-called Drunken Red Luan today, but instead to investigate the demon mark on her own body.
She had already searched for a long ti, yet had found nothing related to it.
At first, she thought it might be so secret art of the Pleasure Sect.
But upon closer inspection, even the Pleasure Sect’s arts were not so domineering, nor could they transmit one’s own cultivation technique.
This seed more like so kind of inheritance mark?
Qiu Yuehan did not know exactly what the Devour-Heart Demon Mark was, but she both loved and hated it.
Now, she did not even dare practice swordsmanship by the lakeside, only in the bamboo grove behind the mountain.
She also kept herself tightly wrapped in clothing, for fear soone might see the mark on her shoulder.
If soone saw…
Qiu Yuehan dared not imagine the consequences.
“To think the Jade Palace’s True Disciple is actually soone’s plaything.”
“Could it be that all your cultivation was gained panting beneath so old monster?”
Who would believe that the usually ice-cold, snow-like chief True Disciple of the Jade Palace was secretly soone’s servant? That she might be calling soone “Master” on the bed?
Just the thought gave Qiu Yuehan a headache.
“When will that old monster show up?”
She resolved that next ti she saw Lu Changyuan, she would not demand he remove the imprint—only that he move it sowhere else.
Even if it was moved onto her buttocks, that would be fine!
Perhaps because of Lu Changyuan’s sword, sumr ended early, and autumn quietly arrived.
The girl nad Autumn seed to enjoy mischief, always gifting one a chill the mont more clothing was needed, catching one off guard with wind-cold.
So although Xia Lianxue did not fear the cold, she still added a light gauze outer garnt.
Beneath, she wore a pale-moon long skirt, with a soft white jade sash around her waist, further highlighting her supple waist and graceful figure.
Her long, dense hair cascaded down like fine silk.
When the wind blew, her snow-white, crystalline neck was faintly revealed.
Between her brows lingered a trace of distant lancholy, like the flowing river before her, making one instinctively wish to smooth away her furrowed expression.
Fifth Realm—Jade Balance.
Among cultivators today, this was already a lofty realm.
Even within the Nine Sects and Twelve Palaces, one could serve as an elder; in smaller sects, one would practically be the sect master.
Yet even such a powerful fairy still had worries.
She had not slept all night, tossing and turning, thinking of Lu Changyuan’s fiancée.
She felt there was an unspoken emotion hidden in his words.
She did not know whether it was good or bad.
“Why are you just standing there, dazed?”
Xia Lianxue’s lovely lips curved faintly: “I was waiting for Young Master.”
Lu Changyuan nodded.
“Then let us be on our way.”
The two prepared to return to the Jade Palace.
Unlike before, now that Xia Lianxue had entered the Fifth Realm, she could board a boat to ascend the Immortal Mountain.
From the Glazed Dynasty’s treasury, they had taken a small boat.
Lu Changyuan seated himself naturally, while the fairy pressed her fingers together and spoke softly: “Rise.”
The boat lifted into the air, cutting through autumn skies, like a bird spreading its wings toward the Immortal Mountain.
Controlling the vessel, Xia Lianxue asked, “Young Master, what do you think of the Third Royal Highness?”
“A prodigy of the Dao.”
“That’s not what I ant.”
Lu Changyuan turned to look at the fairy’s charming face, smiling: “Then what is it you wish to ask?”
The fairy bit her lip, and finally sighed: “So the Third Royal Highness truly is a prodigy of the Dao?”
Boring.
He had wanted to see the fairy’s face flush red, stamring in embarrassnt.
But alas, he could not.
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