Qi Mu looked Chu Huan up and down, her face full of disdain. "Ninth Princess, while I greatly admire you and would love to beco part of your family, I simply don’t like this type of frail scholar."
Chu Huan heard this and imdiately breathed a sigh of relief. To be honest, he wasn’t fond of won who wielded swords and road the martial world either. He gratefully cupped his hands, "Thank you, Miss. My injuries aren’t serious. I can take care of them myself with a few days of rest."
"Alright then," Qi Mu replied straightforwardly, considering her funds were limited.
Nanli observed the two of them. They really seed to be mutually indifferent... Could her fortune-telling be wrong? Or perhaps the destined person was soone else? Never mind, destiny will bring them together when the ti is right. For now, she should tend to her third brother’s wounds.
Nanli took out her Heaven Star Brush, "Third Brother, I’ll use a Wound-Healing Talisman on you. Your injuries will heal instantly."
Chu Huan frowned and waved his hand, "No, such talismans must deplete a lot of your energy. I can recover in a few days; there’s no need for you to use a talisman on ."
If he relied on his sixth sister for everything, how much energy would she have left? He didn’t want to trouble her any further.
"These are just superficial wounds. It won’t cost much energy. Third Brother, think about it: if you return ho with a face like this, little nephew will surely be scared to tears," Nanli teased with a wink. "You wouldn’t want to wait a few days to see him, would you?"
Little nephew!?
Chu Huan had nearly forgotten about that! Excited, he grabbed Nanli’s hand, "My nephew is born? Is he healthy? How is sister-in-law?"
Nanli nodded, "I ca over right after everything was settled. Both mother and child are doing well."
She wasn’t omnipotent, after all, so she naturally prioritized her family first.
Chu Huan’s face lit up with a smile, but the swelling on his cheeks caused a painful sting as he did so. He didn’t want to wait a few days to et his nephew or risk scaring him, so he relented, "Sixth Sister, please use the talisman. Let’s hurry back to the manor."
Seeing that he no longer resisted, Nanli skillfully wielded the Heaven Star Brush to draw the talisman. Earlier, she had to concentrate and gather her energy to draw this talisman, but now she completed it effortlessly.
As the Wound-Healing Talisman activated, a faint silver glow emanated from Chu Huan’s body, rapidly healing his wounds from the inside out. The swelling on his face vanished, restoring his usual handso appearance.
Qi Mu, standing nearby, was montarily captivated by his looks but quickly dismissed the thought upon seeing his slender figure. Pretty faces often lacked substance.
Nanli, noticing that Chu Huan was now healed, though his clothes were torn and stained with blood, suggested, "Third Brother, you should return ho and bathe and change your clothes first."
"Of course," he agreed. "I can’t go et my nephew covered in blood. Let’s hurry."
However, their path was suddenly blocked by a young disciple. He had gone outside earlier to check and had seen that his senior brothers’ souls were gone--they had perished. Overco with grief, he struggled to speak, "Ninth Princess, why were the Xue family’s souls preserved, but my senior brothers’ souls were completely devoured?"
His words implied that Nanli had been too ruthless, saving the Xue family while refusing to save his brothers. Nanli’s expression remained indifferent:
"The Thousand-Year Ghost devoured their souls and shredded them to pieces, quickly enhancing its ghostly power. It had only just begun to consu the Xue family’s souls and hadn’t had ti to tear them apart yet. That’s why their souls remained intact."
"If you don’t believe , you can ask your master."
She had a clear conscience, after all.
The young disciple imdiately turned to Ming Pei, tears in his eyes, "Master, is what the Ninth Princess said true?"
Ming Pei, unable to speak, tearfully nodded.
The young disciple was heartbroken. "Senior Brother Cangsheng paid the price for stealing the treasured blade, but what about the others..."
As he spoke, he wiped the tears from his face again.
Nanli’s face grew colder, "Have you ever wondered why Cangsheng, after failing to steal the blade, was still with them?"
The young disciple was stunned.
Ming Pei already understood the underlying cause and, overwheld with guilt, closed his eyes in pain.
Qi Mu’s eyes widened, "They were in it together! They all tried to steal my blade! They failed and fled, only to encounter the Thousand-Year Ghost. It’s truly a case of karma."
The young disciple couldn’t stop his tears, "Maybe Senior Brother Cangsheng forced them..."
He didn’t want his brothers to be rembered in death with tainted reputations.
Nanli countered, "I know your skills well enough. Cangsheng might have been able to force one person, but could he have forced four or five at once? You all carry talismans when patrolling. If Cangsheng had evil intentions, why didn’t they use their talismans to notify or Ming Chong? Do you still think they were innocent?"
The young disciple instinctively grasped the pouch at his waist. Indeed, when they went on patrol, they were always well-prepared. He had clearly seen that his senior brothers’ pouches weren’t missing earlier, and they had even used Ghost-Expelling Talismans...
Qi Mu hadn’t expected so many people to be involved in this, and her gaze turned icy as she looked at Cangsheng’s body.
The young disciple shivered and asked, "Miss, they’ve already received their punishnt. Surely, you don’t intend to desecrate their bodies out of spite?"
Qi Mu scoffed and looked away, "They’re dead, so the enmity ends here. Harboring resentnt only makes life more miserable."
She had only wanted to see what kind of people these so-called cultivators were, given their cruelty.
Chu Huan gave her a long, thoughtful look. This martial woman truly was bold and straightforward, so different from the sheltered ladies of noble families.
With the matter settled, Qi Mu went to retrieve her treasured blade, hefting it onto her shoulder. Nanli glanced at it and noticed the intricate patterns on the blade’s back, her eyes widening slightly in surprise. "Miss, no wonder your blade is so effective against evil spirits. It’s engraved with ancient protective symbols."
Qi Mu didn’t think much of her blade’s power, but her eyes sparkled with admiration. "As expected of the Ninth Princess, you’re truly knowledgeable!"
Nanli smiled, "I just happened to co across it in an ancient text. May I take a closer look at your blade?"
If she could master this forging technique, she could equip the Black Armor Guards with weapons capable of slaying both n and evil spirits.
Qi Mu eagerly nodded and offered the blade, "Take your ti."
She wouldn’t mind if Nanli studied it for a year or so!
Since no one else could lift her treasured blade, Qi Mu held it with both hands, presenting it to Nanli. Nanli examined the symbols closely but wanted to test the weight of the large blade, so she reached out to grasp the hilt.
"About this blade..." Qi Mu paused, her mouth slightly agape, eyes wide with surprise.
Because Nanli easily lifted the blade!
She had picked up Qi Mu’s large blade!
Qi Mu trembled slightly and swallowed hard before blurting out, "It’s you?! You’re my destined person!"
But... how could it be a woman?!
Well, a woman could work too.
But the biggest problem was that the Ninth Princess was already married!
Nanli waved the large blade, still bewildered by Qi Mu’s words, "Destined person? What are you talking about?"
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