Chapter 7: This girl is so cruel
Lu Tianyu's eyes shone with unmistakable enthusiasm, the words tumbling out rapid-fire: "The first gate to enter the sect hinges upon Spirit Root Evaluation! Only those blessed by the heavens may proceed to the true Trials. Triumph, and the mantle of a Tian Qing disciple is yours!"
He leaned in conspiratorially, his voice dropping to an eager murmur: "Qingxi… when you pass? You must choose Violet Bamboo Peak! Seriously! Honest! Violet Bamboo? The finest peak in Tian Qing! Matches your caliber? Perfect fit! And my Master—" he patted the colossal slab of metal strapped to his back, pride radiating from him, "—he's the Sword Monarch of the entire sect! His reputation echoes across the Sea of Stars! Every word is gospel truth! It's settled then! Violet Bamboo awaits you! I'll dash back now, give Master the news—I'll be perched right in the Grand Hall, watching your triumph unfold on the Scrying Mirrors! Little Martial Sister!" His fist clenched in a fierce, encouraging pump, his grin dazzling enough to challenge the sun. "Go claim your glory!"
The progression of her title was unmistakable—from the distant "Miss Gu," softening to "Qingxi," now crystallizing irrevocably into "Little Martial Sister."
In the intricate labyrinth of Lu Tianyu's reasoning, Gu Qingxi's refusal of the bounty upon witnessing his dire poverty was ironclad proof of magnanimity and sterling character. Combined with her frankly terrifying talismanic prowess at merely the first layer of Qi Refining? Talent like this was a cosmic anomaly! Failing to recruit such a once-in-an-aeon genius as his own precious martial sister was an unforgivable crime against heaven!
Gu Qingxi finally grasped it—this "one family" was shorthand for enrollment in Violet Bamboo Peak's roster.
"To the queue! Spirit Roots tested over there!" Lu Tianyu gestured with infectious energy, ready to lead the charge.
"I can manage," Gu Qingxi demurred softly.
"Right!" Lu Tianyu didn't miss a beat, beaming. "I'll await your victory before the Scrying Mirrors! Off to Master I go!" With that signature rumble, the colossal sword roared to life, catapulting him skyward in a streak of viridian lightning.
His echo still vibrated in the air when Gu Qingxi's consciousness pierced the bracelet: "Confirm. This is the location of your celestial retreat?"
A moment of stunned silence within the jade confines. Then—
ROOOAAAARRRR!!! A psychic tsunami erupted, threatening to crack the artifact! "THE INSOLENCE!! WHICH VERMIN DARE SQUAT UPON MY ETERNAL PARADISE?! WHO SANCTIONED THIS INSECT HIVE TO BREED OVER MY DIVINE DOMAIN?! STRUTTING THUS WITH THEIR PATSY TRIALS?! DO THEY KNOW NOT WHO GUARDS THIS REALM?! I AM WULING LAOZU! TREMBLE! TREMBLE, UNGRATEFUL WORMS!!!"
"You," Gu Qingxi's thought-voice cut through the roar like winter frost, "perished how many epochs ago?"
"Eh…" The rage-spell shattered into hesitant fragments. "Uh… Six? Seven thousand cycles? Perhaps… eight or nine? Nay… could a myriad of years…?"
"Ah." Gu Qingxi's internal voice delivered the coup de grâce with frigid precision. "Your bones surely scattered to ten thousand winds. Ashes long mingled with forgotten dust. So, precisely which descendants of those you've outlived by ages should you expect to hold you 'in their sight'? Perhaps hope they erect a shrine? Burn joss for a ghost?" A ghost of a smirk touched her lips. "Besides—wasn't this 'hidden grove' your sanctuary? A secret hoard… likely undisturbed?"
Wuling Laozu: "..."
The little fiend's logic was colder than soul-draining ice, sharp as shattered bone. Damned if it wasn't infuriatingly sound! It choked the very essence of his spectral being.
"Your treasures," Gu Qingxi shifted gears, "were they sealed? Is there any chance they've been found?"
"SEALED?!" His ancient pride flared like a phoenix. "Naturally! The vaults of the Supreme Sovereign remain inviolate! Plunged into the depths of the primordial earth veins! My sealings surpass mortal ken! None in this cosmos could unravel them!"
"I will retrieve them." Her mental tone brooked no argument, already moving toward the end of the long queue.
The pact with the Laozu was ironclad. Integrating into a sect, seeking sanctuary and systematic cultivation, had always been part of her plan. Her inherited memories tagged the Tian Qing Sect as unremarkable yet untainted by overt infamy. She'd merely failed to connect 'Tianshan Mountain' to this very sect. With Lu Tianyu as a… precarious connection point, it presented a viable, if unexpected, entry.
Silence reigned within the bracelet for three heartbeats. Then, despairing anguish:
"Retrieve?! HOW?! Stealth? A Qi Refining Layer One wisp? The wardspells would atomize you before you sensed their edge! Brute force? You couldn't best the gate guards, let alone a Peak Lord! It's death! Certain, ignominious death!" His hoard seemed perilously close to eternal internment.
"Who spoke of stealth or force?" Gu Qingxi's reply was unnervingly calm, laced with faint puzzlement. "I join the sect. As a disciple, legitimate access follows. Opportunities to search will arise. What is complex?" She paused, the unspoken implication sharper than any blade: Has millennia of sleep ossified your strategic capacity, Ancient One?
Wuling Laozu: "..."
At that precise moment, it felt as if his essence had been hammered by his own obsidian sword. He would NEVER admit his panic had been monumentally stupid!
The core selection hinged on the Spirit Root.
Single Elemental Root: Heaven's Chosen—the rarest gems, fought over by every great sect.
Dual or Triple Elemental Roots: The True Spirit-Blessed—backbone talents, groomed as Inner Disciples.
Quad or Quint Elemental Roots: Pseudospirit Roots—a hard road paved with struggle; these hopefuls became Outer Disciples or mere servants. Advancement to Inner Circle demanded miracles or impossible grit.
Gu Qingxi took her place at the serpentine line's tail.
When her turn came, the young male disciple assigned to the Spirit Root Evaluating Sphere gave her a longer look than necessary. Was there… a flicker of awe in his eyes?
Gu Qingxi found it mildly perplexing. Why?
She remained blissfully unaware of the internal roiling within the disciple's mind: *"Dragon Gods above! This girl's spine must be forged from mythical steel! She rode Lu-shixiong's sword… and SURVIVED?! The ultimate testament to mortal endurance! A true warrior of nerve!"*
He further reasoned: Lu-shixiong dumped her here and vanished without a backward glance. Was it callous indifference towards deadweight? Or supreme, silent confidence in her success? It had to be the former. Because—
The Evaluating Sphere pulsed cool against her palm.
As Gu Qingxi's touch met the crystal, the inner luminescence coalesced—a seething maelstrom! Crimson fire and indigo ice lashed against each other in violent opposition! Water and Fire Dual Spirit Roots!
"Hsssk—" The disciple inhaled sharply. So THAT explains Lu-shixiong's indifference! Such a root configuration—mutually antagonistic elements locked in eternal strife! Rare! Notorious! Even the strongest will, focusing solely on one element, faced relentless sabotage from its nemesis. Deviations into Qi-fever, shattered cores… It was a dead-end path!
Tian Qing accepted dual-spirit roots? Yes. Barely.
But this? This was the cursed dead-end within the dead end.
He thrust a token made of rough bamboo into her hand. "Hold token. Wait there." He indicated an open patch of flagstones near the stele, his tone professional yet carrying an infinitesimal undercurrent of pity.
A sparse gathering of hopefuls—all young—was already present. Gu Qingxi drifted towards an unoccupied edge, her mind connecting with the disgruntled entity in the bracelet.
Crunch. Munch. Snuffle.
The distinct, salivation-inducing sound of something crisp being eaten, accompanied by a warm, salty-sweet aroma, drifted tantalizingly close.
Gu Qingxi turned her head.
A young woman, skin like polished pearl, draped in exquisite brocades that shimmered faintly, with soft curves giving her a comfortably rounded figure—was turned slightly away. She hunched, a wide sleeve held like a curtain against the world, entirely focused on popping small, translucent, honey-glazed spheres into her mouth with rapt concentration.
Their gazes collided!
The girl froze mid-chew, round, doe-like eyes widening in mild panic above plump cheeks. A flustered, entirely disarming smile wobbled onto her face. She hesitantly extended the crumpled paper packet clutched in her hand. "Fa… family recipe. Candied walnuts. Crispy. Sweet… Would you… care to try?" The words held the polite, instinctive offering ingrained in those raised amidst privilege, tinged with uncertainty.
"My thanks." Gu Qingxi responded without hesitation. Her slender hand plunged unerringly into the offered bounty and emerged grasping a verifiable fistful of golden-brown, sugar-crisped walnuts.
The Aristocratic Girl: "..."
She stared, dumbfounded, at her own significantly depopulated packet. Her eyes, wide as full moons, slowly lifted to Gu Qingxi's much larger haul. Time seemed to congeal. An aura of profound "I was only being polite!" astonishment radiated from her frozen, softly rounded features.