Chapter 1

Chapter 1

In all of Yixian Sect, Senior Sister Ji Mingzhen and I were the only two female disciples.

I was a wandering beggar child she had picked up from the foot of the mountain.

She raised me herself from the time I was little. She taught me both Daoist arts and swordsmanship with her own hands.

When I was small, I used a wooden sword she had carved herself.

I could barely stand steady, and all I knew was to trail after Senior Sister, clumsily waving it around.

When a senior brother laughed at me, Senior Sister heard him. She crouched down, wrapped her arms around me, and tucked a plum candy into my mouth.

Then she took my hand and taught me, move by move.

“Lan’er is still little, and she’s already getting the form right.

“We’ll learn slowly. Sooner or later, you’ll master the Sixteen Forms of the Startled Swan.

“Unlike certain wastes of space, already sixteen and still unable to execute a single sword move.”

Her cold gaze swept toward the senior brother who had mocked me.

His face flushed bright red, and he didn’t dare say a word in reply.

Senior Sister was extraordinarily gifted. There was nothing she did not excel at, whether swordsmanship or Daoist arts. Everyone in the cultivation world praised her as a true talent.

I looked up and asked Senior Sister, “If I have no talent, can I still cultivate and become an immortal?”

Senior Sister tapped my chest.

“People say mortals may plan, but Heaven decides. Even so, most people who accomplish nothing in this world are cowards who never dare, and never try, to carve out a path for themselves. It has nothing to do with talent.”

I blinked in confusion to show I did not understand.

Senior Sister smiled and stroked my head.

“It’s all right if you don’t understand now. Cultivate with all your heart. When you become an immortal and see the vast world, you’ll understand everything.”

I was completely lost. All I remembered was how, when Senior Sister said those words, her hand was trembling from practicing swordsmanship.

I followed Senior Sister year after year, slowly growing up.

The first time I got my period, I was so frightened I thought I was going to die.

I locked myself in my room, crying while I wrote my will.

I laid out my final wishes with great care.

I wanted to be buried beside the peach tree in the courtyard.

I would watch the peach tree bloom in March and bear fruit in July.

Year after year, my flesh and blood would nourish it.

That way, Senior Sister would have the sweetest peaches to eat every year.

When Senior Sister saw I hadn’t come to dinner, she brought food to my room and was startled by my will.

At first she found it funny. Then, with reddened eyes, she poked my forehead.

“Who would dare eat peaches nourished by a dead person’s flesh and blood?”

Senior Sister wiped away my tears.

“A girl’s first period should be something to be happy about.

“Our Lan’er will be a young woman from now on. Women walk beneath heaven and earth just the same, standing tall and proud, not the slightest bit inferior to men.”

She said she would give me a gift to celebrate.

Knowing Senior Sister’s temperament, I thought it would be some magical artifact to help my cultivation.

But in the end, what I received was a beautiful dress.

Senior Sister had sewn it by hand. Silver thread was stitched into the hem, and beneath the sunlight, it shimmered with flowing colors.

I stared at Senior Sister in surprise. A moment later, I understood her intention.

Who said a woman had to be covered in dust and grime when she ran forward?

To chase what one longed for with grace and brightness was also a woman’s way of being. There was nothing to criticize in it.

From childhood, Senior Sister and I were inseparable, until a few days ago.

She went with Master and the senior brothers to Endless Valley to exterminate demons.

Demonic beasts ran rampant in Endless Valley, making it far too dangerous.

The younger disciples were left on the mountain to guard the sect.

Before leaving, Senior Sister gently instructed me,

“Little Junior Sister, practice your swordsmanship properly on the mountain. Don’t be lazy.

“When I come back, I’ll bring you plum candy.”

But after she left, Senior Sister never came back.