Chapter 67
No one was particularly surprised that Yu Tai intended to go to the Upper Realm.
But when Jiang Wenyi asked which sect she wished to join, her answer stunned everyone.
“I don’t intend to join any sect in the Upper Realm.”
Her clear, resolute voice echoed through the great hall.
Jiang Wenyi’s previously calm expression changed abruptly. “What did you say?”
As though she hadn’t noticed the sect leader’s displeasure, Yu Tai replied, “I will never forget the Qingshan Sword Sect’s kindness in raising me.”
With that, she turned and left, leaving the entire hall in an uproar.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Yibai was the first among them to recover. He immediately chased after her.
Ever since the Martial Tournament began, he hadn’t had a proper conversation with Yu Tai. Whenever he visited her cave dwelling, he was invariably turned away.
“Junior Sister!” he called loudly from behind her.
Yu Tai looked back and, for once, stopped walking. “Is something the matter, Senior Brother Jiang?”
If he was here to persuade her to join a sect, then he could save his breath.
Jiang Yibai had grown much thinner over the past few days. The look he gave Yu Tai carried a hint of…
System: [Melancholy.]
Yu Tai: [No, gloom.]
“Melancholy” was a word reserved for handsome men.
“Junior Sister, wait for me. I’ll definitely go to the Upper Realm and catch up with you.” Jiang Yibai stared at her with determination.
Yu Tai nodded perfunctorily. “Mm-hmm. I’m looking forward to it.”
It was impossible anyway.
Watching Yu Tai’s graceful figure recede into the distance, Jiang Yibai lowered his head and covered his face.
Junior Sister said she was looking forward to it… She was looking forward to the day he caught up with her and stood by her side.
Those few words instantly dissolved all the resentment he had accumulated after being ignored by Yu Tai for so many days.
Jiang Yibai felt capable again.
Yu Tai was decisive by nature. The moment she decided to leave, she immediately began packing everything.
Looking at the little house that had been here ever since she transmigrated into this world, she did feel a faint reluctance to part with it.
That feeling came and went quickly, however. It vanished completely the instant Xia Mo accidentally knocked over a teacup.
“Xia Mo!”
The young man shuddered when she called his name, and even the white tips of his hair seemed to tremble.
He turned around and gazed at Yu Tai with watery eyes. In a few quick steps, he reached her and wrapped her in a hug, burying his face in the crook of her neck and nuzzling her. “This panda didn’t do it on purpose.”
Yu Tai wasn’t about to let him get away with it just because he acted cute. She mercilessly pushed his head away, smacked him, and ordered, “Go play with the illusion beast in the backyard.”
Xia Mo pouted and shot her an aggrieved look. Before turning to leave, he took advantage of her inattention and planted a loud kiss on her cheek.
This time, Yu Tai kicked at him.
Clutching his backside, Xia Mo ran off with a laugh and leaped out through the window.
Expressionlessly wiping her damp cheek, Yu Tai cast a spell and tossed the shards on the floor outside.
She had no idea what had gotten into this child since he took human form. He was always touching and clinging to her.
Still, Yu Tai neither disliked it nor thought anything else of it.
How should she put it?
Before, her feelings toward Xia Mo had been like those of a mother toward her daughter.
Now… it was probably more like she had raised a troublesome son.
Compared with Yu Tai, who swept everything into her spatial pouch with all the subtlety of a whirlwind, Shu Li was clearly much more meticulous.
He carefully sorted every item into its proper category and left behind anything they didn’t need. In a sense, that was another kind of decisiveness.
This was Yu Tai’s last day at the Qingshan Sword Sect. After watching the sunset with Shu Li from the chairs in their little courtyard, she suddenly said, “The people in the Qingshan Sword Sect who abused you are all gone. The ones who remain may not have done anything excessive to you, but standing by and watching with cold eyes was another form of violence.”
“Do you want to kill them?” Yu Tai’s voice was soft, with the faintest hint of temptation beneath it.
The warm light draped a delicate veil over her profile. Had anyone not heard what she was saying, they would surely have thought she was whispering some tender, intimate confession.
Shu Li shook his head. Even under Yu Tai’s encouraging gaze, his expression didn’t change in the slightest, as though the matter had nothing to do with him. “There’s no need.”
Yu Tai frowned slightly.
She noticed that Shu Li had said there was “no need,” not that they “shouldn’t.”
“Why is there no need?” Yu Tai voiced her confusion, wholly unaware that the person beside her had drawn closer without her noticing. Their arms were nearly touching.
“Because doing so would be meaningless.”
Bracing one arm beside Yu Tai, Shu Li narrowed his eyes and leaned over her.
Rather than saying Yu Tai’s words held a bewitching power over him, it would be more accurate to say that everything about her exerted a fatal attraction on him.
Just like now. Merely looking at her was enough to make the savage desire within him bare its claws, eager to devour everything.
Yu Tai watched the face drawing ever closer to hers, amusement glimmering in her eyes as she observed the visibly overwhelmed Shu Li-
Until he captured her lips with his own.
After a vigorous round of “playtime”-which was closer to a beating-with the ugly illusion beast, Xia Mo returned to find Yu Tai sitting dazed in the courtyard, the corners of her eyes tinged red.
He glanced at the spot beside her. Shu Li’s scent still lingered there.
“You kissed Shu Li again. I want one too.” Completely unable to read the mood, Xia Mo sidled over, hugged Yu Tai’s arm, and began acting spoiled.
Yu Tai patted his head, signaling for him to quiet down.
Couldn’t he just be a nice, silent panda?
“You can only do that sort of thing with one person,” she explained weakly.
Xia Mo pouted in defiance. “Who made that rule?”
Yu Tai curled a finger and rapped him on the head before rising to her feet. “I did.”
…
Early the next morning, Yu Tai set out for the Upper Realm with her entire little household in tow.
She left early without notifying anyone.
Even so, she encountered Li Shijie on the road one had to take to leave the Qingshan Sword Sect.
Li Shijie walked over and pressed an ancient book into Yu Tai’s hands, her voice choked with emotion. “Junior Sister, this is a medical text I’ve treasured for years. You may not be interested in it, but it is my most precious possession, so I want you to have it.”
Yu Tai accepted the battered medical text, her expression somewhat complicated.
Li Shijie embraced her and continued, “Junior Sister, my aptitude is poor. My allotted lifespan is already nearing its end.”
“But you are different.” She stepped back, sniffed, and looked at Yu Tai with determination.
“The Great Dao is treacherous and difficult, but I believe you will make it to the very end.”
“This will be the last time we meet, Junior Sister. I’m very glad I had the chance to know you.” Tears glimmered in the young woman’s eyes, and her voice was thick with emotion.
Yu Tai lowered her gaze and quietly said, “Thank you.”
Then her clear, penetrating eyes fixed on Li Shijie as though they had already seen through everything. “Senior Sister Li, did the sect leader force you to do this?”
At Yu Tai’s words, Li Shijie’s face instantly turned deathly pale, and her entire body began to tremble.