The Match

In the bamboo forest, Luochen was practicing her swordplay.

Her movements embodied the adage, “Arriving like a thunderclap quelled in fury, receding like a tranquil sea solidifying light.”

She had achieved a masterful, near-perfect command over the [Nine Swords].

As the final flourish of her sword ended, Luochen exhaled deeply, only to be struck by a sudden darkness before her eyes, causing her to fall backward.

A gentle breeze swept in, cradling her before she could hit the ground.

“Master,” the pale-faced girl murmured.

The autumn wind coalesced into Venerable Zhu Qing’s form, and she embraced Luochen, infusing her with spiritual energy, until at last, she let out a long breath.

“It’s alright now.”

Venerable Zhu Qing’s complexion was somewhat pale from the excessive expenditure of her primordial spiritual energy.

“Thank you, Master. You’ve saved me once again.”

The girl in her arms gazed up at her, blinking her eyes.

“There’s no need for thanks between us. It’s just that there’s truly no cure for your illness; even my primordial spiritual energy can only suppress it temporarily.”

Venerable Zhu Qing’s expression grew somewhat crestfallen.

“It’s alright. As long as I can live, this disciple is happy. Master, please don’t blame yourself.”

Luochen offered words of comfort.

“I am about to break through.”

After a long silence, Venerable Zhu Qing suddenly spoke.

“Break through? Master, are you already advancing to the Ninth Revolution?” Luochen was somewhat stunned.

“There have been signs for a while, but I intentionally suppressed it,” Venerable Zhu Qing said with a wry smile.

“Why?” The girl’s unspoken question was answered even before she could voice it.

Seeing Venerable Zhu Qing’s somewhat pale face, Luochen felt a pang in her heart.

“I’m sorry. I’m the one who has burdened you, Master.”

A hand rested on Luochen’s head, gently ruffling her hair a few times, disarranging it.

“Silly child, there’s no need to blame yourself.”

Venerable Zhu Qing smiled, her tone gentle.

“The most correct thing I’ve ever done in this life was taking you two as my disciples.”

She stood up, pacing back and forth amidst the bamboo grove.

“Though I intentionally suppressed my cultivation, I’ve reached a point where even when idly appreciating flowers or gazing at willows, I gain insights and progress.”

“So, I might as well spend my days sleeping to pass the time. Otherwise, do you truly believe your Master loves sleep so much?”

As if struck by a thought, Venerable Zhu Qing halted her steps, bent down, and looked at Luochen, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

Recalling how she constantly complained about her Master’s laziness, Luochen’s cheeks flushed slightly.

“However, this time, I might truly be taking a very long nap,”

She raised a hand to pinch Luochen’s cheek, her tone light, yet unable to conceal a profound gravity.

****

Inside her room, Chen Ruan lay idly on the bed, her mind replaying everything that had transpired over the past two days.

‘I’m getting a little too caught up in this.’

She concluded with a bitter smile.

No matter how kind Luochen was to her, the Soaring White Sect remained her enemy, an object of vengeance.

The better their interactions now, the harder it would be to act when they eventually faced each other in battle.

‘Next time we meet, I cannot lose my composure again.’

‘I must treat her with indifference, extinguish this inappropriate feeling, and leave immediately once my injuries heal.’

Chen Ruan silently steeled her resolve.

‘Hmm, what’s this?’

Gazing at several exquisitely packaged booklets by her bedside, a question mark seemed to appear above Chen Ruan’s head.

‘It seems Luochen mentioned these were storybooks she wrote herself?’

‘Let me take a look.’

Unable to suppress her curiosity, the fated daughter opened the reading material by her bed.

Meanwhile, Luochen lay lazily on a lounge chair, basking in the sun.

‘A little bored, aren’t I?’

After turning over once again, Luochen felt a bit like an egg constantly being flipped in a pan.

As the Soaring White Sect’s most connected individual, Luochen naturally didn’t need to attend classes; in fact, she didn’t even require them.

While others diligently absorbed knowledge, Luochen completed her daily intake of solar energy.

‘A fair exchange, I suppose.’

“Perhaps I should go see my junior sister,” she thought, a notion stirring within her.

Though Bamboo Green Peak stood alongside the other peaks, it offered no courses, so Su Yue usually had to attend classes on other peaks.

Rumor had it that Venerable Zhu Qing originally had no intention of taking any disciples, and Bamboo Green Peak was merely her private residence.

To showcase the Soaring White Sect’s profound heritage, Yu Xi persistently cajoled Venerable Zhu Qing until she finally agreed to let Bamboo Green Peak be one of the Nine Soaring White Peaks for promotional purposes, though she never participated in recruitment.

Yet, for reasons unknown, she later successively took in Luochen and Su Yue.

Thus, in the eyes of outsiders, Bamboo Green Peak had always been the most mysterious place in the Soaring White Sect.

‘My junior sister should be attending the theoretical class for the Nine Swords on Sword Forging Peak right now.’

With this thought, she rode her sword and flew towards Sword Forging Peak.

It was precisely class dismissal time, and Luochen spotted Su Yue in the crowd at a glance.

She was earnestly poring over a book in her hands, a contemplative expression occasionally gracing her face.

‘My junior sister is truly diligent, studying even after class.’

Luochen felt that as the senior disciple, she should now be immensely gratified.

Approaching Su Yue from behind, she gently patted her junior sister’s shoulder.

“Junior Sister,” Luochen softly called out.

Su Yue turned her head, a flicker of panic in her eyes, and hastily snapped her book shut.

“What’s wrong?” Luochen asked, a hint of confusion in her voice.

“Nothing,” Su Yue quickly shook her head, a rare look of discomfiture on her face.

Luochen sensed Su Yue was hiding something, but she had no intention of pressing the matter.

‘Just a teenage girl’s little secrets,’ Luochen thought, deciding she should grant her junior sister some personal space.

So, Luochen sat down beside her.

“Why are you here, Senior Sister?”

“Bored. Came to see you.”

“Aren’t you going to accompany the woman you secretly hid in your room?”

Luochen detected a trace of resentment in Su Yue’s tone.

‘Junior Sister, your words are truly ambiguous. What if someone else overheard and ruined my lifelong reputation as your senior sister?’

Luochen vehemently complained inwardly.

“It was merely a chance encounter; seeing her in distress, I offered assistance,”

She replied, her expression outwardly unperturbed.

Su Yue nodded, wearing an expression that implied “I understand.”

Silence fell between them.

‘This is a bit awkward,’ Luochen thought, frantically searching her mind for a topic of conversation.

A small, pristine white hand suddenly entered her line of sight, accompanied by a piece of paper covered in a grid.

“Gomoku. Let’s play.”

Luochen paused, realizing this was the game she had just taught her junior sister a few days ago.

In her previous life, Luochen’s Gomoku skills had been unmatched among her classmates, having clinched the championship title with a 3-1 victory in the class-wide Gomoku tournament finals held during lessons.

Naturally, she had easily defeated Su Yue in every game, relying on her experience.

“I’ve studied it for a long time. Let’s play again.”

Luochen nodded.

‘This time, I’ll go easy at first, then win by a narrow margin,’ she planned in her mind, having already mapped out the scenario.

However, as the game progressed, Luochen found herself breaking into a sweat.

Su Yue seemed like an entirely different person compared to a few days ago, and Luochen quickly lost the match due to an early disadvantage.

“Senior Sister, you weren’t serious,” Su Yue said, looking at her with a hint of grievance.

Luochen’s mouth twitched.

‘Did I try to show off only to be kicked away by you?’

‘No, no, this would severely damage the prestige of a senior disciple.’

She cleared her throat twice. “I was just testing your progress. One more game, one more game!”

Luochen vowed to reclaim her dignity.

“Class is starting,” Su Yue reminded her, watching the teacher approach the podium.

“We can play secretly; he won’t notice,” Luochen said, winking.

“Alright then, let’s play.”

“Excellent!”

The senior disciple rubbed her palms together, determined to win this battle for dignity.

Ten minutes later.

Luochen drew a long breath, gazing at the chessboard, and began to pray to her past self, the champion of her previous life.

‘I must consider if this is the only chance I’ll have in this life.’

Another ten minutes later.

Luochen stopped Su Yue, who was about to make a move.

“If I add an extra portion of meat to your dinner tonight, could you please not place your piece here?”

Su Yue’s eyes twinkled.

“Yes, you may.”

Ten more minutes later.

Gazing at the now inescapably lost game, Luochen reluctantly conceded defeat.

‘Butterflies cannot fly across the vast ocean, so who would have the heart to blame them?’ she consoled herself.

She had completely forgotten her arrogant demeanor from before class.

“A narrow victory. Senior Sister is very impressive,”

Su Yue whispered, offering comfort to her senior sister, who, before her, seemed to have just triggered a “defeat CG” (TL Note: A gaming term, short for “Computer Graphics,” referring to a cinematic sequence or image displayed upon losing a game.).

Luochen’s mouth twitched.

‘Is that really how you comfort someone?’

“Junior Sister, what else is there that you can’t do?”

Facing this genius junior sister who mastered everything she tried, Luochen felt a profound sense of powerlessness.

Su Yue pondered seriously. “I can’t cook; Senior Sister’s cooking is the best. And…”

Su Yue lowered her gaze to the book she had hastily closed earlier, a slight blush coloring her face.

She wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come out.

Luochen finally regained a bit of her confidence.

‘It seems my junior sister isn’t entirely omnipotent after all.’

“What do you want for dinner tonight?”

Luochen, her mood greatly improved, asked.

Su Yue tilted her head. “Braised pork belly, then.”

Luochen made a gesture indicating she understood, and silence fell between them again.

The teacher on the podium let out a sigh of relief.

These two “ancestors” (TL Note: A humorous or exasperated term for troublesome or demanding individuals.) had finally settled down.

Teaching two disciples from Bamboo Green Peak at once was simply too much pressure for him.