A Sudden Turn of Events

Spending all day indulging here, not only would I fail to meet the demands of [Entering Demonic State], but even the demonic energy I’d painstakingly gathered would soon dissipate entirely.

‘Even if you were to depart peacefully, a lingering attachment would surely weigh upon your heart.’

‘It seems I must still lend a hand. That Venerable Zhu Qing has likely already discovered it, yet she remains silent.’

‘Heh heh, perhaps it’s time to take a gamble.’

Within the quiet room, Chen Ruan, diligently circulating her demonic cultivation, was suddenly seized by a searing, twisting pain. Her Qi Sea roiled in disarray, and her meridians pulsed with a chaotic, reversed flow.

‘Damn it, was this the demonic art’s backlash?’

‘Why must it be now, of all moments? And why here, of all places?’

Chen Ruan strained every fiber of her being, desperate to quell the tumultuous energy within her, but the backlash surged with an overwhelming force that she found impossible to withstand.

‘All was lost.’

‘They would discover her identity as a demonic cultivator.’

‘Here, just before her departure.’

‘Everything was truly over.’

She seemed to envision Luochen’s eyes, wide with disbelief, and Su Yue’s face contorted in an expression of utter revulsion.

A single tear slowly traced a path from the corner of her eye. Unable to endure it any longer, Chen Ruan succumbed to unconsciousness.

****

“Senior Sister, why aren’t you using spiritual energy to affix these decorations?”

Su Yue watched Luochen, who was standing on her tiptoes, diligently trying to affix a ‘door blessing’ (TL Note: ‘Menfu,’ a traditional Chinese decoration for good fortune, often pasted on doors during festivals) to the doorframe, a hint of helplessness coloring her expression.

“Doing it myself simply makes it feel more like the New Year celebration.”

“There, all done.”

Luochen retrieved her arm, which was now aching slightly from the stretch, and playfully pinched her junior sister’s cheek.

“I’m off now. Junior Sister, make sure to get some rest early tonight; tomorrow is the New Year’s Gala.”

After watching Luochen disappear into the distance, Su Yue’s gaze drifted to the door blessing on the door.

‘What was this?’

Su Yue leaned in for a closer look, noticing a line of small characters inscribed upon the blessing.

[Wishing Junior Sister a Happy New Year in advance! Remember to cultivate diligently in the new year. If you discover this message, your Senior Sister will give you an extra red packet for the New Year, ovo.]

In the very next second, the intricate script vanished.

“This silly Senior Sister.”

Though her words carried a hint of reproach, a smile she couldn’t quite suppress curved at the corners of Su Yue’s lips.

‘Did my Junior Sister find it so swiftly? Next time, I’ll have to write it even more subtly.’

With a mere flick of her thoughts, Luochen instantly knew that Su Yue had indeed seen her hidden message.

‘Now, only Miss Chen’s room remained undecorated, didn’t it?’

‘Speaking of which, she vanished right after dinner. What kind of strange business was she up to in her room?’

After a moment’s brief consideration, Luochen made directly for Chen Ruan’s room.

“Miss Chen, are you in there?”

No reply came from within.

‘What could be happening?’

A sudden, eerie stillness enveloped Luochen, and an unsettling aura seemed to permeate the very air around her.

After a moment’s hesitation, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The room was saturated with an incredibly potent demonic aura. Chen Ruan lay sprawled on the floor, her features contorted into a somewhat grotesque expression.

“Miss Chen!”

A wave of panic washing over her, Luochen frantically scooped Chen Ruan into her arms.

‘What was happening? Had a demonic cultivator infiltrated Bamboo Green Peak?’

Luochen channeled her spiritual energy to scan Chen Ruan’s entire body, and a sudden realization struck her.

There were no external wounds on Chen Ruan’s body, nor any signs of a struggle in the surroundings.

Furthermore, this demonic energy appeared to be radiating outwards, with Miss Chen herself as its epicenter.

Sensing the unceasing flow of demonic energy emanating from Chen Ruan, Luochen was gripped by a profound disbelief.

Her ingrained belief in Chen Ruan’s identity as the Daughter of Destiny skewed Luochen’s judgment.

Even at this critical juncture, she subconsciously assumed that a demonic cultivator had somehow infiltrated Bamboo Green Peak, completely overlooking the possibility that Chen Ruan herself might be the demonic cultivator.

‘Calm down, Luochen, you must remain calm.’

Luochen drew a deep breath, steeling herself and forcing her tumultuous emotions to subside.

The immediate priority was to prevent anyone else from discovering this. Within the Feibai Sect (TL Note: ‘Feibai Zong,’ the name of the sect), the fate of a discovered demonic cultivator was singular and absolute.

Death.

Furthermore, if it were revealed that Bamboo Green Peak harbored a demonic cultivator, it would cast a devastating shadow upon her, her junior sister, and their revered master.

Secondly, Chen Ruan absolutely could not be allowed to die.

Each Daughter of Destiny was an indispensable link in the grand scheme of saving the world. For this reason, Chen Ruan’s life had to be preserved at all costs.

Her plan was clear: first, erect a spiritual energy barrier to contain the demonic aura, then discreetly escort Chen Ruan down the mountain.

Luochen swiftly formulated a solution.

When she had initially entered, she hadn’t detected any demonic energy outside the room. Thus, the current dissipation of the demonic aura should still be within a manageable range.

She could only wonder if the Sect Master and her own Master had already detected something amiss.

The divine sense of an Eight-Turn cultivator was something beyond Luochen’s comprehension.

Regardless, she had to try.

Luochen drew a deep breath, then unleashed her divine sense to its fullest extent.

What she discovered stunned her.

Outside Chen Ruan’s room, not even the faintest wisp of demonic energy had escaped.

This was despite the fact that the demonic energy within the room was so dense it resembled the lair of a demonic cult.

Only one individual possessed the power to achieve such a feat.

‘Master!’

Recalling the peculiar circumstances of her Master’s first encounter with Chen Ruan, Luochen was suddenly struck by the realization that Venerable Zhu Qing (TL Note: ‘Zhu Qing,’ referring to Luochen’s master, Venerable Zhu Qing) might have long since discerned that something was amiss with Chen Ruan.

But why, then, had her Master chosen not to reveal it?

As a myriad of emotions washed over her, a voice she knew intimately resonated through the air.

“Place this necklace upon her; it can suppress the demonic energy.”

The necklace materialized out of thin air in Luochen’s grasp.

“Master, I…”

Luochen found herself at a loss for words.

“Whatever words you have, save them until your return.”

The voice, usually imbued with a languid air, now carried an edge of seriousness, yet was devoid of its usual warmth.

“If you don’t depart immediately, Sect Master Yuxi will inevitably detect it.”

“Understood.”

Luochen dared not linger a moment longer. Scooping up Chen Ruan, she summoned her Lihun Sword (TL Note: ‘Lihun Jian,’ a named sword) and soared away on its blade.

“Alas.”

Venerable Zhu Qing’s voice echoed softly through the chaotic room.

“I truly wonder if what I’m doing is right or wrong, Master.”

****

Luochen flew at full speed upon her sword, continuing her journey until the eastern sky began to pale and the nascent sun emerged.

‘She had arrived.’

Luochen had long since decided upon her destination.

Moyang City .

Ever since Moyang City was devastated years ago, the Feibai Sect had undertaken the task of assisting in its reconstruction.

Several years had passed, and the reconstruction of Moyang City was now largely complete, even expanding to a size greater than its original footprint.

Given her connection to Moyang City’s destruction, Luochen had frequently visited over the past few years to offer assistance, making her quite familiar with the area.

Moreover, this location lay outside the Feibai Sect’s sphere of influence, meaning Chen Ruan should not be easily discovered here.

Lost in thought, Luochen entered the inn where she usually stayed whenever she visited Moyang City.

“Immortal, what brings you here?”

The innkeeper’s assistant clearly recognized Luochen, greeting her with a wide, welcoming smile.

Luochen placed a small fragment of gold on the counter.

“Prepare your finest room.”

“Right away!”

‘Do immortals also engage in such… flamboyant activities?’

Watching Luochen ascend the stairs with Chen Ruan cradled in her arms, the innkeeper’s assistant couldn’t help but feel a touch of surprise.

Luochen carefully settled Chen Ruan onto the bed, then administered several pills designed to regulate her vital energy.

Only when Chen Ruan’s pulse stabilized did Luochen finally breathe a sigh of relief.

‘She should awaken shortly.’

Gazing at Chen Ruan’s peaceful sleeping face, Luochen’s thoughts drifted back to that fateful night when she had first brought her to Bamboo Green Peak.

That very night, she had sat by the bed in much the same way, tending to Chen Ruan’s wounds and changing her clothes.

‘Why do I always seem to be looking after you?’

A hint of playful annoyance coloring her expression, Luochen gently pinched Chen Ruan’s cheek.

Chen Ruan’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, as if she felt a slight pang of discomfort.

Startled, Luochen instantly pulled her hand back.

Though she was not the one in the wrong, Luochen found herself unsure how to face Chen Ruan at this moment.

‘Perhaps it’s best to simply leave her like this.’

Luochen gently grasped Chen Ruan’s hand, murmuring softly, as if speaking more to herself than to the unconscious woman.

“I know you’ve endured a difficult past, and perhaps that is why you became a demonic cultivator.”

“Yet, after all these days we’ve spent together, I’ve come to realize that you are truly a good person at heart. You’re easily shy, and sometimes you even enjoy a little playful pouting.”

“I know you are sincere and benevolent.”

“Your temper is remarkably gentle; I’ve never once seen you lose it.”

“You are deeply considerate of others; you would deliberately save the dishes your junior sister and Master particularly enjoy for them.”

“Everything about you, Miss Chen, I have seen with my own eyes.”

“You won’t truly become the kind of demonic cultivator who regards human lives as mere blades of grass, will you?”

With a somber expression, Luochen retrieved paper and a brush from her storage ring.

Soon after, a piece of paper bearing a message rested on Chen Ruan’s bedside table.

[Farewell, Miss Chen.]

After taking one last, lingering look at Chen Ruan’s face, Luochen quietly exited the room.

“Just leave the meals by the door; do not enter and disturb her.”

Downstairs, Luochen gave her instructions to the innkeeper’s assistant.

“Rest assured, Immortal.”

Luochen nodded, her heart heavy with trepidation.

‘Now, she had to return and face her Master.’

****

Within the quiet room, Chen Ruan slowly opened her eyes.

In truth, she had awakened some time ago, but Chen Ruan had not dared to open her eyes, uncertain how she could possibly face Luochen.

Listening to Luochen’s whispered confession, Chen Ruan was overcome by a whirlwind of complex emotions.

While she harbored no desire to engage in unscrupulous acts merely to enhance her power.

Yet.

‘Could she truly remain true to her original heart?’

Chen Ruan couldn’t be certain. Perhaps, by the end of her cultivation journey, she would indeed lose her humanity, resorting to any means necessary for revenge.

To become the very person Sister Luo despised most.

She reached for the paper by her pillow. The handwriting was stark and sharp, utterly unlike Luochen’s usual elegant script.

A single, brief line of text was all that graced the page.

[I am leaving. Take care of yourself.]

“Sister Luo.”

A sharp pang of emotion tightened Chen Ruan’s throat.

She knew of Luochen’s carefully restrained emotions; she knew that those murmurs by the bedside were what Luochen truly yearned to say.

But a senior disciple of an orthodox sect should not utter such words to a demonic cultivator.

“Idiot.”

This person, who always kept her emotions to herself.

Truly, what an idiot.

Chen Ruan’s vision blurred, and tears streamed down, blurring the words on the paper.