Social phobia

Xiao Menglan was going to personally take Cao Xueyan to the Scripture Repository to choose a spell.

Before leaving, the two of them had to wash up first.

Xiao Menglan, being a Golden Core True Person, always maintained her appearance.

She needed no deliberate dressing.

Even after such a fierce battle just now, she still looked so dignified and graceful, without the slightest trace of her earlier flushed cheeks, disheveled clothes, or messy hair.

Cao Xueyan, on the other hand, told Mo Sheng, who had been silently standing nearby, to fetch a basin of water.

Then she reached into her storage pouch with effort and pulled out a bronze mirror and a wooden comb.

“These things of yours should probably be replaced soon.” Xiao Menglan glanced at the stuffed storage pouch and said, “As my disciple, you shouldn’t be using such shabby items, should you?”

“I’ll listen to Master.” Cao Xueyan was getting more and more used to calling her that.

Xiao Menglan smiled gently.

“It’s just a pity I don’t have spares with me now.

I’ll personally take you to Artifact Peak another day to get some.”

Xiao Menglan snatched the comb from Cao Xueyan’s hand and walked behind her.

The dignified Golden Core True Person personally combed her disciple’s hair.

Cao Xueyan froze in place, stiff and uncomfortable, as if crawling demon-ants were moving all over her body.

Yet this woman’s movements were so practiced that, once Cao Xueyan got used to it, she even began to enjoy it.

That old comb often snagged in her hair, but in Xiao Menglan’s hand her hair inexplicably became smooth and obedient, flowing from top to bottom without a hitch.

When finished, Xiao Menglan took out a hairpin from her own storage pouch.

It was exquisitely crafted, shimmering with spiritual light—clearly a fine magical item.

Without a word, Xiao Menglan pinned it into Cao Xueyan’s hair.

Through the bronze mirror, Cao Xueyan could see her entire temperament had changed, appearing much more ethereal, more like an immortal cultivator.

“I’ve kept this pin for a long time, never finding the right person to give it to.

Now that you’re here, I thought to place it on you.”

Xiao Menglan stroked the hairpin with a nostalgic expression, as though remembering its former owner.

“Whenever you go out, whatever you do, remember to wear it.

It’s not only beautiful—it’s also a good magical tool.

In danger, it can protect its master on its own.

But at most, it can only block attacks of the Foundation Establishment level.

Keep that in mind.”

Cao Xueyan acknowledged.

The two of them were now ready, so they left Moon-Inviting Palace together.

As before, Xiao Menglan summoned her flying sword.

The blade, normally only two fingers wide, instantly expanded to two palms wide.

The sword floated before them.

Holding Cao Xueyan’s small hand, Xiao Menglan stepped onto the sword, and the two of them soared together into the boundless sea of clouds, flying toward the Scripture Repository.

The outer sect had its own Scripture Repository, and so did the inner sect.

Both were always full of disciples.

Cultivation emphasized companions, resources, methods, and land—and in Azure Cloud Sword Sect, the Scripture Repository was the great collection of “methods.”

Disciples could only obtain a free spell or technique from the Repository when first entering the sect or after making a major contribution.

At other times, they had to pay spirit stones.

In the outer sect, even the simplest spell cost over a hundred spirit stones, deterring many disciples.

In the inner sect, prices were more than ten times higher.

Naturally, the spells recorded there were much deeper and more profound.

The inner sect’s Scripture Repository stood at the center of the five peaks, only a few miles from the main Sword Peak.

From its rooftop, one could look out at Sword Peak in the distance.

This placement was deliberate.

The Repository was the foundation of the sect—if anything happened to it, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Thus, when Azure Cloud Sect was founded, it was placed near the sect master’s cultivation grounds.

If anyone caused trouble, they might step out the door of the Repository only to be cut down by the sect master’s flying sword the next moment.

As for the outer sect… the spells there were so unimpressive that inner sect elders rarely cared.

One elder was assigned to watch over it, and that was considered enough.

Cao Xueyan had been in the inner sect for over half a month, but this was her first visit.

Normally, new disciples would rush here first thing—to change to a new technique, or to find a powerful protective spell.

This small pavilion was only three or four stories tall, plain in appearance.

The two red pillars at its gate had peeling paint from years of weathering.

Beside one pillar, a gray-haired old man was dozing.

Other than him, there seemed to be no guards at all.

The old man looked lax, his eyes closed in slumber for twelve hours a day.

But anyone who thought so was gravely mistaken.

When Xiao Menglan brought Cao Xueyan, the place was as usual—full of disciples.

In front of the Repository was a grove of trees.

Over a thousand years, countless disciples had passed, trampling the ground into an open space.

At some point, tables and chairs had been added there.

Many disciples, with nothing to do, gathered to share cultivation insights.

The sect said nothing about it, as long as they weren’t too noisy and disturbed the elder’s sleep.

Since Cao Xueyan had agreed to be Xiao Menglan’s personal disciple, the two of them had no scruples, appearing openly together under everyone’s gaze.

No one recognized Cao Xueyan—she was just an unfamiliar little junior sister.

But Xiao Menglan’s name was thunderous within the sect.

A peak master.

A Golden Core True Person.

One of the twin prodigies of Azure Cloud a hundred years ago.

She was fellow disciple with the current Formation Peak master and the sect leader.

Xiao Menglan rarely appeared publicly, usually secluded in Moon-Inviting Palace.

But she always attended the grand disciple competition held once every ten years—nearly the only time most disciples saw her.

The disciples who liked loitering around the Repository were mostly seasoned veterans.

Of course they had seen Xiao Menglan before.

Thus, as soon as the two women stepped off the flying sword, an uproar began.

“That’s… Peak Master Xiao of Talisman Peak?

She’s always so busy.

Why would she come here today?” a disciple said in surprise.

“That’s where your attention is?

Unbelievable.

The real point is the girl beside her!

What’s their relationship?

Sharing a flying sword—that’s…”

The disciple almost said, “That’s something only Dao-companions do,” but another quickly interjected.

“What else could it be?

That girl must be the new personal disciple she’s accepted.

Isn’t it obvious?”

“Senior brother, you’re right.

But to think the always-solitary Master Xiao has actually taken on a disciple… how come I haven’t heard a word of it recently?”

“Shh! Silence!”

Among them, one disciple of the highest status hissed.

“You lot, do you want to die?

Talking openly about a Golden Core True Person—if something happens, even the elders won’t be able to save you!”

At that, the grove instantly fell silent.

The disciples dared not breathe too loudly, their faces turning red from holding it in.

As Cao Xueyan passed by, she felt countless gazes fall on her, heavy with all kinds of emotions.

Her inherited social anxiety from her past life was on the verge of acting up.

In both her lives, she had never been so “in the spotlight.”

Just then, Xiao Menglan’s warm, soft hand slid into hers.

Her fingers laced firmly with Cao Xueyan’s, sending a current of gentle spiritual power into her palm.

Cao Xueyan instantly felt calm and steady.

If only this woman didn’t take the chance to tickle her palm, it would have been perfect.