Chapter 39

Su Zhen: "..."

Any lingering sense of awkwardness she had felt had completely vanished.

Su Zhen: "What does 'my bias' mean? You've used that term three times now."

She hadn't understood it the first time she heard it, but after three times, she had deduced that when these two characters were placed together, they formed a noun that could function as a subject or an object.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yu’s eyes lit up. "You actually remember how many times I've said it?"

Su Zhen looked up at the sky.

She knew he would react this way.

Xiao Yu suddenly chuckled. "Doesn't that suggest that you are very..."

Su Zhen narrowed her eyes at him.

Xiao Yu calmly continued: "...clever, which is why you can remember what others say."

At least he didn't say she cared about him. Su Zhen coughed slightly, feeling a bit unnatural. "So, what does it actually mean?"

Xiao Yu glanced at her with a smile and didn't dwell on the previous topic. "I actually don't know how to explain it. I can think of a few synonyms, but you would probably find those words unfamiliar as well. Just understand it for now as someone you deeply admire and respect."

Su Zhen: "..."

She truly didn't know what she had that would make him admire her.

"Is this a dialect from your hometown, Senior?"

"Something like that?"

"Where are you from, Senior?"

Xiao Yu thought for a moment. "I wasn't born, raised, or educated in the same city, and my parents weren't from the same... well, they weren't from the same place."

Hearing this, she felt that he couldn't have been very young before he became a cultivator.

Su Zhen blurted out, "Then you must have a family already?"

Xiao Yu was stunned, then waved his hands repeatedly. "No, no, I... I’ve never been involved with anyone from childhood until now."

Although the phrasing was slightly strange, Su Zhen understood the meaning. "I was just asking casually. So, where have you lived, Senior?"

Xiao Yu didn't hesitate to list several place names.

Su Zhen was instantly bewildered. Two of them sounded like city names, but the others were completely unintelligible.

Although the Human Realm’s Five Domains and Fourteen Prefectures were vast, and she only knew of about a hundred towns, there were certainly many more she didn't know. However...

It might not even be in the Human Realm.

Other planes, while different from the Human Realm, also had various hidden settlements.

Of course, there was another possibility.

Su Zhen didn't ask further. Several thoughts surfaced in her mind, but she quickly suppressed them.

"...Actually, if you want to know about my past, I can tell you everything. It’s just that some experiences are hard for me to put into words, and you might find them strange as you listen."

Xiao Yu said with some hesitation, "The main thing is..."

"Please don't trouble yourself, Senior."

Su Zhen interrupted him softly. "I didn't mean to pry."

She remembered that strange memory.

But even without mentioning that, the past of a cultivator was not something to be explored casually.

Some people, before they began their cultivation journey, could be described as ordinary, regardless of whether they had wealth or status.

But there were others who either carried deep blood feuds—with enemies who might be powerful experts of high cultivation—or had complicated entanglements with other sects.

Even she herself, while seemingly born into an immortal family with a clear background, possessed secrets that ordinary people didn't know, aside from the fact that she was reborn.

"In any case, if you’re interested, we can find a time and I’ll tell you everything. I probably can't finish it all right now. After all, you’re still waiting to see the Sect Master, right?"

As he spoke, Xiao Yu slightly lifted the plate in his hands. "Have another one?"

The porcelain plate was quite large, with a warm white base and a few strokes of cyan glaze forming a small fern pattern.

Inside the plate were over a dozen exquisite glutinous rice balls, each white and round, looking soft and plump, sprinkled with fine powdered sugar.

Xiao Yu picked one up with his chopsticks. "This one seems to be strawberry flavored."

Su Zhen snapped out of her thoughts. "I'll do it myself!"

Xiao Yu handed over the ivory chopsticks quite readily but continued to hold the plate for her, adopting a posture almost like a servant.

Su Zhen: "...Senior, you flatter me. Please don't do this."

After saying this, she silently took everything from his hands and placed it on her lap.

The glutinous rice balls were truly sweet and fragrant. The filling was a rich fruit puree; there was plenty of sugar, but it didn't mask the natural flavor of the ingredients.

She ate several in a row before her pace slowed. She looked up at the bookcases in the hall, her gaze sweeping over the writing on the spines.

Xiao Yu stood up and sat at the other end of the soft couch, which sank under his weight. Because he was much taller, he could still rest his arm on the backrest.

He tilted his head to look at her, seemingly wanting to look a bit longer, but he didn't stare and quickly shifted his gaze away.

As Su Zhen looked at the books while eating, she finished the last one and suddenly asked: "Do you know what the rewards for the Immortal Alliance Tournament are yet?"

Usually, the rewards provided by the major sects are only announced after the tournament begins.

But these things are typically prepared well in advance.

Although most orthodox immortal families have joined the Immortal Alliance, according to regulations, every sect participating in the tournament must provide at least one reward.

Aside from the Five Great Sects, there were quite detailed rules for other sects regarding what rewards to give, how many items to provide, and the quality of the artifacts or materials.

These depended on the sect's own strength and also influenced the number of entry slots allocated to the sect.

However, small sects had limited financial resources, so the top-tier rewards still came from the Five Great Sects—the five strongest sects in the Five Domains.

On the Eastern Domain side, it was naturally the Tianyuan Sect.

The Langle Palace in the Western Domain mostly consisted of charm cultivators.

The Qihuang Palace in the Southern Domain was nine times out of ten filled with medical cultivators.

The Wuri Palace in the Northern Domain and the Shangji Sect in the Central Domain were both composed of sword, magic, and physical cultivators.

The Wuri Palace had more magic cultivators, while the Tianyuan Sect and the Shangji Sect had more sword cultivators, though they all had a mix of medical and talisman cultivators as well, just in smaller numbers.

These five sects usually discussed things early on to avoid overlapping rewards.

For example, if two sects were both going to provide immortal swords, it was better to have them be of different attributes. The same applied to other items; if both were pills, one would be for healing and the other for aiding cultivation.

Logically speaking, the Sect Masters would first convene with the high-ranking elders of their own sects to list several options.

Then they would contact other sects to coordinate, and each would decide on their final rewards.

"I only know of a few."

Xiao Yu reported two extremely precious pills, as well as an immortal sword with fire/wind attributes and another with ice/thunder attributes. "Those are from the Qihuang Palace, Langle Palace, and Wuri Palace. Our sect hasn't decided yet, and the Shangji Sect isn't certain either."

Su Zhen nodded.

Three of the Five Great Sects had already decided, and none of them were of any interest to her.

In her previous life, she had participated in the Immortal Alliance Tournament many times. She remembered a little bit now, and according to what Xiao Yu said, this time was similar to what she remembered.

If that was the case, she remembered that the Tianyuan Sect had provided an immortal artifact, and the Shangji Sect seemed to have provided some forging materials, though they probably weren't suitable for wood-attribute immortal artifacts.

Su Zhen: "The Sect Master told you, right?"

Xiao Yu nodded helplessly, clearly having little interest in the matter himself, but due to his status, the Chongyun Immortal Venerable had to inform him before making a decision.

Xiao Yu: "...I don't have any opinions anyway. I can't be bothered to get involved."

Su Zhen knew that the Sect Master wasn't very keen on these things either; she usually let the elders of Lingxiao Peak and her own master discuss them, only giving them a final look-over.

Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly felt something wasn't quite right.

Su Zhen took out a jade slip and glanced at it. "Speak of the devil. I asked the Sect Master about graduating earlier, and she replied. She said if she's free, I should go over in a quarter of an hour."

Her cultivation level might be hidden from others, but not from the Immortal Venerable. Since she entered the mountain, the Chongyun Immortal Venerable had probably been well aware of it.

A cultivator who was over a hundred years old but could enter the True Immortal Realm was already shocking.

As a Sect Master, upon discovering this, she should have summoned her immediately to praise and comfort her, as such a situation was truly rare.

However, Su Zhen had just returned to Weiyun Peak, locked her courtyard, and focused on studying the resurrection orb.

The Chongyun Immortal Venerable must have noticed the aura of the seal on the courtyard and, knowing that her junior disciple was busy, hadn't sought her out.

After Su Zhen came out, she tried sending a message. The Sect Master was always busy, so this reply was actually quite fast.

Su Zhen gripped the jade slip. "The Sect Master is truly kind."

...If she could be reborn a hundred years ago, she would definitely take her as her master.

Xiao Yu’s eyes were a bit subtle, as if thinking about something. After a long while, he said slowly, "She probably wants to host your graduation trial. After all, I beat your master, so she definitely knows."

"Forget it, do you really call that beating?"

Xiao Yu sat up straight. "It doesn't count? Then should I go and beat her properly?"

Su Zhen: "...No need. I'll beat her myself in the future."

Xiao Yu immediately leaned back again. "That's true."

He seemed to believe firmly that she could do what she said.

Su Zhen jumped out of the large pile of cushions. "It's rare that the Sect Master isn't in seclusion, so I'll go see her now."

Xiao Yu also stood up. "Should I go with you?"

Su Zhen hesitated. "...It doesn't matter to me. If you want to go, then go. She knows anyway."

Xiao Yu suddenly smiled. "Knows what?"

"Knows..."

Su Zhen couldn't help but roll her eyes at him again. "That you and I know each other."

Xiao Yu pretended to be thoughtful. "If it's about knowing each other, she knew that when I waved at you in the Mingxin Hall last year."

Su Zhen silently gripped the cushion beside her, imagining the scene of smashing it against his head.

In the end, she didn't do it. "Fine, knows that we are friends?"

Xiao Yu nodded, satisfied. "Indeed."

Su Zhen: "..."

Although most cultivators didn't need to sleep and didn't care about day or night, most of the time, the Mingxin Hall held meetings during the day, unless it was an emergency or the meeting dragged on for five or six hours into the night.

Therefore, the mountain path and market were brightly lit, and many disciples were still practicing hard, but the summit was much quieter and more serene.

The evening breeze blew gently, clouds and mist hid the greenery, and the halls were ethereal. The guarding cultivators stood in twos and threes around the plaza, some chatting in low voices, others simply using telepathy.

The two walked straight through. The Lingxiao Peak disciples they met along the way only greeted Su Zhen, as if they didn't see the other person at all.

As soon as they entered the moon terrace in front of the Mingxin Hall, Su Zhen sensed the Sect Master's location, or rather, the latter had intentionally given her a hint.

She didn't stop along the way, turned several times in the winding corridors, and soon saw shadows moving in the courtyard ahead.

The thousand-year-old ancient tree stood tall, its branches and leaves layered thick and green. Someone walked across the broad slab-paved path and bowed in the courtyard.

On one side of the stone path, a hot spring was surrounded by rugged low rocks, the water surface covered with a thin mist. Beside a stone table near the spring sat a tall, slender figure.

The Chongyun Immortal Venerable tilted her head slightly and glanced toward them.

Across a distance of several dozen feet, Su Zhen waved her hand to signal that she could wait, as she had arrived a little early after all.

The Chongyun Immortal Venerable signaled for those people to sit down and began speaking with them.

They were all her disciples. The Sect Master was often in seclusion, and when she occasionally came out, there were many things to handle, including guiding her disciples in their cultivation.

Su Zhen lingered in the shadows of the corridor, her thoughts racing, considering many things at once.

Suddenly, she remembered Xiao Yu's room, with its numerous bookcases holding at least a thousand books. More than half were manuals on spells and sword techniques, while some messy, miscellaneous books were placed in the more peripheral spots.

She had stared at them for a long time just now because she recognized some of them.

There were travelogues and storybooks; some spoke of the customs of the Five Domains, some of the backstabbing within immortal families and sects, and others of various love-hate entanglements. Some were written by mortals, others by cultivators.

Su Zhen turned to look at the person behind her and sent a telepathic message: "Those miscellaneous books in your hall, have you read them all?"

Xiao Yu nodded and also sent a message: "Just about. You've probably read quite a few yourself, right? Do you like them?"

Su Zhen thought about it. "I've read some. Others, even if I haven't read them carefully, I've flipped through. I feel they can be divided into four types: interesting, extremely interesting, absurd, and extremely absurd."

Xiao Yu laughed silently. "For example?"

Su Zhen said without hesitation, "Take that set of *Fen Shan Za Zu*. Although the language is exquisite and the allusions are appropriate, the 'Feng Mo' chapter has stories that are all quite absurd. There's Cui Yuan, who was pursued by two great demons fighting for her favor, and Yang Tan, who met a demon god in a dream and shared a night of passion..."

As she spoke, she couldn't keep her composure.

"Hmm."

Xiao Yu had an 'as I thought' expression. "I knew you’d definitely mock that one. I was shocked when I first read it too. I didn't expect anyone to actually fantasize about demon gods and demon races. Later, I discovered that not only did they exist, but there were more than one or two."

Su Zhen couldn't help but laugh. "The author is clearly a cultivator, but their knowledge of the demon race isn't that great..."

She imagined the great demons she knew and fantasized about them being deeply in love with human cultivators, and felt a wave of darkness before her eyes.

"That's for sure. The author writes about demon creatures in quite some detail, so they must have seen them, but as for great demons, it's hard to say. At most, they heard descriptions from others."

Xiao Yu agreed. "It is truly absurd. It’s better to read *The Domineering Immortal Venerable Falls for Me*."

Su Zhen was truly glad she wasn't drinking milk tea, or she might have spat it out.

Su Zhen: "...What is that? Is that a book title?"

Xiao Yu shook his head. "*Sui Yu Ji*, *Night Talks on Green Dragon Mountain*, *Biographies of Yan Gui Peak*, *Rain in Yingzhou*—books similar to these are all classified by me as the 'Domineering Immortal Venerable Falls for Me' series. Because the protagonists' love interests are usually Immortal Venerables, or at least they have a romantic plot with one. Even though the Immortal Venerable might be the protagonist's master, senior sister, or grandmaster, regardless of the status or relationship, the romantic plots are all quite cliché. Basically, they all follow the same process..."

He seemed to have thought of something and his words trailed off.

Xiao Yu stared at her for a moment. "You've read them all, right?"

Su Zhen sighed. "After hearing you say that, Senior, I suddenly don't want to admit it."

Xiao Yu was quite calm. "Cough, it's normal. Actually, most people like to read clichés. You see, I mock them while finishing them all. My senior brothers and sisters have basically read them too, and some of them were even recommended to me by them. Besides, I just used these books to disparage others, didn't I?"

Su Zhen nodded. "I understand what you mean, Senior. Although it's a bit cliché, it's still more reliable than *The Domineering Demon God Falls for Me*, right?"

Xiao Yu was stunned, and instead of using telepathy, he burst into loud laughter. "Hahahaha—"

He laughed for a while. "You really know how to draw inferences."

Su Zhen looked at him helplessly. "Isn't that just drawing one inference from one instance?"

Xiao Yu finally stopped laughing and looked behind her, but continued speaking to her. "That's true, but looking at you, drawing two or three inferences is nothing for you."

Su Zhen couldn't help but turn around.

Those disciples had already vanished.

The Chongyun Immortal Venerable stood in the courtyard, looking over with a relaxed expression, a smile on her handsome face.

"...Would you like to chat a bit more, Uncle-Master and Junior-Disciple?"

She said with a smile: "I feel like I've interrupted the two of you."