Seeing her Shizun completely unresponsive, Meng Zhuyue turned her head, wanting to apologize to Meng Li. After all, her Shizun had acted so arrogantly just moments before. For a moment, she didn’t know how to react.
“Junior Sister, Shizun isn’t usually like this. It’s just…”
“Right, of course. After all, given your relationship, I’m just an outsider. It’s not my place to judge…”
“No, that’s not it. Shizun’s alchemy was truly exceptional! In the past, her pills were extremely sought after. It’s just…”
Meng Zhuyue wanted to say the rest, but for some reason, the words just wouldn’t come out. After all, who could willingly accept such a thing? She was an alchemist herself; how could she not understand her Shizun’s self-destructive, resigned state of mind?
“It’s because of Senior Sister Situ, right? Judging by that expression, that’s probably the only reason.”
“As everyone knows, pills are divided into Low Grade, High Grade, Supreme Grade, and Immortal Grade. Immortal Grade pills are almost impossible to find. And among Low Grade pills, the finest are known as Snow Pills…”
“Snow Pills?”
Meng Li was completely confused by this new piece of lore. As a veteran player, her understanding of the game was solely Green, Blue, Purple, Gold, Red. Seriously, what proper player actually read the names of pills? Obviously, the brighter the color, the better.
“Junior Sister, why so puzzled? The finest Snow Pills are named ‘Snow.’ Isn’t the answer already clear…”
As Meng Zhuyue spoke, the color in her eyes faded a little more. It was the look of someone whose lifelong goal had been shattered. Seeing this, Meng Li didn’t know how to react for a moment.
“I thought Situ Xue was just a fleeting phenomenon. In the end, even Shizun, who dedicated her entire life to the Pill Dao, has become like this.”
“Like what? Doesn’t she seem quite lively?”
Meng Li looked confused. To her, the other party had just been boldly flaunting their relationship right in front of her. She looked nothing like someone whose dreams had been crushed. If anything, she seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself.
“Although Shizun’s appearance seems somewhat young, she was originally a gentle, refined, and knowledgeable person. But… but…”
“But what?”
Meng Zhuyue wanted to continue, but her face visibly turned redder and redder. She even guiltily turned her head to the side. Seeing this reaction, Meng Li didn’t even need the other to explain. It was clearly something too embarrassing to say aloud.
“What is it, Senior Sister Yue’er? Tell me quickly~ I’m so curious~”
“After Shizun was hit by that setback, her behavior became progressively stranger. Each action was more out of line than the last. At first, she only touched my body. Later, we shared the same bed. And then, later…”
“Isn’t… isn’t this just using the setback as an excuse to unleash her true nature…?”
“How could that be? Shizun is absolutely not that kind of person! After all, back when I was still a Mortal Body, when I was kidnapped and about to be sold to a Brothel, it was Shizun who stepped in and saved me! She spared me from that… that gutter filth!”
“Huh?”
“Shizun has shown me immense kindness. Therefore, no matter what, I must repay her. Even if it means… being taken by Shizun… that is the only thing I can do…”
Seeing the other’s utterly sincere expression, Meng Li was momentarily touched by such unwavering devotion. She turned her head to glance at Fang An’an behind her, thinking the other would also have a deeply moved expression. Yet, unexpectedly, Fang An’an was currently so drenched in cold sweat from guilt that droplets were dripping down her chin.
“Don’t worry, Shizun. Even so, I won’t blame you for what happened that night a few days ago! Even if you did such things to your Disciple!”
“Er… uh… that… ah… yes.”
“Shizun, why are you sweating so much?”
“Recent cultivation has been too strenuous, leading to disordered Spiritual Power flow within my body, which has resulted in evaporation and loss of bodily fluids, causing excessive mental tension and sensitivity, therefore…”
“This is serious! Wait for me, Shizun. I’ll go get you some restorative pills. You stay here and look after Junior Sister!”
Hearing this, Meng Zhuyue immediately panicked. She hurriedly stood up and dashed for the door. Fang An’an wanted to reach out and stop her, but her raised hand retracted. She glanced at Meng Li sitting on the bed behind her. In the end, she simply nodded and watched her precious Disciple leave the room.
As the door clicked shut, the room was left with only two lolis. The two stared at each other, big eyes meeting small eyes, neither speaking. The air was deathly silent. Meng Li was the first to break, but just as she made a sound, the other party instantly lunged at her.
“Elder Fang, this is…”
“If you dare breathe a word of this today, I… I will definitely kill you, and then commit suicide! In the end, neither of us will have a good end!”
“Hey, I… I didn’t say I’d tell anyone. Elder, calm down, calm down!”
Faced with the other’s threats, Meng Li seemed surprisingly seasoned. She quickly soothed the other party. After all, for some reason, she had already grown somewhat accustomed to such threatening language.
From the very first moment she saw Fang An’an, despite a strange feeling, within that bizarre sense, she had immediately recognized the other as a kindred spirit.
“Elder Fang, these are merely matters of love between women. What is there to be ashamed of? Moreover, it’s your own Disciple. Isn’t that even more of a case of ‘the one near the waterside gets the moonlight first’~?”
“You little junior, what do you understand? I am an Elder of Alchemy Peak of the Yin Yang Immortal Sect! And she is my Head Disciple. As long as this relationship exists…!”
“And what of that relationship~?”
“!!!”
Fang An’an wanted to continue explaining, but then heard words that surprised her even more. Slowly, she lifted her head to look at Meng Li, who sat on the bed, just as short as herself.
No matter how she looked at it, the other was clearly just a disciple. But in this instant, Fang An’an could clearly feel that the other’s thinking absolutely surpassed her own. Fang An’an’s body trembled slightly.
“You little junior, do you even know what you’re saying…?!”
“When it comes down to it, Elder, you’re just making excuses for yourself. An Elder of Alchemy Peak has the resources of an entire peak at her disposal, and the cultivation base to match that status. With just that, do you even need to care about a good reputation~?”
“Wha… what do you mean…?”
“Even if Elder treats this Senior Sister Meng as a cultivation furnace, monopolizes her body, and indulges in nightly pleasures, what could she possibly say~?”
Hearing the words coming out of Meng Li’s mouth, Fang An’an was utterly shocked. She completely couldn’t fathom how this cute, seemingly young disciple could utter such things. She herself had never even dared to think in that direction. It was practically no different from the ways of evil heretics.
“You! You!”
“Aiyo, I was just speaking casually. Elder, you didn’t take it seriously, did you? But even if you actually did that, and then threatened to keep it secret, no one would ever know~”
Fang An’an was about to retort, but then she was horrified to find herself actually considering the feasibility of the plan. After all, in the other’s eyes, she had long been tainted beyond cleansing by that very desire.
“Zhuyue not growing tired of me—that is already the best possible outcome. Beyond that, what more dare I hope for…”
As Fang An’an spoke, she turned her head away, afraid that the image of herself in the other’s heart was nothing more than an afterimage. She feared losing that warmth which was within reach. She didn’t want to pierce that thin sheet of paper.
“Is that so? That truly is rare. I thought we were the same kind of person…”
“The same kind of person?”
“But how much longer can you keep using the excuse of emotional lows and drunken mistakes~?”
Meng Li watched the Fang An’an before her with an expression of pure spectator amusement. The image of a little Loli Shizun pining for her mature, elegant Disciple was simply too much of a contrast. Even Meng Li found it incredibly interesting.
“If that day truly comes… then let it just be that we once loved…”
As Fang An’an’s words fell, just outside the room’s door, a figure stood leaning against the wall. She listened to the conversation within, blankly staring at the jade box in her hands.
“Let it just be that we once loved… But how could I ever be content with that…? Shizun…”
…
