Uncanny Immortal 86

Chapter 86

Her master wanted the spirit fox to stay, so Xie Qingzheng left it on Ethereal Peak. She only held a bottle of plum blossoms, bowed to her master, and then went down the mountain.

The Xuanji Sect was neither big nor small. Ethereal Peak and Zixiao Peak were several li apart, and it was only a cup of tea’s time to go back and forth on a sword. But her master liked quiet and did not like to leave the mountain. Therefore, as long as she was far away from Ethereal Peak, it was the same as being far away from her master.

By temporarily keeping their distance, she might be able to slowly let go, to forget those thoughts she shouldn’t have, and to let their relationship return to what it was before.

Mo Jiangxue did not say any more words of instruction. An ordinary elder would have at least said a word or two, such as “don’t cause trouble for others” or “be obedient and sensible,” but she said nothing, and did not even see her off, letting Xie Qingzheng go down the mountain all alone.

Xie Qingzheng did not fly on her sword but walked down Ethereal Peak, looking back every three steps.

She wanted to see if her master would come out for a look. She wanted to know what her master was feeling, if she, like her, had a bit of reluctance and attachment.

But as she looked and looked, all she could see were the leaves swaying in the gentle breeze, the white cranes walking back and forth in the plum grove, and the spirit fox rolling under the plum tree.

Xie Qingzheng withdrew her gaze dejectedly.

In the end, it was just that she cared too much…

She always had a trace of a test in her heart, testing her master’s attitude, trying to figure out her every move, and always wishfully thinking that she could stir a ripple in the other. But the other had never been a sentimental person. How could she care about her temporary departure?

She slowly walked down the mountain. As she walked, she suddenly thought of four years ago, when she had dragged her large and small bags and had panted all the way up to the mountainside of Ethereal Peak from Weiming Peak. When she had reached the mountainside, her master had sent a crane to pick her up.

In the past, she had been afraid that her master would regret taking her in and had packed her bags and moved over that very night. Now, she was the one who was leaving.

When she reached Zixiao Peak, Min He saw that Xie Qingzheng’s expression was strange and quickly asked, “Junior Sister, what’s wrong? Why do you look so sad? Could it be that Elder Mo didn’t agree to you moving over?”

“It’s nothing. I’m just a little reluctant.” Xie Qingzheng came to her senses, a smile on her lips, and concealed it from Min He. “It’s a small matter. How could my master not agree?”

Not only had she agreed, but the other didn’t care at all. It was up to her whether she went or stayed.

Min He took her hand and walked along the long corridor. “That’s right. It’s so good for us junior and senior sisters to have a companion! And we have a lot to discuss recently!”

A gentle, light laugh, very pleasant to the ear, suddenly came to her ear. “I won’t take a junior sister for you, but you’ve gone and poached a junior sister from another peak. You think Zixiao Peak is too deserted, but aren’t you worried that if you poach Zheng’er, Elder Mo on Ethereal Peak will feel deserted?”

At the corner of the long corridor stood a white-browed female Daoist with a smile on her lips. Seeing her, the two of them quickly went forward and saluted.

“Greetings, Master—” Min He dragged out the end of her voice, almost coquettishly. “Elder Mo is used to quiet. She won’t feel deserted.”

Xie Qingzheng bowed in salute. “Greetings, Sect Master.”

Xiao Wangqing nodded and smiled at Xie Qingzheng, reached out and touched Min He’s head, and said kindly, “That’s not necessarily so. When you take your junior sister out to exorcise evil spirits, Shuxue and I always feel that something is missing on Zixiao Peak.”

Hearing Xiao Wangqing say this, Min He’s face broke into a smile. “Disciple will also miss you very much when I am out and will have to come back early to serve you!”

In front of others, she was a gentle and dignified head teaching sister who always took care of every junior sister with great consideration. But in front of the Sect Master, she still had a bit of a childish air, like a fluffy and soft ball of sugar, very sweet.

The Sect Master probably also liked her very much, and a gentle and loving look appeared in her eyes.

Xie Qingzheng stood to the side, watching this warm scene, and her heart also felt a field of softness.

The way they, master and disciple, expressed their feelings was much more frank and direct than between her and her master. Her master would never say things like “when you’re not here, I always feel that something is missing.”

And, this was a normal master-disciple relationship, right… The master was kind and affectionate, and the disciple was respectful. There was only filial love between the master and disciple, with nothing else mixed in.

Xiao Wangqing then beckoned to Xie Qingzheng. “Zheng’er.”

Xie Qingzheng obediently went over.

Xiao Wangqing also touched her head and instructed, “On Zixiao Peak, it’s the same as on Ethereal Peak. If there’s anything you want, just have Senior Sister Min He get it for you.” She then teased, “You junior and senior sisters will be together day and night, working together. You must not argue and bicker.”

Min He laughed. “I am her senior sister. I will naturally give in to her!”

Xie Qingzheng: “I will definitely listen to Senior Sister too.”

Xiao Wangqing was amiable. “Mm, you two are indeed much more worry-free than Fu’er.” At the mention of Mu Zifu, her brow furrowed slightly. “Fu’er is unruly and has destroyed one of Shuxue’s pill-refining furnaces. Shuxue said a few words to her, and she went back to Green Pine Peak and has not yet returned.”

After Mu Zifu had returned from Tianquan Manor, her personal sword had been confiscated, and she had been brought to Zixiao Peak by the Sect Master, who had ordered her to never harm anyone again, only to save lives. She had entered the way of medicine with Vice Sect Master Pei and was personally disciplined by the two sect masters.

Xie Qingzheng had not heard her name for a long time. The moment she heard the word “Fu’er,” the image of a bright and flamboyant smiling face appeared in her mind. She thought to herself: I can only imagine that little terror poisoning people. I can’t imagine her healing the sick and saving people at all.

Hearing Xiao Wangqing mention Mu Zifu, Min He also had a headache. “She is a lawless young lady. Only Elder Mu can control her.”

Xie Qingzheng thought to herself: It seems that in these few months, Senior Sister Min He has also been tormented by that little terror… I wonder if I will have a conflict with her again after I move over…

Now that Mu Zifu had entered the way of medicine, Xie Qingzheng was not worried about not being able to beat her.

Xiao Wangqing hummed in acknowledgment. “I’ll go and talk to Qingdai about it.” Before she left, she instructed Xie Qingzheng again, “You must not miss your daily greetings to your master.”

The Xuanji Sect had always emphasized respecting one’s master and the Dao. Xie Qingzheng replied softly.

As long as she wasn’t with her master day and night, a brief meeting every day was also good.

From then on, she lived on Zixiao Peak.

Unlike the serene and simple Ethereal Peak, Zixiao Peak, as the main peak of the Xuanji Sect, was filled with palaces, pavilions, courtyards, and long corridors built on the mountain. Intricate cloud patterns and crane totems could be seen everywhere.

It was only because Pei Shuxue had a leg ailment and disliked seeing people that Xiao Wangqing had dismissed all the idle people, which was why Zixiao Peak seemed a little deserted.

Pei Shuxue’s constitution was weak, and Xiao Wangqing had also set up some arrays on Zixiao Peak, making the climate here much warmer than elsewhere. There was no snow on the summit, only clouds and mist.

Occasionally, there would be a light snow. Senior Sister Min He said that it was because Vice Sect Master Pei liked to see the snow, so the Sect Master would occasionally turn off the arrays and accompany the Vice Sect Master to admire the snow.

Hearing Senior Sister Min He say that the Sect Master would also take off her black and white Daoist robe and put on a red dress to dance with her sword in the snow for Vice Sect Master Pei to see, that graceful, dragon-like sword dance was a rare sight. In all these years, she had only seen it once. Most of the time, the Sect Master only danced for Vice Sect Master Pei.

As Xie Qingzheng listened, she vaguely felt that something was not right. But then she thought that she was overthinking it.

She couldn’t just think that because she liked women, everyone in the world liked women… Although the two sect masters lived together on Zixiao Peak, they did not live together in the same room. They did not seem to have any ambiguous entanglements, just a sisterly love.

Moreover, Sect Master Wangqing had already received her tonsure and the precepts, had renounced love and desire, and had become a Quanzhen female Daoist. It was even more impossible for her to have any private feelings.

She could not think of the two elders in that way. It was a great disrespect!

Xie Qingzheng lived with Min He in a courtyard on the mountainside. The courtyard was full of well-trimmed, evergreen flowers. Although there were many flowers, the air was not filled with the fragrance of flowers, but with the mellow scent of Lakawood incense.

Lakawood incense was known as the “number one incense of Daoism.” A poem went: “Drunk, I lean on a mottled vine cane; idle, I sleep on a gnarled wood bed. On the desk, I practice the qi-circulating incantation; in the furnace, the Lakawood incense.”

It had the effect of calming the mind and entering a meditative state and could assist in cultivation.

At night, Xie Qingzheng smelled this wisp of Lakawood incense, but what she thought of was the cool scent of plum blossoms on the summit of Ethereal Peak.

She missed her master very much…

They had been separated for less than a day, yet she had already begun to long to see her…

Xie Qingzheng did not sleep all night. The next morning, she hurried back to Ethereal Peak on her sword to pay her respects, wanting to see her.

But Mo Jiangxue did not see her. Through the window, she said to her coolly, “From now on, you are exempt from these worldly formalities.”

Her master was unwilling to see her. She was disappointed and looked at the window with eager eyes, not daring to release her spiritual sense to probe.

Her master had always been a little impatient with these formalities. She understood this.

Between the Sect Master’s and her master’s words, she naturally chose to listen to the latter. If her master said she was exempt, then she was exempt.

However, her master had not treated her so coldly for a long time. She was a little dejected, and then she heard the person in the room say, “I will be going into seclusion starting tomorrow. You should focus on your own matters.”

“Why are you going into seclusion again? Are you not feeling well?” Xie Qingzheng asked anxiously.

The person in the room said lightly, “I’m fine. It’s just that my state of mind has been a little restless lately. I want to go into seclusion to enlighten the Dao for a while.”

Xie Qingzheng subconsciously wanted to push open the door to take a look, but she did not dare to push the door open directly without permission. She pleaded in a low voice, “Master, please let me in to see you…”

At this moment, she was filled with regret, regretting that she had moved away. If her master’s yin poison really did act up, and she was not by her side, then wouldn’t her master have to endure it alone?

Mo Jiangxue held a scroll, leaned against the window, and while reading, said coolly, “I’m fine.”

A wisp of spiritual sense came in from outside the window. Mo Jiangxue raised her hand to block it, and then she heard the person outside, her gentle voice tinged with a bit of grievance, “Master, if you are fine, why won’t you let me see you?”

Mo Jiangxue released her spiritual sense and saw the young girl outside, the corners of her eyes and the ends of her eyes had at some point turned red. A hazy mist covered her eyes. She lowered her head, blinked, and tears rolled down her cheeks, one by one.

She wanted to play the qin to comfort her, but she held it in and asked in a cool voice, “What are you crying for?”

Wasn’t it this person who had avoided her first? And now she was being aggrieved…

Xie Qingzheng held back her tears, raised her hand to wipe her eyes, and her nasal cavity and throat were very sore. “I’m afraid that the yin poison in your body will act up, and you won’t tell me…”

She was so worried that she almost blurted out, “I don’t want to move to Zixiao Peak anymore. I’ll move back today,” but she held it in.

Mo Jiangxue let out an almost inaudible sigh, as if she were a little helpless, and said patiently, “Don’t worry too much. I have drunk the Gu wine, and the poison in my body is well suppressed. You can go. Take the secret books in the room with you, and do not neglect your daily lessons.”

Xie Qingzheng was refused at the door. With red eyes, she let out a low “oh.”

If her master was safe and sound, that would be for the best. But she vaguely felt that her master seemed to have not only guessed her intention to avoid her but had also, in accordance with her wishes, planned to push her even further away…

The moment this thought arose, it was as if a knife had lightly cut her heart. Her heart was sore, and a dull ache spread.

The spirit fox came over and licked the back of her hand.

Xie Qingzheng was silent for a long time. After she had forced herself to calm down, she squatted down, her face free of its bewildered expression, and pressed her face against the spirit fox’s cheek, instructing it gently, “If you find that something is not right with her, you must come to Zixiao Peak and tell me immediately, understand?”

The spirit fox let out a cry in acknowledgment.

Xie Qingzheng touched its head, stood up, and bowed respectfully to the person in the room. “Alright. Then disciple will await Master’s emergence from seclusion.”

She didn’t know what she was feeling in her heart. There was sourness, reluctance, and numbness. It was as if her soul had been stripped away. Her whole person was in a daze, like a homeless dog, and she numbly returned to Zixiao Peak.

The moment she returned to Zixiao Peak, she put away her gloomy mood, her expression as usual, and she did her best to assist Senior Sister Min He in organizing the Langhuan Dao Discussion Conference.

She followed her master’s instructions and did not neglect her daily lessons of seated meditation, practicing the xiao, and practicing the sword. Every day, she would also stand under a tree, quietly observing the passing of the seasons, enlightening the Dao and tempering her mind.

That annoying fellow, Mu Zifu, knew that she had moved to Zixiao Peak and would always disturb her when she was standing in a stance to enlighten the Dao. Sometimes she would lead a dog over and have it bark at her. Sometimes she would deliberately recite scriptures loudly beside her…

It was really very annoying.

Xie Qingzheng had found the silencing spell in the secret books her master had given her. After she learned it, the first person she used it on was Mu Zifu.

Mu Zifu was furious and ran back to Green Pine Peak, wanting Mu Qingdai to break it for her, but Mu Qingdai had been sent out by the Sect Master.

She had been silenced for a day and a night. The next day, after the silencing spell was broken, she opened her mouth, intending to say some harsh words to Xie Qingzheng, but Xie Qingzheng had silenced her again before she could.

Just as she was wondering how many more days she would be pestered by her, Min He discovered the conflict between the two of them, directly reported it to the Sect Master, and had the Sect Master take Mu Zifu away to help Vice Sect Master Pei pick herbs.

After this, it was finally a little quieter.

On the ninth day of the ninth month, the Langhuan Dao Discussion Conference.

On Zixiao Peak, a dark mass of people sat. The sound of people was everywhere, a scene of high-flown talk and clamor.

Xie Qingzheng knew some of them, and some she did not. But the sect masters, vice sect masters, and elders of the major sects, Min He had taken out portraits for her to see, so that she could remember their appearances and greet them at the Dao Discussion Conference.

The ones who came were all important figures. Hearing that her master was Mo Jiangxue, everyone looked at her with a bit more respect. And hearing that she and Min He were organizing this Dao Discussion Conference together, they all politely praised her with a few words, such as “young and promising,” “with time, she will surely become a great talent,” and “her future is limitless”… and so on.

Hearing others mention her master’s name, Xie Qingzheng was in a daze for a moment.

Her master was still in seclusion on Ethereal Peak. She didn’t know if she would come out today. But her master had always disliked crowds. Even if she did come out, she would probably just stay on Ethereal Peak alone…

She had originally thought that by keeping her distance from her master, she would gradually let go of her feelings. But after a period of time, the feelings in her heart had not lessened, but had grown stronger.

In her leisure time, she would always stare in the direction of Ethereal Peak in a daze. It was the first time she had tasted the feeling of thinking of someone day and night and desperately wanting to see them.

Author’s Note:

Xie: Uses the move “Avoidance.”

Mo: Uses the move “Advance by retreating.”