As one of the Five Great Sects, the Shangqing Sword Sect possessed deep foundations. Arenas like the one they were currently at actually existed in multiple locations. However, the ones used for disciples’ daily training were mostly branch training grounds. The main training ground, by contrast, was said to be even more expansive and was typically reserved for important occasions such as sect examinations and sect competitions.
But even for a branch training ground, when Bai Xiaoxiao looked up, she felt she couldn’t see the end of it.
By modern standards, this wasn’t just a sports field—it was clearly the size of an entire school.
And such a huge area was only a branch training ground.
While Bai Xiaoxiao was still marveling, the little sprouts had already taken their positions on their own. She looked left and right, lost in thought.
If she left now, would she still make it in time?
Just as the thought crossed her mind, Bai Xiaoxiao noticed a beam of spiritual light arriving from the distance. She focused and saw that it was the elder who would be teaching this class.
Clearly, leaving was no longer an option.
This elder had white hair but a youthful face, with a demeanor both profound and awe-inspiring. She made Bai Xiaoxiao picture a headmistress.
Bai Xiaoxiao quailed inwardly. She sucked in a cold breath and prayed the other wouldn’t notice her.
Unfortunately, her hope was quickly dashed. She watched helplessly as the elder’s gaze locked onto her like a falcon, brows furrowed deeply.
The training ground was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Bai Xiaoxiao’s body stiffened. She steeled herself and opened her mouth to say she’d leave right away.
But before she could speak, a stern voice rang out. “That disciple over there, why haven’t you found a spot to stand? And what on earth are you wearing? How can you train in such cumbersome clothing? Change out of it immediately, right now!”
Bai Xiaoxiao was dumbfounded. “Ah? But… I…”
She floundered, trying to explain.
But the elder gave her no chance. Her expression grew sharp. “What are you standing there for? Do you intend to make so many people wait for you alone?”
Bai Xiaoxiao’s explanation was shoved back down her throat. She silently closed her mouth, sighed inwardly, and took off the fox fur cloak from her shoulders, setting it aside properly.
Even so, the clothes she was wearing now still weren’t suitable for training.
Bai Xiaoxiao keenly spotted a vein jumping on the teaching elder’s forehead. She didn’t dare delay any longer and obediently went to stand at the side. The little sprouts nearby shot her quick, sympathetic glances.
Being caught making a mistake by the teacher on the first day of school really was miserable…
Bai Xiaoxiao grumbled inwardly, but kept an obedient, well-behaved expression on her face, not daring to look around.
Perhaps afraid of delaying class time, the elder, though still frowning, said nothing more.
Bai Xiaoxiao’s heart relaxed. But she quickly realized she’d relaxed too soon.
Because this class was—sword arts.
Bai Xiaoxiao stared at the sword that had been distributed to her, hesitation in her eyes.
She was a spirit pet, not a Sword Sect disciple. Could she really learn swordsmanship alongside them?
But before she could explain the situation to the elder, she’d already been assigned and told to begin practicing.
Learning swordsmanship didn’t start by teaching sword techniques. It meant endlessly repeating basic movements. But as a transfer student, even the basic movements left her completely bewildered. Unsurprisingly, she caught the teaching elder’s attention once more.
Under a gaze that sent chills down her spine, Bai Xiaoxiao stumbled through an entire class of sword arts. She tried hard to follow, but her movements were so clumsy that she couldn’t even compare to the children.
By the time the elder announced class was over, she could no longer lift her arms.
But this apparently wasn’t the end. The little sprouts had already started hopping around, warming up.
A bad feeling rose in Bai Xiaoxiao’s heart. Then Fushui, who had come looking for her specially, informed her that they still had to run laps around the training ground. They could only leave after completing them.
“How many laps?”
Bai Xiaoxiao’s voice trembled slightly.
Fushui’s gaze was soothing. “Not many, not many. Just five laps.”
Bai Xiaoxiao’s vision went black.
Fushui stood on her tiptoes and patted her shoulder. “Big Sister, don’t be afraid. You’ll get used to it after a while.”
Like the whispers of a devil, Bai Xiaoxiao felt as if she were only one step away from the Underworld.
But the teaching elder was watching everyone like a hawk, personally overseeing them through their training.
For some reason, Bai Xiaoxiao felt the gaze on her was especially severe. Given what had happened earlier, the elder had probably taken note of her.
Fushui had already warmed up and was ready to start. Bai Xiaoxiao scrambled to her feet, copied their warm-up movements, and then ran with the little sprouts, looking utterly resigned to her fate.
The group of kids was clearly experienced. They ran with full energy, each wearing a determined expression.
After one lap, Bai Xiaoxiao’s mind was blank.
After two laps, Bai Xiaoxiao’s head was spinning.
After three laps, Bai Xiaoxiao’s eyes were hollow…
When the five laps were finished, Bai Xiaoxiao collapsed limply to the ground, staring into space as she pondered the true meaning of life.
“System, am I really here to do missions?”
The System said, “Host, cultivation is beneficial for you as well. Just endure it a little.”
She’d always slacked off when climbing mountains, and now karma had come calling. The elder’s standards were high and wouldn’t allow resting mid-lap. Bai Xiaoxiao had barely managed to follow and finish running. Now her breath came in rapid gasps, and there even seemed to be a bloody taste in her throat, burning with pain.
After all those laps, she had essentially become a useless wreck. Her hands trembled, her legs shook, and she couldn’t get up at all.
The group of kids, however, still had energy to spare.
Little Fushui dragged her tired body over to her, panting, her big eyes full of worry. “Big Sister, are you alright?”
Bai Xiaoxiao stared blankly, as if her soul had escaped through her mouth.
After a long while, she barely managed to ask, “Little Fushui, do you do this training every single day?”
Fushui nodded, recalling. “We’ve been doing it since we enrolled. At first it was twice every seven days, then three times every seven days, and finally it became once a day. Tenth Elder is very strict. At the very beginning, she scared all of us into tears.”
“Tenth Elder?”
“Today’s teaching elder. Tenth Elder is an elder of the Punishment Hall. But my master says that if she weren’t fierce, she wouldn’t be able to deter bad people.”
“No wonder. So she’s an elder of the Punishment Hall.”
Bai Xiaoxiao muttered.
The two chatted for a bit longer. Bai Xiaoxiao assured Fushui multiple times that she was fine and urged her to leave first, since she knew the little one still had to return to Medicine Peak for her studies.
Fushui sighed like a little adult and left the training ground with a heart full of worry. She really did have a lot of homework, and she hadn’t yet learned medicine from her master today, so she couldn’t stay for long.
Bai Xiaoxiao waved her hand wordlessly, watching the little overachiever leave.
After lying on the training ground for a while, a figure appeared before her. Bai Xiaoxiao strained to look up—it was Ming Jingqiu.
She forced a smile and said with a feeble voice, “Fellow Daoist Ming… if you’d be so kind… please carry me back… thank you.”
Facing Bai Xiaoxiao, who looked like a dried corpse, Ming Jingqiu’s lips seemed to twitch.
Originally, she’d planned to go find her at the study hall, but she’d run into a bit of trouble and couldn’t get there in time.
By the time she’d finally handled it and hurried to the study hall, she found no one there. Sensing carefully, she was surprised to discover that Bai Xiaoxiao’s location was actually at the training ground.
Ming Jingqiu arrived with a heart full of questions and found Bai Xiaoxiao running laps in the midst of a group of kids.
One look at the teaching elder—well, of course. It was Tenth Elder.
That explained everything.
Ming Jingqiu landed beside Bai Xiaoxiao with sympathy in her eyes, but she was still shocked when she heard the other’s almost-breathless voice.
Afraid something might happen to her, she quickly scooped up the limp person and headed back to Moon-Gazing Peak.
Bai Xiaoxiao let herself be carried peacefully, showing no reaction at all, like a corpse.
When the two arrived at Moon-Gazing Peak, Shen Zhiyue was instructing Rong Qingqing in sword practice. The atmosphere between master and disciple was harmonious.
Ming Jingqiu paused in her steps. After a moment, she walked forward with Bai Xiaoxiao, her expression unchanged.
“Greetings, Shizun.”
Seeing Bai Xiaoxiao hanging half-dead from Ming Jingqiu, Shen Zhiyue’s brows furrowed slightly. She stepped forward and teleported over, taking the person into her own arms.
“What happened?”
Ming Jingqiu lowered her gaze. “After Fellow Daoist Bai finished her classes today, she also attended Tenth Elder’s sword arts class.”
That single sentence was enough for Shen Zhiyue to understand completely.
She gave a peculiar look at Bai Xiaoxiao, who was leaning against her as if she had no bones. After a brief consideration, she said to Rong Qingqing, who was waiting nearby, “You may return for today. If you encounter something you don’t understand, ask Jingqiu first.”
A flicker of displeasure passed through Rong Qingqing’s eyes, but she quickly concealed it and nodded with a bright smile. “Yes, Shizun.”
Then she looked at Bai Xiaoxiao with concern. “But is Senior Sister Xiaoxiao alright?”
Shen Zhiyue didn’t say much. She only said, “She is fine. You may go.”
Rong Qingqing swallowed the words she hadn’t finished speaking and obediently nodded.
Ming Jingqiu had already taken her leave with a salute and departed.
Rong Qingqing’s eyes flickered. She quickly followed.
“Senior Sister, please wait.”
Ming Jingqiu paused and stopped coldly. “Junior Sister, what is it?”
Rong Qingqing raised her face, looking innocent and artless. “Senior Sister, how did you end up with Senior Sister Xiaoxiao?”
Ming Jingqiu was expressionless. “Shizun ordered me to escort her to Knowledge-Seeking Peak for classes.”
Rong Qingqing’s face stiffened, but quickly recovered. She said softly, “Shizun seems… to care a great deal about Senior Sister Xiaoxiao. Senior Sister, do you think Shizun might be considering taking on another disciple?” Worry surfaced on her face. “I wouldn’t mind, personally. I’m just afraid that if Senior Sister Xiaoxiao really becomes Shizun’s disciple, you’ll have to look after her, Senior Sister. Wouldn’t that delay your cultivation time?”
Ming Jingqiu’s gaze flickered slightly, her eyes lowered. “That has nothing to do with me. Shizun’s decisions have their own reasons. Junior Sister, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way. Farewell.”
With that, she transformed into a beam of spiritual light and vanished into the distance.
Rong Qingqing gritted her teeth and cursed under her breath in a mere whisper, calling her utterly incomprehensible.
This Ming Jingqiu was cold and hard as stone. Whether she tried to grow close or to suppress, the other always appeared indifferent—truly infuriating.
Suppressing the churning emotions in her heart, Rong Qingqing was silent for a moment, then turned and left as well.
