Outside the courtyard, Xiao Qingxuan stumbled down Azure Sky Peak, the true qi within her body in chaotic disorder. In the end, she could only lean weakly against a rock by the roadside.
She gasped for breath, her face so red it seemed it might drip blood.
This wasn’t the Ye Luqing she remembered.
“A-Qing, how could A-Qing do something so frivolous…”
A flash of pain crossed Xiao Qingxuan’s eyes. The Ye Luqing in her memory was a reserved and cute young girl, who would usually only tug at the hem of her clothes, and at most dared to hold her hand. The most intimate thing they had done was touch noses and foreheads. How could she now do something so bold and ambiguous?
“But why… do I feel pleasure?”
A strange feeling rose within her heart. She pressed her hand against her chest, feeling that wildly beating heart.
“I want so badly… to hold A-Qing in my arms.”
Xiao Qingxuan closed her eyes, imagining the scene in the room just now where she had directly embraced Ye Luqing, breathing in large gulps of that dry and sweet scent of Verdant Wood Flowers.
“Hah… mm…”
Her legs subconsciously pressed together, and the expression on her face began to become uncontrollable.
Unrestrained sword qi burst from her body, shredding the surrounding grass, trees, flowers, and stones into pieces.
She liked the Ye Luqing from before the amnesia—the reserved, conservative, gentle, and cute one who would blush just from holding hands.
So why, when faced with the amnesiac Ye Luqing’s frivolous teasing, had she almost completely fallen?
Was her affection for Ye Luqing such a shallow thing?
She admitted that she did indeed desire A-Qing’s body, but she refused to admit that six years of feelings were so fragile in front of physical desire.
After a long while, Xiao Qingxuan finally calmed her heart and flew quickly down from the halfway point of Azure Sky Peak.
“I must find a way to restore A-Qing’s memory.”
“Otherwise, next time… I might not be able to hold back.”
…………
Ye Luqing lay on her side on the large bed, her legs hugging the quilt, a look of utter despair on her face.
A rise in the Blackening Value was good, but it couldn’t rise from just doing anything, right?
Xiao Qingxuan still had that special “Devilification value” stat. Once it started rising uncontrollably, she would most likely follow in the footsteps of her previous life.
The next moment, the system’s voice sounded in her mind again.
【Detected Destined Female Lead Xiao Qingxuan’s Blackening Value has decreased to 92%】
“Hm?”
Ye Luqing crawled up from the bed, looking at the value window before her with some confusion.
“First it rose, then fell… is she self-correcting?”
She touched her chin. It seemed that earlier had just been a momentary stimulation for Xiao Qingxuan, not a lasting effect.
Thinking this, Ye Luqing lay back down on the bed.
Looking at the already open system page, she suddenly remembered she hadn’t checked the rewards for the story quest yet.
Since she was here, she might as well take a look.
“Adding the 300 points from the quest and the 13% increase in Blackening Value, I now have a total of 1430 points.”
“Seems like there was also a random pill?”
Ye Luqing rummaged through her inventory and found the second quest reward.
【Profound Yellow Pill, Profound-Tier Superior, contains abundant Profound Yellow True Qi. Price: 300 points】
“Profound Yellow True Qi, huh…”
The types of true qi in this world were extremely numerous. Depending on the cultivation technique practiced, the type of true qi converted varied.
For example, Xiao Qingxuan’s sword qi, or a pill cultivator’s pill fire, were both catalyzed and converted from true qi.
After reaching the Golden Core Stage, one could cultivate special techniques to convert ordinary true qi into special true qi.
Ye Luqing extended a finger, a blue-green vortex dancing on its tip.
“I possess wood-attribute and water-attribute true qi, but its purity is very high.”
In the original story, the formations Ye Luqing used were all inclined towards supporting others, so the cultivation technique she practiced also leaned in that direction.
She might have some combat ability, but it was also possible she didn’t.
“Hm?”
Suddenly, Ye Luqing seemed to have thought of something.
Opening the Blackening Value Shop, Ye Luqing saw a technique she had been eyeing earlier.
【Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art, Earth Grade Inferior, Price: 1200 points】
【Constructs formations based on Profound Yellow True Qi, drawing upon the Earthly Sha Force to suppress enemies】
“At least I need an offensive method.”
Looking at her balance of 1430 points, Ye Luqing gritted her teeth and chose to purchase the Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art.
The previous Ye Luqing had been dependent on Xiao Qingxuan. Coupled with being an array cultivator, she had never needed to consider offensive capabilities; Xiao Qingxuan was her sharpest sword.
Now, not only did she have to face Xiao Qingxuan, but she also had to deal with this unfamiliar world. She absolutely had to learn some means of self-preservation.
The next moment, the text of the Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art transformed into a clear stream and flew toward Ye Luqing’s forehead.
She felt as if a clear spring was pouring down upon the top of her head, instantly gaining a profound understanding and comprehension of the Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art technique.
A moment later, a strand of black-gold Profound Yellow True Qi condensed on her fingertip. She had mastered the Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art.
“So fast!”
Feeling this strand of Profound Yellow power coursing through her body, Ye Luqing still felt a sense of unreality.
It was just like using a skill book in a game and instantly learning a technique.
Ye Luqing casually waved her hand. The next moment, the Profound Yellow True Qi she had just refined transformed into wisps of fine threads, instantly becoming black-gold formation runes.
She drew upon the spiritual power within her Spirit Palace, arranging the formation runes condensed from Profound Yellow True Qi into the shape of a small golden bell.
Ye Luqing casually tossed it. The formation landed on a giant boulder in the courtyard. The boulder was instantly crushed into a pile of rubble by the Earthly Sha Force, then turned into dust.
Even the ground beneath the boulder sank several inches. It looked immensely powerful.
“As expected of an Earth-Tier technique,” she nodded in satisfaction.
This was the first offensive formation she had learned. Although there was still a huge gap compared to those cultivators who specialized in attack and slaughter, at least she wasn’t just a passive punching bag anymore.
With this thought, Ye Luqing began to circulate the cultivation path of the Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art, continuing to refine the Profound Yellow True Qi.
Apart from the basic five-element true qi, the more powerful the true qi, the harder it was to refine.
Generally speaking, an Earth-Tier technique like the Profound Yellow Mountain-Suppressing Art required even more complex true qi, which could only be skillfully used after reaching the Spirit Transformation Stage and communicating with heaven and earth.
Arrayists, because they needed to construct formations, required an even greater amount of true qi than ordinary cultivators. If they waited until facing an enemy to refine it on the spot, they would inevitably lag several steps behind their opponent.
The time it takes an incense stick to burn passed in a flash. Ye Luqing had only managed to refine twelve strands of Profound Yellow True Qi.
Watching the gradually darkening sky, Ye Luqing slowly stopped her cultivation.
A single strand of Profound Yellow True Qi could easily crush a giant boulder, but dealing with cultivators wouldn’t be so simple.
Thinking of Xiao Qingxuan’s current Half-Step Spirit Transformation stage, she felt a massive headache.
“Can’t be helped. Who told her to be the protagonist…”
Destined Female Lead, supreme talent, achieving Immortal Ascension in just over a decade, breaking the ten-thousand-year record of no one achieving Immortal Ascension in the Immortal Cultivation World.
Making Xiao Qingxuan corrupted was easy, but the problem was how to withstand the fury of the corrupted party afterward.
Forget about 400% Blackening Value. Her actions right after transmigrating hadn’t even reached 200% before she was casually offed by the out-of-control Xiao Qingxuan.
Just as Ye Luqing was fretting, she caught a glimpse of a pink fluffball timidly lying at the door from the corner of her eye.
“Senior Sister Ye…”
Lying on the bed, Ye Luqing followed the voice to look over. The person was Ying Qianqian.
“Come in. Senior Sister Xiao has already left.”
Ye Luqing dangled her pair of fair, tender feet in the air, resting her chin on her left hand while waving her other hand toward Ying Qianqian at the door.
Hearing this, Ying Qianqian patted her chest with lingering fear, then carefully walked into Ye Luqing’s bedroom.
Looking at Ying Qianqian’s demeanor, Ye Luqing laughed out loud.
“Don’t worry, she actually means no harm, really.”
But the aura of someone at the Half-Step Spirit Transformation Stage was still terrifying for a Golden Core Stage cultivator. That sharp sword intent had even affected Ye Luqing.
She comfortingly rubbed the pink fluffball’s head. The latter nodded as if she understood, her expression gradually returning to normal.
“Then Senior Sister, let’s go eat together.”
“Oh right, Senior Sister, the Sect Grand Tournament is about to start. There’s also the arena matches for the Inner Sect disciples tonight. If you have time, let’s go watch together.”
