When Snow Ends, Green Returns - Chapter 7

I was speechless.

We had not done it in five months!

What excess?

Besides, dual cultivation between cultivators improved both partners’ cultivation as long as they circulated the proper art.

It benefited us both!

Harm my ass!

I asked cautiously, “Xuejin, are you angry with me?”

“I would never be angry with you.”

My heart sank.

Oh no!

He really was angry!

This wasn’t over at all!

I would rather he pin me to the bed and punish me than remain so unmoved.

Near tears, I tugged his sleeve. “Xuejin, I really know I was wrong…”

“I shouldn’t have been reckless. I shouldn’t have gotten hurt…”

Yu Xuejin sighed. “This isn’t the time for dual cultivation.”

“?”

He looked at me. “I’m in a very bad state of mind.

Do you know how miserable I felt when I left seclusion and discovered you’d covered yourself in wounds again?”

“If we do it now, I truly won’t control myself. I’ll hurt you a second time.”

“Give me some time to work through my emotions, all right?”

I stared blankly at him for a long while. “Sh-Shizun, I’m sorry.”

He stroked my head. “Come out with me and clear your mind.”

I kissed him. “Where?”

“The Immortal Sects Tournament begins in a few days. Shall we go watch together?”

I paused.

Every ten years, each sect first held an internal tournament.

Its finest disciples then gathered at the host sect to compete against one another.

I had participated once, in my seventh year here. At twenty-four, I had just broken through to Nascent Soul.

I forgot to mention: when I entered this world,

I retained my original body, but its age inexplicably dropped several years to match the hero’s seventeen.

I entered the cultivation, swordsmanship, array, talisman, and team competitions.

I won every one.

I slapped the faces of everyone who had looked down on me.

A young genius, standing on the winners’ platform beneath Shizun’s smiling gaze.

High-spirited. Brilliant and unrestrained.

…

Years had passed.

The cultivation world never lacked geniuses, brave souls, or people devoted to the Great Dao.

There would always be high-spirited youths.

Unfortunately, I was no longer among them.

…

Shizun clearly wanted to cheer me up, so I nodded. “All right, Xuejin.”

This year’s tournament was held at Profound Sword Sect.

The sect master was delighted to hear his junior brother had emerged from seclusion.

Dressed in green, elegant and dashing, he looked in his thirties and initially wore a broad grin.

Then he saw us arrive glued together.

Sect Master: smile gradually vanishes.jpg

“Could you two mind your image? You’re in public, clinging together like conjoined twins!”

Embarrassed, I released Yu Xuejin’s hand.

The sect master usually treated me well. He had never scorned me for falling in love with my own shizun.

I still remembered how, when Shizun was absent, I offended an elder’s disciple.

After I beat the junior, the elder came to discipline me—and the sect master defended me.

Yu Xuejin took my hand again and laced our fingers together.

He looked at his senior brother. “What? Is there no spectator seat for this venerable one?”

The sect master rubbed his forehead. “You seriously underestimate your appeal… Of course there is!

You’re the foremost cultivator alive. If you attend, Profound Sword Sect will want to set off firecrackers in welcome!”

“Good. Prepare two seats. Huiqing and I will watch.”

“May I make one small request?”

“Hm?”

“Mind your image, please? A romance between master and disciple really isn’t presentable!”

Yu Xuejin looked puzzled. “But after all these years, doesn’t everyone who needs to know already know?”

True.

We had not spent the last decade entirely inside the sect.

We crossed snowy mountains, towns, villages, wilderness temples, secret realms…

The intimate gestures we made when emotion overcame us could not remain unnoticed.

One told ten, ten told a hundred, a hundred told a thousand.

Nearly everyone knew.

Stories about the forbidden love between a gentle master and his genius disciple still circulated everywhere.

There were also slanders and rumors, but who cared?

The sect master had no answer.

The tournament soon began.

At Profound Sword Sect, sword lights of every color streamed in from all directions like falling stars.

Disciples wore their sect robes; some carried swords, some polished great sabers, and others held array discs.

Every young face was sharp and proud.