Chapter 54 – Let Him Finish
“Do you think they’re fighting in there?” Song Qianyi pointed toward the cave. The entrance was pitch black; nothing could be seen.
The four of them sat on the ground. Liu Jing fiddled with the array disc, sensing the energy flow between heaven and earth. “Unlikely. Elder Meng isn’t an unreasonable person. He’s probably speaking earnestly, trying to persuade him to give up early and stop obsessing over it.”
They used to casually call Meng Xueli by his name behind his back, thinking he was around their age and more like a peer. Now, however, they respectfully referred to him as “Elder Meng.”
The golden-eyed white tiger lay lazily on the ground, occasionally flicking its tail. Xu Sanshan rested against its body. “If reasoning doesn’t work, then maybe he deserves a lesson. First talk, then fight—that’s how it goes.”
Zheng Mu, head lowered as he sorted spiritual herbs and wiped down the alchemy furnace, simply sighed. “He’s become possessed. Not even a Buddha could save him.”
Song Qianyi: “We’re here for the Secret Realm Competition, not to watch him chase after the Sword Sovereign’s Dao companion. He’s really got time to waste!”
Not to mention, just as Elder Meng said, the current situation inside the secret realm was complicated.
Typically, even if elite disciples from different sects hadn’t met before, they would at least know each other’s sect lineage, cultivation methods, and signature techniques. For instance, no matter how she disguised herself, the moment she used the “Rejuvenation Technique,” others would know she was the disciple of Daoist Qinghe from Songfeng Valley. Jing Di’s “Mingyue Sword,” Zheng Mu’s “Vajra Tiger Subduing Fist,” and Liu Jing’s “Spirit Gathering Array” were all the same—indelible marks of their sects.
But this morning’s incident was truly bizarre. Even after a battle, they still couldn’t figure out which sect the opposing group belonged to. They didn’t seem like rogue cultivators who’d bought jade talismans, either. Rogue groups rarely had more than six members, preferred roadside ambushes and robbery, and never carried out large-scale, well-organized operations that felt like targeted assassination attempts.
She frowned as she pondered, carefully voicing her concerns and speculations. But her teammates just kept going about their business as usual—joking and chatting, completely unbothered.
With the Han Shan group not around, Song Qianyi tore off her gentle mask and exploded in anger. “You heartless bastards! I must’ve been blind to team up with you!”
Xu Sanshan kept tugging at the tiger’s fur. “I’m telling you, that group is after Elder Meng. If we’re not traveling with him, we won’t run into them. If we are, Elder Meng will deal with them. He handled them this morning, he can do it again later. What are you so worried about? You overthink everything, no wonder you’re losing hair.”
Zheng Mu wiped his furnace and muttered, “Amitabha. Good people are protected by the Bodhisattva.”
Liu Jing adjusted his array disc. “Exactly! We have Elder Meng watching over us!”
Song Qian turned around and sat facing the other direction, showing them her furious back. “Go to hell, all of you heartless men!”
…….
Inside the cave, a tense, unspeakably awkward atmosphere simmered in the enclosed, narrow, and dark space.
Meng Xueli’s cheeks were flushed with anger, his chest rising and falling rapidly. He stared coldly at Jing Di. “You and I barely know each other—we’re nothing more than strangers passing by. Take back what you just said and leave immediately. I’ll pretend I never heard it.”
Under normal circumstances, if an unfamiliar junior had suddenly confessed to him, Meng Xueli might’ve just been surprised, then laughed it off indifferently. “Got it. Brother Meng isn’t into you. Give up already.”
But now, he glared at Jing Di, while sneaking nervous glances at Xiao Tingyun’s expression out of the corner of his eye.
More than wondering why Jing Di had suddenly lost his mind, he was more concerned about what Xiao Tingyun would think of him.
Would he think that just three years after leaving the mountain for the first time—and barely having stepped off Changchun Peak—Meng Xueli was already trying to seduce a younger disciple?
Would he think that with Ji Xiao Zhenren barely gone for half a year, he was already abandoning his parentless stepson to chase someone new?
That would be far too cruel for the child. Though he himself had no parents, he’d often listened to Yu Qishu pour out his longing for his mother and his resentment toward his father. He was already human now—no longer an emotionless spirit ferret who couldn’t comprehend human affection.
His second disciple had been cast aside by his clan and sent to Han Shan, pitiful but still loved by his mother. His eldest disciple… his eldest had no one. Only him!
He didn’t want to hurt anyone in front of Xiao Tingyun. That would only make him look guilty and hot-tempered. So he had to force himself to stay calm and deny everything, hoping Jing Di would back off.
But Jing Di pressed on. “How can you call us strangers passing by? We met because fate brought us together across a thousand miles. Xueli, give me a chance—give yourself a chance too.”
He’d already tried twice and failed to confess. So he figured he might as well forget about picking the perfect time and place and just say it directly. Whether he stepped forward or back, it was going to hurt anyway. At worst, he’d take a beating from Meng Xueli.
As for Xiao Tingyun—since he was Meng Xueli’s eldest disciple—he’d find out sooner or later. If he really ended up with Meng Xueli, he’d practically be Xiao Tingyun’s step-master.
Jing Di had always been smooth in love, accustomed to being admired and never rejected. He’d never been hurt in a relationship and was naturally full of confidence. Now that Meng Xueli hadn’t slashed him outright, maybe it meant he was already wavering. People always said “a fierce woman fears a persistent suitor,” and surely that applied to men too.
Meng Xueli snapped, “No chance! Get out!”
Jing Di replied, “I know it’s hard for you to accept, but—”
Meng Xueli couldn’t take it anymore. His body trembled slightly, and just as he was about to draw his spear, his disciple suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrist. The warmth of that touch stunned him for a moment.
“Let him finish,” said Ji Xiao softly.
He stood in the darkness, where the light of “Hundred Generations of Time” couldn’t reach. His expression was unreadable.
Jing Di, oblivious to how close he’d just come to disaster, continued calmly, “But the Sword Sovereign is already dead. You can’t keep loving someone who’s gone. No matter how deep your feelings were, that chapter is over.”
Author’s Note:
Xueli: Are all sword cultivators in this world just blunt straight men who only know how to suffocate people with their confessions???
Juanjuan: Yep.
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
