Chapter 58: Choose Me
Yu Qishu pricked his fingertip, letting a drop of bright red blood mix with the lamp oil. Qian Yuzhi thought for a moment, still feeling uneasy, and decided to divide the mixed oil into three portions. Instead of lighting just one lamp, he lit three.
“One goes in my study, one in my storeroom, and the other in my bedroom. That way, no matter where I am or when, I can always see if your dog’s life is still intact.”
Yu Qishu felt somewhat touched by the first half of his words, but after hearing the second half, he composed himself and curled his lips. “I hope these things are never needed. I’ll keep one life, and for the rest of my life, I’ll deliver peach blossoms to you.”
Qian Yuzhi laughed heartily and took the storage bag filled with peach branches, settling the payment. “These aren’t enough to sell. I plan to raise the price next time, and I’ll send more. That way, we can both earn more.”
Yu Qishu quickly waved his hand. “More? No! When Brother Meng comes back and sees that I’ve chopped down all the peach trees, he’ll definitely scold me…” His voice lowered. “Speaking of which, Brother Meng is still in the secret realm, and my senior brother is in seclusion. Only I’m left on Changchun Peak.”
He thought about how Meng Xueli was highly skilled, and that the other participants in the secret realm didn’t stand a chance against him. But he also recalled how Meng Xueli had once told him on the first day of teaching that while one could dodge a direct attack, it was much harder to defend against a hidden strike, and that there was no truly invincible master. Qian Yuzhi had just speculated that something might be wrong in the secret realm, and Yu Qishu couldn’t help but feel a little worried.
In the spring of Han Shan, wildflowers bloomed in vibrant colors at the foot of the mountain, blending beautifully with the bright blue sky and the towering snow-capped peaks. The view was majestic and breathtaking.
However, Yu Qishu had no heart for admiring the scenery and walked distractedly, lost in thought.
The new disciples of the Hall of Legal Principles had finished their lessons and gathered together to play, picking flowers, weaving wreaths, and laughing with youthful joy. Their childish, happy laughter echoed in the air.
One of the young disciples greeted him. “Hello, Senior Brother Yu. Huh? Why is it you again? Didn’t we just…”
Yu Qishu found their comment confusing, and he patted their heads. “Foolish.”
As they approached the floating bridge leading to Changchun Peak, Yu Qishu saw a figure walking on the bridge, their back resembling his own.
With his master away and his senior brother in seclusion, who else would be walking this bridge?
He quickly caught up to the person, stopping beside a stone tablet with the words “Changchun” engraved on it. He reached out and tapped the person’s shoulder. “Hey! I say—”
The person suddenly turned around, and Yu Qishu’s breath caught.
He found himself staring at a face that looked exactly like his own.
“Ah—!” Yu Qishu’s heart nearly leapt out of his chest.
“Don’t scream! Don’t shout! This is so troublesome!” Que Xianming wiped his face, looking even more disheveled than before. “Again? Are you kidding me?”
Yu Qishu’s face turned pale as he fell silent, feeling the other person’s profound cultivation. He instinctively reached for the sword at his waist, his back breaking out in cold sweat, though he tried to stay calm. “Who are you?”
“I’m a friend of Meng Xueli. Where is he? Hey, let’s talk properly. Don’t draw your sword, it’s useless anyway. I can break it with one hand…”
As Que Xianming spoke, his bones cracked audibly, his body stretched and grew at an astonishing rate, his features slowly transforming to reveal his true, eerie form.
“A friend of Meng Xueli? What kind of friend?” What kind of sorcery is this? Is this person human or ghost?
Yu Qishu’s mind raced. Thank goodness he had left the soul lamp; he surely couldn’t win this fight. If he died, would Shopkeeper Qian come to rescue him? Surely he would, right?
He was still lost in thought when a soft voice suddenly called out from ahead. “Senior, why is it you?” It was a young disciple who had heard the noise and hurried over.
Yu Qishu asked, “Do you know him? Is he really a friend of Brother Meng?” He still wasn’t sure and remained on guard.
Xiao Huai quickly pulled him aside and whispered, “I’ve seen this senior before. During Ji Xiao Zhenren’s mourning, everyone else went to the shrine to mourn, but he came to Changchun Peak to visit and comfort the elder. Were you scared? Last time, he disguised himself as me to cheer up Master Meng. It shocked me too…”
Que Xianming paused, surprised by the explanation. He hadn’t expected that Meng Xueli’s approach last time had unintentionally helped him this time.
Yu Qishu pinched Xiao Huai’s cheek. “You’re not fake too, right? Are you in on this with him?”
Xiao Huai pouted and stared at him with tearful eyes. “Senior Brother Yu!”
Yu Qishu let go of his cheek. “Looks like you’re real.” Still so timid, one little scare and you start crying.
He turned back to Que Xianming. “My apologies.”
Que Xianming scratched his nose. “Ahem, I came to see Meng Xueli. I have something important to discuss with him. Is he not here?”
Xiao Huailooked confused. “Elder Meng went to the Hanhai Secret Realm, don’t you know? The Hanhai Secret Realm is a major event in the cultivation world, and Meng Xueli is very famous. Everyone knows he’s participating in this big competition.”
Que Xianming slapped his forehead in frustration. “I forgot! Why does this have to happen at such a time?”
He had rushed over from the demon realm in a hurry, without even sorting out his thoughts, and already wanted to sneak into Changchun Peak to find Meng Xueli.
At the foot of the mountain, he overheard some junior disciples at the Hall of Legal Principles chatting about Meng Xueli’s disciple, Yu Qishu, who had recently enjoyed a streak of victories at the Sword Training Platform and was quite the center of attention. Just then, Yu Qishu happened to descend the mountain, surrounded by junior disciples pestering him with questions. Once Yu Qishu walked farther away, Que Xianming transformed into his appearance and went back to tease those little disciples. But he got too caught up playing around and forgot the time. When he finally made it to Changchun Peak, he ran straight into the real Yu Qishu.
The young disciple noticed Que Xianming’s troubled expression and asked worriedly, “Is Elder Meng in danger?”
Que Xianming waved his hand casually. “Of course not! I’m going to find him. If fate allows, we’ll meet again.”
Yu Qishu found him very strange. “He’s in the Hanhai Secret Realm. Without a pass jade talisman, you won’t be able to enter.”
“I’ve got my own way!”
With that, Que Xianming leapt off. The suspension bridge swayed slightly in the air.
Yu Qishu looked down, only to see a vast sea of clouds—no trace of the man remained.
…
The Hanhai Secret Realm was vast. Meng Xueli clung to his disciple, thoroughly enjoying the thrill of flying.
He thought to himself, “Hundred Generations of Time is really nice. It flies more nimbly than a cloud ship, can speed up or slow down at will, and it’s more stable than a peacock—doesn’t make you dizzy or nauseous.”
The atmosphere was relaxed, and the two chatted idly as they flew over mountains and rivers.
“What’s that over there?”
“That’s the Central City you wanted to visit,” Ji Xiao replied.
Meng Xueli: “Looks really small. Not what I imagined.”
Ji Xiao chuckled. “There are human cities with populations in the millions. I’ll take you there next time.”
“Mhm,” Meng Xueli nodded, then shook his head. “Wait—shouldn’t I be the one taking you?”
The Central City of the secret realm wasn’t a city with gates and a moat.
Instead, it was a cluster of long-abandoned palace ruins, spread out across an open plain protected by surrounding mountains and rivers.
This place had originally been a drifting fragment of space beyond the Three Realms, only anchored here when Ji Xiao used divine powers to cast it into the Hanhai Sea—thus the name “Hanhai Secret Realm.” Some speculated it had once been a cave residence of an ancient, powerful cultivator.
By the later stages of the tournament, only ambitious participants remained. They gradually gathered in the central region, each hoping to encounter more opponents before the secret realm closed and increase their score.
Beneath Central City lay a palace inhabited by mirage beasts. Both the upper city and lower palace belonged to the original secret realm, but the mirage beasts were a later addition—guardians placed there under Ji Xiao’s orders to protect the realm and create illusory landscapes.
The dark sun of black-gold had sunk westward, and the sky was growing dim. Ji Xiao asked, “Shall we land?”
Meng Xueli replied, “Central City looks so small. Doesn’t seem like anyone’s there either…” He pointed in the distance. “Do you see that? What’s that glowing blue over there? Looks kind of pretty.”
Under the dim sky, the terrain below was hard to make out, but a faint bluish glow in the northeast stood out distinctly.
Ji Xiao explained, “That’s the light from phosphorus fire ore. Someone’s probably mining rare minerals underground.”
Meng Xueli thought for a moment. There were people, and there were treasures—that was enough.
“Alright, let’s head there! Doesn’t seem too far from Central City anyway.”
Ji Xiao thought, Of course it doesn’t look far when you’re looking from the sky. He gave up arguing. Fine, whatever you say.
…
Under the orange-red sunset, a pool of water shimmered with bluish-green light, sparkling brightly.
At the northeasternmost edge of the secret realm, near this Green Pool, phosphorus fire ore could be found underground—hence the pool’s bluish-green hue. This was common knowledge.
However, it wasn’t a valuable spiritual stone vein, but rather a phosphorus fire ore deposit—a basic material for forging tools. Plus, the minerals were scattered and hard to find. Elite disciples from major sects deemed it low in points and not worth the effort.
Some disciples from small sects, who had no interest in competing for ranking or fighting for pass talismans and had entered the secret realm purely to make money, formed mining teams instead. With a bit of luck and if they avoided strong enemies, they could still strike it rich.
A mining team needed at least three people: one array master to survey the terrain and plant explosive runes to open underground paths; one tool refiner to identify ore quality and purity; and one martial cultivator to protect the others if their combat strength was lacking.
At that moment, near Green Pool, a pile of phosphorus fire ore was stacked like a small hill. In the dim twilight, it glowed with a bluish hue—exactly what Meng Xueli had seen from above.
Two people were working around the pile, frantically stuffing the ore into new storage bags. Because space was limited, they had to divide it into several bags.
Clearly, this team had bad luck. Their array master had misfired a blast rune, accidentally destroying a storage bag filled with ore. The martial cultivator had rushed in to salvage it but was a step too late—he ended up with injuries to both an arm and a leg. Now he slumped dejectedly against a tree trunk, staring blankly at the sunset.
The array master shouted, “Faster! Hurry up! It’s way too eye-catching like this—we’re asking for trouble!”
The tool refiner snapped back, “You’re the one rushing? Who caused this mess in the first place?”
As they argued, a sudden gale whipped up from nowhere, and two figures in black cloaks descended from the sky.
They hadn’t jumped from a tree or the nearby hillside—they had literally broken through the clouds and fallen straight down from the heavens.
“Boom—”
The ground exploded into a massive crater, so deep the bottom couldn’t be seen. Smoke and dust billowed everywhere.
The mining team screamed and scattered in every direction.
The one-legged martial cultivator hopped while holding his blade, shouting, “Ahhhhhh!”
The array master cried, “I knew we were doomed!”
The tool refiner yelled, “This is all your fault, you jinx!”
In the deep pit, Ji Xiao put away the “Hundred Generations of Time” and handed it back to Meng Xueli. Meng Xueli casually dismantled the “Bamboo Dragonfly” into two swords, handing one to his disciple and keeping the other in his hand.
He brushed off his sleeves, patted his storage bag, and took out two brand-new trophies: “Let’s put on black cloaks to conceal our identities.” This was a common disguise in the secret realm, in case they encountered Jing Di again, they wouldn’t risk being recognized and entangled.
When they jumped out of the pit, they landed right in front of the three members of the mining team. The miners saw two figures in black cloaks holding swords, looking aggressive. Anyone who could survive a fall from the sky like that surely couldn’t be easily killed, so they were doomed.
“Spare us, mighty heroes!” The array master acted quickly, speaking fast, “My name is Wang Xiaohua, I’m 28 years old, and I usually make talismans and fortune-tell. We come from a small sect beyond the North Sea, not worth paying attention to. We came to the secret realm just to make a little money. We’re heading to the teleportation array today. Why don’t you let us go?”
Meng Xueli: “…….Ah?”
He didn’t ask anything, yet the other party had already finished speaking in rhyme.
He sent a sound transmission to his eldest disciple: “What’s going on here?”
Ji Xiao briefly explained the secret realm’s mining teams and their operations.
Meng Xueli thought for a moment, “You’ve given me a new idea… Are there other mining teams around?”
The array master, confused, honestly replied, “There should be. But according to the usual rules, we all mine in our own areas and don’t attack each other.”
Meng Xueli understood. They were all poor, weak people—there was no need for infighting.
“Don’t worry, we’re sword cultivators from Han Shan. His surname is Xiao, mine is Meng.” Meng Xueli smiled kindly, “We won’t take your lives. If you have valuable items, give us thirty percent as protection money. We’ll escort you to the teleportation array, and before you enter, just hand us your jade tokens. Everything will be safe and comfortable. How does that sound?”
The weapon refiner was utterly bewildered, sounding a bit foolish: “Huh?”
The array symbol master replied, “…Just thirty percent?”
The three miners exchanged glances. Was there really such good luck? Was this what a big sect did for charity? But the other party had no need to deceive them; it would be far more efficient to just kill them and take their goods.
Meng Xueli smiled, “Yes, just thirty percent. Think it over. Han Shan sword cultivators, trustworthy as can be.”
He didn’t want to rob them by pretending to be an easy target. First, he wanted to leave a good impression on his disciple. Second, he couldn’t picture Xiao Tingyun shouting “Be careful, Elder!” or “Protect the Elder!” Third, their dramatic entrance didn’t seem like that of a helpless victim, but more like that of a demon king.
It might be better to team up with this mining team and, when encountering others, recruit them in. Collect protection money and send them to the teleportation array.
After a while, the array master, representing the team, stepped forward, slightly bowing: “In that case, thank you, Senior Brother Meng, Senior Brother Xiao.”
Meng Xueli, full of enthusiasm, said, “Let’s go.”
The array master pointed to the moon in the distance: “Isn’t it too late? We’ve been mining all day and were planning to rest for the night and leave tomorrow.”
Meng Xueli looked at Ji Xiao: “Alright, we’ve been flying all day, and my disciple might be tired.”
Ji Xiao had been smiling faintly the whole time and didn’t express any objections. He was fine with whatever Meng Xueli decided.
Night fell, and the pond reflected the moonlight. Ji Xiao and Meng Xueli sat by the stone pond while the other three sat across from them.
The mining team had brought their own cooking utensils, so they fished, started a fire, and boiled a pot of fish soup, inviting the two helpful, charitable sword cultivators to join.
Meng Xueli smiled and said, “Thank you, but I don’t eat meat.”
Ji Xiao was peeling pine nuts for Meng Xueli, separating the peeled ones from the unpeeled ones.
Meng Xueli slightly lifted his chin, signaling Ji Xiao to look at the opposite side: “What do you think they’re talking about?” The three of them had low cultivation levels and seemed to be muddling through life, but they looked quite happy.
Ji Xiao smiled: “If you want to listen, go ahead.”
Meng Xueli ran over, took out some of his own pine nuts, and gave each of them a handful. He easily joined in the conversation, nodding and agreeing with whatever anyone said.
The three miners were surprised that the elite disciples of a major sect had no airs about them. Gradually, they relaxed, and after drinking a few bowls of hot soup, they started calling him “brother.”
The fish soup was fragrant, and the four of them sat around the campfire. The mining team opened a jar of wine. When they saw that Meng Xueli didn’t drink, they didn’t press him, and the three of them drank happily. At first, they talked about selling the ores to the weapon refiners or to “Hengtong Juyuan” to earn some money. But soon, the topic drifted.
The array master took a sip of wine: “I heard that Sword Sovereign’s Dao companion, Meng Xueli is also here in the secret realm?”
Meng Xueli, wrapped in his cloak, perked up his ears.
The weapon refiner replied, “Yes, Han Shan should send someone to protect him, right? Brother Meng is from Han Shan, do you know him?”
Meng Xueli’s playful side was piqued. He thought, I want to see what they’ll say and then reveal my identity, scaring them into running around in panic.
So, he shook his head: “Han Shan is very big. I don’t know him.”
The array master said, “I don’t know him either, but I’ve heard a lot about him.”
The martial cultivator, holding a bowl in one hand, urged: “Hurry up and tell us!”
“He’s exceptionally handsome.”
Meng Xueli nodded.
“He bathes every day in the spiritual spring water from Nanling Temple, and ordinary fabric would harm his smooth skin.”
Meng Xueli was dumbfounded, but he saw that everyone else was listening with great interest.
“Ji Xiao Zhenren killed the last nine-tailed fox in the world and made a white fox fur cloak for him. It shimmered with silver light, dragging on the ground three feet long.”
The martial artist retorted, “That’s impossible.”
Meng Xueli thought, finally, someone who understands.
But then the person added, “Three feet long? That would be inconvenient to walk in.”
“Does he need to walk? Wherever he wants to go, Ji Xiao Zhenren carries him. His feet never touch the ground. You think he’s like you?”
The three of them suddenly understood, “Now it makes sense! It should be like that!”
Meng Xueli felt a bit of a breakdown, “Nonsense! All made up!”
The array master who was telling the story was embarrassed by his outburst and asked, “How do you know it’s made up?”
Meng Xueli shouted, “Because I am Meng Xueli!”
The atmosphere fell into silence for a moment, and the array master patted his shoulder, “Brother, wake up, stop dreaming.”
The tool refiner shouted, “Someone bring a basin of water and splash it on him to wake him up!”
The three of them burst into laughter.
Meng Xueli stood up in anger and walked over to sit by his disciple.
“What’s wrong, not chatting with everyone anymore?” Ji Xiao actually heard everything clearly and found it amusing, so he deliberately teased him.
Meng Xueli looked at his expression until Ji Xiao stopped smiling and then spoke, “You heard everything, right?”
Ji Xiao nodded.
Meng Xueli said seriously, “I don’t want you to misunderstand Ji Xiao Zhenren. He’s not what you think. I’ll tell you the truth, and you have the right to know this.”
Ji Xiao smiled again.
Hearing his little Dao companion’s passionate and straightforward expressions of love every day was enough to melt even a block of ice. Perhaps that was what human affection was.
He suddenly asked, “Do you like Ji Xiao?”
Meng Xueli was stunned. When Que Xianming had come to Han Shan to rescue him and asked if he secretly liked Ji Xiao, he had jumped up and refuted it angrily as if his tail had been stepped on, “You’re talking nonsense!”
Now, he could lie, but suddenly, he didn’t know how to answer the question. Maybe it was because Xiao Tingyun had asked so earnestly, with such sincere eyes.
Looking into Xiao Tingyun’s bright eyes, his heart raced, and his intuition told him that something was wrong. Because it seemed that, deep down, he really did have feelings for Ji Xiao.
If Ji Xiao were alive, would he like him, respond to him? No. Just like Ji Xiao’s senior brother Hu Si had said, that would be impossible.
Meng Xueli suddenly understood. He had known it in his heart all along, so he had only dared to fabricate all those sweet lies while Ji Xiao was absent.
“I don’t like him. He doesn’t like me, and I don’t like him.” Meng Xueli’s voice was calm. “If you tell a lie enough times, even you start to believe it. In fact, Ji Xiao Zhenren and I were never truly partners. All that talk of deep affection is just a lie. It doesn’t exist.”
Meng Xueli turned to his disciple and said, “Ji Xiao Zhenren saved my life. I only want to repay him for his kindness. That’s the truth I wanted to tell you.”
It was like a bucket of cold water was thrown on a spark, and Ji Xiao felt a faint sadness in his heart, but for some reason, it softened as well.
“It’s okay. Even though he saved you, he never expected anything in return. You don’t need to be fixated on it.”
Meng Xueli shook his head, comforted just a little by his disciple’s gentle tone.
Ji Xiao added, “If you don’t like him, then it’s fine. You don’t owe Ji Xiao anything, so you can choose again. But Jing Di is not a good match…”
The reason he let Jing Di finish speaking was partly to evaluate the person. The conclusion was that the young man’s character wasn’t settled yet, he was frivolous and infatuated, lacking restraint.
Ji Xiao thought for a moment and said seriously, “I’m better than him. Choose me.”
The author has something to say:
“Choose me, choose me, I’m super sweet!”
A straightforward confession from a dense guy, leaving the readers speechless.
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
