The Passerby Female Supporting Character – Chapter 57
by Little PandaCan I Kiss You?
Emerging from the bedroom, Song Linlin drew a basin of cold water to wash her face, then proceeded to clean the half-dried bloodstains from her palms. The clear water in the wooden basin gradually turned red from the blood.
After changing the water and washing again, Song Linlin took a towel to dry her face. As the water droplets were wiped away and the pervasive smell of blood cleared from her nostrils, Song Linlin felt the air suddenly become much fresher.
Putting down the towel, she returned to the bedroom and stayed cooped up inside for the entire day.
Due to the incident with the medicinal food, Song Linlin deeply felt that Zhang San was the type to screw over her teammates1, so she tried to stay in her residence as much as possible for the next two days. Apart from morning classes and scheduled trips out for lunch and dinner, she rarely went outside.
As for the effects of drinking that medicinal soup, besides the massive nosebleed on the first day, there were no further developments. The main reason, of course, was that the easy-to-conceive constitution effect was useless on Song Linlin; it wasn’t like she could get pregnant anyway.
Two days later.
During morning class, as the lecturer stood up and left, the morning lesson, which had dragged on for a whole shichen2, finally concluded. Song Linlin stretched lazily in her spot. She had been lying down too much these past two days, and having to sit on a wooden stool for the morning class—not even a proper chair—inevitably made her back ache.
Once the lecturer’s figure was far away, the crowd, which should have dispersed, surprisingly showed little hurry to leave. Instead, they gathered together, discussing something.
“Hey, hey, shouldn’t the twenty people who went to the Mirror Moon Secret Realm be back by now!” a female voice piped up.
“Calculating the time, it should be about right. The Mirror Moon Secret Realm ended a few days ago, and the round trip doesn’t take long. They should arrive today.”
“I’m so envious, I really want to go to a Secret Realm too…”
Song Linlin listened intently to their conversation, only now realizing that so many days had passed since those twenty people left for the Secret Realm.
The fortunate thing was that she had successfully avoided and survived another segment of the main storyline.
These past few days, Song Linlin had been hanging around with Chi Qianning and Zhang San. Apart from learning some alchemy from Zhang San in the first few days, she hadn’t really done anything productive afterward. Unbeknownst to her, so many days had flown by.
Now that those people were due back, these leisurely days were likely numbered.
Moreover, Zhang San’s grandfather would probably return with the group, and Zhang San would definitely be taken back to Medicine King Valley.
Two days had passed since Zhang San tricked her into drinking that pot of medicinal soup. Song Linlin wasn’t really upset anymore. Ultimately, Zhang San was just an ignorant child; at least her intentions were good. It was just a misunderstanding, a clumsy mistake.
Song Linlin decided she should still go say goodbye to her. After all, once Zhang San left, who knew when they would meet again.
So, Song Linlin got up from her seat and headed towards Ziting Residence. It wasn’t far from the morning class location, so the walk wouldn’t take too long.
Passing through various buildings and crossing a stone bridge, by the time Song Linlin arrived at Zhang San’s door, the surroundings were quiet except for the constant echo of birdsong.
Raising her hand, she knocked on the large door in front of her and called out, “Zhang San, are you in there? I came to see you.”
A second or two later, Zhang San’s voice came from inside, “I’m here, wait a moment!”
Then came the sound of footsteps from within the door. Zhang San ran out of her room, crossed the courtyard, and opened the main gate for Song Linlin. Seeing the person outside, she exclaimed in pleasant surprise, “Song Linlin, why did you suddenly come over?”
This time, Zhang San hadn’t arranged to meet Song Linlin beforehand.
“Hmm…”
Song Linlin deliberately turned sideways and peeked inside the door, afraid Zhang San might be messing around with something bad again while alone in the house.
Her glance revealed nothing strange, and the air smelled normal. Only then did Song Linlin pull her head back, relieved, and looked at Zhang San, saying, “I just finished morning class and thought I’d drop by.”
“But during class, I heard others saying the team from the Mirror Moon Secret Realm is coming back today. Does that mean your grandfather is arriving today too?”
Hearing this, Zhang San nodded, then couldn’t help but sigh, her face full of worry. She said, “They weren’t wrong. That group will indeed return to the Xuanyun Sect today. My grandfather will come back with them then.”
Zhang San had managed to sneak out of her sect for a trip, and she felt like she hadn’t even played for many days yet, hadn’t had her fill of fun. Why did the Secret Realm have to end so quickly?
Once they returned, her grandfather would definitely take her away.
How could Zhang San not be worried?
“Forget it, let’s not talk about this. Come in first.”
Zhang San shook her head, temporarily pushing these thoughts aside. She moved sideways, making space for Song Linlin to enter.
“Okay.”
Song Linlin walked past Zhang San. Zhang San closed the door again, and then the two walked into the house together. The room was much less cluttered than before. Song Linlin found a chair and sat down, leaning back lazily against it. Zhang San, however, plopped down casually on the floor, tidying up a pile of strange items in front of her.
“Were you packing these things just now?” Song Linlin asked curiously, watching her movements.
“Yeah.”
Zhang San nodded, continuing to busy herself with the things in her hands while distractedly answering Song Linlin’s question. “Grandfather sent me a message. They should arrive at Xuanyun Sect this afternoon. He told me to pack my things in advance so he can take me away then.”
After speaking, Zhang San sighed heavily again, looking completely listless.
Song Linlin uncharacteristically got up from the chair energetically, walked over to sit beside Zhang San, and started helping her pack the pile of things. Otherwise, with Zhang San’s slow pace, it was questionable whether she could finish before the afternoon.
Thinking about how to phrase it, Song Linlin offered comfort, “Actually, staying in the sect is pretty good, right? It’s so safe inside the sect. The outside world is fraught with dangers3. Who knows, one unlucky day you might run into some powerful person who could just swat us dead with a wave of their hand.”
“Think about the Moon Poison Scorpion we encountered when we went down the mountain before. Wasn’t that really powerful? The two of us together wouldn’t even be enough for a snack for it4.”
Zhang San paused upon hearing this, thought about the experience with the Moon Poison Scorpion on the mountain, and shivered. Suddenly, she felt Song Linlin made a lot of sense and nodded, “That seems right too…”
“Of course!”
This was Song Linlin speaking from experience. She patted Zhang San’s shoulder like a seasoned veteran and said with feigned depth, “You’re still young, you don’t understand the dangers of this world. The outside world is still very dangerous.”
Zhang San had gotten to know Song Linlin’s personality over these days. She narrowed her eyes at Song Linlin, looking skeptical, “You’re clearly just scared, so you don’t dare to go out, right?”
“Hey, you kid!”
Suddenly exposed5 by Zhang San, thankfully no one else was around. Song Linlin only felt awkward for a moment. She felt like Zhang San had become smarter after hanging out with her for so many days. She could only condemn her morally, “What kind of talk is that? I’m kindly giving you advice, how can you say that?”
This way of speaking showed such low EQ6!
Zhang San wasn’t in the mood to argue with her. She fumbled in her pocket, took out a small medicine bottle, and tossed it to Song Linlin, saying, “Right, this is for you.”
Catching the bottle, Song Linlin examined it carefully in her hand, then uncorked it and looked inside. The bottle contained several small pills. Naturally, she couldn’t tell what was special about them and asked curiously, “What’s this? What does it do?”
“This…” Zhang San lowered her head, her hands not stopping their work, and said casually, “Didn’t you drink that medicinal food with the easy-conception effect? After I realized it was my misunderstanding that day, I tried to see if I could refine a pill to remove the effect from you.”
“I developed this formula myself. Based on my estimation, one pill should be enough for you, but if you’re worried, taking two is fine too. There are no other negative side effects. In the future, you can also just take it as a contraceptive pill.”
“Oh?”
Song Linlin quickly tucked it into her pocket. This was good stuff. Although the easy-to-conceive constitution didn’t affect her and Chi Qianning, the thought of having such a constitution herself still felt very strange. It would naturally be best if it could be removed.
When she opened the cap just now, she saw quite a few small pills inside, enough for both her and Chi Qianning to take two each, with some left over.
Song Linlin looked at Zhang San, feeling pleased, retracting her earlier thought that Zhang San was a liability. She nodded with satisfaction, “Zhang San, turns out you’re quite reliable after all!”
Zhang San didn’t care about Song Linlin’s rapidly changing attitude anymore. She seemed to remember something, paused for two seconds, then took out several more small bottles from her Qiankun Ring. She first handed one bottle separately to Song Linlin, saying:
“These are all the things you refined when you came to learn alchemy before. Since you made them, take them with you now.”
“Remember not to mix them up. This bottle contains Hehuan San. Once it’s made into a pill, it doesn’t have much smell, making it hard to identify.”
“The others are just those ordinary introductory pills. You can tell what they are by smell and color. Be sure to store them separately, don’t accidentally ingest the Hehuan San!”
Back when Song Linlin finished refining the pills, she hadn’t taken them with her. She lacked the special jade bottles used for storing pills, which could only be obtained from the dedicated alchemy area within the sect. Song Linlin found the journey too far and couldn’t be bothered to go, so all these pills were left with Zhang San for safekeeping.
So many days had passed, Song Linlin herself had long forgotten about it. It was only now, with Zhang San bringing it up, that Song Linlin remembered this matter. She took the Hehuan San and put it in her pocket, while the remaining bottles were placed into her Qiankun Ring. This way, they definitely wouldn’t get mixed up.
Song Linlin nodded at Zhang San, looking very confident, “Don’t worry, I’m not a child anymore. I naturally won’t mess up such a small thing.”
“That’s good then.” Hearing her say that, Zhang San didn’t emphasize it further.
Zhang San remembered she seemed to have some other pills and asked casually, “I’ve refined a few more bottles of pills these days, do you want them? I don’t really have much use for them. If you need them, I’ll give them to you.”
After returning to Medicine King Valley, all the disciples in the sect knew alchemy. The one thing they didn’t lack there was various pills. There wasn’t much point in Zhang San keeping them. However, alchemists were rare in the outside world, so perhaps Song Linlin would need them. Thus, she asked casually.
Song Linlin turned her head, her eyes practically sparkling as she looked at Zhang San. She felt like this kid must be a generous giver7, casually giving away pills like this.
“Since you don’t want them, of course I need them!” Song Linlin nodded rapidly, unable to help sighing inwardly—it’s really great to be an alchemist!
Unfortunately, Song Linlin clearly had no talent in this area. She could even blow up an alchemy furnace while refining a mere first-grade pill. She should probably just give up; becoming a proper alchemist was out of the question.
“Wait a moment.”
Zhang San took out jade bottles containing pills from her Qiankun Ring one by one. Except for the few bottles of poison she had recently refined, she took out all the other pills she could give to Song Linlin. Soon, there were at least twenty-odd bottles of pills placed in front of Zhang San.
Beside her, Song Linlin stared dumbstruck at the pile of bottles, feeling like she had stumbled upon a wholesale pill market. Most importantly, the things Zhang San took out were definitely not cheap street stall goods. It was hard to imagine how many spirit stones they could fetch if sold.
Song Linlin silently swallowed, retracting her thought about Zhang San being a generous giver. This was clearly the God of Wealth himself descended8!
“You actually refined so many bottles of pills recently?!” Song Linlin was shocked.
During the days Zhang San had run down the mountain with her and Chi Qianning, this kid had been messing around everywhere and hadn’t even brought her alchemy furnace.
Looking at the numerous pill bottles before her now, Song Linlin found it hard to imagine how Zhang San managed to produce such a stockpile in just the remaining few days.
“Not exactly. Some of these were refined back when I was in the sect. The rest were made here in Xuanyun Sect. It’s not like I skip eating and drinking to focus solely on alchemy day and night. How could I possibly refine so many pills in just a few days!” Zhang San said, exasperated.
Song Linlin thought about it and nodded, “True.”
She wasn’t a robot, and even a robot probably couldn’t refine so many pills in such a short time.
Zhang San lifted her chin and said generously to Song Linlin, “Alright, take all these pills! Whether you keep them for yourself or sell them is up to you. After all, when we went down the mountain, we used all your money. Consider these as compensation!”
During the days down the mountain, Song Linlin had basically paid for everything. However, she had later earned back all that money and even made a significant profit just by selling a batch of herbs at the pharmacy. Song Linlin really hadn’t minded the initial expenses.
Now, Song Linlin could only grasp Zhang San’s arm and say very sincerely, “Zhang San, you’re really a good person.”
“You’re leaving this afternoon. Don’t move, go rest over there. I’ll help you pack.” Song Linlin was lazy, but having received so many good things from someone, she naturally had to help them with some work. Otherwise, she wouldn’t feel right taking the stuff.
Zhang San remained sitting on the floor, looking helplessly at Song Linlin, “Do you even know what these things are and how to sort them?”
“Uh…”
Song Linlin looked at the pile of miscellaneous items in front of her. She really didn’t recognize most of them. “No…”
Zhang San shook her head, “You should just help out on the side.”
Song Linlin didn’t try to be overly ambitious, but her movements clearly became much more earnest, losing their initial casualness. “Alright then.”
Zhang San had an incredible amount of miscellaneous stuff. Even with both Song Linlin and Zhang San packing together, they were busy until noon before finally finishing.
Once they were done, Song Linlin took Zhang San to the dining hall for lunch. They agreed that Song Linlin would see Zhang San off in the afternoon, which would also serve as welcoming back Ye Tingran, Zhiyu, and the others.
After finishing her meal, Song Linlin returned to her residence. It was still early, about one shichen away from the time she had agreed to meet Zhang San. Besides, having disappeared all morning, she should go back and tell Chi Qianning what she had been up to.
“So, Zhang San is leaving this afternoon. Do you want to come with me to see her off?” Song Linlin explained the morning’s events to Chi Qianning while lying prone on the bed, then asked.
Chi Qianning sat beside Song Linlin but didn’t answer immediately. After thinking for two seconds, just as she was about to speak, Song Linlin suddenly cut her off.
“No wait, you can’t go.”
Song Linlin stroked her chin, analyzing, “There will definitely be several Elders with considerable strength there, and Zhang San’s grandfather will be there too.”
“This time isn’t like the sect competition last time, where there were so many people present that hiding among them wasn’t obvious. This time there will only be that many people. You should just stay put, stay nicely in the room!”
Chi Qianning opened her lips, wanting to say something, but Song Linlin had already made the decision for her. In the end, she could only sigh.
“Alright.”
She had originally wanted to see Zhang San off, but since Song Linlin put it that way, and the afternoon sun was strong, perhaps staying in the room was better after all.
Song Linlin led Zhang San to the inner sect’s transportation array area. The two found a spot under the shade of a tree and squatted down. The temperature had been gradually rising recently. Fortunately, being in the mountains, the temperature was much lower than down below, but the bright sun was really dazzling.
The two had already been waiting here for quite a while. Song Linlin squinted towards the array formation; there was still no movement inside.
Song Linlin’s legs were numb from squatting. She stood up, bent over, and massaged her aching calves, asking Zhang San beside her, “What time did your grandfather’s letter say they would arrive?”
“Just this afternoon.”
Zhang San pulled the letter directly out of her robes, read it carefully again to make sure she hadn’t misread, then raised her hand to pass the letter to Song Linlin, saying confidently9:
“See for yourself, it says afternoon.”
Song Linlin took the letter and glanced at the spot Zhang San had pointed to. The content indeed stated, as Zhang San said, that their group was expected to arrive at Xuanyun Sect around Wushi10 today.
“Alright, estimated times being later than actual arrival is uncontrollable. Maybe something delayed them on the way. Let’s just keep waiting then.” Song Linlin sighed, leaning against the tree trunk.
Zhang San also stood up from her squatting position and stretched her numb legs. Waiting for people in the afternoon under such a blazing sun inevitably made one feel irritable. Although Zhang San inwardly didn’t want to be taken back to the sect so soon, right now she almost wished her grandfather would appear quickly.
“Why don’t we stop waiting here?” Zhang San looked at the completely unresponsive transportation array, starting to regret why they had come here so early.
She had just figured something out and said belatedly, “Actually, we didn’t need to come here in the first place. When they arrive at Xuanyun Sect, someone will definitely notify me that it’s time to leave.”
Hearing her words, Song Linlin also looked as if she’d had a sudden realization, “That’s right! Didn’t we come here so early for nothing then?”
“Should we go back now?” Zhang San suggested.
Song Linlin silently considered the distance between the transportation array and Ziting Residence. It was too far. They had already walked all this way here; walking back would be too tiring. She persuaded, “Forget it. Look, since we’re already here, and we’ve waited this long anyway, it won’t make much difference. Let’s just wait a bit longer.”
“Hmm… alright then.”
Zhang San nodded. They had already squatted under this tree for so long. If they just went back now, wouldn’t the previous waiting have been in vain?
The two continued to stand leaning against the tree trunk. Just as Song Linlin was about to doze off, the transportation array finally showed some activity. Song Linlin was jolted awake by the sudden noise. She opened her eyes wide and immediately saw the transportation array glowing—a clear sign it had activated.
Song Linlin quickly nudged Zhang San beside her, who was leaning against her, drowsy, and shook her awake vigorously, “Zhang San, wake up, don’t sleep!”
“Ah, what’s wrong?” Zhang San opened her eyes, shaking her head and looking around.
“Look over there!” Song Linlin pointed in one direction, “They seem to have arrived!”
Zhang San looked in the direction Song Linlin was pointing and indeed saw the glowing transportation array. As the light grew brighter and brighter, finally, a group of people appeared within the array. These were the members of the team that had previously set out for the Mirror Moon Secret Realm. At the very front, besides the Elder from Xuanyun Sect leading the team, stood a white-haired old man dressed in Daoist robes.
Zhang San naturally recognized this white-haired elder at a glance; it was her grandfather, Zhang Hengyi Daozhang11.
Song Linlin looked over, her sharp eyes noticing that the number of people in the team seemed much smaller. When they set out, their group was larger than this. Yet after not seeing them for so many days, only about half had returned.
Among those people, the most conspicuous was naturally Ye Tingran. Zhiyu stood beside her. Song Linlin didn’t see Shen Wanyi at first glance, and her heart skipped a beat. Although Shen Wanyi hadn’t reached the Golden Core stage yet and had only managed to get into the top twenty through bribery, she was, after all, from a major cultivation family. It was impossible for her not to have life-saving trump cards.
This person had, at least, given Song Linlin five thousand spirit stones, a good person in her book. Song Linlin squinted and searched carefully again, finally spotting Shen Wanyi’s figure at the very end of the team. She looked utterly wretched right now, and being at the back, Song Linlin hadn’t recognized her immediately.
Song Linlin and Zhang San approached their direction. Having not seen her grandfather for so many days, Zhang San naturally went to speak with him. Song Linlin, on the other hand, first greeted Ye Tingran and Zhiyu.
Only upon getting closer did Song Linlin realize that most of the disciples looked quite battered and had grim expressions. Ye Tingran noticed Song Linlin approaching and nodded at her, “Song-shimei13.”
“Are you… alright? How was the situation in the Mirror Moon Secret Realm?” Song Linlin looked Ye Tingran up and down. Her face was pale, lacking color, and Zhiyu beside her wasn’t much better off.
Ye Tingran sighed, “We sustained some injuries, but it’s nothing serious anymore. We’ll be fine after resting for a while.”
“As for the Secret Realm… it’s hard to say. In short, it was more dangerous than any of us imagined.”
Although Ye Tingran didn’t elaborate, seeing their condition made it clear it hadn’t been easy. Song Linlin nodded, feeling a wave of retroactive fear. Thankfully, she hadn’t gone to that Mirror Moon Secret Realm. If people stronger than her came back looking this wretched, Song Linlin felt she most likely wouldn’t have returned at all!
“Shijie, I need to step away for a moment. I’m going to talk to Shen Wanyi.” Song Linlin planned to ask Shen Wanyi about the specific situation; that girl would most likely tell her everything.
Song Linlin went to the end of the line. Shen Wanyi, who usually adorned herself with numerous expensive magical artifacts and decorations, now only had the string of bells on her wrist and the jade pendant hanging from her waist. Everything else was gone. She was clearly still somewhat out of it14, her hair messy and lacking the mood to comb it.
“Shen Wanyi, what happened? Why do you look so wretched?” Song Linlin asked curiously.
Only then did Shen Wanyi notice Song Linlin had come to her side. She snapped back to reality and immediately said, “Song Linlin, I really should have listened to you from the start! I shouldn’t have gone to that Mirror Moon Secret Realm, it’s too dangerous inside! I almost died several times, it was terrifying!”
“What was the situation inside?” Song Linlin frowned.
“You definitely can’t imagine it. It’s hard to put into words. Anyway, it was much more dangerous than the records described. Twenty of us went in, and only eleven came out alive. And basically, everyone who came back is injured. One Shixiong [Senior Brother] is still lying on a stretcher right now.” Shen Wanyi tilted her chin, indicating for Song Linlin to look in that direction.
Song Linlin turned and indeed saw a man lying on a stretcher, wrapped head to toe in bandages, with one arm missing. It was truly a miserable sight.
“Hiss—” Song Linlin couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath.
Indeed, not going to the Mirror Moon Secret Realm was the most correct choice. This was too terrifying!
Shen Wanyi also looked terrified. This trip had used up most15 of her life-saving items. Fortunately, she was born into a major family; otherwise, she wouldn’t have had so many means to protect herself and would definitely have died in that Secret Realm.
“We’re actually considered lucky, being disciples of a major sect. Those teams from smaller sects basically suffered total annihilation16 or only had one or two survivors.”
“I’m never getting involved in things like this again. Staying in the sect is definitely the most comfortable.”
Shen Wanyi drifted back into her dazed state. Song Linlin, having learned what she wanted about the Secret Realm’s situation, didn’t disturb her further. This girl would probably need to lie low in the sect for a few days to recover.
The leading Elder instructed two disciples guarding the transportation array to carry away the heavily injured man on the stretcher, then announced dismissal. The team members dragged their exhausted bodies away from the transportation array.
Many other disciples had gathered to watch their return. Now, a crowd stood outside the transportation array, asking questions and discussing matters inside the Mirror Moon Secret Realm. After all, with only twenty spots available, most who wanted to go didn’t get the chance. Now that the people were back, they naturally wanted to inquire thoroughly.
Whether they felt fortunate not to have been chosen after hearing about the situation inside the Secret Realm, Song Linlin couldn’t know.
Daozhang Zhang Hengyi was currently bidding farewell to the Xuanyun Sect Elder who led the team. However, his seniority and status were clearly much higher than the leading Elder’s; everyone else was treating him with great respect.
Zhang San stood beside her grandfather. Now that it was really time to leave, reluctance was naturally the dominant feeling. She waved at Song Linlin, her face crestfallen, “I’m leaving, Song Linlin. If I can get out of the sect in the future, I’ll come find you to hang out.”
“Sure, you’re welcome to come find me anytime you have the chance.” Song Linlin waved back at her. Although Zhang San was a bit clueless sometimes, her heart wasn’t bad, and she had given her so many pills. Plus, with her status as an alchemist, Song Linlin probably should be the one trying to curry favor with her.
The relationship between the two sects was very good, but the Medicine King Valley disciples’ team was still waiting at the foot of the mountain. Zhang San’s grandfather naturally couldn’t stay here long. After exchanging a few simple words with the other Elder, he prepared to formally depart.
The transportation array lit up again. Once Zhang San’s figure disappeared, Song Linlin’s business for the afternoon was concluded. She leisurely started heading back.
As she passed by Ye Tingran, however, the latter suddenly called out to stop her, shouting from behind, “Song-shimei, wait!”
“Hm?”
Song Linlin recognized Ye Tingran’s voice. She turned her head and looked back at Ye Tingran, puzzled, “Ye-shijie, is something the matter?”
Ye Tingran took out a manual from the bundle she carried and said with a light smile to Song Linlin, “Song-shimei, I obtained a decent sword manual in the Secret Realm. I already practice several sword techniques, so I’ll give this sword manual to you!”
“Ah?” Song Linlin looked bewildered. She wasn’t interested in sword manuals at all and quickly waved her hands, declining, “No way, Ye-shijie! This is something you obtained through countless hardships17 in the Secret Realm. How can I possibly accept it?!”
“Song-shimei, please accept it. Don’t I owe you compensation from after the sect training mission returned? I couldn’t find anything suitable before, but this sword manual happens to be just right now.”
Ye Tingran said seriously. Fearing Song Linlin would continue to refuse, she added, “Don’t decline. If you don’t accept it, I can only assume Shimei is dissatisfied with this item.”
“Uh… I’m not dissatisfied. Alright, I’ll accept it then.” Song Linlin was genuinely afraid that if she refused, Ye Tingran would go find some other powerful technique to give her. It was better to just accept this sword manual now.
However, Song Linlin had absolutely no interest in practicing sword techniques.
Song Linlin forced a smile and accepted the sword manual. The paper of the manual was yellowed, exuding an aura of historical sedimentation, clearly looking ancient. Fortunately, the paper was rather special, allowing it to be preserved for so long.
After accepting the sword manual, Song Linlin tossed it into her Qiankun Ring. It would most likely stay there for a very long time, just collecting dust18.
“Thank you, Ye-shijie. But I have some other things to attend to right now, so I’ll be leaving first!” Song Linlin just wanted to escape now.
“Alright.” Ye Tingran didn’t stop her, feeling relieved after seeing her accept the sword manual.
Song Linlin strode away quickly, heading towards her residence without looking back. Soon, she smoothly arrived back.
“I’m back,” Song Linlin pushed open the bedroom door, greeting the person inside as usual.
“Mn.”
Chi Qianning inside acknowledged softly. She asked, “Zhang San left?”
“Yes!” Song Linlin sat down beside her. She hadn’t even had a sip of water after being out for so long this afternoon. It was getting late now, almost dusk. She poured herself a glass of water and downed the cool boiled water in one go, moistening her throat considerably.
Putting down the cup, Song Linlin looked at Chi Qianning and said, “The group that went to the Mirror Moon Secret Realm is back too. That place really isn’t fit for humans. Only eleven returned, one is still on a stretcher, uncertain if he’ll wake up, and the others are all injured too.”
“See, my decision not to go was definitely the right one. Otherwise, whether I could have even come back would be questionable.”
Chi Qianning frowned upon hearing this. She also remembered the Mirror Moon Secret Realm, but due to its spatial restrictions allowing only those at the Golden Core stage and below to enter, she didn’t know much about it. However, for disciples from a major sect like Xuanyun Sect to have a death rate close to fifty percent was highly unusual.
“What happened inside? Why was the casualty rate so high?”
“I don’t know either.” Song Linlin shook her head and spread her hands, “I asked them, but they clearly didn’t want to talk much. Every single one of them looked utterly wretched.”
Chi Qianning nodded. It was normal for those people not to have recovered yet after barely escaping death’s door. To find out the specifics, they would probably have to wait a few days and ask again.
However, none of this concerned Song Linlin and Chi Qianning, as they hadn’t gone to the Mirror Moon Secret Realm anyway.
Song Linlin seemed to remember something. She proactively picked up the teapot, poured herself a glass of water, then picked up another cup, filled it to the brim with clear water, and pushed the clean cup in front of Chi Qianning before putting the teapot down.
Chi Qianning watched her actions without interrupting, her eyes holding a hint of puzzlement. She hadn’t said she was thirsty. For Song Linlin to proactively pour her a glass of water like this, there was probably something else.
When Song Linlin looked up again, she naturally met Chi Qianning’s gaze. Her dark blue eyes met the other’s red ones, noticing the faint confusion in Chi Qianning’s eyes.
Song Linlin smiled slightly and slowly explained, “Didn’t you absorb my blood the other day? You must have absorbed the excess medicinal power too.”
“Actually, that medicinal soup had a bit of a side effect. Zhang San only told me about it today. But before she left, she refined pills to counteract the side effect for me. Although the side effect isn’t obvious, you should take two pills too.”
Song Linlin was, of course, too embarrassed to tell her the side effect was the easy-to-conceive constitution. She decided to just push all the blame onto Zhang San. Anyway, Zhang San was gone now, so Chi Qianning couldn’t possibly question her.
Saying Zhang San only told her about the side effect today made her seem more innocent. Otherwise, if Chi Qianning questioned why Song Linlin didn’t mention the side effect sooner despite knowing about it, Song Linlin wouldn’t be able to answer.
Poor Zhang San had to take the fall!
Afraid the other party would ask questions she wasn’t sure she could answer, Song Linlin immediately took out a small jade bottle from her pocket, directly reached out to pry open Chi Qianning’s fingers, and poured two pills onto her palm.
Song Linlin also poured two for herself, then capped the bottle, placed it on the table, and said, “Alright, take the medicine!”
Chi Qianning stared at the two pills in her hand, not consuming them immediately. Any normal person in this situation wouldn’t immediately eat pills of unknown effect.
In the past, Chi Qianning never ate pills given by others whose effects were unclear. After all, she had too many enemies. It was entirely possible some people, unable to defeat her through force, would resort to despicable means19 like poisoning.
“These pills…” Chi Qianning started, wanting to ask more.
But Song Linlin, afraid of answering questions, immediately tossed the pills into her mouth, raised her cup, and swallowed the two small pills down with a gulp of water.
This entire sequence was completed smoothly by Song Linlin within three seconds. Song Linlin put down her cup, looked at the still somewhat puzzled Chi Qianning, and said dramatically, “Look, I’ve already taken them! We’ve spent so many days together, surely you don’t suspect I’d poison you?!”
“I didn’t…” Chi Qianning, questioned like this by Song Linlin, gave up on the questions she wanted to ask earlier.
Song Linlin stared earnestly at Chi Qianning, “Then eat them.”
Looking at Song Linlin, then at the two pills in her hand, Chi Qianning hesitated for a few seconds before finally putting the pills into her mouth. She raised her cup, took a sip of water, and successfully swallowed the pills.
As for whether the pills were poisonous, Chi Qianning wasn’t particularly worried. Firstly, she felt Song Linlin probably had no reason to poison her. Secondly, she wasn’t afraid of being poisoned anyway. At her level of cultivation, her body was already resistant to most toxins and could naturally expel them, though the detoxification process might be a bit troublesome.
Poisons that could truly threaten Chi Qianning wouldn’t look so unremarkable.
Seeing the other person swallow the pills, Song Linlin finally breathed a sigh of relief. Since the medicine was already taken, the other party probably wouldn’t ask what the pills actually did, right?
Song Linlin reached out, picked up the medicine bottle from the table. After pouring out four pills, there were still quite a few left inside. Although she would never need this contraceptive effect in the future, throwing it away felt somewhat wasteful. Song Linlin decided to put it away after all.
Holding the medicine bottle, Song Linlin was just about to stuff it back into her pocket when her arm suddenly froze…
She was holding a medicine bottle in her hand, so why was there still another medicine bottle in her pocket?
Song Linlin suddenly fell silent, her entire body freezing instantly. Only now did she remember that the antidote Zhang San gave her was placed in her left pocket, while the other pocket…
Contained the Hehuan San she herself had refined!
When she took out the medicine just now, she had almost automatically used her right hand to reach into her pocket and grab a bottle. So, what she and Chi Qianning had just eaten were two pills of Hehuan San.
Realizing this terrifying fact, Song Linlin slowly turned her head, looking at Chi Qianning, unsure how to begin.
“What’s wrong?” Chi Qianning naturally noticed something was off with Song Linlin and asked with a slight frown.
Song Linlin’s voice was faint as she spoke weakly, “Let me tell you something, don’t get angry.”
Chi Qianning’s frown deepened. Song Linlin had this expression right after they both took the medicine. She had a rough idea and asked, “Is there a problem with the medicine we took?”
“Yes…”
Song Linlin reached into her left pocket, took out the correct bottle of antidote, and said guiltily, “Actually, this bottle is the antidote Zhang San gave me to deal with the side effect…”
Chi Qianning fell silent for two seconds. Seeing Song Linlin take out another bottle, she had already guessed this outcome. But now that they had both taken the medicine, she could only continue asking, “Then what about the other bottle?”
Song Linlin carefully watched the other’s red eyes, “The other bottle is… Hehuan San.”
This time, Chi Qianning also fell completely silent. Instantly, the room became devoid of any sound, Song Linlin’s ears filled only with the sound of her own rapidly accelerating heartbeat.
“So… what do you plan to do?” Chi Qianning finally spoke.
Song Linlin shook her head, “I don’t know. It’s already swallowed, it’s not like we can dig it out now!”
Her heart pounded relentlessly. Song Linlin felt so nervous she was about to tremble, especially with Chi Qianning sitting right beside her, silently watching her.
“Can I kiss you?” Song Linlin was extremely nervous and subconsciously blurted out the question.
Chi Qianning’s pupils dilated slightly for an instant. She didn’t answer, sitting there stunned, looking at Song Linlin, making it impossible to discern her thoughts.
Song Linlin also looked at Chi Qianning. After waiting for nearly five seconds without any response, the next moment she leaned closer and decisively kissed the other’s lips.
LP: I knew it!
Footnotes
- 坑队友 | kēng duìyǒu | Lit. “pitfall teammate”; Modern slang meaning to hinder or be a liability to one’s own side/friends.
- 时辰 | shíchén | A traditional Chinese time unit equal to two hours.
- 危机四伏 | wēijī sìfú | Lit. “crisis ambush all four sides”; Dangers lurk everywhere.
- 塞牙缝 | sāi yáfèng | Lit. “fill the gaps between teeth”; Not even enough for a bite, insignificant.
- 拆台 | chāitái | Lit. “dismantle the stage”; To pull the rug out from under someone, expose or undermine them.
- 低情商 | dī qíngshāng | Lit. “low emotional intelligence”; Socially inept or tactless.
- 散财童子 | sàncái tóngzǐ | Lit. “money-scattering boy”; Mythological figure associated with wealth distribution, used colloquially for someone very generous.
- 财神下凡 | cáishén xiàfán | Lit. “God of Wealth descends to the mortal world”; Exaggerated slang for someone extremely rich or generous.
- 理直气壮 | lǐ zhí qì zhuàng | Lit. “reason straight spirit strong”; With justice on one’s side, boldly and confidently.
- 午时 | wǔ shí | Hour of the Horse; 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM in the traditional Chinese time system.
- 张恒一道长 | Zhāng Héngyī Dàozhǎng | Daozhang is a title for a Daoist master.
- 师姐 | shījiě | Senior Sister; used to address a female disciple who joined the sect earlier or is higher ranked.
- 师妹 | shīmèi | Shimei; used to address a female disciple who joined later or is lower ranked.
- 魂不守舍 | hún bù shǒu shè | Lit. “spirit doesn’t guard the house”; Distracted, absent-minded, out of sorts.
- 七七八八 | qīqībābā | Lit. “seven seven eight eight”; Colloquialism meaning mostly, almost all, just about done.
- 全军覆没 | quán jūn fù mò | Lit. “entire army submerged and disappeared”; Total defeat, wiped out.
- 千辛万苦 | qiān xīn wàn kǔ | Lit. “thousand bitters ten thousand hardships”; Countless difficulties.
- 吃灰 | chī huī | Lit. “eat dust”; Modern slang meaning something is unused and collecting dust.
- 下三滥 | xià sān làn | Lit. “lower three abuses”; Low-down, dirty, despicable methods or people.
Pfft that sticker 🤣
You knew, I knew, we all knew it 😪