Half a month ago, a fire claimed the lives of everyone involved, and Shen Xishan was the sole survivor.
It was actually a trap, and he realized it the moment he stepped into it. However, the trap was incredibly strange, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t find a way to break it until the fire engulfed everyone.
When he woke up, Shen Xishan noticed that all his spiritual energy had vanished, and a red pattern the size of a coin had appeared on the inside of his left arm.
He realized this wasn’t an accident but a carefully orchestrated scheme aimed at luring him into that fire, sealing his spiritual energy, and ensuring his death in the flames.
But Shen Xishan didn’t die.
The person who wanted him dead was undoubtedly within the Immortal Alliance, so he disguised himself and returned to the alliance.
However, the Immortal Alliance’s strict hierarchy made it impossible for Shen Xishan to access the inner sect. For the past few days, he had been wandering around the outer sect, sleeping restlessly. Just as he was about to take a nap in a tree, someone woke him up.
Now, everyone believed Shen Xishan was dead. Even if he truthfully gave his name, no one would believe him.
Especially not the woman in front of him, who claimed to be his senior sister but whom he had never met before.
“You’re not allowed to use my junior brother’s name to swindle people and ruin his reputation!” Song Xiaohe glared at him.
“You were the one who asked,” Shen Xishan shrugged, then added, “What reputation am I ruining?”
“You’ve bullied fellow disciples, trespassed into others’ residences, and impersonated someone else!” She rattled off a list of accusations.
Shen Xishan: “Bullied fellow disciples?”
Song Xiaohe: “You hit me with a branch and said my crying sounded worse than a pig’s squeal!”
Shen Xishan: “Trespassed into others’ residences?”
Song Xiaohe pointed: “From here to there, it’s my area to clean. That’s where I live!”
Shen Xishan: “Impersonated someone else?”
Song Xiaohe: “My junior brother!”
Shen Xishan leaned against the tree, crossing his arms, and sneered, “Weren’t you sent to the outer sect to sweep because you failed your monthly assessment? How is this suddenly your private territory?”
Song Xiaohe’s face turned red, and she retorted, “You don’t understand. I wasn’t just sent here as punishment. I have a mission!”
Shen Xishan had no interest in the mission of someone who couldn’t even pass a monthly assessment and turned to leave.
Song Xiaohe, having been hit on the head and mocked by this man, wasn’t about to let him go so easily. She took two big steps to block his path. “Don’t go. You haven’t told me your name yet.”
“I did, but you didn’t believe me,” Shen Xishan said impatiently, pushing her aside. “Get out of the way.”
“That’s my junior brother’s name!” Song Xiaohe stumbled from the push and shouted at his back, “The entire Immortal Alliance is preparing his funeral. How dare you, a person of such low character, use his name to do evil? Aren’t you afraid of being struck by lightning?”
Shen Xishan couldn’t understand what evil he had done. At most, he had hit her with a branch and said her crying was unpleasant. Surely that didn’t warrant being struck by lightning?
He turned around and saw Song Xiaohe’s eyes filled with tears, her nose red, sniffling pitifully, yet still glaring at him fiercely.
Shen Xishan frowned slightly, taking in her expression, and suddenly posed a question, “Do you like me?”
But before Song Xiaohe could answer, the question turned into a statement. Shen Xishan said, “You like me.”
Song Xiaohe’s face flushed with anger, and she shouted, “Nonsense! Who do you think you are? How could I possibly like a crooked melon like you?”
“Hey!” Shen Xishan, never having been insulted like this before, snapped, “Don’t misuse idioms. Words like ‘peerless’ and ‘exceptional in both talent and appearance’ should be used to describe me.”
“Pah!” Song Xiaohe spat on the ground. “You’d better tell me your real name. There’s no one in the outer sect with the same name as my junior brother.”
“How do you know?” Shen Xishan asked.
“I just know,” Song Xiaohe refused to elaborate.
In truth, during the Immortal Alliance’s recruitment period, she had failed her monthly assessment and was sent to the outer sect to record names. Out of boredom, she had gone through the entire outer sect’s roster and found no one with the same name as Shen Xishan.
Song Xiaohe seemed like the type to cling to things, and Shen Xishan hated being pestered. After a moment of silence, he said, “Shen Ce.”
“What?”
“My secular name,” Shen Xishan said.
Song Xiaohe didn’t think the name was particularly vulgar, but recalling how he had insulted her earlier, she retaliated, “It is quite vulgar.”
Shen Ce was the name he used before joining the Immortal Alliance. At the age of three, he entered the alliance and was given the name Xishan by his master. Since then, he had rarely used his secular name, and few knew of it.
But Shen Xishan had no desire to continue dealing with this seemingly foolish girl and left without further explanation.
Song Xiaohe glared at his retreating figure, thinking fiercely, “Shen Ce, huh? I’ll teach this outer sect disciple a lesson.”
“There’s no disciple named Shen Ce in the outer sect.”
Song Xiaohe went to the Steward’s office to complain, only to receive this response.
“He lied to me again,” Song Xiaohe clenched her fists. “I’ll make sure to catch him.”
“Xiaohe,” the Steward, a woman in her forties named Sun Yuzhen, called out.
Song Xiaohe had been failing her monthly assessments since she was six and had been sent to the outer sect multiple times. Sun Yuzhen had watched her grow up and had a soft spot for her.
She took out a handkerchief and wiped the dust off Song Xiaohe’s face, saying with concern, “You need to focus on your cultivation. The monthly assessment is coming up, and if you fail again, you’ll have to stay here.”
Song Xiaohe hadn’t been practicing much since coming to the outer sect and felt a pang of guilt. She stayed still, letting Sun Yuzhen clean her face. “Auntie Yuzhen, isn’t it nice for me to stay here with you? I’m getting stronger. Soon, I won’t be sent here as often, and it’ll be harder to see you.”
Sun Yuzhen chuckled and tapped her nose, her expression full of helplessness.
When Song Xiaohe was first brought to the Immortal Alliance, Sun Yuzhen had been the one to escort her to the inner sect. Back then, she was thin and dark-skinned, but over the years, she had grown into a lively and beautiful young woman.
Song Xiaohe wasn’t particularly talented and often seemed clumsy and naive. She could be angry one moment and laughing the next, which endeared her to the elders, thanks to her personality and pretty face.
Song Xiaohe firmly believed her junior brother wasn’t dead.
Unable to return to the inner sect for now, she could only turn to Chen Jun for information.
The outer sect disciples were lax, unlike the inner sect with its strict rules. Many disciples would roam the mountains after their lessons.
After sweeping the fallen leaves, Song Xiaohe headed to where the crowds gathered.
The outer sect was filled with disciples of average talent and ordinary backgrounds. Though they had joined the alliance, they still carried a sense of the mundane world. Many of them, being young, enjoyed forming cliques.
Song Xiaohe, as an inner sect disciple, held a higher status than the outer sect disciples. She was the only disciple under her master, a position many in the outer sect envied.
However, her low spiritual power and frequent punishments to the outer sect had also made her a target of ridicule.
As soon as Song Xiaohe appeared, someone sneered, “Isn’t this the famous ‘dual-sect disciple’ of the Immortal Alliance, Song Xiaohe!”
The term “dual-sect disciple” was a mocking nickname given by those jealous of her, implying that she belonged to both the inner and outer sects, poking fun at her frequent punishments.
Song Xiaohe had sharp ears but poor eyesight and couldn’t see who was mocking her. She shouted angrily, “Who said that? Come out and say it to my face!”
But no one stepped forward to confront her because she held grudges.
During one of her punishments in the outer sect, a disciple who came from a somewhat influential family had formed a clique and enjoyed bullying female disciples. Due to the outer sect’s lax discipline and his connections, the female disciples, afraid of losing their place in the alliance, had kept quiet, allowing him to continue his behavior.
This clueless individual, jealous of Song Xiaohe’s inner sect status and mocking her weak spiritual power, had used a training session as an excuse to humiliate her. Even after she conceded, he pretended not to hear and deliberately cut her hair. Song Xiaohe had asked for his name and endured three months in the outer sect before returning to the inner sect, where her first act was to report him.
Liang Tan cherished her only disciple and personally came to the outer sect. Through this investigation, she discovered that the disciple had committed numerous misdeeds. Consequently, she collaborated with Sun Yuzhen to expel the narrow-minded and malicious disciple from the Immortal Alliance.
Now, those who were envious and bitter only dared to mock her from within the crowd.
What was strange, however, was that after Song Xiaohe, with her master's help, drove out the bullying disciple, she had essentially saved many outer sect disciples. Yet, she did not form any close relationships with them. Every time she failed her monthly exams and had to stay in the outer sect, she remained alone.
But Song Xiaohe didn’t care about these things. She casually grabbed someone and asked, “Where’s Chen Jun?”
The disciple replied, “He just went to the backyard of the Steward’s Library with someone.”
Chen Jun was an old acquaintance of Song Xiaohe’s. He was a shrewd and worldly person, and she didn’t interact with him much.
Having spent twelve years in the outer sect, he was now twenty-three years old. If he couldn’t enter the inner sect within the next two years, he would have to return home.
Despite his slick nature, Chen Jun had a wide network of connections, even with some inner sect disciples. Though the information he gathered wasn’t extensive, it was better than nothing.
Song Xiaohe followed the path to the backyard of the Steward’s Library. Before she even got close, she overheard a conversation.
Chen Jun: “This… you’re really putting me in a difficult position.”
“I’ve heard that you can find out anything,” another voice said.
Song Xiaohe’s sharp ears immediately recognized the other speaker as Shen Xishan, who had deceived her a few days ago.
She leaned against the wall, craning her neck to eavesdrop.
“That’s just an exaggeration. You want me to find out about the Guan family’s direct descendant? I don’t have that kind of capability,” Chen Jun said.
Song Xiaohe pondered for a moment and quickly realized who the Guan family’s direct descendant was.
The Guan family of Luoyang was a prominent and prestigious clan in the mortal realm. The granddaughter of the Guan family’s patriarch, Guan Ruxuan, was a renowned beauty within the Immortal Alliance, known for her exceptional talent. She had entered the Immortal Alliance at the age of twelve and now belonged to the Supervision Division’s second tier.
Song Xiaohe knew of her because Guan Ruxuan often appeared by Shen Xishan’s side. People said they had grown up together and were a perfect match, destined to become cultivation partners in the future.
Every time Song Xiaohe heard such gossip, she would jump out and loudly refute it.
“Shen Xishan practices the Path of Emotionlessness! He won’t form a cultivation partnership with anyone!”
Despite her protests, the rumors about Shen Xishan and Guan Ruxuan persisted, to the point where Song Xiaohe couldn’t refute them all. Eventually, she would plug her ears and pretend not to hear.
Guan Ruxuan came from an illustrious family and possessed remarkable abilities, placing her among the top talents in the Immortal Alliance. Her aloof demeanor earned her the title of “Snow Ruxuan,” one of the “Four Little Immortal Maidens” of the mortal realm.
She was adored and pursued by many young cultivators.
Shen Xishan’s intentions in seeking information about Guan Ruxuan were painfully obvious.
“Listen, buddy, don’t waste your time with useless thoughts. You’re just an outer sect disciple. What’s the point of prying into Snow Ruxuan’s affairs?” Chen Jun clearly shared this sentiment and tried to dissuade him gently.
“Snow Ruxuan?” Shen Xishan asked, “That’s what you call her?”
“That’s what everyone calls her,” Chen Jun replied.
Realizing that Chen Jun couldn’t provide the information he needed, Shen Xishan lost interest in continuing the conversation.
He knew that every time the Immortal Alliance embarked on a major mission, the Supervision Division was responsible for preparing the transportation and equipment. Guan Ruxuan happened to be part of the Supervision Division.
If he could establish contact with her, Shen Xishan would have a way to find out when the next group from the Immortal Alliance would set out.
Currently, his spiritual power was sealed by a strange formation. If he wanted to gather more information, this was the only way.
The previous group led by Shen Xishan had failed to complete their mission, and the Immortal Alliance would surely send another. He needed to find a way to infiltrate that group to return to the location of the formation.
As Shen Xishan walked and pondered, he turned a corner and suddenly saw Song Xiaohe leaning against the wall, eavesdropping. Startled, he took a step back.
Song Xiaohe, lost in thought, hadn’t heard him approach and was equally startled.
Their eyes met.
“You were eavesdropping?” Shen Xishan frowned.
“I was just looking for someone and happened to overhear,” Song Xiaohe quickly straightened up, brushed off her clothes, and composed herself. “Why are you investigating Guan Ruxuan?”
“What’s it to you?” Shen Xishan turned to leave.
“Hmph,” Song Xiaohe said, “Instead of begging others, you might as well try to win me over. After all, I’m an inner sect disciple. When I return, I might consider taking you in for a visit.”
Shen Xishan paused for a moment but didn’t look back. “No thanks. I won’t bother currying favor with someone who can’t even pass their monthly exams.”
Song Xiaohe, furious, picked up a stone and threw it at him.
But it was as if he had eyes on the back of his head. He tilted his head slightly and dodged it effortlessly.
“Aim better next time,” he teased.
Song Xiaohe wasn’t much of a fighter, but she had a sharp tongue. “I missed on purpose! Fellow disciples aren’t allowed to fight!”
However, her temper was short-lived. She quickly forgot about the minor spat and ran off to catch up with Chen Jun, hoping to get more information about the inner sect.
