Chapter 323: The Impostor
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"Um… Could Master accompany Shiyu then?"
"I have other matters to attend to. Qinghan and Jue'er will accompany Shiyu."
Li Shiyu seemed to want to say more, but met the senior sister's piercing gaze…
A glance confirmed it—this was someone not to be trifled with…
"Shiyao and Senior Sister together! Two swords united! Unbeatable under heaven!"
Su Cheng chuckled teasingly, "Your sisterly bond grows stronger by the day~"
Ye Qinghan leaned against Li Shiyu's shoulder: "Shiyu is so sensible and obedient. Qinghan adores Shiyu~"
Li Shiyu shivered, feeling only the icy chill on her shoulder.
Standing so close to her senior sister, Li Shiyu could even feel the chill radiating from the Ling Frost Sword at her waist.
Li Shiyao was flustered, not knowing where to put her hands!
"Senior Sister, whether it's skimming the surface, hanging upside down, pushing an old man's cart, or eating grapes without spitting out the skins—Shiyao likes Senior Sister too!"
Dongfang Jue beside them was speechless. This was clearly sect bullying!
What had Second Senior Sister been reduced to?
"Shiyu? Are these… phrases from an idioms book?"
Dongfang Jue: Are there really good phrases in that book?
Su Cheng didn't mind. She had no intention of meddling in matters between direct disciples. Adults had their own ways of life, and Lingxian Hall had its own survival rules.
Lingxian Hall was a place where the fittest survived. If you didn't want to be bullied, you had to figure out a way yourself!
Perhaps through relentless cultivation, striving to match the senior sister's strength.
Or perhaps learn to be more cunning, mastering the art of sneaky advancement.
Or perhaps some other method entirely. Either way, Su Cheng wouldn't waste her energy on such thankless tasks.
Regardless of the relationships between the three disciples, that was how they chose to interact. As long as things didn't escalate too far, he would never intervene.
"By the way, Jue'er, has Qinghan taught you how to summon the treasures of the Moon-Warding Pavilion?"
Dongfang Jue glanced at Ye Qinghan and nodded.
But… Li Shiyu was baffled?
"Master, I've never learned that!"
Li Shiyu blinked her wide eyes in disbelief, thinking to herself, Is that even possible?
Summon?
How come she'd never heard of it?
She’d assumed the senior sister’s magical artifacts were all brought out from the Moon-Wielding Pavilion whenever they went out!
She’d assumed they had a clear division of labor—one handling offense, the other logistics!
Every time they went out, she'd meticulously inventory their supplies—food, drink, all kinds of elixirs and potions—making sure everything was fully stocked!
Was that right?
"Shiyao, don't be surprised. I simply didn't tell you that your jade pendant cannot summon treasures from the Wan Yue Pavilion."
Li Shiyu: ?????????????
Li Shiyu's little head was now filled with a giant question mark!
Li Shiyu felt no jealousy, only curiosity about the reason.
"Master, do you dislike Shiyu?"
Such preferential treatment—to say she wasn't jealous would be untrue, but to claim she didn't care at all would be a lie.
"Of course not. There's a reason for my actions."
"What reason?"
Su Cheng's face softened with affection as he spoke frankly.
"Shiyao has always been careless in her daily life. If she were to possess a magical artifact now, wouldn't she come to rely on it for everything?"
Li Shiyu didn't understand…
She looked utterly confused: "If you have a magical artifact, why wouldn't you use it? That'd be stupid, right?"
Uh… Damn, that actually makes sense…
"I have high expectations for you, Shiyu. I don't want you to leave me…"
Su Cheng seemed to want to say more, but his words always trailed behind Li Shiyu's quick retorts!
Li Shiyao was a big, fast girl who excelled at interrupting others—her specialty was lightning-fast interruptions with no follow-through!
"But Shiyu just wants to be protected by Master and Senior Sister! That way, Shiyu won't be afraid of anyone!"
Su Cheng froze, thinking to himself, Does this kid really want to be a useless little thing?
Yet, coming from Li Shiyu's mouth, it somehow felt perfectly reasonable!
"Of course your master will protect you, but if you were to leave me…"
"Master, don't you dare leave!" Li Shiyu moved with her usual lightning speed and cool flair!
[Wait, is this kid seriously not giving me a chance to speak?]
But now, as he looked into Li Shiyu's wide eyes, the only hint of seriousness on her adorable little face seemed to be waiting for his answer.
Ye Qinghan and Dongfang Jue also fell silent for a long while—one stealing information, the other waiting for their master's answer.
Clearly, they too were deeply concerned about the answer to this question.
Master… would he leave?
"It's not that I intend to leave. It's that I hope Shiyu can live without me…"
"Shiyao won't leave Master." Li Shiyu tilted her little head, a rare seriousness creeping onto her pretty face as she spoke with righteous conviction, leaving no room for doubt.
"No, Shiyu, you misunderstand me."
"Then explain yourself, Master."
【Huh? Me? What the hell am I supposed to explain?】
【How did talking to this kid turn into me being the one at fault?】
【This happened last time too. Damn it, what's going on…】
Su Cheng had originally intended to give Li Shiyu a heads-up beforehand, since relying on magical artifacts to deal with the hunters on this mission was probably unavoidable.
Su Cheng knew full well that Li Shiyao wasn't stupid. Discovering that his junior sister could also wield magical artifacts would inevitably make her feel uncomfortable.
He'd brought it up precisely to prevent any rift between the three sisters, hoping to clear the air beforehand.
But who could have guessed that once again, he'd be…
【What to do?】
【This is tricky—the guy's a magic-core with built-in invulnerability!】
【Not only immune to crowd control, but maxed-out damage output!】
"Master, are you thinking about how to trick Shiyu?"
【Huh? Holy crap?】
【He's cheating!】
"No, do you trust your master?"
"Shiyao trusts Master, but Shiyao isn't stupid."
An inexplicable feeling—this statement carried no emotion whatsoever. It was the most ordinary, yet most extraordinary emotion of all.
Shiyao rarely spoke in such a tone. She had clearly sensed something.
"I won't leave you, Shiyu. I promise."
Li Shiyu remained silent. Ye Qinghan remained silent. Dongfang Jue… remained silent.
They all knew Master was lying.
Equally, they understood even more clearly that this so-called "leaving" meant annihilation.
Nothing but death could ever separate their Master from them.
"Hehe, Shiyu, your master went to the market yesterday and brought back something special for you~"
A child's emotions came and went swiftly, as if they were immune to hurt and sorrow.
Li Shiyu smiled, as if relieved, and took the cheap-looking trinket from her master's hand.
Then… she returned to her room, intending to prepare before setting off for Xiu Mountain.
"Senior Sister, you've been so quiet these past few days." Dongfang Jue sat down beside Ye Qinghan with an exasperated look, as if trying to cheer her up.
"Is that so?"
Ye Qinghan sat cross-legged on Li Shiyao's bed, watching as she fiddled with the Heart-Confusing Bell in her hand.
She had already noticed that the Heart-Confusing Bell in Li Shiyao's hand was a fake.
It was a product of the Holy Mountain, more realistic than the one Xu Zhanfeng had made back then. It carried a faint trace of spiritual energy, but Ye Qinghan could tell it wasn't a mythical artifact.
When returning to Holy Mountain to see her master, Li Shiyao always carried the genuine article. It seemed the one she wore daily was the fake.
Ye Qinghan wore the fake to ensure her innate allure would take effect on her master.
After all, demanding a fox demon renounce desire was rather unreasonable.
But Li Shiyao only wore the fake version on ordinary days—what did that mean?
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