Chapter 23

“……”

At this moment, Jian Chou only wanted to sigh deeply and ask: What the hell is going on?

Watching Shen Jiu—who claimed to be the fourth disciple under the self-proclaimed “Fudao Shanren”—ask whether she had a Dao companion, only to be met with vehement opposition from the gathered Yashan disciples below!

And…

The things they said were downright chilling.

If not for everything she had seen and heard on her journey to the Nineteen Continents, which gave her a clear understanding of Yashan’s reputation, she might have mistaken this place for a den of bandits.

Ahead, the elegantly poised Shen Jiu also heard the uproar of protests behind him.

He turned to Jian Chou with an apologetic smile.

“Senior Sister Jian Chou, don’t mind them. We disciples of Yashan have always been the most obsessive bunch in the Nineteen Continents, so we’re not exactly well-versed in social graces. Let this junior brother teach them a proper lesson.”

“Bullshit!”

Someone below immediately shouted back, utterly shameless.

“You’re downright despicable! How dare you take advantage of guiding Senior Martial Aunt Jian Chou to make the first move?!”

Shen Jiu, dressed in snow-white robes, wore a picture-perfect smile—until a crack finally appeared in his facade.

Jian Chou watched as he slowly turned around, standing on the stone path and facing the boiling crowd below.

“Who was it that just yelled about pursuing Senior Aunt Sister Jian Chou? Step forward!”

“……”

Dead silence below.

A few hotheaded youths, feeling indignant, finally stepped forward.

“Us!”

“You?”

Shen Jiu’s lips curled into an unnervingly innocent smile as he crossed his arms.

“What’s your seniority? You think you’re qualified to pursue my Senior Sister Jian Chou? The two of you should be calling her Senior Aunt! Should I report this to the Sect Leader and see what he has to say? Or maybe the Elders?!”

Holy—!

The crowd instantly fell silent.

Only now did their fevered brains cool down.

Report to the Sect Leader? To the Elders?

Did they have a death wish?

If they actually succeeded in pursuing the newly arrived Senior Aunt Jian Chou, how would the seniority work?

Would their own masters have to bow their heads to them in the future?

After all, even the Sect Leader and the four Elders had to address Jian Chou as “Senior Sister”!

Shen Jiu’s reminder finally made everyone realize the gravity of the situation.

Watching the faint, “innocent” smile on Shen Jiu’s lips, everyone felt a chill crawl up their spines.

This bastard Shen Jiu!

Too damn ruthless!

Someone snapped back to their senses.

“But Senior Aunt Jian Chou belongs to all of us! What gives you the right to make the first move?!”

“What gives me the right?”

Shen Jiu tilted his head and pointed at his own face.

“Sure, we at Yashan all rely on our looks to get by—but I am the best-looking one here. If you’re so dissatisfied, why don’t we settle this with swords?!”

When he uttered the words “settle this with swords,” his voice suddenly turned steely.

In that instant, a 6 feet-wide battle disk materialized above the cliffside path, suspended mid-air!

The sudden burst of dazzling silver light was blindingly bright against the deepening night.

The rapidly spinning disk churned up spiraling spiritual energy!

Shen Jiu’s robes fluttered wildly, his face looking even more handsome under the disk’s glow.

The crowd below, looking up at him standing at the center of the disk, fell completely silent.

Shen Jiu was now a Nascent Soul cultivator!

Settle it with swords?

What right did they have to challenge him?

Absolute madness!

This was outright bullying!

Yet no one dared to utter a word of protest.

Seeing how his battle disk had cowed the crowd, Shen Jiu inwardly sighed in relief.

He glanced back at Jian Chou.

Her gaze was fixed on the disk beneath his feet, seemingly intrigued.

With a thought, the disk flickered and vanished.

Turning back to the crowd, he softened his tone.

“Alright, nephews, it’s getting late. You’ve already welcomed Senior Sister today—I’m sure she’s deeply moved. Master also tasked me with settling Senior Sister in, so I can’t delay any further. Let’s call it a night. As for any grievances… we’ll take them to the Dueling Platform!”

“Forget it, let’s just scatter.”

“I was just here for the fun anyway. Now that Yashan has its first female disciple, how long until we have a whole group of them?”

“Hahaha, true.”

“Senior Aunt Jian Chou seems pretty amiable—nothing like Elder Fudao.”

“Exactly! How did Elder Fudao end up with a… normal disciple?”

“You think Senior Aunt might just seem gentle on the surface?”

“……No way…”

Someone wailed.

Amid the murmurs, the crowd finally dispersed.

Jian Chou remained where she was, picking up quite a bit from their chatter.

She turned to Shen Jiu, her gaze probing.

This fourth junior brother of hers seemed… a little different.

With the crowd gone, Shen Jiu smugly whistled.

He sauntered back to Jian Chou’s side with effortless grace.

“Now that they’re gone, it’s finally quiet. Since Master entrusted you to me, how about I give you a tour of Yashan?”

Jian Chou stayed silent for a moment.

She glanced to the side.

When she first arrived on the cliffside path, she remembered another junior brother—Qu Zhengfeng.

Though he also seemed unreliable, perhaps he was less unreliable than this one.

But the moment she saw the expression on Qu Zhengfeng’s face, her eyelid twitched uncontrollably.

“Junior Brother Qu?”

Qu Zhengfeng was still staring at her with that strange, admiring gaze, his voice almost poetic.

“As expected of Senior Sister Jian Chou, the one who managed to bring Master back!”

Then he turned his half-smiling, half-mocking eyes to Shen Jiu.

“And as expected of Yashan’s most handsome Junior Brother Shen! That battle disk was quite the display! Yashan’s future is in good hands…”

“……”

This junior brother is kind of terrifying.

An inexplicable sense of danger prickled at Jian Chou.

After a moment of deliberation, she decided to pretend she hadn’t asked and turned back.

“Junior Brother Shen.”

“Here.”

Shen Jiu immediately smiled.

“What does Senior Sister need?”

“Nothing in particular. It’s just that today is my first day at Yashan, and meeting you, I’ve realized you’re quite the humorous character.”

As she spoke, Jian Chou felt a slight pang of guilt—she wasn’t being entirely honest.

She paused before continuing, “Earlier, you asked if I had a Dao companion. My answer was… no.”

“Perfect!”

Shen Jiu’s eyes lit up.

Jian Chou didn’t even blink, smiling faintly.

“But along the way, I’ve also had a question I’d like you to answer.”

“Senior Sister, ask away! This junior brother will hold nothing back!”

He swore without hesitation.

Jian Chou nodded.

“When you ask someone if they have a Dao companion… is that your way of confessing your feelings?”

“……Well, yes.”

Shen Jiu hadn’t expected such a blunt question.

He froze for a moment before answering.

“I see.”

Jian Chou mused.

If that was the case, then Zhang Sui had also “confessed” to her?

But…

She glanced at Shen Jiu and ultimately shook her head, saying nothing more.

The red sun had long since sunk below the horizon.

The plaza was now bathed in darkness, save for the pale crescent moon slowly rising in the sky, growing clearer by the minute.

Jian Chou looked toward the stone steps on the right, which led down from the plaza.

She wanted to explore Yashan, so she began walking toward them.

Shen Jiu, watching her, found the action oddly puzzling.

He quickly caught up, walking beside her as they descended step by step.

“Senior Sister, why did you stop asking? What do you mean by ‘I see’?”

“Nothing worth asking. I just think that Dao companions among cultivators are different from married couples in the mortal world.”

Jian Chou stepped onto each stair, her eyes on the warm yellow lanterns lighting the plaza’s edges.

For a fleeting moment, they reminded her of the village lights from her past.

But she knew they weren’t the same.

“In the mortal world, I had a husband. And a child. Mortals are perhaps more mundane—they seek unwavering hearts, growing old together. But I never got that. Dao companions among cultivators seem… more casual. More utilitarian. I don’t care for it. Not today, and not ever.”

It was a rejection.

Yet something about her words struck Shen Jiu deeply.

He had heard that their master had taken on an older disciple, but he hadn’t expected her to be not only a married woman but also a mother.

She was here at Yashan now—but what about the child?

Shen Jiu almost asked, but when he saw the calm smile on Jian Chou’s face, he held back.

“I understand. Today was my mistake—I’m too used to being frivolous. Please don’t take offense, Senior Sister!”

He scratched his head with feigned sheepishness, grinning in a way that eerily resembled Fudao Shanren.

“And those nephews earlier—they were mostly just fooling around. No harm meant. It’s just… having a female cultivator at Yashan is a rare thing. Maybe Senior Sister isn’t fully aware yet, but… well, you’ll get used to it!”

Jian Chou had seen the scene for herself.

She hadn’t sensed any malice—just genuine, unrestrained enthusiasm.

She didn’t mind.

She had merely been curious about what “Dao companions” meant to cultivators.

As she pondered this, they reached the final step.

Jian Chou’s feet touched solid ground, and she stood on the plaza, taking in its vastness and the towering platform ahead.

“Yashan… is good.”

Her voice carried a warmth that was inexplicably comforting.

Yashan is good.

Is it?

Shen Jiu had been at Yashan for years, yet he had never heard anyone describe it in such simple, warm terms.

It struck him then—this senior sister of his was truly no different from the rough-and-tumble disciples of Yashan.

And not just because she was a woman.

She was unlike any other female cultivator.

For a wild moment, Shen Jiu wondered: Did Master suddenly grow a conscience and pick this unique senior sister to reform us?

The image of Fudao Shanren’s sly grin flashed in his mind.

Shen Jiu shuddered and quickly dismissed the thought.

“Anyway, Yashan is as big or as small as you make it. The sect’s territory is vast, but the real Yashan is right here. This plaza—we call it the Spirit Reflection Summit—is usually used for martial practice.”

Jian Chou listened and nodded.

Now, Shen Jiu finally took on the role of guide.

The plaza was enormous, and their pace was neither fast nor slow.

Shen Jiu pointed to the left, where lantern light spilled from openings in the cliff face.

“The side of the plaza against the cliff is mostly living quarters—rooms carved into the mountain. Junior Brother Qu probably left earlier to prepare your quarters. And over there—”

He gestured toward the surrounding structures.

“From the left: the Artifact Refining Hall, the Pill Refining Hall, the Star Observation Hall, and the Administration Hall. Oh, and the far right is the Delicacy Hall, though hardly anyone uses it…”

Jian Chou could understand artifact and pill refining, and star observation likely related to celestial charts or combat disks.

The Administration Hall made sense too, but…

“Delicacy Hall?”

Cultivators were said to transcend mortal needs like food—why did this sound like a kitchen?

Shen Jiu rubbed his forehead awkwardly.

“Well… that one’s mostly because of our master. I figured Senior Sister would… uh… get it.”

He trailed off, but his expression said everything.

Jian Chou immediately understood, recalling Fudao Shanren’s ever-present chicken leg and his drooling over the white goose.

She sighed.

“Got it.”

Her reaction made Shen Jiu laugh.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing.”

Shen Jiu stifled his grin.

“Just thinking that Senior Sister must’ve had a rough time with Master these past few days.”

Rough was an understatement.

Jian Chou didn’t want to dwell on it.

“True, Master is gluttonous, lazy, foolish, stingy, and a bit of a swindler…”

She trailed off.

Shen Jiu looked skyward.

“Does he have any redeeming qualities?”

Jian Chou thought for a long moment before tentatively offering, “He’s… kind?”

“……”

Shen Jiu stared at her as if she’d grown a second head.

This senior sister was not what he had first imagined!

How could she say “kind” with such a straight face?! She and Fudao Shanren were clearly cut from the same cloth!

He felt utterly betrayed.

After a long, dumbfounded silence, he managed through gritted teeth, “Maybe.”

Hah!

If Fudao Shanren was “kind,” the sun must rise in the west!

Shen Jiu had suffered under that old rascal’s whims for years, beaten into the slick rogue he was today—every day had been a living hell!

And now, this senior sister dared call him kind?!

Was she secretly a wolf in sheep’s clothing, or had Fudao actually treated her well?

Either possibility was horrifying!

Best not to think about it.

Wiping away cold sweat, Shen Jiu changed the subject.

“Anyway, the Delicacy Hall’s been gathering dust for three hundred years while Master was away.”

By now, they had reached the plaza’s center—a large spring-fed pool Jian Chou had spotted earlier from the cliffside path.

Two streams branched off to either side of the plaza.

On this windless night, the pool’s surface reflected the crescent moon, its ripples scattering the moonlight like shattered silver.

Jian Chou peered into the depths but saw no bottom.

“It’s deep.”

“It’s a cold spring—extremely deep. It goes straight down through the mountain to the earth’s core. Every August, a flock of white cranes descends from the sky to rest here. Legend says they’re descendants of the cranes kept by Yashan’s founding patriarch, so it’s called the Returning Crane Well.”

Shen Jiu smiled.

“In a month, Senior Sister will see them.”

A well, not a pond.

Jian Chou’s mind flashed to the small stone pool she’d seen on the Ascension Island.

But as she gazed at the shimmering reflections, another image surfaced—a swarm of nearly transparent mayflies at dawn.

For a moment, she was lost in thought.

The moon was high—the day was over, and it was now deep into the night.

How was that boy doing now?

“Senior Sister?”

Shen Jiu, seeing her distraction, called out.

Jian Chou snapped back to reality.

“I was just reminded of someone when I saw this well.”

“An old friend?” Shen Jiu guessed.

Jian Chou shook her head.

“No. A stranger I met by chance—someone insignificant. But this Returning Crane Well… I’ll have to see it in August.”

“Yashan has many beautiful sights—not just the cranes, but also the Star Terrace on the cliffside path, the Moon Gathering Steps at the front mountain’s Moon Embracing Hall, and the Wind Valley beyond the Spirit Reflection Summit…”

Shen Jiu listed them all as they walked toward the towering platform ahead.

From the cliffside path, Jian Chou had only seen the platform’s base towering thirty meter above the ground.

Up close, she realized it wasn’t unsupported—but what held it up was even more shocking.

The platform rested on a single thirty-meter-long sword!

The sword was slender, its tip embedded in the plaza while its hilt pressed against the platform above.

The platform itself was twenty-five meter wide, forty meter long, and five meter thick—how much did it weigh?

And this single sword could support it?!

Standing in the platform’s massive shadow, Jian Chou stared up, awestruck.

Shen Jiu’s voice was calm in the night.

“This is the Dueling Platform.”

“Dueling Platform…”

Jian Chou murmured the name.

Shen Jiu explained, “We disciples of Yashan draw our swords against evil, against injustice, against anything that goes against our hearts… Life is full of worries and troubles—why not draw your sword and cut them down?”

“So that’s why you told them to ‘draw swords’ earlier?”

Jian Chou remembered Shen Jiu’s roar on the cliffside path—how the crowd had instantly quieted.

Shen Jiu had merely been explaining the platform’s significance, never expecting her to connect it back.

He scratched his nose sheepishly.

“They say drawing your sword severs inner demons and worldly troubles… but here at Yashan, we just—draw swords first, talk later!”

Draw swords first, talk later!

Winner takes all!

Clearly, Shen Jiu was among the best of Yashan’s “sword-drawing” disciples—undefeated once his blade was out.

That was why his threat on the cliffside path had cowed everyone.

Jian Chou hadn’t expected such a straightforward philosophy—crude, but refreshingly honest.

After a moment’s thought, she nodded.

“I like that.”

“Oh?”

Shen Jiu’s eyes sparkled with interest.

“Does Senior Sister want to join our Sword-Drawing Faction?”

Sword-Drawing Faction?

Jian Chou was puzzled.

Shen Jiu excitedly explained, “Every sect has different schools of thought. Some prefer reasoning things out, while others—like your humble junior brother here—are more straightforward.”

He wasn’t above praising himself.

Jian Chou silently noted how much he resembled Fudao Shanren.

Unaware, Shen Jiu continued, “The Sword-Drawing Faction is the largest among Yashan’s disciples. We don’t bother with words—strength settles everything. Senior Sister… would you consider it?”

Consider drawing swords first and talking later?

Jian Chou found this junior brother rather amusing.

“I’ll think about it.”

With a sigh, she cast one last look at the towering Dueling Platform before turning away—taking in all of Yashan at a glance.

From the cliffside path, she had looked down.

Now, standing below the platform, she looked up.

The crescent-shaped cliff face cradled the circular plaza, its surface dotted with windows glowing faintly from within—disciples meditating, their shadows occasionally visible.

The cliffside path’s murals and carvings were half-lit by the gentle moonlight, the rest shrouded in darkness.

Ahead, at the path’s base, stood a grand gate, brightly lit.

Shen Jiu, thinking there’d be time to recruit her later, gestured toward it.

“That’s where Yashan disciples gather—chatting, relaxing. Major assemblies are held here on the plaza.”

Jian Chou nodded, still gazing up at Yashan.

She had climbed the cliffside path, and now stood on solid ground—yet high above the clouds.

Yashan…

From a small village in Daxia, across the sea to the Nineteen Continents, and now here.

The enormity of the change filled her with indescribable emotion.

This was her home now.

Slowly, she lifted the hem of her plain robes, pressed her palms together, and brought them to her forehead in a solemn, deep bow.

From this day forth, she was no longer Xie Jianchou—the married woman of the mortal world.

She was—

Jian Chou, disciple of Yashan.

Only now did she truly feel reborn.

Her forehead touched the cold stone of the plaza, just as it had when she first bowed to Fudao Shanren.

But unlike then, her heart was warm.

“Senior Sister…”

Shen Jiu, taken aback by her gesture, hesitated before reaching out to help her up.

Jian Chou rose on her own, smiling faintly.

“No need to worry. I’m fine.”

“……”

Shen Jiu’s eyes flickered.

He recalled her words—I had a husband. A child.

Now she stood alone on Yashan’s plaza.

Dao companions among cultivators are different… growing old together… but I never got that.

He didn’t ask why she had come to Yashan.

Instead, he grinned.

“It’s late. Senior Sister must be tired from the climb. Junior Brother Qu should have your quarters ready—let me take you there.”

With a sweep of his hand, he led the way.

Jian Chou followed, her figure a pale shadow under the moonlight.

The moon stretched its light across the Nineteen Continents.

East of Yashan, beyond a winding mountain range and a vast plain, stood ten towering peaks—the Kunlun Mountains.

The serpentine Nine-Headed River curved around their base, majestic and serene.

An ancient, weathered stone tablet stood by the riverbank.

—Kunlun.

“To think that after three hundred years of turning his back on the Central Region… he’s finally returned.”

An elderly Daoist with white hair stood by the river, watching its surface.

The usually turbulent Nine-Headed River was eerily calm near Kunlun, its surface smooth as a mirror under the moonlight.

A young man with a sword on his back stood behind the elder, frowning.

“Master, Elder Fudao has always avoided worldly affairs. If he ignored the Central Region for three hundred years, why return now—just as the Enforcer position is up for reappointment? Isn’t it… too coincidental?”

The elder—True Immortal Hengxu—smiled serenely, his wise gaze piercing the river’s mist.

“Whether he returns or not matters little to Kunlun. I’ve known him for years—he’s not here for the position. It’s likely because of his new disciple.”

Though Yashan held a unique status in the Central Region, Kunlun was undeniably the strongest.

And Hengxu was the most powerful cultivator alive.

The young man spoke cautiously, but disdain laced his words.

“Yashan’s disciples are a disgrace. Now they’ve taken in a female disciple—Jian Chou, was it? Master—”

Before he could continue, Hengxu raised a hand.

The young man fell silent.

A streak of cyan light pierced the river mist, approaching swiftly.

A man in blue robes flew toward them—not on a sword, but on the wind itself, his demeanor transcendent.

As he neared, his frost-like features became clear—cold and emotionless.

This was Xie Buchen—Hengxu’s newest disciple, taken in just thirteen days prior.

Instead of slowing down as he approached Hengxu, he accelerated.

The young man tensed, his brow furrowing in unease.

Hengxu, however, remained smiling, unmoving.

The cyan light halted abruptly—three feet from Hengxu, not a ripple disturbing the water.

Xie Buchen bowed slightly, his voice indifferent.

“Greetings, Master.”

Hengxu sighed inwardly.

“Buchen, your talent is unmatched in my lifetime. I had no wish to disturb your training, but there are matters in the Central Region you must attend to.”

Xie Buchen said nothing.

His sharp brows and piercing eyes held no warmth—as if all people were mere grass and trees to him.

Yet his very presence seemed to radiate brilliance.

Hengxu’s admiration grew as he explained the situation.

The young man behind him paid no attention, his gaze fixed on Xie Buchen’s feet—

Foundation Establishment cultivators could ride artifacts; Core Formation cultivators could fly.

Xie Buchen—who had reached Foundation Establishment in ten days and was now at its peak—hovered effortlessly above the water, unsupported.

At that moment, a chill crept into the young man’s heart.

Xie Buchen ignored him, listening impassively.

When Hengxu finished, he nodded slowly.

“Disciple understands.”