147: Chapter 147 Your Sister Sisi has already been harmed

The quiet and elegant small courtyard was bathed in the bright moonlight.

Beside the stone table, Liu Sisi personally poured a cup of warm spiritual tea for Xia Yingying.

“Tell me,” Liu Sisi looked at her with a gentle gaze, “is everything well at the Moonshadow Sect? Did you truly become a Disciple under that... Sect Master Ling?”

At the mention of the words 'Sect Master Ling', the fingertips Liu Sisi used to hold the teacup curled slightly, and she used the action of sipping tea to hide the fleeting, unusual emotion.

“Mm-hmm!”

Xia Yingying nodded vigorously, her small face overflowing with joy.

“Revered Master is so good to me! My Senior Sisters are also especially kind! Revered Master teaches me how to Cultivate, and Fourth Senior Sister gives me so much delicious food, while the other Senior Sisters give me many useful things...”

She spoke as if counting her treasures, and when mentioning her Revered Master, her eyes were full of reverent light.

“Revered Master's cultivation is heaven-defying, and he is very gentle, though... though sometimes he suddenly disappears for a while with several Senior Sisters...”

‘Disappears? With the Senior Sisters?’

Liu Sisi's hand holding the teacup paused, and the corner of her lip hidden behind the cup curled into a knowing arc, while her earlobes were quietly dyed with a hint of pink.

“Ahem...” She gave a light cough, shifted her gaze, and tried to keep her tone as flat as possible.

“Oh? It seems your Revered Master is... indeed quite busy with affairs.”

Chi Wanhe, hidden in the shadows, almost laughed out loud and quickly covered her mouth.

‘It seems I'll have to avoid speaking in front of Junior Sister in the future; she's too easy to corrupt.’

“Yes!”

Xia Yingying was completely oblivious. Suddenly remembering something, she carefully took out a warm white jade bottle from her storage ring and held it out to Liu Sisi with both hands.

“Sister Sisi, this is for you! This is the ‘Jade Dew Yuan-Condensing Pill’ refined by Second Senior Sister. I heard it's very helpful for cultivation in the Golden Core Stage! My being able to join Revered Master's Sect is mostly thanks to your guidance back then!”

Liu Sisi was slightly startled. Looking at Xia Yingying's sincere and expectant eyes, her heart warmed slightly, but she shook her head and said:

“Yingying, I appreciate the sentiment. But last time... well, when your Revered Master left, he already gave me quite a lot of Medicinal Pills and spiritual liquids; it's enough.”

“No, no!”

Xia Yingying stubbornly pushed the jade bottle forward again, her small face full of persistence.

“That was given by Revered Master back then, but this is Yingying's own thanks to Sister! Sister must accept it!”

Seeing her stubborn look, Liu Sisi smiled helplessly and finally took it.

“Alright, I'll accept it. Thank you, Yingying.”

After putting away the jade bottle, Xia Yingying wrinkled her small face and began to recount the hardships of her journey.

“Sister Sisi, you don't know how hard this journey was for me! I got lost so many times! Before, Xin...”

She remembered Yue Xinxi's strict instructions not to reveal her existence.

“Before what?”

“...Before, outside Chengyue City, I met a very, very beautiful sister who gave me directions, but she didn't seem to know the way either and gave me the wrong direction! It made me go in a huge circle...”

Xia Yingying complained in a low voice.

Liu Sisi raised an eyebrow: “Oh? Wrong directions? Then how did you find the right way?”

Xia Yingying's eyes flickered, and she lowered her head to play with the corner of her clothes.

“Well... later I met some kind people who gave me directions, and... and I kept asking many people... until I found the official road leading here...”

“Kind people?”

Liu Sisi looked at her guilty little expression but didn't press further, only saying warmly: “Never mind, it's good that you arrived safely.”

Xia Yingying held her teacup, her large eyes blinking as she looked at Liu Sisi, and asked in a low, mysterious voice:

“Sister Sisi... I... I have another question I want to ask you. In the Sect, I sometimes hear the Senior Sisters chatting secretly, talking about ‘Dual Cultivation’ with Revered Master...”

“What kind of cultivation is that exactly? It sounds very mysterious and powerful...”

“Pfft— Cough, cough, cough!!”

The spiritual tea Liu Sisi had just taken into her mouth was suddenly sprayed out, causing her to cough violently, and her originally fair cheeks instantly turned bright red!

“You... you little girl! Why are you asking about this?!” Her voice changed pitch, carrying obvious shame and annoyance.

‘??? This little fool! How does she dare to ask this?!’

In the Sea of Consciousness, Yue Xinxi was instantly stunned, and then a terrible thought emerged.

‘Wait, Liu Sisi's reaction... could it be that she has already been ruined by that philandering Sect Master?!’

Xia Yingying was startled by Liu Sisi's intense reaction and shrunk her neck, explaining timidly:

“I'm... just curious. The Senior Sisters said Dual Cultivation increases cultivation speed especially fast and can stabilize the Dao Heart... it feels like a very powerful method...”

Liu Sisi took several deep breaths before she managed to suppress the heat on her face and the embarrassment in her heart.

Looking at Xia Yingying's clear, almond-shaped eyes, she knew the girl truly didn't understand and wasn't intentionally teasing her.

She somewhat flusteredly adjusted her collar, her gaze drifting, her voice carrying unnatural pauses: “Dual Cultivation... it is a... very profound Great Dao method. Mm... it requires Dao Companions whose hearts are in sync and whose cultivations complement each other to jointly... explore the true essence of the Great Dao.”

Liu Sisi struggled to organize her words, “As for your Revered Master... he... well... in this Dao... he indeed has extraordinary attainments. In every aspect and every level of teaching his Disciples ‘cultivation’, he is... extremely ‘skilled’.”

The last few words were spoken quickly and unclearly, as if they were burning her mouth.

‘Teaching Disciples cultivation? Every aspect? Extremely skilled?!’ Yue Xinxi completely exploded in the Sea of Consciousness.

Listen to that! Those suggestive words that only make things more obvious! This little Temple Master Liu has definitely been ruined!

It's over, it's all over. I brought Yingying out for experience just to keep her away from the pollution of that den of vice, but how is it that the first acquaintance we meet out here has also been defiled by that philandering Sect Master?! How can I even guard against this?!

Yue Xinxi only felt a deep sense of powerlessness and despair for the future.

Xia Yingying, however, completely failed to hear the hidden meaning in Liu Sisi's words. Taking it as high praise for her Revered Master's cultivation and teaching ability, she immediately nodded like a chick pecking grain, her face full of admiration.

“Mm-hmm! Revered Master has always been the most amazing!”

Looking at Xia Yingying's pure and flawless gaze of admiration, a very complex emotion welled up in Liu Sisi's heart. There was the embarrassment of being lucky the girl didn't understand, and a slight sense of subtle condemnation toward Ling Hao for potentially 'defiling' such a pure Soul in the future.

She quickly forced a change of subject:

“Alright, alright, you'll naturally understand these profound methods once your Realm is higher. Tell me about your plans for next? Just looking at the scenery around Liuyun Temple?”

Xia Yingying shook her head, her eyes a bit lost.

“I... I agreed with Revered Master that this time out for experience, the main goal was to find you, Sister Sisi, and properly thank you for your kindness back then. As for plans after that... I haven't thought of them yet.”

Liu Sisi pondered for a moment, her heart stirred.

“Since you have no clear destination for now, why not... stay at my Liuyun Temple for a few days? I'll take you around to see the sights of the east bank of the Qing River. And incidentally...”

“Incidentally... I'll also teach you some ‘basic common sense’ that you need to pay special attention to on the path of cultivation, especially when interacting with people, so you don't blindly take... detours in the future.”

Upon hearing this, Xia Yingying immediately broke into a brilliant smile, her almond eyes curving into crescents.

“Really? That's great! Thank you, Sister Sisi!”

Inside the Sea of Consciousness, Yue Xinxi grew anxious.

‘Yingying, don't listen to the nonsense your Sister Sisi says.’

‘? Sisi shouldn't lie to me, Sister Xinxi, you don't need to worry.’

The moonlight was like water, reflecting the smiles of the two women. One was pure and flawless, full of joy; the other hid a hint of the complexity and depth of someone who had been through it all beneath her gentle smile.

And deep within Xia Yingying's Sea of Consciousness, a certain calamity-stricken Soul was silently beating its chest and stamping its feet, wailing miserably that the little white rabbit would ultimately be unable to escape the future of being indoctrinated with “common sense” by the big bad wolf.

Early the next morning.

Crisp birdsong woke Liuyun Temple. Liu Sisi knocked on Xia Yingying's door.

“Yingying, are you up?”

“Sister Sisi, I'm up!” Xia Yingying opened the door, looking energetic.

Liu Sisi nodded with a smile: “Pack up and come with me to Jinmen Mountain. It's located on the border between the Qing State and the Hong State. Recently, a rare fifth-rank Spirit Medicine, the ‘Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart Lotus’, is about to mature.”

“Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart Lotus?” Xia Yingying repeated curiously.

“Yes,” Liu Sisi explained, “This lotus contains pure and stainless Heaven And Earth Spiritual Essence. It blooms with seven apertures, and its exotic fragrance can permeate the human heart.”

“It can not only cleanse the impurities of the Divine Soul, aid in comprehension, and increase cultivation, but its lotus seeds can also be used to refine top-grade Medicinal Pills that resist the erosion of erosion qi and stabilize the mind. However...”

Her tone grew slightly heavy, “When such a Spirit Medicine appears, it will not only attract many Cultivators to fight for it but also draw the attention of Vicious Beasts within a hundred-mile radius that have been tainted by erosion qi! Today is the critical moment; we must arrive before the various forces gather.”

She looked at Xia Yingying and added:

“If this trip goes smoothly and we obtain the Spirit Medicine, you can take it back when you return to the Sect. It should be of great benefit to your cultivation as well.”

“Okay, okay! Thank you, Sister Sisi!” Xia Yingying replied happily.

Soon, Liu Sisi took Xia Yingying and met up with Grand Elder Jing Hong and several Golden Core Elders who were already waiting at the mountain gate. The group rode their escape lights and sped northwest toward Jinmen Mountain.

Inside Xia Yingying's Sea of Consciousness, Yue Xinxi scratched her head, ‘A fifth-rank Spirit Medicine? Don't tell me we're going to run into some bad luck again?’

‘Forget it, if something big really happens, at most I'll give it my all. In this Qing State, besides that Moonshadow Sect, there shouldn't be any Soul Transformation level combat power appearing.’