Su Jinxue's voice was as cold as ice, devoid of any warmth, instantly freezing the atmosphere.
Bai Yao's movement as she was about to kneel froze in mid-air. She lifted her head blankly, looking at one then the other, her small face filled with bewilderment.
The smile on Zhang Mingyuan's face also froze.
He looked at Su Jinxue in disbelief, his expression practically screaming, “Are you playing with me?”
“What do you mean?” Zhang Mingyuan's brow furrowed. “I built up the atmosphere all the way to this point, and you're saying you won't take her?”
Su Jinxue's voice remained cold. “When did this seat ever say I would take a disciple? From beginning to end, it was you talking to yourself. Who ever asked for my opinion?”
“I...”
Zhang Mingyuan was instantly left speechless.
Thinking about it carefully, it seemed... that really was the case.
From beginning to end, it was he who felt Bai Yao was a good prospect—possessing an Unblemished Body and the classic protagonist template of a revenge story, she was practically a born disciple. So, he had taken it for granted that Su Jinxue would accept her.
But damn it, he had forgotten that Su Jinxue was a woman who never played by the rules!
Zhang Mingyuan was incredibly exasperated.
This woman was absolutely doing this on purpose! She just couldn't stand seeing things go his way!
But then again...
This was an Unblemished Body plus a revenge-driven protagonist template—a peerless prospect!
If Su Jinxue didn't take her, was he just supposed to let her go?
What a joke!
If she won't take her, I will!
An idea suddenly exploded in Zhang Mingyuan's mind. The gloom on his face vanished instantly, replaced by a sly, mischievous grin.
“Fine, you won't take her, right?” He deliberately raised his voice, making sure Su Jinxue could hear him.
Then, he whipped around.
“Bai Yao, you heard her. This cold woman refuses to take you as her disciple.”
Bai Yao was stunned. Her small body trembled slightly, and her eyes instantly welled with tears. It was hard to tell whether the look on her face was grievance, sadness, or disappointment.
“But! Don't be afraid!”
He puffed out his chest and pointed a finger at himself, wearing what he believed to be his most genial and trustworthy smile.
“If she won't take you, this seat will!”
“Come, come, don't hesitate. This seat is the Sacred Lord of Qingyun Heaven, which used to be just as famous as her Myriad Snow Palace! If you join my sect, I guarantee you'll live in luxury, and you can walk tall in the future without anyone daring to mess with you!”
“Quick, bow to your master!”
Zhang Mingyuan had even struck a dignified, teacher-like pose, hands clasped behind his back, nodding slightly, just waiting for Bai Yao's exciting three kowtows and nine bows.
He had already planned it out. Once he accepted this disciple, the first thing he would do was take her to the best spiritual pool in Qingyun Heaven for a bath, then find several hundred top-tier cultivation techniques for her to choose from, and then...
However, just as Bai Yao was left dazed by his words, hope reigniting in her eyes as she was about to kneel again—
“Hold on.”
That voice, cold as frost and snow, rang out inappropriately once again.
Zhang Mingyuan's movements froze.
Bai Yao's knees also stopped just three inches above the ground.
The two of them whipped their heads around in unison to look at Su Jinxue.
Only to see that Su Jinxue had walked up close at some point. Her eyes, cold as winter stars, swept over Zhang Mingyuan, and the corner of her lips curled into a faint, barely perceptible arc.
“And who said this seat isn't taking a disciple?”
“...”
Zhang Mingyuan felt a string in his mind snap with a sharp pop.
Again?
Still doing this?
Are you fucking flip-flopping here?
Having been interrupted twice in a row, Zhang Mingyuan was thoroughly ticked off. A surge of irritation shot straight to the crown of his head.
But the moment he remembered the other party was a Red Dust Immortal who could slap him to death, he forced the anger back down.
Can't beat her, can't beat her.
Endure! I must endure!
Zhang Mingyuan's face flushed red as he squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth. “Su Jinxue, what exactly do you want?”
Seeing his constipated expression—wanting to blow up but not daring to, fuming so hard he looked ready to explode on the spot yet forced to hold it in—the curve of Su Jinxue's red lips grew even more pronounced.
She just wanted to see Zhang Mingyuan frustrated.
The more frustrated he was, the happier she became.
Hadn't it always been like this for the past five thousand years?
Su Jinxue ignored Zhang Mingyuan and turned her cold gaze toward Bai Yao. Though her voice was still aloof, it now carried an undeniable authority.
“Are you willing to join my Myriad Snow Palace?”
Bai Yao was completely bewildered, but she wasn't stupid.
She could sense that these two Immortals seemed to be... fighting over her?
Even so, she still looked at Zhang Mingyuan. Seeing him nod with a helpless sigh, she finally bowed to Su Jinxue.
“Disciple Bai Yao pays respects to Master!”
“Mm,” Su Jinxue responded softly, then waved her delicate hand.
A gentle force lifted Bai Yao up, while another force swept her up, bringing her directly to Su Jinxue's side.
Having done all this, Su Jinxue didn't even spare Zhang Mingyuan another glance. She turned, tore open a spatial rift, stepped through with Bai Yao, and vanished instantly.
From beginning to end, it was smooth as flowing water.
Now, only Zhang Mingyuan and Nian'an were left standing in this mortal village, completely dumbfounded in the wind.
“Damn it!”
Zhang Mingyuan flipped a middle finger to the sky and cursed:
“This woman is too unreasonable! Isn't she just playing with me?!”
Fuming, he spun around twice in place and kicked a stone away.
Wait!
Zhang Mingyuan's movements suddenly stopped.
Su Jinxue... was gone?
She took the little girl away and didn't bother with him.
Did that mean... he was free?
He didn't have to be some bullshit Sword-Bearing Attendant anymore?
Yes, exactly!
This thought grew wildly like weeds, instantly occupying his entire brain!
One second Zhang Mingyuan was burning with rage, and the next his face blossomed with joy. The transition was so fast that even Nian'an, standing nearby, was dazed.
“Hahaha! Free! I'm finally free!”
Zhang Mingyuan laughed up to the heavens, utterly beside himself with joy.
Without another word, he violently tore outward with both hands!
Tear—
The space in front of him cracked open into a pitch-black rift.
Zhang Mingyuan took a step forward, half his body already entering the spatial rift. He looked back, his face filled with uncontrollable ecstasy:
“Qingyun Heaven! Your Sacred Lord has returned!”
However, just as his other foot was about to step into the rift—
Whoosh—
Without warning, the temperature of the world plummeted. Snow began to fall from thin air, and a single ice-crystal snowflake drifted down, landing gently on the tip of his nose.
Zhang Mingyuan's heart skipped a beat, and an extremely ominous feeling welled up in his chest.
Before he could even turn around, a slender, fair hand quietly appeared and grabbed him by the scruff of his neck—seizing his very fate.
Immediately after, a familiar, proud, and cold voice whispered softly in his ear.
“I almost forgot about you.”
“My Sword-Bearing Attendant, where do you think you're going?”
The smile on Zhang Mingyuan's face froze instantly.
The next second, a miserable scream pierced the sky.
“Help—! Su Jinxue! You damned woman! You'll regret this! This is unlawful detention! This is restricting my personal freedom!”
His ghostly wails were forcefully dragged into another spatial rift. Then, the rift slowly closed, and peace returned to the world.
Only Nian'an was left standing there all alone.
Watching her Sacred Lord get dragged away wailing so miserably, she couldn't hold it in and burst into a giggle.
The Sacred Lord and the Immortal Lord are still so... lively.
However, as she laughed, her smile slowly froze.
Wait.
The Immortal Lord was gone.
Sacred Lord Zhang had been captured too.
What about me?
Nian'an looked around the deserted village, then raised her head to gaze in the direction of the Myriad Snow Palace.
From here to the Myriad Snow Palace, it seemed to be a million miles away, right?
She couldn't tear through space, nor could she fly on a sword...
So, she had to... walk back slowly by herself?
Nian'an's face slumped instantly.
Rate on N.U.
