On the way back, Lin Zhixue walked slowly.
Pedestrians strolled by in twos and threes, and the hawking calls of the marketplace drifted in from the alley entrance, but she paid none of it any mind.
Xiaoyu floated beside her. It could tell that ever since Zhixue received the jade slip, she had not spoken a word—this wasn't her usual quiet demeanor; she was deep in thought.
“Zhixue.”
Xiaoyu drifted in front of her, floating backward.
“Are you thinking about the sect?”
Lin Zhixue did not deny it.
“Xiaoyu, what is a sect like? Aside from cultivating, what else do people usually do on ordinary days?”
Xiaoyu perked up at once, clearing its throat and adopting an air of vast worldly knowledge.
“A sect isn't just about meditating and cultivating! There’s the Scripture Pavilion, where you can borrow and read all kinds of cultivation methods.”
“There’s also the Sword Pavilion, dedicated to disciples in seclusion practicing the sword.”
“Alchemy chambers, the Talisman Hall—they have everything.”
“Disciples above Foundation Establishment can receive cultivation resources every month.”
“And there’s also the Dao Debate Platform, where disciples can spar and exchange pointers!”
It spoke with glowing enthusiasm, tiny hands gesturing wildly in the air, far more invested than any storyteller in the marketplace.
Lin Zhixue listened without interrupting.
Only when it finished did she nod gently.
“Zhixue.” Setting aside its playful look, Xiaoyu regarded her seriously.
“You should go. Leaving your talent in this little city is a complete waste; only at a sect will you discover just how vast the heavens are.”
Lin Zhixue fell silent for several breaths before murmuring, “I want to go, too.”
The moment the words left her mouth, she herself was momentarily stunned.
It wasn't “I'll consider it” or “I'll see”; it was “I want to go, too.”
This was the first time she had stated her own desire so clearly—so clearly that even she found it slightly unfamiliar.
Tightening her grip on the jade slip tucked inside her sleeve, she began pondering how to broach the topic once she returned home.
Father would most likely remain silent, and Madam Zhou would certainly oppose it, but she could talk to Father alone first.
Though Father never concerned himself with her, at least he wouldn't be like Madam Zhou, having a bellyful of rebuttals ready before she could even speak.
Turning into the narrow alley leading to the Lin residence and pushing open the courtyard gate, she had not even had time to walk toward her room before running straight into Madam Zhou.
Today, Madam Zhou wore a deep purple silk blouse, her hair combed neater than usual, standing at the door of the main hall as though waiting specifically for her.
The moment she stepped through the door, Madam Zhou came up to greet her, a smile plastered across her face and her voice far softer than usual.
“Zhixue, you’re back? Are you tired? Come, sit.”
Lin Zhixue remained where she stood, unmoving.
Madam Zhou’s smile was too gentle—so gentle that it made the skin on Lin Zhixue's back tighten.
Madam Zhou took no offense, walking up to take her hand with a tone overflowing with distress.
“Silly child, running off to the Gu manor every single day, doing labor and cultivating—you've grown thin.”
“I heard you've even been thinking of joining some sect recently?”
She patted the back of Lin Zhixue’s hand.
“Cultivating is so arduous, braving wind and rain, even risking one's life against demon beasts.”
“A girl like you, why endure such suffering?”
Lin Zhixue’s hand stiffened.
She wanted to ask how she knew, but the question was already meaningless.
Regardless of where Madam Zhou had heard it, her stance was already laid bare.
Seeing her remain silent, Madam Zhou smiled even wider.
“Mother is doing this for your own good. How could cultivating compare to the comfort of marrying into a good household?”
“Finding a husband of equal standing, living free from worries over food and clothing, peaceful and secure—isn't that better than anything?”
Lin Zhixue looked at Madam Zhou’s smiling face.
She looked at the two fine lines pinched around the corners of her mouth from smiling too hard.
She looked at the scheming in the depths of her eyes that could not be concealed.
She suddenly realized that she had never truly looked at Madam Zhou’s face before.
In the past, her gaze in Madam Zhou’s presence had always been cast down.
Looking at her toes.
Looking at the dust on the ground.
Looking at the hem of Madam Zhou’s skirt and shoes.
Now she held her head up, seeing this face with absolute clarity.
Instead of anger, her heart held only an unprecedented calm.
“I want to go.”
The courtyard went quiet for a moment.
The smile froze on Madam Zhou’s face, as if a pasted-on mask had suddenly been peeled halfway off.
She opened her mouth, but her rehearsed next line, “Mother is only doing this for your own good,” choked in her throat, unable to come out.
The Lin Zhixue before her eyes was no longer the same as before. In the past, whatever she said, Lin Zhixue would listen with head bowed.
Never talking back, never uttering a peep.
Now, this young girl stood before her, back straight as a rod, eyes showing neither fear nor rage.
Just three words.
“I want to go.”
“Zhixue, think this over carefully—”
“I’m returning to my room first.”
Lin Zhixue pulled her hand from Madam Zhou’s palm, bypassed her, and walked toward the rear courtyard.
Madam Zhou stood in the courtyard watching her receding back, mouth still slightly agape, but no further sound came out.
Back in her room, Lin Zhixue shut the door behind her and leaned against it.
Her heart was beating faster than usual.
She looked down at her hands; they hadn't trembled at all.
Her lips had spoken those words, “I want to go”—and that voice was truly her own.
Xiaoyu drifted out from the jade pendant, quietly hovering beside her shoulder.
After a moment, the door was gently pushed open. Xiaohe poked half her head inside, her face filled with worry.
“Miss, I heard you talking with Madam Zhou in the courtyard just now... Are you alright?”
Looking at Xiaohe, Lin Zhixue’s heart suddenly sank.
If she left, what would happen to Xiaohe?
That question was like a thorn. It had been buried beneath the resolve of “I want to go” moments ago, but now that quiet had returned, the thorn dug deep into her flesh.
She looked at Xiaohe’s round face.
She looked at her brows, furrowed with worry.
She suddenly realized that joining a sect was not something that concerned her alone.
Xiaohe was a mortal without even a spirit root; there was no way a sect would accept her.
Leave her in the Lin household? Madam Zhou had just been openly defied in the courtyard; once Lin Zhixue departed, what kind of life would Xiaohe endure in this family?
She shifted her gaze away from Xiaohe’s face, remaining silent for a long time.
“...It’s nothing.”
In the end, she merely uttered those two words and told Xiaohe to step out.
As Xiaohe left, she glanced back at her once more, as if waiting for her to say something.
She said nothing.
Xiaoyu drifted in front of her, tilting its head. “Still thinking about Xiaohe?”
Lin Zhixue nodded and explained Xiaohe’s matter to Xiaoyu.
After she finished, Xiaoyu didn't answer right away. Crossing its arms, it hovered in midair for a while before delivering its assessment with utmost clarity.
“Having Xiaohe stay at the Gu manor is the best choice.”
“No one over there will mistreat a mortal maid. She’ll have food and lodging, and Gu Yanqing isn't the kind of person who abuses servants.”
Lin Zhixue fell silent upon hearing this.
She knew Xiaoyu was right.
But leaning against the headboard, another layer of thought occurred to her.
Even if the Gu manor was suitable, it was still someone else’s home.
Was she supposed to entrust Xiaohe to Gu Yanqing? Would he accept?
This was different from before. This wasn't borrowing spirit stones or guiding the way up the mountain—this was taking in another human being.
From her silence, Xiaoyu read her worry.
It drifted before her, puffing out its chest and thumping its pale green chest with a fist.
“If he dares refuse, I’ll beat him up!”
Lin Zhixue paused in surprise, and then the corners of her lips curled up involuntarily.
She knew Xiaoyu was joking; its fists couldn't even knock down a fallen leaf.
Yet watching it try so hard to act tough, a string in her heart that had been pulled taut all day suddenly loosened a bit.
She uttered a soft “Mm,” pulled the jade pendant from inside her robes, and clasped it in her palm.
Then she sat cross-legged and closed her eyes.
Xiaoyu voluntarily floated over to the Spirit Gathering Formation's node, and the surrounding spiritual energy gently gathered in.
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