Volume 4, Chapter 246 – Brains? They’re Not Important to Me

Cheng Hongling dashed out the window, only to be horrified by the sheer power of the divine sense that had seized her doppelgänger. Even while carrying her double, the speed was absurdly exaggerated, within the blink of an eye, it had already transformed into a black streak of light streaking across the sky.

“Strange. A master of this level could have just killed me outright. Why go through the trouble of stealing my doppelgänger?”

The thought flashed through Cheng Hongling’s mind, but she knew now wasn’t the time to dwell on it. Immediately, she pushed her movement technique to its limits in pursuit. As for why she didn’t use her divine sense? She was well aware of the gap between her and the other party, it would have been utterly futile.

Meanwhile, the friends and family inside the house all swarmed out. Though they knew they couldn’t be of much help, they still did their best to chase in the direction Cheng Hongling had disappeared. They understood all too well what the loss of Qi Huang would mean for the entire Honghua Sect.

On the other side, Qi Huang was equally anxious. She had to swap places with her doppelgänger without anyone noticing. If her main body found out, there would be no way to explain herself. So, she held nothing back, using her divine sense to snatch the doppelgänger away.

The result? Even with Cheng Hongling pushing her movement technique to its absolute limit, she could only watch helplessly as her doppelgänger grew farther and farther away.

In mere moments, Qi Huang had reeled in the Heavenly Surge Soul. There was no time to marvel at her own cleverness, she immediately began changing clothes.

In the blink of an eye, Qi Huang stripped the doppelgänger’s dress off and put it on herself, then recalled the doppelgänger back into her Sea of Consciousness. Heaven knows how unwilling the Heavenly Surge Soul was, but it couldn’t resist in the slightest.

Once dressed, Qi Huang made sure there were no obvious flaws in her disguise before wrapping herself in a powerful divine sense barrier. Then, she lay beneath a nearby pine tree, playing dead as she patiently waited for her main body to arrive.

Stretched out comfortably under the tree, Qi Huang felt a flicker of relief at how meticulous she had been. Before leaving, she had deliberately made the Heavenly Surge Soul’s makeup identical to her own, otherwise, just changing clothes might not have been enough.

As for why she was still playing dead? Simple. Qi Huang needed the Severed Immortal Sect to come to her. If she suddenly appeared alive and well in the Honghua Sect, they’d back off. And since those bastards had the Eavesdropper’s Ear, she had to keep up the act even in private.

“Damn it all! That thing is impossible to guard against. Unlike divine sense, which can be detected, that artifact is completely undetectable, no way to tell when they’re listening in.”

Qi Huang sighed inwardly, a mix of envy and resentment bubbling up. Why don’t I have such a good treasure?

“After this, I’ll have to find a way to take it for myself. Its stealth is far superior to divine sense.”

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She quietly schemed, already entertaining thoughts of claiming it for herself.

‘Not that I actually want it, of course, just to weaken the Severed Immortal Sect’s strength.’

Still, better safe than sorry. She decided to keep playing dead until the Severed Immortal Sect members delivered themselves to her doorstep.

Sure enough, Cheng Hongling soon tracked her down to the area. Having lost sight of her target, she began sweeping the surroundings with her divine sense in full force.

“Where is she? What if something’s happened to her?”

After a fruitless search, Cheng Hongling grew frantic. Right now, her mind was solely focused on Qi Huang’s safety, so much so that she seemed to have completely forgotten that if her doppelgänger came to harm, she would suffer the consequences.

“No… I can’t give up.”

After steadying herself, she resumed her search, scanning the forest below inch by inch with her divine sense.

“Found her!”

Her persistence paid off. Before long, Cheng Hongling spotted her doppelgänger beneath a pine tree. Though elated, she didn’t immediately rush over, instead, she cautiously scanned the surroundings with her divine sense.

“Strange. That unknown expert snatched my doppelgänger so aggressively, yet just abandoned her here halfway? Are they toying with me?”

Finding no trace of anyone else around, Cheng Hongling was baffled. But with no time to waste, she pushed aside her doubts and swooped down without hesitation.

When Qi Huang saw her main body approaching, she felt a genuine swell of emotion. Quickly, she sent a mental message: “I’m fine. Don’t worry. And whatever you do, don’t speak aloud!”

Cheng Hongling staggered mid-step, a flash of joy crossing her face before vanishing as if it had never been there.

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“You’re alright?” she asked telepathically, feigning calm as she landed.

“Yes. Thank you for your concern.”

Qi Huang’s gratitude was sincere. Though Cheng Hongling had been caring for the Heavenly Surge Soul, she had witnessed every bit of that concern firsthand.

“So your coma really had nothing to do with lacking a brain,” Cheng Hongling mused to herself.

“W-what do you mean, ‘lacking a brain’?”

Qi Huang froze, then quickly realized her main body was referring to the Heavenly Surge Soul. She hurriedly corrected herself: “Of course not. I grew from a mere face—naturally, I never had a brain to begin with. Such a thing is irrelevant to me. My collapse was purely from overusing my divine sense.”

“You… never had a brain?”

Cheng Hongling nearly blurted out a retort, but the words died in her throat. Instead, a flicker of guilt crossed her delicate features. “…I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing all of a sudden? This is weirding me out!”

Qi Huang asked cautiously.

“I always scolded you for being brainless in how you spoke and acted. Who knew you literally didn’t have a brain? For you to still have this much intelligence under the circumstances… you’ve really done your best. It’s my fault as the main body for not taking proper responsibility.”

Cheng Hongling’s voice was thick with self-reproach.

“Huh?!”

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Qi Huang’s eye twitched. She nearly shot upright from the ground. What does she mean, ‘this much intelligence’?!

‘Whatever. No brain, no brain. At least this means she won’t scold me anymore. I can do whatever I want now without getting lectured.’

She quickly consoled herself.

“Anyway, what happened to that expert who took you?” Cheng Hongling changed the subject, glancing around.

“I ambushed them, injured them, and they ran off,” Qi Huang answered without missing a beat.

“Then why are you still lying here? And why tell me not to speak?”

“Because being kidnapped turned out to be a blessing in disguise.”

Qi Huang then recounted her encounter with the Severed Immortal Sect disciples.

“The Severed Immortal Sect again! These heretics are like malignant ghosts, they just won’t leave us alone!” Cheng Hongling fumed.

“Exactly. If we don’t cripple them now, we’ll never sleep soundly again. So I have to keep playing dead, that way, they’ll walk right into our trap.”

“But you realize they can’t kill me, right? They’ll target you instead. You’re putting yourself in danger.”

“Relax. My divine sense is at the Divine Realm now. What can they possibly do to me?”

“Your divine sense is strong, yes, but your actual cultivation is only at the Spirit Gathering Realm. If you run into another enemy who can wield killing intent like last time, your weakness will be exposed. I don’t like this.”

After a moment’s thought, Cheng Hongling proposed, “How about this? Since we look identical, let’s switch places for now. Once we’re past this, we’ll switch back.”

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“Let’s wait until we know their plans. Their main goal is still to kill you. I may be at risk, but you’re not exactly safe either.”

Qi Huang opted for a delaying tactic. Arguing with her main body was pointless, she’d never win.

Seeing the logic in her words, Cheng Hongling temporarily shelved the debate.

After giving Qi Huang another once-over to reassure herself, Cheng Hongling hoisted her onto her back and flew back toward the Honghua Sect.

‘She’s carrying me instead of using her divine sense…’

Qi Huang inhaled the soothing fragrance clinging to Cheng Hongling, touched all over again. Her main body knew she was fine, yet still treated her with such care, like a mother tending to her child. How heartwarming.

‘In this world, I must be the only one who gets treated like this.’

Considering Cheng Hongling’s status, Qi Huang couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride.

“Oh, when we get back, don’t tell anyone I’ve woken up. And have Elder Ruan and the others leave. I’m worried someone might notice I’m faking.”

Qi Huang suddenly spoke up. Her request wasn’t entirely selfless, on the surface, it was for the bigger picture, but in truth, she feared someone might realize she’d suddenly grown a brain. How would she explain that? “Oh, my brain comes and goes, sometimes it’s there, sometimes it’s not”?

“I thought you said you were good at acting. Scared?” Cheng Hongling teased.

“Acting requires payment! No payment, no performance. It’s skilled labor, you know?”

Qi Huang’s reply was utterly matter-of-fact.