Volume 3, Chapter 374 – Peak of the Second Realm

“…”

The petite girl stood with her head bowed.

Her hands were clenched and drawn up against her chest.

A defensive posture.

Chi Xiyan’s eyes darkened. She stepped forward and pressed in.

The shadow cast by the lamplight swallowed the smaller girl whole.

Lu Zhuxin stepped back, only to be stopped by the door behind her.

Chi Xiyan stood considerably taller. She looked down at Lu Zhuxin from above.

“Look at me.”

“Then tell me why.”

Lu Zhuxin leaned against the door.

With Chi Xiyan blocking her path, there was nowhere to go.

She turned her face to the side, looking at the floor, refusing to meet Chi Xiyan’s eyes.

“Is Elder Sister angry? Angry that I didn’t listen?”

Chi Xiyan’s expression sharpened. “Am I not allowed to be angry? This is not what we agreed on.”

“I told you, didn’t I? I would handle it alone.”

“You are the Chi family’s hope. You are my last card to play.”

“You cannot, and should not, be drawn into this.”

Chi Xiyan’s voice dropped to a low growl. Her hand shot out and grabbed Lu Zhuxin’s shoulder, pressing her against the door.

“So tell me. Why won’t you just listen?!”

“…” Lu Zhuxin was forced to look at Chi Xiyan’s face.

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Then, softly, she laughed. “This is the first time I’ve ever seen Elder Sister this angry.”

She tilted her head slightly, her gaze calm and still.

“Even when she’s angry, Elder Sister is still this beautiful.”

Chi Xiyan’s brow knotted.

She was about to say something, but Lu Zhuxin spoke first.

“I never imagined the first time I’d see Elder Sister truly furious would be because I went against her.”

“I understand your concerns. I know you have your own plans.”

“But Elder Sister, have you ever considered how I feel?”

A flicker of confusion crossed Chi Xiyan’s eyes.

Consider your feelings? Have I not considered them enough?

“Yes, Elder Sister has thought of me a great deal. But you have never once asked me what I want.”

“For others, the consort selection is an opportunity.”

“But for us, it is also a danger.”

“If our identities are discovered before we can reach the Human Empress, everything will fall apart.”

“Charge upon charge. The Chi family will have no way forward at all.”

Chi Xiyan frowned. “If you know all of this, then why do you still insist on getting involved?!”

“Elder Sister, do you still not understand?” Lu Zhuxin said. “I told you before. I don’t care about any of that!”

“The only thing I care about in the Chi family is you!”

Chi Xiyan went quiet.

Lu Zhuxin pressed on. “What does Elder Sister think I came to the Chi family for, knowing the risks? What do you think I’ve been working so hard at sword cultivation for?”

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Chi Xiyan remained silent.

She had always known. She had known from the beginning.

But what of it?

“…” Lu Zhuxin gently pushed Chi Xiyan’s hand away. “So why does Elder Sister think that when you go off alone into danger, I could simply stand aside and watch?”

“I can’t…”

“I’m only human. I cannot just look on coldly when I know Elder Sister is in danger!”

The last words came out almost as a shout.

Chi Xiyan went still. She took a stiff half-step back.

The girl before her had lifted her chin, looking at her with stubborn, unyielding eyes. A flame seemed to burn inside those bright irises.

Her little sister had stopped listening. She was defying her.

And yet, looking at her like this, Chi Xiyan found that she could not summon any real anger.

Something moved through her chest, wordless and warm, pressing insistently against her ribs.

“You want to help me?” Chi Xiyan hesitated. “This is dangerous. And there is nothing you can do.”

“Why does Elder Sister think I can’t help? Is it because of my cultivation?”

Lu Zhuxin stepped forward again, lips pushed into a small pout.

A shimmering blue spiritual light radiated from her body.

Second Realm?

Not just Second Realm. Peak Second Realm. One step away from the Third.

Shock flickered through Chi Xiyan’s eyes.

It had not even been a full month since Chi Muxue began cultivation.

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When had she reached the Second Realm?

First Realm, Qi Refinement. Second Realm, Foundation Establishment. These two major thresholds had stopped countless cultivators cold.

“How did you complete Foundation Establishment?” Chi Xiyan’s throat felt dry. “I don’t recall teaching you that method.”

“Forgotten already? I am a reincarnated Sword Venerable.” Lu Zhuxin said. “The minimum cultivation requirement to enter the selection is Second Realm. My cultivation is enough to help you now, isn’t it?”

“A reincarnated Sword Venerable…” Chi Xiyan fell silent.

If that was so, then it made sense.

But even so…

“No.” Chi Xiyan shook her head. “I will not drag you into danger with me.”

Lu Zhuxin scoffed. “Danger? Does Elder Sister really think that if you go alone, I’ll be safe?”

“If something happens to you, do you think the people who know my identity will let me go?”

Chi Xiyan heard that and went quiet again.

Lu Zhuxin watched Chi Xiyan’s expression and continued. “Elder Sister should know better than anyone what dangers surround me.”

“Given that, isn’t it better to let me join the selection as well?”

“Two people entering together have a better chance of being summoned by the Human Empress than one.”

“As long as one of us can get an audience with her, we can lay out everything that happened to the Chi family.”

“Elder Sister, I don’t want to go on being a decorative vase that you keep tucked away safe.”

“I can help you. I have the ability to help you now.”

“Elder Sister, what is it that you’re really afraid of?”

Chi Xiyan’s eyes trembled.

She raised her hand and pressed it quietly against her chest.

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Something inside, something she could not name and could not explain, was pulsing its way out.

What was she afraid of?

That could not be said…

***

Elsewhere, inside Madam Qian’s room.

Cheng Yinyin sat fidgeting with a teacup on the table, her expression sour.

Madam Qian sat in the main seat, listening to a servant’s report.

“So they really did quarrel?”

“They did!” The servant gestured animatedly. “When the elder young miss slammed the door, the whole courtyard shook! It gave everyone quite a fright!”

“We couldn’t make out what they were actually saying once the door was shut, but there was quite a commotion inside!”

Madam Qian listened, and a knowing smile settled over her face.

“Just as I expected.”

“I knew that girl wouldn’t be the docile type.”

She waved a hand and sent the servant away for now.

Cheng Yinyin looked at her mother, displeased. “Mother, why did you speak up for those two women today?”

“Wouldn’t it have been better to just drive them out?”

Madam Qian looked at her daughter, a flicker of fondness and exasperation passing through her eyes.

Her own flesh and blood, and somehow she had come out just like that man, without inheriting a single drop of her own wits.

“Yinyin, you don’t understand.”

“There are times when blunt methods like that only produce the opposite of what you want.”