Crush's Cold Senior Sister is Actually Childhood Sweetheart - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Why “Xiao Jin”?

The elevator finally stopped.

The moment the metal door opened, someone eagerly stepped out.

But after just one step, they were so shocked by the sight that they stumbled back inside, refusing to go first.

Outside was a boundless sea of clouds, with mist swirling all around and white clouds churning below. Wisps of cloud floated like thin gauze, as if a single breath could scatter them.

Everyone gasped.

Would they really not fall if they stepped on it?

Fu Xin was the first to step out. No one dared to linger any longer, and they all bravely followed her.

Everyone stood steadily on the clouds.

They looked up, and their hearts were filled with awe.

A magnificent palace floated in the sky ahead. It was a golden, ornate marvel, surrounded by layers of mist.

The ground was paved with flawless white jade, the steps were golden bricks, and the roof tiles were multicolored glazed tiles. The exquisite stone pillars were carved with all sorts of images:

A great dragon with two horns on its head, a large bird, a turtle, a massive tiger with fur as white as snow, and… a small black snake the length of a finger.

“How does it feel?” Ling Qi quietly walked up to An Jin while no one was looking.

An Jin answered honestly, “I don’t really get it. It feels a bit like showing off.”

It was as if all the luxurious decorations had been piled together, making it lavish but somewhat jarring.

The corners of Ling Qi’s mouth curled up in a barely perceptible smile, as if she had heard something very amusing.

An Jin then asked, “Who designed this?”

“The deity Chongguang.”

“The deity Chongguang…” An Jin repeated the name subconsciously before it clicked. “Isn’t that our master?!”

Then why are you smiling so happily?!

An Jin was about to glare at her, but Ling Qi seemed to have anticipated it.

Ling Qi suppressed her smile, pretending not to see An Jin’s disapproval, and strode to the front of the group.

Then, with a serious and stern expression, she began to read out the sect’s precepts to everyone.

Having just gone through the entrance exam, the others were a little intimidated by this senior sister. No one dared to say anything, and they all stood quietly listening.

A few even took out paper and pens, desperate to write down every word, afraid they’d be tested on it later.

An Jin, however, just raised an eyebrow.

She didn’t hear a single word.

…

After the lecture, they were led into the palace to rest.

The entire Chongguang Palace was as heavily guarded as a fortress. Every side hall was surrounded by three layers of protection.

Each door had a dedicated guard, and patrolling guards were everywhere.

In addition to the guards, An Jin even glimpsed black-clad archers hiding in the shadows.

Fu Xin offered a brief explanation, “Normally, there are only a few guards and patrols here, but things are special right now, so please bear with us.”

She didn’t specify what this “special situation” was.

And so, An Jin settled into this unfamiliar yet magnificent palace.

The so-called cultivation life was far more tedious than she had imagined. Her days consisted of nothing but classes and martial arts practice. Her fellow disciples were all so dedicated and focused, often practicing for days and nights on end, which made An Jin feel too embarrassed to slack off.

Their instructor was a very experienced senior sister named Cen, who, according to legend, had been with the deity Chongguang since before she ascended and was highly trusted.

“But still, the classes don’t have to be this boring…” An Jin slumped her head onto the desk.

For several days, she barely saw anyone. Forget about the legendary master, even Fu Xin and Ling Qi seemed to have vanished into thin air.

The only people she interacted with were her classmates, who, including the previous class, numbered less than twenty people in total.

…

“You can use thought-based movement or spatial movement to instantly move yourself or any item within a space, thus achieving the purpose of evasion or concealment,” Senior Sister Cen said, her tone steady, flat, and emotionless, always at the same pace.

“It can be used for both evasion and stealth. There are two ways to move: thought-based movement and spatial movement. Thought-based movement refers to the instantaneous teleportation of the physical body…”

Seeing the senior sister repeat the same thing over and over, An Jin’s eyelids started to droop.

She glanced around and, seeing that no one was paying attention to her, her eyes darted mischievously.

The next second, she vanished from her seat.

At the same time, a pen on the desk of a disciple in the front row was about to fall to the ground.

Just as it was about to hit the floor, the pen suddenly stopped in mid-air and then climbed back up the leg of the desk by itself.

The disciple froze for a moment, then rubbed their eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Seeing his unusual expression, the person next to him whispered.

“I think I’m so tired I’m losing my mind.”

A few seconds later, An Jin reappeared in her seat.

She looked around. Her classmates were either listening intently or struggling with the transformation technique.

They fought and failed, then fought and failed again.

An Jin propped her chin on her hand, lazily toying with the communication device in her right hand, looking utterly bored.

The device was a standard-issue communicator for the upper realm, and everyone had one. But no matter how much An Jin studied it, she had no idea how to use it.

Suddenly, the screen of the communicator lit up, and a somewhat familiar voice came through it. “Xiao Jin? Can you come to me for a moment?”

An Jin was so startled that she almost dropped the communicator.

By the time she fumbled to pick it up, she looked up to find everyone, including Senior Sister Cen, staring at her.

An Jin: “…”

As she was being kicked out of the lecture hall, An Jin had only one thought: Why did she call me “Xiao Jin”? It makes it sound like we’re really close.

…

Ling Qi’s explanation was, “I was in a hurry just now. It was a slip of the tongue.”

She said it, but her footsteps didn’t slow down.

An Jin pouted and took a couple of quick steps to catch up. “You still haven’t told me, why do I have to go to the Demon Realm with you?”

It was then that she learned from Ling Qi that the heavy security at Chongguang Palace and the unexplained disappearance of everyone was all because of the soon-to-awaken Demon Lord.

The Demon Lord of the Endless Abyss, the de facto ruler of the Demon Realm. Eight hundred years ago, it first awakened in the Endless Abyss and, upon waking, led the demonic army in a rampage through the upper realm. Not even the mortal realm was spared.

Wherever it went, the ground shook, and the sun and moon lost their light.

When the Demon Lord first awakened, not even Emperor Fei Ling’s personal intervention could completely suppress it. It was only by the combined efforts of the deities and their disciples that they were able to force it back into the Endless Abyss to slumber. The upper realm seemed to have won but had suffered heavy losses. Countless promising celestial beings perished, and even the Emperor and several deities were severely weakened.

It was also because of that great battle that Emperor Fei Ling’s already shaky reputation faced a serious challenge once more. Everyone said that it was due to her lack of ability that the upper realm had paid such a terrible price.

Almost everyone believed that if Emperor Qingyuan had still been there, the Demon Lord would have been nothing to worry about.

The Emperor could have made it vanish with just a flick of his finger.

For the first few centuries, every time the Demon Lord awakened, the upper realm was on high alert, holding grand meetings to prepare for the worst.

However, as time went on, the commotion from the Demon Realm grew smaller and smaller. The upper realm’s grand mobilization was reduced to each sect sending only two people to stand guard. The Demon Lord’s influence was gradually waning.

Until a hundred years ago, when Deity Tianmo’s most prized disciple died in the Endless Abyss.

…

“So why do I have to go?”

An Jin chased after Ling Qi, all the way to the interior of Chongguang Palace, demanding an answer.

“You don’t want to go?” Ling Qi replied with a question of her own.

“No, I do.” An Jin shook her head subconsciously. Compared to being on the verge of falling asleep in class, she would of course rather have a chance to go out—even if there was danger.

“Because I thought… you might want to see someone.”

See who? Who thinks I want to see them?

Ling Qi’s answer was vague and didn’t really explain anything.

An Jin was about to ask more, but Ling Qi interrupted her again. “Did you know that Liao Huan before the disciple selection?”

Seeing An Jin nod, she pursed her lips and asked, as if casually, “Is there anything special about her? You were so… determined to get her into Chongguang Palace.”

“Huh?” An Jin was taken aback.

She had already guessed that she couldn’t hide the spirit stone swap from Ling Qi, but hearing her ask about it still surprised her.

She shook her head slightly. “No, I just happened to run into her and decided to give her a hand.”

Ling Qi frowned slightly, said nothing, and didn’t press the matter further.

The two walked toward the main hall of Chongguang Palace. As they got closer to the door, the sound of loud arguing and clamoring grew more and more piercing.

They heard a loud crash, the sound of porcelain smashing on the floor. The discussion inside became even more heated, as if a fight was about to break out at any moment.

“It’s a pity my inner demons have been acting up recently, so I need to go into seclusion. My heart is willing, but my strength is lacking. I think Senior Brother Lu just had a great epiphany and will probably ascend to deity status soon. A trip like this would be perfect for him to gain experience—”

The speaker was a young woman in a dark green robe. She stood up, her hands on the table, speaking passionately.

The man in black, referred to as Senior Brother Lu, sneered. “I just barely escaped with my life last time. It’s my turn no matter what. Who else hasn’t gone? Just volunteer yourself, you can’t run away.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the hall fell silent.

Everyone stopped talking, their gazes subtly drifting toward a corner.

The two people sitting in the corner, besides Fu Xin, included a woman in a pale yellow dress.

Seeing the dead silence, Fu Xin took a deep breath, ready to speak, but the woman next to her spoke first. “My talent isn’t very high, and I’m afraid I won’t be much help. I’ll just stay out of everyone’s way this time…”

Before she could finish, a scornful laugh from the side interrupted her. “You won’t be much help? Just the spiritual artifacts and medicines Master gave you could bury the entire Endless Abyss.”

The woman in the pale yellow dress tried to speak again, but she heard a loud clang as the hall door was suddenly pushed open.

Everyone turned to look at the entrance.

Ling Qi stood in the doorway with an expressionless face, her gaze sweeping over the silent crowd. “Stop arguing. It’s not your concern.”

“I’ll go this time.”