Crush's Cold Senior Sister is Actually Childhood Sweetheart - Chapter 9

Chapter 9: “Root Connected to Root, Bone Connected to Bone. Cannot Be Separated, Cannot Be Cut.”

Liao Huan at the door grabbed a fellow disciple who was about to run out. “What exactly happened?”

“You don’t know?” The person looked surprised. “It’s all over the outside! The Vermilion Bird Lord is about to arrive!”

An Jin inside the room was momentarily stunned. She hadn’t expected to actually have the chance to meet the person she had just been talking about with Ling Qi so recently. Vermilion Bird Lord… does she really have flame-colored feathers, can she travel between heaven and earth, and is she as huge as the Demon Lord?

An Jin and Liao Huan followed the crowd out. As soon as they left the lecture hall, they saw a dense crowd outside, making it impossible to squeeze through. Almost everyone from Chongguang Palace had gathered at the entrance.

The two of them spotted Chongguang True God, who was already waiting there, almost immediately. Chongguang True God stood alone at the very front, behind her was a row of all the inner disciples of Chongguang Palace, including Ling Qi, and further back were the disciples who had joined the sect a little longer. Those who ran faster earlier stood behind them. As for An Jin and Liao Huan, who had just joined the immortal sect and walked slowly, they could only gather at the very back with everyone else. They could barely see anything by standing on tiptoes and craning their necks.

At the very front, a long red carpet was laid out. Guards in iron armor stood in two rows at the entrance, looking as solemn and serious as if a leader was arriving for an inspection ceremony.

“What a grand display…” An Jin was momentarily mesmerized.

“Of course,” a nearby disciple picked up the conversation. “This is Emperor Qingyuan’s only daughter, the Vermilion Bird Lord, who possesses the bloodline of an ancient divine beast.”

“The one with the fear of heights?” An Jin remembered what Ling Qi had told her on the way to the Demon Realm.

Everyone else around them: “…” Really? They had never heard that before.

Liao Huan looked curious. “I thought the Upper Realm was all about cultivation level.” After all, their Master was a True God.

The disciple who had just spoken was about to open her mouth when another person beside her quickly interjected, “The Vermilion Bird Lord is also a True God; she was born with a divine bone, born a True God!”

“If you ask me, the position of Emperor should have been hers. If it weren’t for Emperor Feiling back then—”

“Quiet,” the person next to him suddenly interrupted, their eyes constantly glancing to the front. “Senior Sister Ling is still up front. What if she hears you?”

“Why do you think Senior Sister Ling broke ties with Emperor Feiling and left Jiuyang Palace back then?” That person had a “you don’t understand this” look, successfully attracting the attention of everyone around them.

“Could it be that Senior Sister actually knew some inside story long ago?”

“After all, Senior Sister came from the academy; it’s normal for her to dislike Emperor Feiling’s schemes.”

“No wonder it caused such a stir back then, I was saying—”

“Shh.” Someone suddenly spoke. “Stop talking, the Vermilion Bird Lord is here.”

Qilin led the way, followed by a hundred birds. The golden, glittering divine chariot, engraved with the character “Tian Mo,” slowly stopped on the red carpet. Where the chariot passed, brilliant lights flowed, and immortal glows filled the sky. The person inside gently lifted the curtain and stepped down on a floating cloud.

That person, in a golden trailing gown, shimmered under the heavenly light, making her skin appear even fairer. When she stood before the crowd of Chongguang Palace, almost everyone’s pupils constricted in shock.

“Isn’t the Vermilion Bird Lord from Wuyou Island? Why is this chariot from Tian Mo Palace?” At the very back of the line, An Jin quietly tugged on Liao Huan’s sleeve and asked.

“Eight hundred years ago, the Vermilion Bird Lord’s divine soul was damaged, and she has been recuperating in Tian Mo Palace ever since,” Liao Huan, mimicking An Jin, also replied very softly.

At the very front of the line, everyone, including Chongguang True God, bowed respectfully. Except for Ling Qi. She looked at the person before her and smiled softly, “Long time no see.”

Yuan Shunhua also curled her lips. “Indeed, long time no see.” At her smile, the field instantly fell silent. Many disciples in the front row started feeling short of breath. An Jin’s surroundings were filled with gasps, and she too began to “wow” along.

“She’s really beautiful.”

From an angle she couldn’t see, Yuan Shunhua, at the very front, imperceptibly twitched her mouth, and Ling Qi also inwardly sighed. …Never mind, as long as she’s happy. It won’t be awkward for me after she regains her memories anyway.

Ling Qi lightly coughed twice, then slightly turned to the side. “Lord, please.” Yuan Shunhua nodded gently at her, not even glancing at anyone else present, and walked inside with a flick of her sleeve.

Chongguang True God, who had been left standing, took a deep breath and followed them.

It wasn’t until they completely disappeared from view that An Jin quietly tugged on Liao Huan’s sleeve. “What were you saying earlier?”

“Huh?” Liao Huan was a little confused; she didn’t know what An Jin was referring to. “Was it that I said the Vermilion Bird Lord was severely injured, so she’s been recuperating in Tian Mo Palace?”

“Not that.” An Jin shook her head. “It was the other thing, what you said in the lecture hall earlier.”

What did she say in the lecture hall? Liao Huan looked bewildered. It took her several seconds to realize. “Was it that I said everyone outside was spreading rumors that those from the academy were arrogant and exclusive, and completely ignored us ordinary people?”

An Jin nodded vigorously. “I now think what you said makes a lot of sense.”

Liao Huan: “…” Where was your conviction when you were refuting the rumors just now?

Inside the main hall of Chongguang Palace.

Seeing Yuan Shunhua sit in the first position to the left of the main seat as soon as she entered, Chongguang True God also voluntarily left the main seat empty and sat on the chair opposite her. Several immortal envoys then walked in from outside the hall, serving them tea.

Aside from Cen Xiyao, who sat below Chongguang True God, the remaining six or seven inner disciples all stood behind her. The other disciples were not so lucky; they were kept outside the door, and those who wanted to watch could only peek through the cracks in the door.

A group of people had dispersed from around, leaving not many behind. An Jin hesitated but couldn’t resist her inner curiosity, so she and Liao Huan and other disciples peered inside through the door crack. The atmosphere inside the room was far from as harmonious as it had been outside earlier; to say it was tense would not be an exaggeration.

Yuan Shunhua, who had just been smiling at Ling Qi, changed her expression as soon as she entered the door, opening with: “I want the divine bone you obtained in the East Sea. I want it now.”

Before Ling Qi could speak, Cen Xiyao, who was sitting in front, took the initiative to explain for her: “The divine bone is not in Chongguang Palace. We only went to the East Sea earlier to persuade the Dragon Girl to destroy the evil array; we didn’t bring the divine bone back with us.”

Chongguang True God, beside her, also said, “That divine bone is still in the East Sea Dragon Girl’s hands. If the Lord wishes it, Chongguang Palace can assist—”

Yuan Shunhua directly interrupted her, looking straight at Ling Qi and repeating, “I said I want her divine bone, and I want it now.” Chongguang True God, interrupted, was momentarily displeased but didn’t dare to show it.

“Does the Lord want it or does True God Tian Mo want it?” Ling Qi asked after a moment of silence.

“Does it make a difference?” Yuan Shunhua’s gaze remained aggressive.

“That’s my Senior Sister’s divine bone. There’s no way something from Wuyou Island should end up in Jiuyang Palace’s hands, right?” She spoke of Wuyou Island, then Jiuyang Palace, as if completely disregarding everyone else present.

Yang Anping, standing behind Chongguang True God, felt a bit indignant. The others eavesdropping outside the hall focused entirely on “Senior Sister’s divine bone.” Several of them exchanged shocked glances. They felt they had just gotten major news today. The Vermilion Bird Lord of Wuyou Island had actually surgically removed a divine bone, and this divine bone was now in the hands of their Senior Sister Ling Qi?

An Jin, however, stood frozen in place. She remembered what Ling Qi had told her about the Vermilion Bird Lord outside the Demon Realm that day. The Vermilion Bird Lord who was said to be both gentle and formidable. In an instant, her heart ached as if it were being squeezed. Her fingers trembled slightly, and her nose felt a little sore. An Jin bit her lower lip tightly. But she had never even met her, so why was she already starting to cry?

Inside the room, Yang Anping, seeing Ling Qi hesitate, immediately began to distance herself. “Lord, please be clear, this matter has nothing to do with our Chongguang Palace. My Master knew nothing from the start. It was Senior Sister Ling who lied to us, saying the divine bone wasn’t in her hands.”

Ling Qi, feeling she was in the wrong, remained silent. Unexpectedly, Yang Anping became even more excessive. “If the Lord doesn’t believe it, you can directly search Senior Sister’s sleeping quarters. The divine bone must be hidden by her. We are all willing to help you investigate, or it’s on her person—”

“Yang Anping.” Ling Qi directly interrupted her. “You’d best recognize your place.” She stared directly at the other person, with an unprecedented anger in her eyes. Yang Anping was inexplicably intimidated by her gaze. She stomped her foot and retreated behind Chongguang True God, not daring to speak again.

“It’s with me. I’ll go get it for you.” Yuan Shunhua had expected another fierce battle, but to her surprise, Ling Qi simply gave up, left a sentence, and turned to walk out. Cen Xiyao also quickly stood up and said, “I’ll go with you.”

Ling Qi’s steps paused for a moment. She neither agreed nor refused, still walking directly outside. As soon as she exited the hall door, her eyes met An Jin’s, who was peering in from outside. Ling Qi forced a smile, trying to comfort her. Unexpectedly, seeing her smile, An Jin’s brows furrowed even tighter.

Cen Xiyao chased Ling Qi all the way to the door of her sleeping quarters. Ling Qi’s pace was quick; Cen Xiyao followed behind her without saying a word. It wasn’t until they entered the sleeping quarters and closed the door that Cen Xiyao leaned against the door and asked, “Are you really going to give her the divine bone?” Her brows were tightly furrowed, her expression very disapproving.

Although she didn’t know how Ling Qi obtained the divine bone, nor why she deliberately concealed it after getting it, there must have been a purpose behind her actions. That divine bone must be something very important. Since she cared about it so much, why would she let it go?

“Just because she’s Yuan Shunhua?” Ling Qi sat at her desk for a long time in silence. The ink on the Xuan paper in front of her hadn’t dried yet. The previously unfinished painting now had another tree; two trees stood side by side in the center of the white paper, even their shadows subtly merging.

“Have you ever seen… trees that grew together from childhood?” After an unknown period, Ling Qi spoke in a hoarse voice: “On the surface, they are lush and independent, but in the unseen depths, their root systems are tightly intertwined, destined to be forever entwined from the very beginning.”

“Root connected to root, bone connected to bone. Cannot be separated, cannot be cut.”

Cen Xiyao leaned against the door, saying nothing. She suddenly remembered what Ling Qi looked like when she first saw her. The person’s plain white clothes were soaked in bl00d, bloodstains still spreading on her cuffs, her clothes clinging to her body, fresh red bl00d constantly dripping from the hem. The person was so weak she could barely stand, needing her sword to prop herself up, yet she smiled at Cen Xiyao when she came to open the door.

Cen Xiyao was eager to get the other person inside to treat her wounds, but that person paid no mind to her own miserable state, only looking at her and saying: “I know who you are.”

“Want to make a deal with me?”