Senior Sister Is Too Weak and Cannot Take Care Of Herself (Transmigration) - Chapter 26.2

Tang Huan knew the rules of the cultivation world: inspiration came unbidden. Sometimes, a cultivator would go into seclusion the moment they had an insight. This seclusion could last for just a few days, or it could last for years. The deeper a person’s cultivation, the longer the seclusion. For instance, the original owner’s foster mother, Elder Tang, might need another three to five years in seclusion.

Qin Su’s seclusion this time shouldn’t be too long, as she would be going to the secret realm with everyone in just over ten days.

But for some reason, upon hearing the news of Qin Su’s seclusion, Tang Huan already felt a sense of reluctance, even though Qin Su hadn’t even started yet.

“Did you have a breakthrough in your cultivation, Senior Sister?” Tang Huan forced a smile, not even sure what she was saying. She looked up at Qin Su, fumbling to open her cosmic bag. “I have some magical artifacts here. Do you want to take a look? See if there’s anything that can help you…”

Qin Su pursed her lips and gave Tang Huan a look, then shook her head.

“Then, is there anything you’d like to eat, Senior Sister?” Tang Huan earnestly continued. “If you wake up from your seclusion and feel hungry, you have to tell me so I can cook for you…”

Even though she knew Qin Su no longer needed to eat to replenish her spiritual energy, Tang Huan had gotten into the habit of making sure she ate three meals a day. She was worried Qin Su had grown accustomed to it and would feel strange without her regular meals during her seclusion.

“Oh, forget it. Knowing you, you wouldn’t say anything even if you were hungry…”

Before Qin Su could respond, Tang Huan started muttering to herself, opening her cosmic bag and pulling out her stash of snacks.

She laid a pile of snacks on the table, and her hand finally landed on the bag of pastries she had from the day before. After a moment’s thought, she handed the bag to Qin Su.

“Senior Sister, someone gave me these pastries. I tried one, and they’re really good. They’re not some fancy, valuable cakes and they don’t have any spiritual energy. I was worried you wouldn’t like them yesterday, so I didn’t give them to you. But now that you’re in seclusion, if you get hungry from cultivating, you can eat some to tide you over…”

Qin Su had intended to refuse, but she paused for a moment when she saw the bag of pastries.

So that’s what she was thinking. It wasn’t that she wanted to distance herself, but that she was afraid she wouldn’t like them…

She knew she shouldn’t, but the corners of Qin Su’s mouth still lifted in a small, uncontrollable smile. The words of refusal caught in her throat and came out as, “Thank you, Junior Sister.”

Tang Huan had prepared a whole speech to convince Qin Su, expecting her to be difficult about accepting the pastries. She was surprised when Qin Su took them so readily.

“That’s good,” Tang Huan thought, “saves me the trouble.”

She let out a sigh of relief, then looked at Qin Su with a lingering reluctance. She knew that seclusion was a necessary part of cultivation, and she couldn’t stop Qin Su. All she could do was give her a long list of her usual safety precautions.

As always, Qin Su listened in silence. As she was about to enter her room, she couldn’t help but give Tang Huan one last, deep look. “You don’t need to worry about me. Just focus on your competition, Junior Sister.”

She paused, then added, “It’s alright even if you lose. The path of cultivation is a marathon, not a sprint, and you’ve already made so much progress.”

Tang Huan, not wanting to delay Qin Su’s seclusion, agreed enthusiastically.

However, as soon as Qin Su closed the door, Tang Huan forgot all about their conversation. She gazed at the closed door and sighed.

Even though they were in the same courtyard and had just parted ways, Tang Huan couldn’t help but feel a wave of longing.

It was like getting addicted to a cultivation-based game, only for the servers to shut down for maintenance. Even though she knew her character would be fine once the game was back up, not seeing her for a single day felt like something was missing, and her mind would constantly wander back to her character in the game…

Tang Huan knew she couldn’t let herself get distracted. Qin Su’s seclusion meant she was making progress, and Tang Huan couldn’t afford to fall behind.

So, after a moment of reflection, Tang Huan pulled herself together and started cultivating diligently, once again staying up late into the night.

*******

The next day, Tang Huan left for the arena early in the morning.

After the first round of eliminations, the crowd watching the matches had grown considerably.

When Tang Huan saw Ren Jingmu draw a lot for one of the first matches, she had a bad feeling.

Her match was scheduled for later in the day, and her opponent was also a sword cultivator. They were from the same sect and practiced similar techniques. Tang Huan’s cultivation was slightly higher than her opponent’s. In a situation where the techniques were similar, speed was everything, and victory would come down to the skillful application of their moves.

As Tang Huan had expected, Ren Jingmu quickly won his match. Then, under Tang Huan’s furious stare, he went to find her opponent.

As the male protagonist of the novel, Ren Jingmu was described in great detail by the author as being incredibly gifted. He had an extremely keen intuition and could see through many people’s techniques. In the past, the original owner of Tang Huan’s body would often pester him to practice swordplay, so he was very familiar with Tang Huan’s techniques.

But Tang Huan could only watch Ren Jingmu’s actions, unable to stop him. The rules didn’t forbid someone from giving advice during a competition. Even though she knew it was cheating, Tang Huan had to grit her teeth and swallow her anger.

Seeing the look of gratitude on her opponent’s face, Tang Huan had a premonition that this match would not be easy.

And her premonition was confirmed. Her opponent seemed to predict her every move.

The original owner of this body had favored fire-based techniques, and her opponent was also a fire-based sword cultivator. Tang Huan’s control over her body’s movements was still far from perfect. Plus, having lived in a peaceful society her whole life, she was extremely cautious and couldn’t bring herself to execute certain sword moves that might lead to injury.

With all these factors stacked against her, even with her higher cultivation, Tang Huan was constantly on the back foot.

After almost a hundred moves, Tang Huan was visibly losing ground. She had been nicked by her opponent’s sword multiple times, and the last strike even left a gash on her cheek.

Tang Huan finally managed to dodge her opponent’s attack, panting heavily as she stood in a corner of the ring.

Her match was already late in the day, and with all the previous matches finished, a crowd had gathered to watch what had become a surprisingly intense battle. Tang Huan didn’t know why, but as she listened to the roar of the crowd, the feeling that Senior Sister was watching from the sidelines once again uncontrollably surfaced in her mind.

However, when she looked down, she only saw Ren Jingmu’s smug, chin-up expression.

“Senior Sister Tang, just give up!” her opponent said, also out of breath but with a look of certain victory in his eyes. “You have to know your limits. I can’t understand why a cultivator of your level would dare challenge Senior Brother Ren…”

“Of course you have to suck up to your Senior Brother Ren. After all, without him, you wouldn’t have been able to hold your own against me for this long—”

The mention of Ren Jingmu ignited a fire of indignation in Tang Huan. She didn’t know where the strength came from, but she bit her lip, stood up straight, and sneered at her opponent.

Tang Huan’s situation was dire. She was running on fumes, and a sword cultivator’s moves largely depend on spiritual energy. The reason her opponent was so provocative was that he could tell Tang Huan had expended more energy and was almost out of spiritual energy. Even if she didn’t surrender, she would eventually lose once her spiritual energy was completely depleted.

Her opponent was clearly enraged by Tang Huan’s words. His eyes flashed with a vicious glint, and he gripped his sword.

Tang Huan pursed her lips, glaring back without fear. She gathered what little spiritual energy she had left to support her body, preparing for another round.

She had several wounds, her hair was a mess, and her clothes were dirty. She was in pain and exhausted. In all her time in this world, this was the most pathetic she had ever been.

If her opponent had been fighting fair, Tang Huan, knowing she couldn’t win, might have surrendered to avoid further suffering. After all, even if she lost, there would be other ways to warn Qin Su about Bai Feng’s schemes.

But this opponent’s victory would be ill-gotten, and behind him stood Ren Jingmu.

Tang Huan refused to give up.

To surrender now would feel like a total capitulation to this world centered around Ren Jingmu.

The protagonists’ lives mattered, but so did the lives of the cannon fodder.

As a piece of cannon fodder, Tang Huan might not have a lucky star watching over her, but she still had her own life, her own dreams, her own dignity, and her own convictions.

Tang Huan came from a highly civilized nation where her ancestors shed bl00d and sweat to break free from their shackles and pursue freedom and equality. Even as a “couch potato,” Tang Huan still possessed the deep-seated tenacity of her people.

Why should she follow unfair rules?

Tang Huan would not be a slave to the rules and the protagonists.

All the anger she had accumulated since arriving in this world because of Ren Jingmu finally boiled over. Tang Huan made the first move.

Her opponent’s eyes darkened, and the two of them clashed once more.

Just like before, Ren Jingmu had figured out all of Tang Huan’s moves and told her opponent everything. Tang Huan quickly began to fall behind again.

Soon, her opponent’s sword struck her shoulder.

Then, he slashed her forearm.

This time, unlike the previous nicks, her opponent was not holding back. The new wound was so deep that the bone was visible.

This was a personal vendetta, a way for him to vent his frustration!

The elder officiating the match’s eyes twitched. He shot a look of disapproval at the sword cultivator. However, Tang Huan’s wounds were not life-threatening. The cultivator had just been a bit heavy-handed, but he hadn’t broken any of the competition’s rules.

Perhaps feeling he had made his point, the sword cultivator thrust his sword toward Tang Huan again. This time, he aimed for her leg.

If her leg was injured, Tang Huan would no longer be able to stand on the stage and would have to surrender in humiliation.

The pain from her wounds had turned to numbness. At this point, Tang Huan let go of her inhibitions. She gritted her teeth and feigned a move. The sword cultivator struck her arm, but Tang Huan, in turn, sliced his shoulder with her own sword.

He hadn’t expected Tang Huan to have the strength to counterattack. He took a few steps back, surprised and wary, no longer daring to act recklessly.

Both of them were in a bad state, with very little spiritual energy left. Any mistake would lead to a loss.

Tang Huan was still standing, but only she knew that her spiritual energy was completely depleted.

Perhaps it was because she had used up all her spiritual energy, but for the first time, Tang Huan felt the familiar chill of a deep winter.

A familiar scent, mixed with the light fragrance of the purple calamus flowers from Baiwu Peak, passed by Tang Huan, carried on the cold winter wind.

Tang Huan didn’t know why, but she suddenly recalled the feeling of abundant spiritual energy she had experienced on Baiwu Peak.

Because her cultivation technique was different, even though Tang Huan had absorbed the wood-based spiritual energy from Baiwu Peak, she was afraid of damaging her meridians, so she had never dared to cultivate with it. She had always converted it to fire-based spiritual energy.

But now, all of her fire-based techniques were known to her opponent.

Tang Huan looked at the sword cultivator opposite her, who was holding his sword and preparing to attack. She gritted her teeth and decided to take a gamble, letting the unrefined wood-based spiritual energy in her body flow freely.

She had won the gamble!

As if a dam had broken, the wood-based spiritual energy surged forth, rapidly flowing through her body. Her depleted meridians were instantly nourished, and in an instant, a pool of spiritual energy had gathered in her dantian.

At that moment, her opponent’s attack was upon her.

Tang Huan’s lips curved into a smile, her eyes shining brilliantly. She raised her injured hand and swung her sword horizontally.

It was a move her opponent had not anticipated.

His eyes widened. By the time he realized something was wrong, the match was already decided. He was sent flying by the sword’s energy and tumbled off the stage!

The crowd was silent.

Everyone watching the match had believed that Tang Huan’s defeat was inevitable. No one had expected her to make such a desperate comeback.

It took a moment for the officiating elder to recover and declare Tang Huan the winner.

If he hadn’t been mistaken, the young woman had used wood-based spiritual energy in the final moments. He had previously thought Tang Huan, like many other disciples, had simply relied on elixirs to boost her cultivation. It seemed they had all been wrong.

*******

The crowd below the stage began to stir.

Tang Huan, who hadn’t expected to win, felt an almost unreal sense of victory. Her eyes, filled with a dazed look, swept over the crowd below. She saw the disciples excitedly discussing the match, the cultivator being helped away by a healer, and Ren Jingmu’s increasingly sullen face.

Finally, her gaze fell to her palm.

A purple calamus flower petal, carrying a familiar scent, swirled down and landed in her hand.

At that moment, the anxiety she had been holding onto finally settled, and joy welled up in her heart. Tang Huan’s eyes became incredibly bright.

She had truly taken control of her own destiny!

Tang Huan’s injuries gave A-Qi a huge fright.

At this point, Tang Huan was secretly glad that Qin Su was in seclusion. Otherwise, knowing how kind Qin Su was, she would have been very worried seeing all of her wounds.

To reassure Qin Su, even though she knew there was a high chance Qin Su couldn’t hear her, Tang Huan still put on a cheerful voice as she passed by her door.

“Senior Sister, I was so amazing today! You really should have come to my match. That sword cultivator didn’t last more than fifty moves against me…”

However, once she was back in her room and bandaging her wounds, Tang Huan cried. She bit down on a piece of her sleeve to keep from wailing.

The medicine in the cultivation world was incredibly effective, but it was also incredibly painful!

*******

In her past life, Tang Huan would always beg the nurses to be gentle when she got a shot. She had always taken great care of her body and was experiencing this kind of intense pain for the first time.

Her body constantly wanted to give up, but she had more matches in the next two days. After applying the medicine, Tang Huan gritted her teeth and forced herself to cultivate again.

Unfortunately, when pushed to her limit, her body refused to obey. Although her mind wanted to cultivate, Tang Huan couldn’t fight off the exhaustion and unknowingly fell asleep in a meditative position.

Tang Huan’s sleep was not peaceful.

The wounds she had applied the ointment to were healing quickly, and they were both painful and itchy. Tang Huan was in a state of semi-sleep.

…She couldn’t help but frown and reach to scratch, but a gentle, cool aura suddenly enveloped her. Her furrowed brow gradually relaxed, and the wounds on her body healed and mended at a visible rate.

Tang Huan hadn’t expected to dream of Qin Su. She was fully aware that this was a dream.

In the dream, there was a giant Bodhi tree Tang Huan had never seen before. Its branches and leaves were lush and green, so thick they blotted out the sun. Tang Huan didn’t know why, but she felt an immediate familiarity when she saw the tree. She leaned against the trunk, sunlight dappling the ground in patches as it filtered through the leaves. Tang Huan felt completely relaxed and incredibly comfortable.

At the foot of the tree, there was a small grave with a stone tablet. Tang Huan leaned closer, just about to make out the words on the tablet, when she heard Qin Su’s voice from nearby.

“Junior Sister!”

Tang Huan followed the sound and her eyes widened in surprise.

Senior Sister was still herself, but she was wearing a red dress Tang Huan had never seen her in before. The sickly weakness had faded from her face, which also lacked its usual gentle smile. Her expression was a little serious as she stared at Tang Huan with an unreadable look.

Even though Qin Su looked a little pale, Tang Huan wasn’t scared of her at all, since this was a dream. She even laughed and called out, “Senior Sister, you look so beautiful in red! It’s a shame you never wear the pretty dresses I buy for you…”

Qin Su was truly so stunning like this, but it was a shame Tang Huan could only see her this way in a dream. She couldn’t help but take another long look.

The Qin Su in the dream was as shy as she was in real life. Her expression froze for a moment at Tang Huan’s teasing. But instead of avoiding Tang Huan like she would in reality, she squatted down in front of her and spoke with a frown.

“Aren’t you the one who hates pain the most? Why didn’t you listen to me? Why did you get into such a mess just to win the competition?”

Tang Huan was startled. Her first instinct was that Qin Su had found out she was bragging. Then, remembering it was a dream, Tang Huan relaxed. She put her arm behind her head, sighed, and spoke her true feelings: “For you, and for myself.”

“For me?” Qin Su looked puzzled, her brow furrowing slightly.

“That Bai Feng! Bai Feng is always trying to harm you, and you’re so naive you don’t even know it! I can’t just stand by and watch you walk right into a trap!”

The thought of Bai Feng made Tang Huan feel irritated. She didn’t want such an annoying person to ruin this beautiful dream. Tang Huan glanced at the “naive” person in front of her and spoke again. “Anyway, it’s fine if you don’t know. I’ll always protect you…”

“So you got all bruised and battered just to follow me into the secret realm… to protect me?” Qin Su, however, seemed to be unrelenting. The look in her eyes as she stared at Tang Huan suddenly became incredibly strange.

Tang Huan didn’t know why, but under Qin Su’s stare, she suddenly felt a bit shy. She instinctively wanted to lower her head, but then she remembered this was her own dream, and her courage returned. She put a hand to her forehead and muttered softly, “Senior Sister, you’re so much better when you’re quiet! Why are you so talkative in this dream…”

Qin Su clearly heard her and raised an eyebrow. It was an expression that would never appear on Qin Su’s face in reality, but on the Qin Su in this dream, it was drop-dead gorgeous.

As Tang Huan was lost in Qin Su’s beauty, she heard her familiar, gentle voice. This time, however, there was a clear hint of coaxing in her tone.

“Junior Sister! Since you want to protect me, why not learn to use a sword with me? What do you say?”