The Sickly Beauty and Her Guide Leopard - Chapter 10

“Don’t be so serious,” Jian Li said, feeling uncomfortable under Yan Qingshuang’s intense gaze. “I can’t think of anything right now. Why are you in such a hurry?”

Yan Qingshuang replied, “I thought you wanted something.”

“What I want, you can’t give me right now.”

Jian Li longed to lie flat and live a life of lazy, salted-fish leopard existence.

Put simply, preventing Yan Qingshuang from going astray was her greatest need.

Yan Qingshuang fell silent, her long lashes drooping.

After a long pause, her pale lips parted slightly. “Wait for me.”

“Huh?”

“A drop of kindness deserves a spring of gratitude, let alone a life-saving debt.”

Jian Li nodded. “You understand gratitude. Your character is good. I’ll treat you well in the future.”

Yan Qingshuang paused, then fell silent.

Jian Li assumed she was just shy, secretly pleased with her own talent for giving compliments.

Soon, the Celestial Crane delivered them to the medical hall on Wending Peak.

In the distance, the mountains, rocks, grass, and trees bloomed in vibrant profusion, a breathtaking sight.

Jian Li took a deep breath, inhaling the fragrant air. “It smells so wonderful here! Can flower scents really travel this far?”

Yan Qingshuang finished tying her white veil.

With her senses heightened, she heard Jian Li’s pink Little Leopard nose twitching incessantly.

“It’s probably the alchemist making scented pills. Many of the Senior Sisters like them.”

Jian Li: “The alchemist’s job covers quite a wide range.”

Yan Qingshuang: “Do you want one?”

“What would I need that for? Do I smell bad?”

“Not at all. You smell lovely.”

Jian Li gave her a curious look. “What scent? I can’t smell it myself.”

Yan Qingshuang smiled enigmatically and retrieved a bamboo staff from her Storage Ring. “Let’s go.”

Perplexed, Jian Li bit down on the bamboo staff. “You can’t just leave me hanging like that! Tell me!”

Yan Qingshuang shook her head. “You’ll be upset.”

“I promise I won’t get angry.”

Yan Qingshuang rotated the bamboo staff. Jian Li gripped it tightly, whimpering.

“Careful with your teeth. I’ll tell you, then.”

Suddenly, a commotion erupted nearby. Several Green-Robed Cultivators rushed out of a building.

Then—

BOOM!!!

Jian Li’s fur stood on end, and she let out a startled cry.

She looked toward the explosion. A massive hole had been blasted through the roof, and a gray mushroom cloud billowed above it.

“Where did that nuclear blast come from?!”

Yan Qingshuang: “A failed alchemy attempt. Let’s go.”

“You’re taking this way too calmly,” Jian Li said, still shaken.

From the gloriously sacrificed building emerged a cultivator covered in ash and dust.

Jian Li’s eyes met his by chance. The man smiled warmly and waved, exhaling a puff of ash.

Social anxiety intensifies.

Jian Li pressed close to Yan Qingshuang, ducking her head and hurrying away.

The Medicine Hall was bustling with activity today.

Jian Li had to tuck her tail into her mouth to avoid becoming a free mop.

Gossip spread like wildfire on Jianxing Peak. Nearly the entire Sect now knew that Yan Qingshuang had not only lost her cultivation but had also framed her own fiancée.

Everywhere they went, they were met with vile accusations. The worst of them branded Yan Qingshuang a “cursed lone star.”

Jian Li glared at one person, then whirled to glare at another, her eyes darting back and forth.

“Little Shuang, they’re bullying you! Are you just going to stand there and take it?”

“Everything can be fabricated. Arguing is pointless.”

She had a point.

Jian Li couldn’t understand. Even if Yan Qingshuang had used others as human shields in a life-or-death situation, why was she being universally condemned?

Moreover, Yan Qingshuang was completely innocent.

The more Jian Li thought about it, the more indignant she became. She charged toward the group of people who had been the most vicious in their criticism.

“You’re all being too harsh! It’s not like she threw you to the Monster Beasts! What right do you have to insult her like this?”

She felt that merely arguing back wasn’t enough.

Aowu bared his fangs, his eyes burning with ferocious intent. His beastly body lowered into a hunting stance.

Jian Li had forgotten that this was the Tianyan Sect, a place teeming with powerful cultivators where disciples naturally held the arrogant belief that the weak were beneath contempt.

The person she had confronted only heard her mewling. Unfazed, he sneered, “Haha, where did Yan Qingshuang pick up this little beast? You’re just a blind cripple now. Looks like this little mutt is blind too—what future does it have following you?”

Yan Qingshuang didn’t have time to stop Jian Li. Unable to see the man’s face, she couldn’t accurately assess the situation.

Her steps quickened, and in her haste, a busybody struck out, severing half of her Bamboo Staff.

Yan Qingshuang paused, her gauze-covered eyes turning.

The busybody felt a chilling aura emanating from her gaze. Swallowing nervously, she stammered, “I-I didn’t mean to!”

Yan Qingshuang ignored her, discarding the useless Bamboo Staff.

She knelt beside Jian Li, crouching down to stroke her fur.

“Xiao Li, let’s go get you treated first, okay?”

Jian Li suddenly remembered: Yan Qingshuang was covered in both fresh and old wounds.

Jian Li finally calmed her aura, lifted her small head, and declared earnestly, “Little Shuang, from now on, I’ll make them all look at you with new eyes.”

Yan Qingshuang replied softly, “Alright.”

Jian Li repeated emphatically, “I mean it. I swear.”

Yan Qingshuang nodded. “I believe you.”

“I’m too weak to move… Can you get up on your own?”

Jian Li sprang to her feet. “I’m so sorry! I’ll take you to the apothecary right away.”

With that, Jian Li huffed fiercely at the onlookers who had been mocking them.

A smug voice echoed from above.

“Senior Sister, you’ve arrived.”

All eyes turned to a familiar figure. Jian Li frowned—Du Xiaqing was here too, her leg wrapped in white silk. If only I’d used a more expensive talisman to deal with her, Jian Li thought bitterly.

She grumbled to Yan Qingshuang, “What rotten luck.”

Du Xiaqing sneered at Jian Li but warned Yan Qingshuang, “Senior Sister, the owner of a beast is responsible for controlling it. Letting it run wild only proves that the upper beam is crooked, and the lower beam follows suit.”

“Did you eat sh1t for breakfast?!” Jian Li snapped, her fury blazing. To the others, her anger sounded like playful teasing.

Someone even dared to tug her tail!

Jian Li whirled around and clamped her tail in her mouth.

Yan Qingshuang, who had been soothing Jian Li, finally lifted her gaze from beneath her veil. Her voice was calm but firm as she addressed Du Xiaqing, “Junior Sister, please know when to stop.”

Du Xiaqing pointed at her leg. “适可而止? Senior Sister, what kind of beast did this to me? I’m not even asking you to cover the medical expenses, out of respect for our years of sisterly camaraderie.”

Yan Qingshuang: “How much? I’ll pay.”

Du Xiaqing: “Ten thousand Spirit Stones!”

The crowd erupted in murmurs, exchanging shocked glances.

“That’s highway robbery!” someone whispered. “Even if we multiplied the cost of leg treatment tenfold, it wouldn’t reach that amount.”

“Exactly! I could sell myself and still not be worth that much.”

“Could Yan Qingshuang have done something unspeakable to her Junior Sister?”

Most of the onlookers, all disciples under He Guhua, were eager to witness the internal conflict.

Du Xiaqing remained unfazed, declaring, “Don’t jump to conclusions! This money was owed to me anyway. She squandered her resources, borrowing from me to buy Heavenly Treasures and Earthly Riches.”

The crowd understood immediately. No wonder Yan Qingshuang always won first place in the Annual Sect Competitions.

With Spirit Stones, Magic Artifacts, and her Demonic Bone Bloodline, her dominance was undeniable.

The crowd’s opinion shifted unanimously, expressing disdain for Yan Qingshuang.

Du Xiaqing leaned down toward Yan Qingshuang and Jian Li. “Senior Sister, who told your little beast to attack me? It’s a Monster Beast, after all. You wouldn’t want the others here to find out about that, would you?”

Tears welled up in Jian Li’s eyes. Having been an orphan since childhood, she had always been looked down upon.

Even if she made a mistake by accident, the people around her would ostracize her, thinking she was an orphan with no proper upbringing.

Jian Li felt wronged, her fluffy fur damp with tears, but she still bit her tail, mumbling incoherently, “Mmph… Mmph…”

Yan Qingshuang understood she was calling for her. She stood up, facing Du Xiaqing, and said coldly, “Junior Sister, I’ll give you the money later. Can you move aside now?”

Du Xiaqing’s gaze fell on Yan Qingshuang’s white veil, confirming she was truly blind. She said magnanimously, “I’ll move, I’ll move right away.”

She stepped forward, deliberately stomping her cloud-patterned boots on the fleshy paw where Jian Li wore her bracelet.

“Ah!!!”

Jian Li let out a sharp, piercing yelp of pain, the bell on her bracelet jingling.

Yan Qingshuang scooped her up into her arms, cradling her and gently massaging her injured paw.

Du Xiaqing feigned an apologetic smile. “Senior Sister, my eyes haven’t been good lately. Unlike you, who’s been blind for years, I’m not used to it. I’m so sorry for stepping on your spirit beast.”

Is that really an apology or just deliberate malice? Jian Li thought bitterly. Everyone here is heartless, indifferent to others’ suffering, and unable to distinguish right from wrong.

No one would stand up for them.