The Villainess Always Tries to Seduce Me - Chapter 10

A cool breeze swept through the window, carrying the cries of geese returning north.

Yun Chuanzhi tugged at her collar, eyeing Ling Shui’s unnaturally flushed cheeks with suspicion. After a moment, she asked, “Sister Ling Shui, are you feeling unwell? Why is your face so red?”

“No, you must be mistaken. It’s just the reflection of the flowers,” Ling Shui replied, shaking her head.

After a pause, she couldn’t help but add softly, “You’re young and inexperienced. The Sect Leader is a cultivator, after all. When her strength rises, she might not be able to control herself around you. So, you must protect yourself and not go too far.”

As an Immortal Servant, Ling Shui shouldn’t concern herself with the Sect Leader’s affairs. But as a woman from a proper cultivation clan, she couldn’t bear to see Cui Ergou, a helpless and naive girl, facing such a situation alone.

Yun Chuanzhi finally understood. She tugged her sleeve to cover her shoulder and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Sister Ling Shui, have you misunderstood something?” Yun Chuanzhi stepped closer, her clear, black-and-white eyes meeting Ling Shui’s. “I didn’t sleep with the Sect Leader last night.”

She said it as casually as if she were saying, “I didn’t eat dinner last night.” Ling Shui’s neck flushed crimson.

“Then… that’s good.” Ling Shui coughed lightly again, her fingers gripping the edge of the table as she visibly relaxed.

“Since that’s settled, let’s eat. The Sect Leader will be cultivating on Wuwu Cliff Top this evening. As her personal Immortal Servant, you must attend him.” Ling Shui’s tone returned to its usual aloofness as she turned to leave.

Ling Shui doesn’t seem as haughty and cold as she appears, Yun Chuanzhi thought, watching her retreating figure. For now, I’ll consider her a decent person.

Today’s meal consisted of two meat dishes, one vegetarian dish, and a plate of fresh pastries. Yun Chuanzhi devoured it all in less than fifteen minutes, letting out a satisfied burp.

Cui Ergou had always been overworked and underfed, which explained her emaciated frame. Now that Yun Chuanzhi had taken over, she intended to eat and sleep properly, restoring the youthful vitality that belonged to the girl’s body.

Yun Chuanzhi was skilled in combat but clueless about grooming. She casually tied her hair into a ponytail and set off for her duties, winding through the labyrinthine corridors until she reached Bai Fenghuo’s door.

Another Immortal Servant was already standing outside, likely her shift partner. Yun Chuanzhi tiptoed over and flashed her a friendly smile.

The other servant seemed timid, keeping her eyes lowered and avoiding Yun Chuanzhi’s gaze. She merely nodded slightly.

The Immortal Servants within the sect had always harbored a degree of hostility toward her. Now, encountering someone so timid was a rare sight. Yun Chuanzhi stood her ground, repeatedly glancing at the figure across from her.

The person appeared to be around eighteen or nineteen years old, with gentle, serene features. Their lips were the color of watered cinnabar, a soft, unassuming red, making them resemble an inconspicuous apricot blossom clinging to a branch.

“Are you also Sect Leader’s personal Immortal Servant? Why haven’t I seen you before?” Yun Chuanzhi asked softly.

“I just arrived today,” the woman replied, her voice even softer, almost lost in the breeze. Yun Chuanzhi had to lean in to hear her.

So she’s the introverted type, Yun Chuanzhi thought, softening her tone. “My surname is Cui. What’s your name?”

“My surname is Pei. You can call me Xun Qian.”

Just as Yun Chuanzhi was about to strike up more conversation, an angry shout erupted from within the room, followed by the shattering of porcelain. Something had been hurled against the door, scattering shards across the floor.

Who is Bai Fenghuo arguing with now? Yun Chuanzhi peeked through the crack in the door, but only caught glimpses of fluttering purple robes.

“Shh,” Xun Qian warned, raising a finger to her lips. “Sect Leader is angry with our Sect Leader. Don’t go in.”

Sect Leader? Bai Fenghuo’s Senior Sister?

Seeing Yun Chuanzhi’s confusion, Xun Qian moved closer, her eyes lowered as she cautiously began, “The Core Sect Day at Mount Everlasting is approaching. In previous years, all Sect Leaders and their disciples would gather at the main peak to assess the disciples’ progress.”

“But this morning, news arrived from the main peak: Sect Leaders are forbidden from attending this year’s Core Sect Day. Our Sect Leader is furious about this injustice.”

“Why are Sect Leaders forbidden from attending?” Yun Chuanzhi asked.

Xun Qian glanced around nervously, shrinking her neck as she explained, “Firstly, our Sect Leader has always been at odds with the Sect Leader and the other Sect Leaders. Secondly, the Core Sect Day is meant to evaluate the Immortal Cultivators’ progress and select the most outstanding. Since the Kun Dan Sect has no disciples, we’d only be there as window dressing.”

So that’s why, Yun Chuanzhi thought. She had often heard how these Immortal Sects, striving to maintain their status in the Martial World, recruited talent annually or held competitions to strengthen their forces and vie for supremacy.

As Yun Chuanzhi pondered this, the door beside her suddenly burst open, sending a gust of wind through the room. Xun Qian immediately pulled her down to kneel.

Bai Fenghuo strode through the doorway, her cool robes brushing against Yun Chuanzhi’s lowered cheek before coming to a halt.

“You, come with me,” she commanded Xun Qian, then glared coldly at Yun Chuanzhi. “And you.”

“Clean this entire hall for me. If I return and find it still in this mess, I’ll use your head to scrub the floor.”

She led Xun Qian away, her elegant figure vanishing at the end of the corridor. Yun Chuanzhi lifted her head and glanced through the doorway, her brow furrowed deeply.

The once pristine and spacious chamber now resembled a scene ravaged by a lightning strike. The beauty couch lay shattered in two pieces, one half sprawled at the eastern end, the other embedded in the western window. The stone table had been reduced to ashes, which the wind scattered everywhere.

Not to mention the shards of broken vases, crumpled paper balls, and spilled water stains littering the floor. Yun Chuanzhi sighed resignedly and dragged her feet into the room.

She had no interest in fulfilling Cui Ergou’s dying wish, nor did she care about Mount Everlasting or Bai Fenghuo. Her only concerns were getting more sleep, eating better, and living a quiet, laid-back life as a “salted fish” who just wanted to lie flat and do nothing.

But now, the matter of awakening her spiritual root seemed urgent. If she had to do this much work every day, she’d either die at Bai Fenghuo’s hands or collapse from exhaustion in her own chamber.

Yun Chuanzhi grumbled inwardly as she swept. By the time she had painstakingly cleared away all the trash, the sun outside the window had already slanted westward.

He collapsed onto the freshly cleaned floor, gazing up at the same landscape painting that had hung there yesterday. It seemed even more beautiful and radiant than before, yet to Yun Chuanzhi’s eyes, it now appeared somewhat loathsome.

When life is hard, one has no mood to appreciate beauty.

Fortunately, most of the palace had been cleaned. Only the corner behind the screen still bore some dust stains. Yun Chuanzhi rallied her spirits, leaped to her feet, and ducked behind the screen with a rag in hand.

As she scrubbed, the sound of approaching footsteps grew louder. At first, Yun Chuanzhi paid no attention, until a gust of wind slammed open the main door, signaling Bai Fenghuo’s return.

She was accompanied by another person. The moment this person crossed the threshold, the air in the room seemed to be cleansed by a wind sweeping across a snow-covered plain, the stagnant air transforming into a crisp, invigorating scent.

“Bai Fenghuo, when will you stop acting so recklessly?” the newcomer demanded. Her voice, like her aura, carried the weight of millennia, as if drifting from an ancient glacier across the snowy wastes.

“Capricious?” Bai Fenghuo’s laughter rang out, clear and cold. Through the intricate patterns of the carved screen, Yun Chuanzhi saw her twirl, her robes billowing like a hidden purple peony, before she settled gracefully into the armchair behind her.

“Senior Sister has known my wickedness for centuries. If you’ve hated me for so long, why bother feigning such concern?” Bai Fenghuo’s face remained exquisitely beautiful, but her tone dripped with defiance. “This pretense is truly nauseating.”

Senior Sister? Yun Chuanzhi realized. This must be Bai Xiaochen, the current Sect Leader of Mount Everlasting, as the rumors claim.

Oh no, I’ve overheard a secret.

The usual fate for eavesdroppers like her was either a beating to death or a beating to death. Yun Chuanzhi gripped the handkerchief in her hand, torn between fleeing and remaining hidden.

But wait… these two are among the most powerful cultivators in the world. How haven’t they noticed I’m here?!

“Bai Fenghuo,” Bai Xiaochen enunciated her name heavily, her voice trembling with barely suppressed rage. “I believed you were wronged in the past and never blamed you again. But why have you become this way? How can you face Master after betraying her teachings?!”

Bai Fenghuo scoffed. “Never blamed me? You blamed me plenty! That night of torture nearly killed me. Did you ever even visit me once?”

“You’ve always believed I killed Master, haven’t you? Stop pretending otherwise.”

Bai Fenghuo seemed intent on provoking Bai Xiaochen, her smile growing brighter and more radiant. “Senior Sister is right. I’m no longer the Bai Fenghuo you knew. Now, I kill every day—I can’t find peace without it. And I’ve long abandoned cultivation. I keep hundreds of beauties in the sect, indulging in pleasure day and night…”

Before she could finish, Bai Xiaochen’s sword tip pierced toward Bai Fenghuo. Without attempting to block, Bai Fenghuo leaned into the attack, the blade grazing her cheek and leaving a crimson gash across her delicate skin.

The fading sunlight cast a warm, gilded glow on the tips of her hair, yet the scene carried an indescribable sorrow.

Bai Xiaochen’s sword strike, imbued with spiritual energy, sent a gust of wind that toppled the screen in the corner, abruptly exposing Yun Chuanzhi, who was clutching a handkerchief, to their gazes.

Now that I’ve seen Bai Fenghuo get hurt, I’ll definitely be silenced today.

“Sect Leader, have you eaten?” Yun Chuanzhi finally managed to squeeze out a greeting after a long silence.

Then, she tugged at the corners of her lips, forcing a smile even more desolate than Bai Fenghuo’s.