Chapter 54

This period has been quite turbulent for the Flower Pavilion. First, numerous shocking scandals about the sect’s higher-ups were exposed one after another, and now, it was revealed that the pavilion’s public image had suffered a blow.

After seeing the latest post from Melon Mover, the younger disciples of the sect couldn’t help but gossip about the matter in private.

“The True Monarch actually…”

“Shh… talking about this, are you courting death?”

“We’re just talking privately, what’s the harm?”

“I really didn’t expect it; the True Monarch… no wonder he didn’t accept the Goddess of Peach when she directly expressed her interest in him.”

“He must have felt conflicted and troubled deep inside. After all, it was the Goddess of Peach. But who would have thought…”

As the disciples whispered among themselves, a strong fluctuation of spiritual energy suddenly erupted from the mountain where Gou Chen resided.

This energy fluctuation was so intense that, in the blink of an eye, it flattened half of the mountain peak. The immortal trees, strange landscapes, and rare flowers were all instantly reduced to dust.

The entire Flower Pavilion fell into a deathly silence.

Several minutes later, the air still carried the oppressive aura left behind by the True Monarch’s move, which lingered for a long time, making everyone’s hearts tremble.

The disciples were shaking in fear, unable to stop speculating about the True Monarch’s thoughts.

Could it be that the True Monarch’s sore spot had been touched, which was why he had flown into such a rage?

—

In fact, Gou Chen had just received a transmission from the Goddess of Peach.

Her tone was as it had been before, even softer, with an unexpected hint of pity she wasn’t even aware of. “Gou Chen, I have forgiven you for rejecting me back then.”

She had held a grudge against Gou Chen for a long time. Had she known about this matter earlier, she should have let go of her feelings long ago.

After hearing the transmission, Gou Chen gently crushed the jade tablet in his hand, turning it into powder.

His tone was cold, “Melon Mover at the Qi Refining Stage, huh…”

The named “Melon Mover” was currently rushing toward the center of the secret realm with her team.

Just a few minutes ago, a burst of intense light had erupted from the center of the secret realm. The light was so striking in the night sky, lingering for several minutes before disappearing.

Most of the disciples inside the secret realm should have rushed in that direction.

Not long after Ning Xu and her team had left, they heard the sound of fighting coming from the right.

Though she didn’t intend to get involved, the Melon-Eating System suddenly spoke up, saying, 【Host, help her out.】

Ning Xu muttered, “Suddenly so kind?” as she threw several explosive talismans in that direction.

The Melon-Eating System chuckled, 【This is quite the spectacle.】

Ning Xu, “???”

The several cultivators who had attempted to ambush the female cultivator were injured by the explosion talismans. They immediately took healing pills and shouted angrily, “Who did this?”

What answered them was Ning Xu’s “Star Reversal” technique, which she had been practicing for the past few hours.

The power of the stars struck them with thunderous speed. Just as the sword Qi was about to reach them, it exploded violently, and the silver starlight transformed into the deadliest air blades, passing through their bodies.

In an instant, three attackers: one dead, two injured.

The two surviving cultivators, seeing they were no match for the opponent, glared at Ning Xu with resentment before reluctantly retreating.

After they left, the injured female cultivator cupped her fists and said to Ning Xu, “I am Xin Kui from the Cloud Summit, thank you for your help, fellow Daoist.”

Xin Kui?

Ning Xu asked the Melon-Eating System, “Who is this? She looks familiar.”

The Melon-Eating System quickly explained, 【She is the senior sister of Cloud Summit, a huge unlucky person.】

【The reason she looks familiar is because you saw her on the statue in the cave earlier.】

Ning Xu understood. So she was the cultivator who had been recognized as a genius by the Tianya realm.

She returned the gesture and said, “You’re too kind, fellow Daoist. I’m Ning Xu of the Wenxin Sect. These are my teammates.”

Then, she asked the Melon-Eating System, “Why did you say she’s a huge unlucky person?”

The Melon-Eating System clicked its tongue, explaining, 【When she was young, she unknowingly consumed a Grade 8 spiritual herb. Speaking of which, her luck is really strong; she managed to stumble upon a Grade 8 spiritual herb. She thought it was just some random weed at the time.】

【It’s infuriating! That Grade 8 spiritual herb has now disappeared from this small world. The last one was wasted by her!】

Ning Xu, “…”

“And then?”

The Melon-Eating System continued, 【After consuming that herb, some strange changes happened to her body.】

【Her flesh and blood now have the ability to heal others, to restore them from near death.】

Xin Kui: ???

Ning Xu and the others: !!!

This truly was the cultivation world—anything could happen.

Ning Xu asked a crucial question, “Does she know about this?”

【She probably doesn’t know.】

【She has no idea about her current situation. She’s a complete and utterly silly .】

For the first time being called a silly, Cloud Summit’s senior sister was: …

She lowered her head and looked at the ground, her expression thoughtful.

When she was young, she had indeed eaten some withered grass. At that time, she had already been starving for three days and was desperate enough to eat anything.

After eating that withered grass, her hunger disappeared. At the time, she didn’t think much of it, but now looking back, it did seem a bit unusual.

Ning Xu, “So what does this have to do with her being a huge unlucky person?”

The Melon-Eating System leisurely said, 【She unknowingly became the sect’s blood bank for more than a decade. Isn’t that a huge unlucky person?】

Ning Xu: !!!

More than a decade as a blood bank?

She glanced at Xin Kui.

The senior sister looked pale, as though drained of blood, though that could also be related to her recent injuries.

The Melon-Eating System continued to spill the gossip, 【The three cultivators who ambushed her just now weren’t random people trying to kill for treasure; they were sent by her sect.】

What kind of grudge was this?

“Why?” Ning Xu couldn’t help but ask.

Yes, Xin Kui also wanted to know why.

The Melon-Eating System naturally answered, 【Because the Universal Healing Blood is running out and needs to be replenished.】

【But, they can’t let anyone from the sect take action, as it would alert her, so they had to send others to do the job.】

The Melon-Eating System chuckled wickedly, 【After leaving the secret realm, you probably won’t see her again.】

Ning Xu continued toward the center of the secret realm with her teammates, asking, “What do you mean?”

【As she gets older, Cloud Summit worries they won’t be able to fully control her, and they’re afraid she’ll discover the truth. Therefore, several insiders from Cloud Summit have already decided to imprison her.】

Xin Kui’s footsteps slightly paused.

The Wine Immortal smiled and looked at her, saying, “Friend, watch your step.”

Xin Kui, her thoughts in turmoil, replied, “Okay.”

【So…】

Ning Xu’s spirits slightly lifted as she asked, “What?”

The Melon-Eating System replied confidently, 【So, while she hasn’t been imprisoned yet, host, you should remember to get more Universal Healing Blood. You never know when this thing might save a life.】

Ning Xu sighed, “Your tone really sounds like a villain.”

The Melon-Eating System, unfazed, replied, 【Well, she’s been a blood pack for so many years. What’s the harm in her providing us a little more?

Cloud Summit has only ever used her, whereas we did save her life. Without us, she wouldn’t just have been injured; she would have died.

Her sect has treated her ruthlessly, taking advantage of her resilience.

Compared to that, we’re only asking for a bit of Universal Healing Blood. We’re practically too kind.】

The group remained silent.

System, what misconceptions do you have about yourself?

Kindness?

Only the system would describe itself this way.

Ning Xu ignored the Melon-Eating System’s suggestion, as she couldn’t get past this emotional hurdle.

She asked, “How old is she? After all these years, didn’t she notice anything unusual?”

The Melon-Eating System answered slowly, 【She is fifteen years old. When she took the spiritual herb, she was four, and not long after, she was taken as a disciple by the youngest elder of Cloud Summit Sect. It’s been eleven years since then.】

Ning Xu exclaimed, “Fifteen!”

In the world where she once lived, this senior sister would still be a minor, but she had already been a blood pack for over ten years.

【She’s young, and her sect deceived her, so she might not have realized the truth. However, Cloud Summit Sect’s flaws are already too obvious. As long as she thinks about it more, there’s no way she hasn’t noticed something wrong.】

In the end, it was because she refused to think badly about the people she trusted.

To Xin Kui, the sect had given her a home, and her fellow disciples felt like family.

How could she ever think that her own family would covet her blood and flesh?

While they chatted away, the group had already approached the center of the secret realm.

At the center, several light gates appeared. These gates were transparent, glowing with golden light, and intricate, strange patterns adorned the golden light. The group could not see what lay beyond them.

Around them, no one else was in sight.

Ning Xu asked, “What’s inside?”

The Melon-Eating System replied excitedly, 【For others, it’s full of killing intent, but for us, it’s an opportunity.】

Ning Xu looked at her teammates, “Shall we go in?”

The teammates exchanged glances. Since they had come this far, they naturally wanted to see what was inside.

The Melon-Eating System casually added, 【Good luck to them.】

Ning Xu noticed something off in that statement. The system was an inorganic lifeform, and it only acted based on eating melon and benefiting itself.

It couldn’t be said that it had no feelings for these teammates, but if it did, they were few and far between.

She reminded them, “Be extra careful once you go in.”

“Got it!”

As Ning Xu stepped into the light gate, the wooden token given by Elder Wu Chi Chun cracked loudly and shattered instantly.

This token was capable of withstanding a full strike from a Nascent Soul cultivator!

Her heart skipped a beat.

She couldn’t help but wonder how her teammates were faring now. Fortunately, other than the Wine Immortal, the rest of them had the wooden tokens.

She looked at the shards scattered on the ground and asked the Melon-Eating System, “What was that?”

The Melon-Eating System’s tone had become more serious, “A killing strike from the void.”

Finally, it wasn’t pretending to be dead like usual.

Ning Xu glanced around and noticed that her teammates had once again dispersed.

At that moment, she found herself in a blood-colored space, surrounded by countless white bones. The air was thick with the stench of blood. Both the oppressive environment and the bloodstained bones filled her with unease.

As she walked forward, Ning Xu suddenly felt something was amiss.

It seemed like there was something extra in her disciple’s robe.

She took it out and found it was a ceramic bottle.

“What is this?”

【Before entering the light gate, Xin Kui put it on you.】

Ning Xu tightly gripped the ceramic bottle, her suspicions growing.

“Universal Healing Blood?”

【Yes.】

Ning Xu was stunned, “Why did she give me this?”

The Melon-Eating System replied nonchalantly, 【It’s probably a gift. You did save her life, after all. It wouldn’t be right if she didn’t express her gratitude.

She’s quite generous, even though she’s already weak, she still gave you a lot. No one else got any, only you did.

This senior sister is truly sincere.】

By the end, there was a hint of admiration in the system’s voice. It liked this kind of straightforward person; the more the better.

Ning Xu sighed.

Unfortunately, the Universal Healing Blood couldn’t be placed in the “Three Thousand Realms Cultivator Exchange Area,” otherwise this senior sister would attract the envy of countless cultivators. She would have to find way to help her.

The Melon-Eating System muttered, 【I hope she doesn’t get imprisoned.】

Ning Xu agreed, “Indeed.”

A kind-hearted girl like her should be treated well by this world.

Just as she finished speaking, the Melon-Eating System added, 【If she gets imprisoned, then we won’t get any benefits.

Such life-saving items are never too much!】

Ning Xu, “…” She really shouldn’t have any expectations from the Melon-Eating System!