In the silver light of the half moon, the two girls flew back on their swords to the Heavenly Cloud Peak .
Then, Xiao Yunluo went to her house and brought back some pastries and sour plum juice.
The two sat at the stone table in the courtyard and ate silently for a while.
After some time, Xiao Yunluo spoke. "Lianxue, what on earth is going on with you and your brother?"
"Well... I was brought into the Hundred Lotus Sect by the Patriarch. I grew up with my brother from a very young age, so we could be considered childhood... friends."
"Then, what about what you said, that your brother beat you and poisoned you?"
"That was cultivation." Pei Lianxue pursed her lips and continued. "Brother said it would be very helpful for my cultivation."
"Cultivation?" Xiao Yunluo was surprised, as she never heard of that kind of cultivation method. "But won't you get hurt that way?"
"With brother around, he won't let me die." Pei Lianxue said proudly.
"..."
"No matter what, brother won't let me out of his sight. Once he saw that I couldn't take it anymore, he would come to save me, and a few times, he almost lost his life trying to save me... Brother loves me very much."
Xiao Yunluo wanted to say that she couldn't understand it at all, but looking at Pei Lianxue's eyes, she could feel that she genuinely seemed to believe this.
In fact, over the past few days, she had sneaked over from time to time to observe Pei Lianxue practicing with the sword.
She wanted to know why Pei Lianxue was so much better than her. Although she was younger and her spiritual root was weaker than hers, when that group of people attacked them, she was able to remain calm and without fear, and her sword skills were far superior to hers.
In the past, she used to be quite proud and satisfied with her cultivation achievements.
The elders praised her.
Her fellow disciples said she was a genius.
And she also never slacked off.
Be it sword skills, cultivation, crafting talismans, or spells, her grades in the Black Star were among the best, and these were the results she had obtained in exams with cultivators ten or twenty years older than her.
Even searching among all the Immortal Sects, she was still the best.
There really weren't many people who were able to achieve perfection in the Qi Refining stage at the age of fifteen.
That was until Pei Lianxue and Feng Yu Die appeared.
"Well... And other than that? How else did you train before?"
"Hmm... Brother helped me unblock my meridians and forge my bones by breaking them, applying ointment, and putting them back again. He said that would make the bones and tendons more flexible and stronger."
"What?!"
Xiao Yunluo frowned. She originally wanted to practice according to Pei Lianxue's method, but just hearing it, she felt terrified.
Biting her lip, she asked, "Then, why did you lie to me that your brother is bad?"
At this question, Pei Lianxue suddenly blushed, and for a moment, she did not know what to say. Xiao Yunluo's gaze made her flustered.
Finally, after hesitating for a while, Pei Lianxue simply spoke bluntly.
"I was worried... that you would steal my brother from me."
?
"Huh?"
Pei Lianxue frowned, took a deep breath, stared at her, and said earnestly, "You're the Young Lady of the Black Star Sect. You're rich, you're beautiful, and you're also a heavenly spiritual root. Not like me... who has no background, and on top of that, I owe my brother so much money."
"..."
"Besides... It's not the first time. That second idiot wanted to steal my brother before. She flirted with him several times when she was in the Hundred Lotus Sect, and they even met secretly behind my back."
Xiao Yunluo looked at her and said softly, "Lianxue, could it be that..."
"What?"
"You like your brother?"
"..."
Taken aback, Pei Lianxue lowered her eyes and twirled a strand of her hair around her finger.
She nodded slightly.
Then, she shook her head.
Finally, she nodded again.
Xiao Yunluo wanted to laugh for a moment, seeing her confused look.
"Is that why you lied to me?"
"Yes, because I didn't want you to get close to my brother."
Xiao Yunluo said with a sigh of relief, "I won't steal your brother."
"But... what if my brother falls in love with you?"
"Then, I'll make it clear to him that he already has you."
"Ah?!" Pei Lianxue was startled and quickly waved her hands. "You can't say that..."
"Why?"
"...Sentiments are only meaningful if you express them in person." Pei Lianxue seemed to have some groundless fears and whispered. "I don't need anyone else to express my feelings. I understand my brother, and he understands me. We understand each other... I think."
"..."
"And brother certainly doesn't have much time to think about marrying me now. You mustn't say that to him!"
With a serious frown, Pei Lianxue brought her face closer and threatened, "No talking, got it? Our chat tonight will be our secret."
"..."
Xiao Yunluo shrank her neck and giggled, feeling that she looked so cute that she could not associate her with the Pei Lianxue, who killed the Seven Slayers thugs during the previous physical examination.
"Pfft---"
Pei Lianxue frowned and said severely, "What are you laughing at? Did you hear what I said?!"
"I heard you." Xiao Yunluo smiled and extended her right hand. "Pinky promise, I won't tell anyone what we discussed tonight."
Pei Lianxue reached out as well and crossed her little finger with Xiao Yunluo's.
The two hooked their right-hand pinkies and shook them.
After that, Xiao Yunluo took a sip of her sour plum juice and asked, "Do you want me to help you?"
"Help me with what?"
"Help you find out what your brother thinks of you."
"No need... I know what he's thinking." After a pause, Pei Lianxue reiterated. "You are not allowed to tell him."
"If you don't want me to do it, I won't."
Xiao Yunluo shrugged, then looked up at the sky and saw that the moon was about a quarter of the way, so she stood up.
"Well, it's getting late, so I'll go back to rest, and you should do the same. Save these pastries, you can eat them for breakfast tomorrow morning."
"Alright."
Watching Xiao Yunluo walk out of the courtyard, Pei Lianxue breathed a sigh of relief. She paused to look at the unfinished pastries on the table and grabbed a basket from the kitchen to put them in, thinking of sharing them with her brother in the morning.
Originally, she was going to take a quick bath and go to bed, but looking at the stars in the sky, she suddenly thought of Ye Anping, wrapped in bandages all over.
Her brother had protected her since she was little, but now he couldn't even defeat her.
So...
Now, it was her turn to protect her defenseless brother.
But, her current abilities were not enough.
Pei Lianxue stood there, hesitating for a moment, then went back to the house to take her sword, went to the bamboo grove next to the courtyard, and started to practice.
No matter what, she wanted to be a sister who could protect her elder brother.
Swish---
The silver light of the sword traced a curved arc in the bamboo forest.
The same action was repeated over and over again.
The only sounds left in the bamboo forest were the sword swishing through the air and the even, rhythmic breathing.
"Hiss-whoo-"
Before long, Pei Lianxue's shirt, which had already dried out, was once again drenched in her sweat. Her waist-length black hair danced lightly with her movements, and because of the sweat beads on it, it glowed crystal clear in the moonlight.
She was probably too focused on her sword practice because she never noticed that there was a girl in the pavilion about thirty feet away who had been staring at her from the beginning to the end.