Chapter 21: Dogs Barking

Chapter 21: Chapter 21: Dogs Barking

"Well, well." The young girl folded her arms across her chest, her lips curling into a mocking smile. "I heard a certain someone finally crawled back to the sect. What? Didn’t learn your lesson last time?"

The moment those words left her mouth, Sui Sui immediately recognized her.

Chu Ran.

Standing behind her were several disciples who clearly sided with her, all looking at him with unconcealed disdain.

"What is someone like him doing back here?"

"A cultivation waste entering the Wenjian Sect through family connections is already embarrassing enough."

"Just looking at this sissy hurts my eyes."

One insult followed another without restraint, as though they had long been waiting for the chance to vent their contempt.

Listening to their jeers, Sui Sui felt a vein twitch at his temple.

So this was how they had treated the original Bai Sui Sui. Mocking him. Isolating him. Picking on someone who couldn’t fight back.

Truly...They were no better than beasts.

"What’s this?" Sui Sui casually brushed a few leaves from his sleeve before looking up at the group, his expression calm and unhurried. "Ganging up on a single disciple just to bully him? How low can you be, Chu Ran?"

His voice wasn’t loud, yet it carried clearly through the quiet pathway.

"I always believed the Wenjian Sect accepted disciples based on talent and character." A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Today, however, it seems the requirements have changed. As long as one knows how to bark, one can become an inner disciple."

The expressions of everyone present immediately darkened.

"What did you just say, you piece of trash?" one disciple snapped, taking a step forward.

Sui Sui merely glanced at him before giving a small nod, as though coming to a realization.

"I see." His smile widened ever so slightly. "The sect truly is generous. Even the watchdogs get to wear inner disciple robes these days."

"You—!"

The disciple’s face instantly turned red with anger.

Before he could retort, Chu Ran coldly stepped forward.

"Watch your words, you waste!" Chu Ran snapped, her eyes flashing with anger. "You’re nothing but a low-level trash. Don’t think that just because you cling to Senior Brother Yizhou he’ll ever like you. A sissy like you doesn’t deserve to stand beside him, so stop shamelessly following him around."

"Oh? Is that so?" Sui Sui replied calmly, showing no trace of anger.

He tilted his head slightly, looking at Chu Ran with an innocent expression.

"Then tell me, what exactly is the difference between you and me?" he asked. "Aren’t you also following Senior Brother Yizhou around every single day? You speak as though you’re somehow above me, yet you’re doing exactly the same thing."

He paused deliberately before delivering the final blow.

"The only difference is that Senior Brother Yizhou is willing to indulge me."

A faint smile slowly spread across Sui Sui’s face.

"As for you..." he said leisurely, "I’m afraid he probably doesn’t even remember your name."

The smile on Chu Ran’s face instantly stiffened.

As someone who had read the novel, Sui Sui knew exactly where to strike.

In the original story, every time Chu Ran approached Yizhou, he would calmly ask for her name as though they had never met before. It wasn’t because he had truly forgotten.

Rather, the reborn Yizhou simply couldn’t be bothered to remember someone so insignificant to him. Deliberately pretending not to recognize her was his way of embarrassing her enough that she would leave of her own accord.

For someone as proud and arrogant as Chu Ran, there was no humiliation greater than being treated as though she didn’t even deserve to be remembered.

"You... you—" Chu Ran’s face alternated between red and pale before finally twisting in fury.

"Get him!" she shouted through clenched teeth. "Teach this trash a lesson!"

The disciples behind her immediately sprang into action. Several of them rushed toward Sui Sui at once, grabbing both of his arms before he even had the chance to dodge. Their grips were anything but gentle, forcefully twisting his arms behind his back.

Sui Sui couldn’t help but wince, he could already tell that the places where they were holding him would be covered in bruises later.

He hadn’t expected Chu Ran to be this brazen.

Attacking a fellow disciple in broad daylight, without even attempting to conceal it...It seemed he had truly struck a nerve this time.

Watching Sui Sui struggle under the restraint of several disciples, Chu Ran slowly revealed a cruel smile.

Today, she would make this fool pay for daring to humiliate her. Just as she was about to step forward, a cold voice suddenly interrupted the scene.

"Who dares make trouble within the Medicine Herb Garden?" The atmosphere froze instantly. The expressions of every disciple changed as a stern voice echoed from deeper within the valley.

"What are all of you doing?" An elderly man dressed in plain gray robes slowly emerged along the stone pathway, his hands clasped behind his back. His pace was neither hurried nor slow, yet every step seemed to carry an invisible pressure that weighed upon everyone’s shoulders, forcing the surrounding disciples to instinctively lower their heads.

It was the elder responsible for overseeing the Spirit Herb Garden.

Elder Jingyan.

His sharp eyes swept across the scene before lingering on Chu Ran’s hand, which still rested on the hilt of her whip. His gaze then shifted to Sui Sui, whose arms were still firmly restrained by three disciples.

"So..." Elder Jingyan said calmly, his expression unreadable. "Since when has the Spirit Herb Garden become a place for settling personal grudges?" Although his tone remained even, the displeasure hidden beneath it was unmistakable.

Chu Ran’s face immediately turned pale. No matter how prestigious the Chu Family was, she was still only an inner disciple before an elder of Wenjian Sect. She didn’t dare show the slightest disrespect.

"E-Elder..." she stammered as she hurriedly bowed. "You’ve misunderstood. We were only—"

"Oh?" Elder Jingyan interrupted before she could finish, his eyes narrowed slightly. "You’re still attempting to lie in front of this old man?"

The simple question caused everyone’s hearts to tighten and silence fell over the group.

"The sect rules clearly forbid disciples from fighting one another within the sect grounds," Elder Jingyan continued. "Have the teachings of the Hall of Discipline become nothing more than decorations in your eyes?"

Several disciples immediately broke out in cold sweat. Even those who had merely stood by lowered their heads, not daring to meet the elder’s gaze.

Chu Ran clenched her fists inside her sleeves. Keeping a clean disciplinary record was extremely important for disciples who wished to compete for better opportunities within the sect. The last thing she wanted was to be summoned before the Hall of Discipline.

Suppressing the humiliation in her heart, she lowered her head even further. "This disciple knows her mistake," she said through gritted teeth. "It will not happen again."

"You know it now," Elder Jingyan replied with a cold snort. "Unfortunately, you didn’t know about it a moment ago." With a flick of his sleeve, a faint wave of spiritual pressure swept over the group. "Leave."

No one dared move, Elder Jingyan slowly raised an eyebrow. "Or..." he asked lightly, "would you prefer this old man personally escort all of you to the Hall of Discipline?"

That single sentence shattered whatever courage they had left. Chu Ran bit her lower lip until it nearly bled before finally bowing once more.

"This disciple... will take her leave." She turned and began walking away with the others. As she passed by Sui Sui, however, her footsteps paused ever so slightly. Without turning her head, she spoke in a voice only he could hear.

"Enjoy your good fortune while it lasts."

Her tone was soft, yet every word dripped with unconcealed resentment.

Sui Sui merely smiled, he had originally intended to throw another sarcastic remark her way, but the throbbing pain in his arms reminded him that now probably wasn’t the best time. He quietly rubbed the sore spot instead, unable to stop himself from wincing.

Seeing that Sui Sui had no intention of provoking her further, Chu Ran let out a cold snort before sweeping her sleeve behind her and the group quickly disappeared down the mountain path.

Only after they were gone did the Spirit Herb Garden regain its former tranquility, the air once again filled with the gentle fragrance of medicinal herbs as though the disturbance had never happened.

Sui Sui slowly pushed himself up from the ground, ignoring the dull ache in his arms. After straightening his robes as best as he could, he respectfully cupped his fists toward the elderly man and bowed.

"This disciple, Sui Sui, thanks Elder for your timely assistance." His voice was sincere, carrying none of the fear or flattery that many disciples unconsciously displayed before an elder. "If there is ever anything this disciple can do to repay today’s kindness, please feel free to summon me at the probationary disciples’ quarters."

Elder Jingyan did not answer immediately, Instead, he quietly studied the young man standing before him.

His weathered eyes, sharpened by decades of experience, carefully observed Sui Sui from head to toe. It was as though he were weighing something in his mind, deciding whether the youth before him was suitable for a certain matter.

The silence stretched for several breaths and only then did Elder Jingyan slowly open his mouth.

"You." His voice remained as calm as ever. "Do you know how to read and write?"

The unexpected question caught Sui Sui completely off guard, he blinked in confusion, unable to understand why the elder would suddenly ask such a thing. Still, he answered honestly without the slightest hesitation.

"This disciple does."

A hint of satisfaction flashed across Elder Jingyan’s eyes before disappearing just as quickly.

"Good." He turned around, clasping his hands behind his back once more. "Follow this old man."

Without waiting for Sui Sui’s response, he began walking deeper into the Spirit Herb Garden.

"I have a task for you."

His tone was calm and matter-of-fact, as though he had already decided that Sui Sui would accept, Sui Sui exchanged a puzzled glance with the retreating figure before quickly following after him, curiosity quietly stirring in his heart.