Chapter 106 - 70: 3 Days, 90 Years!

Chapter 106: Chapter 70: 3 Days, 90 Years!

Late at night, in the Patrol Disciples’ dormitory on Bamboo Forest Peak.

Mu Xiaoyu lay in her bed. The Female Cultivator from Huang Bamboo Temple who had arranged her accommodation seemed to have looked out for her, specifically assigning her to this four-person room. Earlier tonight, after her senior brother walked her back, she had no sooner pushed open the door than her three roommates, including Wu Mingke, swarmed around her.

Not much time had passed between the Direct Disciple of Shouyi Temple causing trouble and her senior brother bringing her back from their camp. However, the commotion had been loud, and with so many onlookers, the news had spread extensively in that short span. At least a third of the entire Patrol Disciple rest area already knew about it. By tomorrow, it would likely be common knowledge.

Of course, all they knew was what had happened in public: a Shouyi Temple disciple had bullied a Female Cultivator from a smaller Daoist Temple, only to be taught a lesson by her senior brother. The fact that the Shouyi Temple group had been nearly wiped out and sent to the disciples at Huang Bamboo Temple’s Huichun Hall for treatment was still only a rumor circulating within a small circle of Huang Bamboo Temple disciples. Vice Temple Master Liang had also ordered them not to spread it further, lest the matter escalate and complicate his subsequent mediations with Shouyi Temple.

Thus, the rumors the three roommates heard ended with Li Yinsheng apprehending the Shouyi Temple disciple in broad daylight and leaving with Mu Xiaoyu. As a result, the moment they saw Xiaoyu return, they bombarded her with questions.

While Wu Mingke was visibly worried about whether Xiaoyu was hurt, the other two—though verbally expressing concern—were clearly driven more by curiosity. After all, they had only known each other for a day at most. There was no real friendship to speak of, let alone genuine care.

Rather than whether Xiaoyu had actually been bullied or wronged, they were much more invested in the rumor of "a handsome, highly cultivated senior brother rescuing his little junior sister from outsiders." This sort of storybook "hero saving the damsel" trope was what really drew their interest.

One of them even inadvertently revealed a flash of jealousy while pressing her for details. They wondered why this Female Cultivator, who wasn’t incredibly beautiful and had only average cultivation, got to be protected by such a handsome senior brother with profound magical power. Was it just dumb luck?

Hailing from a Prince’s Mansion, Mu Xiaoyu had grown up pampered, but years of subtle influence in that environment had taught her how to read people. She could easily sense whether these two Female Cultivators, who had grown up cultivating in a Daoist Temple, were being sincere or fake. Therefore, she didn’t flaunt anything that might invite further envy, like bragging about how her senior brother doted on her or took her to get revenge.

She simply explained that the people from Shouyi Temple had looked down on their Xuanzhen Temple because of its small size and low ranking, which was why they had bullied her on purpose. Her senior brother naturally couldn’t sit back and watch their Daoist Temple be slighted, so he took her to reason with Shouyi Temple. With a Vice Temple Master and a Steward from Huang Bamboo Temple stepping in as peacemakers, they eventually managed to settle the score.

She kept the finer details as vague as possible, avoiding specific answers even when Wu Mingke pressed for more. Since they would be patrolling together tomorrow anyway, it was better to share some things privately with Wu. As for the other two roommates, she wasn’t close enough to them to overshare.

Though somewhat dissatisfied with her evasiveness, the other two didn’t want to come across as overly aggressive by hounding her with questions. Moreover, all four of them had relatively shallow cultivation and had been patrolling all day. As the night deepened, fatigue set in, and they all went to sleep.

Hovering between sleep and wakefulness, Mu Xiaoyu heard Wu Mingke’s voice.

"Xiaoyu? Are you asleep?"

"I was just about to be..." Xiaoyu mumbled.

"Your senior brother treats you so well," Mingke sighed softly. "He was willing to clash with the people from Shouyi Temple just to stand up for you. None of the senior brothers in my Daoist Temple would ever do that for me."

"Hehe." Hearing her praise him, Xiaoyu felt a surge of happiness. "Senior Brother is indeed a great person. He’s just a bit too strict, that’s all..."

"He’s not just a ’great person,’ is he?" Mingke’s tone was complex as she whispered, "He definitely really likes you, too."

"Hehe, of course," Xiaoyu said, her joy bubbling over as she couldn’t help but roll over in her blankets. "Senior Brother definitely likes me very much!"

"Sigh... silly girl," Mingke whispered with a faint sigh.

"Wu, why are you suddenly calling me a silly girl?" Xiaoyu asked, slightly displeased.

"It’s nothing. Go to sleep." Mingke sighed again.

Xiaoyu wanted to ask more, but a wave of drowsiness washed over her. Remembering she had to wake up early tomorrow to patrol, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Early the next morning, inside the discussion hall on Bamboo Forest Peak.

Vice Temple Master Liang was listening to Qi Jiushan’s report when his hand, which had been stroking his beard, suddenly paused.

"Junior Brother, are you saying that the people from Shouyi Temple volunteered to patrol despite their injuries?" he asked, his face etched with disbelief.

Weren’t these people here just to freeload? Now that they were all injured, given Shouyi Temple’s usual modus operandi, shouldn’t they be using their injuries as an excuse to rest while still pocketing the reward?

Besides, they were actually injured this time. Although the Thunder Talisman Li Yinsheng had used wasn’t particularly powerful, the Shouyi Temple disciples’ cultivation had been suppressed at the time. Unable to defend themselves, they had all suffered substantial injuries.

Vice Temple Master Liang had even prepared himself to silently tolerate the Shouyi Temple group doing absolutely nothing for the entirety of the mission. After all, they had forced their way into this assignment anyway. Even without them, there was still plenty of manpower. He had resigned himself to treating the extra talismanic coins spent as money thrown to the dogs.