chapter 10
10. From the Heart
“Thank you for your guidance, Master.” Lin Dongming sheathed his sword and bowed to Zhaoyue.
He understood clearly that by Zhaoyue’s strict standards, such praise was already quite good. It was said that even his exceptionally talented senior brothers and sisters had rarely received compliments.
Though he had barely met any of his senior disciples.
“Practice well the sword technique I taught you earlier. Strive to break through soon.” Zhaoyue instructed as a matter of routine.
“Master,” Lin Dongming hesitated before deliberately asking casually, “if your disciple were to cause trouble, would you punish him severely?”
“You rascal,” Zhaoyue said dismissively. “You want to teach that Duyuan Peak disciple who gave the orders a lesson, don’t you?”
Lin Dongming smacked his forehead, bowed, and said, “Master’s perception is impeccable. Your disciple did indeed consider it.”
“Enduring too much can easily become a heart demon.” Zhaoyue shook her head and sighed. “If you want to go, then go. After all, they’re in the wrong, and it’s good to give the behind-the-scenes mastermind a warning. Go easy on them, and don’t let anyone recognize you.”
Lin Dongming was overjoyed: “Don’t worry! Even if your disciple is recognized, I won’t give you away!”
“Troublemaker. Who do you think will have to bail you out later?” Zhaoyue was both annoyed and amused.
“Thank you, Master!” Lin Dongming bowed again and quickly left before Zhaoyue could change her mind.
Zhaoyue watched Lin Dongming’s retreating figure and smiled softly: “Such youthful impetuousness. It’s not bad to be like this occasionally. After all, we’re not the Taishan Forgetting Emotions Dao; cultivation should lead to an unobstructed mind.”
So Lin Dongming changed into black clothes, put on a mask, and hurried toward Duyuan Peak.
“Going directly to his cave dwelling would be too bold. Better to catch him on his way back.” Lin Dongming knew Hong Xing liked to drink and carouse at the Water Cloud Pavilion, so he decided to wait along his return route.
“The slightly troublesome part is that if I’m unlucky, I might face multiple Golden Core cultivators. But a bunch of drunkards… shouldn’t be a problem.” Lin Dongming’s mind turned as he concealed himself and hurried forward.
—Wait, someone’s already there?
Lin Dongming’s perception was more sensitive than cultivators of the same level, and he quickly detected someone lying in ambush in the grove ahead.
—Getting counter-ambushed? But this number of people is too few. Are they that confident?
Before Lin Dongming could decide whether to attack or flee, the other side had already shot a sword energy his way.
—Sword energy? This person’s perception isn’t bad either.
Lin Dongming dodged sideways, but the other’s sword energy was relentless. Thanks to the Heavenly Mirror Heart Technique movement skill, Lin Dongming barely managed to avoid it. But here he had to be careful not to use his sect’s unique skills, or his identity would be easily exposed. This put Lin Dongming in a difficult position.
—This person’s strength is even greater than Bai Zhiqing’s.
The opponent’s control over spiritual energy was extremely delicate, even able to transform it into fine needles that rained down toward Lin Dongming, making them harder to detect. Lin Dongming dodged left and right but didn’t draw his sword.
—No choice, I’ll have to end this in one strike.
Lin Dongming was forced into a corner and could only try his best to disguise Tianjing Peak’s sword techniques as other techniques. He assumed a stance as if about to draw his blade, and a cold flash streaked past.
Heavenly Mirror Heart Technique: Breaking Water!
The blade cut along a curved trajectory, breaking through the opponent’s sword energy and going straight for the neck.
A crisp sound of metal striking metal rang out. The opponent had barely blocked Lin Dongming’s strike at the last moment—quite a quick reaction.
“Pretty fast reactions,” Lin Dongming smiled and withdrew the kick he was about to deliver. “But I’m guessing our goals are the same, so let’s not kill each other here, Junior Sister Bai.”
“I lost this time,” Bai Zhiqing said calmly. “Thank you for showing mercy, Senior Brother Lin.”
If that kick had been delivered, it would certainly have broken through Bai Zhiqing’s protective energy barrier.
“You flatter me,” Lin Dongming said teasingly. “Junior Sister Bai is quite bold, daring to come ambush Hong Xing.”
“Senior Brother is too kind. Aren’t you the same?” Bai Zhiqing bantered.
“As your senior, I can hardly let you put yourself in danger, can I?” Lin Dongming asked, “How did Junior Sister Bai realize it was me?”
“It was your movement technique. Although Senior Brother tried hard to disguise it, there are very few who can predict an opponent’s attacks so accurately—not just in Tianjian Sword Sect, but in the whole world.” Bai Zhiqing said.
Lin Dongming gave a wry smile. “I see.”
The Heavenly Mirror Heart Technique of Tianjing Peak could predict opponents’ attacks, so Lin Dongming tended to dodge rather than defend during battles—quite different from other sword cultivators.
“What about Senior Brother? How did you know it was me?” Bai Zhiqing asked in return.
“Though the sword energy was that of Duyuan Peak, the attack pattern was too similar to yours, so I made an educated guess. Actually, I was only seventy or eighty percent sure,” Lin Dongming admitted frankly.
After hearing each other’s explanations, they both fell into thought:
“What if Hong Xing recognizes us?”
“Let him recognize us if he wants; it’ll be more satisfying that way,” Lin Dongming considered, then said, “He has no proof anyway. Even if he reports to our masters, he can’t prove it was us.”
“If it comes to that, we could hit him hard on the back of his head after we’re done. Hopefully, it’ll make him lose his memory or drastically change his personality,” Lin Dongming said helplessly.
Bai Zhiqing couldn’t help but burst into laughter: “Senior Brother has quite a sense of humor. No wonder you’re known as a playboy.”
Lin Dongming sighed helplessly: “Fine, I guess the playboy title is here to stay.”
But this didn’t matter to Lin Dongming at all. He only needed to protect Bai Zhiqing until the end of the secret realm trial. As for her opinion of him, it wasn’t a decisive factor; it just couldn’t be so low as to affect the execution of his mission.
“But Senior Brother’s presence here means Elder Tuoba doesn’t intend to handle this matter, right?” Bai Zhiqing thought for a moment. “Did Senior Brother already go to Elder Tuoba about this?”
Lin Dongming smiled wryly. “Junior Sister is truly perceptive.”
“It’s just small cleverness, forced out by circumstances,” Bai Zhiqing shook her head. “Elder Tuoba’s support for me is limited. She generally doesn’t interfere in these matters.”
The conversation had become so straightforward that Lin Dongming naturally understood. Financial support was a small matter for Elder Tuoba, but she wasn’t willing to easily offend the sect’s internal factions.
Thinking about it this way, this somewhat famous Junior Sister Bai had it tough. Being so good at reading people’s hearts, she must have endured quite a few harsh lessons.
Lin Dongming suddenly felt like hugging her.
Although this thought appeared in his mind for just a moment, Lin Dongming knew that in places he couldn’t see, Bai Zhiqing had suffered many hardships.
“It’s not a big deal,” Bai Zhiqing seemed to sense Lin Dongming’s gaze. “Compared to those outer disciples who struggle for spirit stones their whole lives but never reach Foundation Establishment or form a Golden Core, I’m already very fortunate.”
Lin Dongming didn’t answer, just made a “shh” gesture.
Hong Xing was coming.