The sword tip had sunk three inches into the wood, while the hilt still buzzed in the air without stopping.

Su Yingsnow lifted her sword with a pale, delicate hand. Her long hair fell quietly around her, not a strand out of place, like an immortal descended to the mortal world. “Teacher Lin, shall we continue?”

Lin Yu frowned, his gaze turning cold, and moved his sword fingers again.

“I still haven’t earned your approval! Again!”

The bright flying sword shot up like a bird. With a sharp whoosh, it split into three streaks of cold light in midair, carrying layers of illusory sword shadows as it lunged at Su Yingsnow!

Su Yingsnow bit her lip.

A trace of resolve seemed to flash across the girl’s gentle face.

She gripped her sword.

And charged forward!

Her long legs moved with elegant speed, each step landing in a rhythm so beautiful it was almost musical.

Her lovely bright eyes reflected strand after strand of sword shadows, like willow fluff drifting in the wind. Her fair, slender wrist lifted high, drawing a graceful arc!

Her skirt fluttered as she ran toward Lin Yu, slashing out crisp, freezing sword light at the same time!

Tiny gorgeous sparks scattered through the air. Step by step, slash by slash, the girl cut through the sword shadows. Every movement was swift and perfectly timed, like a sword dance rehearsed hundreds of times!

The clear clash of blades rang out without end, like dozens of bronze bells being struck again and again.

The countless sword shadows could not stop Su Yingsnow for even an instant!

That delicate yet razor-sharp bearing of hers burned itself deep into every spectator’s eyes, enough to make people tremble on instinct.

It was admiration. It was astonishment. It was the yearning for beauty buried deep in the soul of every living being.

Lin Yu’s expression changed in shock. He couldn’t help retreating several steps. His hands formed seals as he shouted in a flustered voice,

“Intercept!”

The sword split into thousands, like a curtain dropping down before Su Yingsnow.

At that moment—

Su Yingsnow gripped her sword with both hands. Her ten white, slender fingers looked as if they had been carved from divine jade.

A soft moonlike glow flowed across the dark green-black blade of Solitary Stag.

Her body moved like the wind, her sword light like the moon. In a flash, she burst straight through the curtain of sword shadows.

By the time everyone came back to their senses, Su Yingsnow was already standing before Lin Yu.

Solitary Stag lay across his shoulder.

Lu Chuning suddenly smiled and tugged at Luo Qingchuan’s sleeve.

“Her heart really is like snow.”

Luo Qingchuan glanced at the little girl with eyeliner. “You mean she’s cold?”

The emotion in Lu Chuning’s eyes seemed hidden beneath that faint rosy tint at their corners. She murmured softly,

“Once snow melts under warm sunlight, it loses its own color. You can make it become whatever you want.”

Luo Qingchuan frowned, then broke into a smile and said with complete sincerity,

“As far as I’m concerned, she’s best when she’s just herself.”

“Ew!”

“What?”

Lu Chuning fanned her flushed cheeks with her little hand. “Why’s it getting hot sitting next to you? Are you the sun or something?”

Luo Qingchuan only smiled and said nothing.

Then Lu Chuning suddenly asked, “If an evil fiend appeared here and wanted to kill everyone, and you happened to be here, Luo Qingchuan, would you stop him?”

Luo Qingchuan froze for a moment, then muttered,

“If I could beat him, I would.”

“And if you couldn’t?”

“I’m afraid of dying, so I’d probably be the one running the fastest.”

Lu Chuning folded her little hands together on top of her slender, lovely legs and gave a faint smile, amused.

Meanwhile, on the field—

Su Yingsnow quickly lowered her sword, angling it toward the ground. She no longer kept up that disrespectful posture toward her teacher.

She lowered her head and apologized. “Thank you for going easy on me, Teacher Lin.”

Her gentle, graceful face was so lovely it stirred pity at a glance. A few beads of damp sweat had appeared on her forehead, yet her soft breathing was still steady, poised and elegant.

Lin Yu stared deeply at the breathtaking girl before him. His lips twitched, his face pale and ashen.

“I lost.”

“You still held back. Otherwise, I would’ve been hurt.”

As Lin Yu formed seals and recalled his sword pellet, he said in a low voice, “At the very least, I’m the teacher and you’re the student. We’re not mortal enemies.”

The students were all stunned. Then, as Lu Wu began clapping, they all started applauding too.

Watching a clash between strong cultivators from this close was unbelievably lucky. Since phones weren’t allowed, everyone was thrilled, but also full of regret.

...It had been too fast. Quite a few people hadn’t even seen it clearly.

But right after that, Su Yingsnow turned and gave Luo Qingchuan a radiant smile. “I won.”

Luo Qingchuan nodded hard, then quickly shook his head.

Who knows what Lu Chuning wants to drag me off to do?

Sword in hand, Su Yingsnow walked toward the two of them, her steps graceful like a noble young lady from ancient times.

But she was carrying a sword.

The girl stopped in front of Lu Chuning. Her porcelain-white little face, half-veiled by black hair, looked down at Lu Chuning, who tilted her head up to meet her gaze.

“May I ask... can I become your student together with him now?”

Lu Chuning narrowed her eyes with a smile, showing a small, neat tiger tooth. “Little sister, you qualify.”

She sprang up as lightly as a deer, then grabbed Su Yingsnow’s wrist with lightning speed. Her other hand, white as a scallion stalk, had already snatched Solitary Stag away.

She was simply too fast. Even Lu Wu barely had time to react before Lu Chuning, holding Solitary Stag, sliced open Su Yingsnow’s fingertip.

Drip.

A drop of blood stained the dark blade.

Su Yingsnow looked at Solitary Stag in surprise.

Solitary Stag rapidly shrank, turning into a phantom and drilling into the bleeding fingertip.

“I helped you refine it a little. Consider it a welcome gift from your teacher.”

Su Yingsnow looked at her fingertip, then brought it to her rosy lips. She pressed her tongue lightly against the wound, like a kitten giving it a small lick, before smiling softly.

“Thank you, Teacher Lu.”

The hostility in Su Yingsnow’s heart faded quite a bit.

Maybe...

She really had come to take in disciples?

“You two, come with me. Luo Qingchuan, you’d better behave, okay?”

With both hands hooked behind her back, Lu Chuning walked out of the gym by herself.

Luo Qingchuan took hold of Su Yingsnow’s little hand. He couldn’t very well stop her anymore, so with unease in his heart, he could only lead her along by the wrist and follow.

Anyway, based on the clues so far, Lu Chuning already knows Chen Yanyu and I showed up at Qinggang Bar last night...

Maybe that’s all she knows?

Luo Qingchuan’s heart was in turmoil as he recalled everything he knew about Lu Chuning.

Lu Chuning, real age twenty-four. When she was little, she accidentally swallowed a strange spirit fruit, and in that very era of fading spiritual energy, she directly reached Foundation Establishment.

But her body and appearance were forever frozen in this petite form. Only after converting all the spiritual energy left by the fruit inside her into cultivation could she return to normal.

She was a member of Evilbane, and held very high status. In the future, during some great battle, she would lose all her cultivation and fall unconscious in the outskirts.

As long as Luo Qingchuan went to the designated place at the designated time and picked Lu Chuning up, brought her home, and locked her up, he could do whatever he wanted to her...

That time would be half a year from now.

In other words, he needed to survive for half a year without letting her discover the secret of his demonic art.

Luo Qingchuan looked at the girl’s snow-white jade shoulder, and his gaze deepened.

Seeing the two of them holding hands, the students couldn’t help feeling both envy and longing.

“Classmate Su is gorgeous and absurdly strong too. I’m so jealous.”

“I think it’s true love.”

“How so?”

“Classmate Su is a once-in-a-generation genius. She definitely didn’t fall for Young Master Luo’s money. Young Master Luo’s spirit root talent is poor, but his temperament was praised by the Truthseer Mirror, so they must really love each other,” one student said confidently.

Someone else added, “Or maybe Classmate Luo’s talent is amazing too. Look, that super impressive little girl... or was she a big sister? She personally picked him as a disciple!”