Volume 1 Chapter 25: Junior Sister, This Is What My Senior Brother Taught Me
Tn: Edited at 5 / 16 / 2025
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"Junior Sister Pei, why did you hand in your paper so quickly? I didn't even get a chance to pass you the answers!"
"No need. I have already finished writing."
"Eh?" Feng Yudie blinked in awe and immediately switched to flattery, her tone full of admiration. "Junior Sister Pei, you're amazing! Even with such difficult questions, you still managed to answer them?"
Floating beside her, Xiaotian interjected sharply:
『Yudie, she wrote exactly the same answers I whispered to you.』
"…Huh?"
'Exactly the same?'
Feng Yudie's face froze with shock. But before she could say more, two wrinkled hands suddenly fell heavily on both her and Pei Lengxue's shoulders.
It was Elder Wang, his expression as dark as storm clouds.
"You two..."
"Ah! Elder Wang!" Feng Yudie gave a bright, innocent smile. "Where are we going next?"
Wang Shaoren's mouth twitched, clearly holding back his anger. He gritted his teeth. "Didn't I warn you before entering the testing ground? No cheating—violation means immediate disqualification!"
"…Huh?" Feng Yudie shrank her neck in mock confusion. "We didn't cheat~"
"Then how do you explain your answers being identical to Pei Lengxue's?! Elder Qi was furious just now. He's demanding that both of you be subjected to the Heart-Questioning Cauldron!"
At that, even Pei Lengxue looked mildly surprised.
She had only written what her Senior Brother had taught her.
How could Feng Yudie have written the same answers?
Did her Senior Brother also teach Feng Yudie at some point?
When? Did they ever meet in private?
"Elder Wang, we really didn't cheat," Feng Yudie quickly defended, speaking for both herself and Pei Lengxue.
『Technically, you did cheat,』 Xiaotian sighed in her mind. 『You copied what I told you. But Pei Lengxue? Nope. She wrote everything herself. I have no idea how she knew the same answers.』
Seeing the conflicted expression on Feng Yudie's face, Wang Shaoren paused, then turned a sharp gaze toward Pei Lengxue.
"Pei girl… did she really not pass you the answers?"
"Absolutely not," Pei Lengxue quickly responded, hands clasped in a respectful salute.
"I'll remind you—before the Heart-Questioning Cauldron, you cannot lie," he said again, sternly. "Tell me clearly—did you cheat?"
"Not at all! I answered every question by myself!"
Wang Shaoren let out a long breath, his brow easing slightly. "Very well. Remember—once you stand before the Heart-Questioning Cauldron, you must speak the truth. Even a half-lie will be seen through."
Both girls nodded.
With that, Wang Shaoren led the two of them back to the center of the testing grounds, where Qi Baishi was already waiting—his expression cold, the ominous Heart-Questioning Cauldron set before him, radiating a subtle pressure.
That was a massive cauldron—big enough to stew both Pei Lengxue and Feng Yudie together. On its surface, an intricate engraving of a Azure Dragon playing with a pearl coiled around the body, exuding an imposing majesty.
Just standing near it, both girls could feel an oppressive heat, as if they were standing in the heart of a blazing inferno.
"Step forward. Stand before the cauldron."
Qi Baishi gave the two girls a cold glance before rising to his feet and gesturing for Pei Lengxue to move ahead.
"…Yes."
Pei Lengxue nervously swallowed as she stepped toward the cauldron and stood still.
Qi Baishi raised a golden brush in his right hand, and with a sweep of his sleeve, a single drop of ink from the brush tip landed precisely on the eye of the carved Azure Dragon.
In the next instant—ROAR!
A giant azure dragon surged out from within the cauldron, circling twice in the air before hovering before Pei Lengxue. Its flaming eyes locked directly onto hers.
In that moment, Pei Lengxue felt her entire body freeze, as if trapped by a petrification spell.
The dragon in her eyes grew rapidly larger—massive enough to block out the sky, its overwhelming presence nearly blinding.
Now was the time to question her.
But Qi Baishi… intentionally waited a moment.
The Dragon's Might emitted by the Heart-Questioning Cauldron was no trivial thing. Even cultivators in the Core Formation Realm would involuntarily tremble in its presence. As for most in the Foundation Establishment Realm? They'd be terrified to the point of collapse—some even requiring days to recover.
He figured if Pei Lengxue couldn't withstand it, she'd confess immediately—saving him the effort and the spirit stones it would take to power the cauldron for questioning.
However, her reaction greatly surprised him.
For a brief instant, her face revealed clear panic and fear—but then, with sheer force of will, she suppressed it, standing firm.
Such mental fortitude… was no small thing.
Qi Baishi stroked his beard and nodded slightly, finally opening his mouth to ask:
"Did you cheat?"
"No."
He glanced at the azure dragon.
The dragon remained motionless—no reaction.
Qi Baishi frowned slightly and continued, "Did you come up with those answers yourself?"
"…No."
"Did you read them in a book?"
"No."
"Then how did you know them?"
"…My senior brother… taught them to me… a long time ago."
By the time she finished that sentence, Pei Lengxue's face had already turned pale.
Qi Baishi looked to the azure dragon again.
Still no reaction.
She wasn't lying.
He could tell—if he pressed any further under the cauldron's power, the girl would probably faint on the spot.
With a wave of his sleeve, the dragon immediately retreated back into the cauldron, vanishing from sight.
Once the dragon disappeared, Pei Lengxue staggered back several steps. Clutching her chest, she took several deep breaths, trying to calm her heart that had nearly leapt out of her chest.
Qi Baishi stepped forward and gave her a slight nod.
"So your senior brother instructed you?"
"Yes. He told me to memorize the answers," Pei Lengxue replied honestly. "But… I don't really understand them."
"…Who is your senior brother?"
"My senior brother's name is Ye Anping."
Qi Baishi paused, brows slightly raised.
"…Ye Anping? Who is that?"
"He's… my senior brother."
"… …"
Pei Lengxue was clearly nervous—perhaps too nervous. After all, this was her first time speaking directly with a cultivator at the Nascent Soul Realm. Fortunately, Elder Wang stepped forward to explain:
"Sir, he's the young master of the Hundred Lotus Sect."
"…I see." Qi Baishi gave a slight nod, quietly committing the name to memory.
After a moment of thought, he reached into his storage bag and retrieved a small jade bottle. He handed it to Pei Lengxue.
"Consider this an apology from this old man."
"Senior, there's really no need for that… I mean… um…"
"You've just reached the peak of the Qi Refining Realm. These pills will help you during your Foundation Establishment," Qi Baishi said with a genial smile, stroking his beard.
"Take them—unless, of course, you mean to refuse an elder's goodwill?"
"Ah…" Pei Lengxue stared at the pill bottle, stunned for several seconds.
Finally, she reached out with both hands, carefully accepting the gift, and shyly bowed her head.
"Then… this junior thanks Senior for your kindness."
Qi Baishi nodded approvingly. On a whim, he extended his spiritual sense to sweep over Pei Lengxue's body—just to see if he could offer her any pointers on her cultivation.
However, upon seeing her spirit roots, a flicker of doubt crossed his face.
—Water, Wood, and Earth trinary spirit roots?
—But… why do they look so odd? The Water and Wood seem too strong, while the Earth is being suppressed…
After a pause, Qi Baishi asked directly, "You have trinary spirit roots?"
"Yes, Senior. Water, Wood, and Earth," Pei Lengxue answered obediently.
"How old are you this year?"
"…Fourteen. I'll be fifteen in a few months."
"…You reached peak Qi Refining at fourteen?"
"Ah…" Pei Lengxue hesitated, unsure why he was asking, but nodded anyway. "Yes."
"…"
Qi Baishi fell into silence.
To reach the peak of the Qi Refining Realm at such a young age—with trinary spirit roots, no less—was extraordinarily rare. Usually, this kind of speed only came from two possibilities:
Either she came from a powerful clan that provided her with a massive amount of high-grade pills…
Or someone had used some advanced enlightenment technique to forcibly accelerate her cultivation.
But the Hundred Lotus Sect? They were too modest a sect to squander resources on a trinary-root disciple.
Which meant…
If this girl didn't possess some unique stroke of fortune, then something strange was going on with her spirit roots.
And that senior brother of hers—Ye Anping…
He didn't sound like an ordinary youth either.
After a moment of quiet contemplation, Qi Baishi gently patted Pei Lengxue's shoulder and spoke kindly:
"Go back and rest well. Tomorrow's entrance tests will be more demanding. Shaoren, find them both a better place to stay for the night."
Wang Shaoren raised an eyebrow and gave a teasing smile.
"Sir, all the disciples joining the tests tonight are sleeping in shared dormitories. Wouldn't that… break the rules?"
Qi Baishi narrowed his eyes slightly and repeated, slowly and clearly:
"A better place."
"…Yes, sir."