“Cough, cough cough… Lingzhi… you, you guys…” Gu Chengze tried to speak while coughing but to no avail.

It was not that he was being dramatic, but Qin Xinran’s words were too horrifying. 

What did she mean when she said that she did not have a reason for liking Gu Lingzhi? If a guy were to say this, Gu Chengze would still be able to understand. But the person who said this was from the same gender as Gu Lingzhi… she also looked more timid than Gu Lingzhi. He could not understand what was going on.

“Chengze!” Gu Lingzhi was happy to see him as he had rescued her out of her situation. She quickly made her way to his side, “Didn’t you say you wanted to have a look around Wunian City? Let’s go now.”

She then turned to Qin Xinran and said, “I’m busy and I can’t entertain you. I’ll be on my way now.”  

A crying expression immediately appeared on Qin Xinran’s face as she looked pitifully at Gu Chengze. 

“Little brother, is it true what Lingzhi says? Do you both have something to do?”

All of a sudden, Gu Chengze felt his heart constrict and under Qin Xinran’s deceiving look, he betrayed Gu Lingzhi.

“No, nothing, what can I possibly be busy with? I only came to ask her how confident she was regarding the Flower Hunt.”

He then took two tentative steps to the side, distancing himself from Gu Lingzhi as he looked earnestly at Qin Xinran.

“You, you are…?”

“Qin Xinran,” she announced enthusiastically, a playful look dancing in her eyes. Her pitiful expression made people sympathise with her as she asked seemingly innocently, “Little brother, are you friends with Lingzhi? Can you help me convince her to go shopping with me? She doesn’t seem very willing...”

Gu Chengze looked at Gu Lingzhi disapprovingly and said, “Lingzhi, how can you treat someone like that?”

Gu Lingzhi almost choked on her own saliva. She wondered if Gu Chengze would say the same after knowing about Qin Xinran’s actions in the past. 

“Chengze, I…”

“Please don’t blame Lingzhi, she just misunderstood me. Can you let me go out with her first so that we can clear up misunderstandings between us?”

Qin Xinran’s expression was very convincing. She had completely fooled Gu Chengze in less than a few sentences.

“Sure, don’t worry. Although Lingzhi may seem very cold, but she is actually very kind. If there is any misunderstanding, I’m sure she will not blame you. If she still doesn’t forgive you, you can come and find me, I will help you.”

Gu Lingzhi looked on as Gu Chengze foolishly made a promise to Qin Xinran. She really wanted to see how he would react once he knew about Qin Xinran’s true colours. 

After betraying Gu Lingzhi, Gu Chengze left under Qin Xinran’s grateful gaze. Only when he walked back to his accommodations did he suddenly remember what he had wanted to ask Gu Lingzhi. He had wanted to ask her how she had changed so much that she knew how to strike back. Who knew that he would forget everything the moment he met her.

Unable to ignore Qin Xinran’s pitiful expression, Gu Lingzhi could not help but feel her heart soften as she gave in and went with her. 

This time she made sure to stay in areas where there were a lot of people so that she would not have to spend time alone with Qin Xinran. 

Knowing what Gu Lingzhi was thinking, Qin Xinran’s eyes lost a little bit of luster. After walking around Wunian city for a while, she brought Gu Lingzhi to a teahouse. As the two of them entered the teahouse, Gu Lingzhi heard a familiar voice call her name, “Lingzhi, Xinran, come over here!”

It was Ye Fei!

Gu Lingzhi looked excitedly to the second level of the teahouse and saw Ye Fei standing outside a private room.

“You are here too?”

Ye Fei laughed, “Yuli is not something that can be bought with money. How can I miss out on something as precious as this?”

Entering the room, Gu Lingzhi was surprised to see Tianfeng Jin inside as well. Seeing Gu Lingzhi enter, an apologetic look crossed Tianfeng Jin’s face as she said, “Lingzhi, the other day, I just wanted to apologise for the actions of my Clan Leader’s wife...”

“It’s okay,” Gu Lingzhi understood what she wanted to say and smiled, “You’re nothing like them, I don’t blame you”

Tianfeng Jin exposed a smile, “Mm.”

As the four of them took a seat around the table, Gu Lingzhi realised that Ye Fei and Qin Xinran had started to get along as the both of them laughed together. Listening to their conversation, Gu Lingzhi realised that they had already made plans to search for the Yuli Snow Lotus together and were just waiting for her to join them.

“Ye Fei…” Gu Lingzhi frowned as she whispered to Ye Fei when Qin Xinran went to the toilet, “Aren’t you afraid of going out with her?”

“No,” Ye Fei exclaimed smugly, “I’ve come up with a plan. Even if She has any evil plans, she won’t be able to do anything. You must remember that Tianfeng Jin is ranked third on the Training Tower and when the time comes, she wouldn’t be able to do anything to us. Also… don’t you want to know if she is sincere in asking to be your friend?”

Hearing this, Gu Lingzhi felt more at ease. At least she knew that Ye Fei was not fooled by Qin Xinran’s pity act.

“I heard that the snacks in this teahouse are quite nice, let’s eat as we talk.”

“If you didn’t mention it, I would really have forgotten. The snacks here are really famous, especially the Yanzhi paste, it fills your mouth with flavour. Lingzhi, since it is your first time here, you must try it.”

Ye Fei immediately picked up a pink-coloured snack from the serving plate and gave it to Gu Lingzhi. She then popped one into her mouth as her eyes filled with satisfaction.

The afternoon passed by quickly as the four of them chatted and ate.

They had given a few pointers to Gu Lingzhi on what to expect after reaching the mountains, as she had never climbed a mountain before. 

Finding the Yuli Snow Lotus was completely based on luck. All they could do was go into the mountain and search the area as much as possible.

From their conversation, Gu Lingzhi started to have a greater understanding of the Yuli Snow Lotus’ usefulness.

It was said that Xin Yi who was currently ranked first on the Training Tower used to perform slightly above average three years ago. However, after consuming the Yuli Snow Lotus that he had found on the mountain, his cultivation had improved drastically. His Spiritual Roots became more penetrating and his Martial Skills techniques became more intricate, which allowed him to climb quickly to the first place on the Stone Tablet at the Training Tower. 

Previous Chapter

Next Chapter