Chapter 12

Page (1/3)

Could this be what they mean by “enemies inevitably gather”? It was truly hard to believe in such a strange fate. The little one glanced several more times with effort. Confirmed—these were indeed the disciples whom the memory of Yu Youyou in the book once found disagreeable and had bullied. Although Yu Youyou in the story was the sect leader’s daughter, because she had recently returned from the Demon City revealing a bad temper, the sect leader of the Yu Sect supervised her strictly, forbidding her from abusing her power to bully others.

Living in the Primordial Ancient Sect, she wished to be like Yu Ritian. But if she went too far, most of the inner disciples were exceptionally talented and well-protected; they would never quietly endure her mistreatment and would inevitably report to the sect leader. The sect leader never indulged her and often required her to apologize to those she injured or insulted. It was well known that the sect leader refused to defend her, and father and daughter often quarreled over these matters. Everyone in the inner sect knew the sect leader’s character, so Yu Youyou’s domineering behavior was not tolerated. Those with a more volatile temper even dared to fight back against her.

… Yu Youyou was not very skilled in magical combat. Unable to provoke inner disciples, she could only prey on the weak. Outer disciples had fewer supporters, less attention, and were unaware that, in fairness, they were no different from the sect leader’s daughter. Even if bullied, most endured silently without complaint. Thus, Yu Youyou had bullied quite a few outer disciples.

Now, the little one held a somewhat empty alchemical furnace, gazed at these outer disciples for a while, and hesitated. “These few have good potential…” Even among outer disciples, some possess notable talent, though not as superior as the inner disciples. Some work especially hard after cultivation and diligent practice, even surpassing some ordinary inner disciples in their progress. The Yu Sect leader only briefly scanned these quietly attentive disciples, shook his head slightly, and said, “I fear it might hinder their cultivation.”

Yu Youyou was only three years old. Regardless of her extraordinary traits or innate gifts, she was still very young and needed constant care, which was a great distraction from cultivation. Even if the sect leader could compensate with spirit pills and spirit tools, it would still delay these young disciples’ progress.

He had originally intended to find one or two older disciples whose cultivation had plateaued at a low level, thinking to appoint them as attendants in the sect hall. But seeing that those sent were talented, after many years as sect leader, he understood the reason. Because their talent was good yet not good enough to enter the inner sect, they sought positions as attendants in the sect hall to gain more resources like spirit pills and tools as compensation. This was a rare opportunity.

The sect leader no longer felt regret. He waved his hand to the attendant disciple and said, “Keep one or two. You Youyou, who do you like?” He lowered his head and handed all decision-making to his daughter.

Yu Youyou immediately felt the gazes of those young disciples upon her. Their eyes held envy, hidden curiosity, and all sorts of mixed feelings. Obviously, each had their own thoughts and not all were willing to become a little child’s attendant.

She rubbed her small hands, hesitated a moment, and then held up one finger to the concerned Yu Sect leader’s retinue, saying, “One.”

Page (2/3)

When she wasn’t ill, she didn’t actually need such constant attention. She only needed one person to care for her, so as not to hinder her busy father or senior brothers and sisters, allowing them to focus on important matters.

As she spoke, she pointed at a nervously standing, delicate fifteen- or sixteen-year-old apricot-eyed girl at the edge of the disciples. The girl bit her lip nervously and, when she raised her eyes, saw the little one nestled in the tall and imposing sect leader’s arms pointing at her, and immediately showed surprise. After a moment, a joyful expression appeared in her eyes.

“Disciple…” she was about to respectfully bow to the sect leader.

“No need for such formality,” the sect leader said, seeing that his daughter only needed one person, his previous wish for the child to be surrounded by many had faded. Given the child’s recent strange condition and the reminder from Zhu Changshu, he suspected his daughter had some hidden secret. Due to the complications involving the Gong family and the former sect leader, there were many prying eyes. He did not want too many close to Yu Youyou to avoid future leaks.

But seeing this girl was young and perhaps inexperienced in child care, the sect leader hesitated slightly, until his daughter gently tapped his shoulder and said, “Yes.”

“All right. We’ll listen to Youyou,” he smiled. Although the disciple was young and inexperienced, for a three-year-old child, she could be a companion to keep her from loneliness. If busy times left the child alone, having a youthful and lively companion would make her feel fuller and happier. Not like when she was in the Demon City, ignored by everyone.

More importantly, it was a rare meeting of hearts; this was someone his daughter liked. The sect leader did not feel he was a doting father without limits. Seeing Yu Youyou smile happily with her big eyes, his heart melted. He said to the attendant disciple, “That’s settled then. The others should focus on cultivation and not miss the next outer sect selection.”

Every few years, there was an outer sect selection to choose rare gems from the outer sect to enter the inner sect. This was the most important event for outer disciples. As sect leader, he valued their cultivation and futures highly. After gently admonishing a few words, he ordered the attendant disciple to send them back to the outer sect.

The disciples dared not show emotion in front of the sect leader and quietly withdrew. After leaving the inner sect with the attendant disciple, as the attendant hurried off to other tasks, silence fell for a moment before they all dispersed. One person finally couldn’t help but mutter softly, “…seems not very intelligent.”

No one expected that the sect leader’s beloved daughter, said to have been snatched back from the Red Flame Demon Lord, was actually a child who could barely speak properly. Although others had their suspicions and noticed strange signs, few dared say it openly. Someone whispered, “The sect leader is kind-hearted… but with such talent, it’s fine for now. If the sect leader remarries and has clever children later, who knows how she’ll manage.” This was obviously spoken by someone who had lived in the mortal world and was thus more worldly. In their eyes, the sect leader surely would not content himself with raising only one rather unintelligent heir.

People sighed softly. Someone else added, “And she has no taste, choosing someone as poor as Ruan Ling!” These complaints and gossip naturally went unheard outside the outer sect.

At this moment, Yu Youyou was looking at the apricot-eyed girl standing nervously before her. She was young and while not as stunningly beautiful as the second senior sister, she was still a very pretty girl. She was now bowing to the sect leader and said, “Disciple Ruan Ling greets the sect leader and… the young lady…”

“Little.” Yu Youyou disliked being called “young lady.” Both were disciples under the Primordial Ancient Sect, and such a formal title sounded respectful but made her feel uncomfortable inside. Call her little junior sister—that was what she liked.

She shook her little head. Seeing the tacit understanding in Chu Xingyun’s eyes, he gently said, “Junior sister Ruan, no need to be so formal. Just call Youyou your little junior sister.”

Since he said so and the sect leader did not object, Ruan Ling, unsure why, met the little girl’s smiling eyes full of kindness. After a moment’s hesitation, her nervousness melted away and she couldn’t help but smile foolishly at Yu Youyou.

“Greetings, little junior sister,” she said with a deep bow.

The little one playfully returned the greeting, “Thanks.”

“Little junior sister means she will rely on you in the future. My little junior sister is still young, so please take good care of her, Ruan sister,” Chu Xingyun said with a smile.

“Yes.” Though Yu Youyou’s speech was simple and only Chu Xingyun could understand it, Ruan Ling cherished this opportunity. She resolved to quickly learn to understand the little junior sister’s words and didn’t mind that Yu Youyou was not very articulate. She came from a mortal town, and mortal children often take a long time to speak clearly, and then suddenly shine.

Seeing that the sect leader, though imposing, was very warm toward her, and that Chu Xingyun and Zhu Changshu were also kind, Ruan Ling relaxed visibly. The sect leader was not so busy as to keep Yu Youyou only with her caretaker, so he ordered Ruan Ling to first familiarize herself with the sect hall and gave her a few days’ leave to say goodbye to outer sect comrades and pack her belongings.

Seeing the disciple obey, the sect leader affectionately patted Yu Youyou’s small head and said, “Although you have a caretaker now, Youyou, your father is not neglecting you.”

He was not the kind to leave the child with a caretaker and feel at ease himself.

The little one obediently nodded.

Come to think of it, the reason she chose Ruan Ling was not because of much connection in the book. The only impression of the apricot-eyed girl was that in the book, after Yu Youyou had betrayed the sect leader and his retinue and the sect was in turmoil, Ruan Ling suddenly led people to attack the Primordial Ancient Sect. The sect’s mountain protection array was destroyed in advance by Yu Youyou, leaving the sect unprepared. Among those who fought desperately against the invaders was Ruan Ling.

To the book’s Yu Youyou, that was but a casual glance. To her, it was just a stubborn outer disciple who died defending the outer sect—a life as insignificant as a feather, not worth mentioning. But to the current Yu Youyou, she still liked the girl’s lively appearance.

The other outer disciples also protected the sect well. They were all good, the finest disciples of the Primordial Ancient Sect. But from that chaotic glance in the book, Yu Youyou only remembered Ruan Ling. She chose her instinctively and hoped that this time she could live long, grow well under the sect’s protection, and become a freer, happier cultivator.

Page (3/3)