The Valley of Contemplation lay in a remote mountain hollow of Wu Fang. The terrain within the valley was peculiar, making it difficult to see the sun and moon. It had its unique climate – no snow in winter, no wind in spring and autumn, and only evergreen trees grew there.
After spending four or five days in this place, Er Sheng realized that the Immortal Lord’s punishment was indeed very light. Besides having no one to talk to, life here wasn’t much different from the outside. Of course, she could think this way because she had settled down to practice cultivation sincerely. Ever since learning that she had a live pig in her stomach, she had been diligently meditating every day, focusing her spirit and gathering energy, waiting for the three months to pass so she could completely expel whatever evil energy was inside her.
Though she liked eating insects, she certainly didn’t enjoy raw pork.
Speaking of her life in the valley, one must mention the small black snake that entered the valley with her.
When Er Sheng was quietly cultivating, the small black snake was also cultivating. When Er Sheng couldn’t bear the loneliness and wanted to play, the small black snake was still cultivating.
She could tell this snake was no ordinary creature. Er Sheng thought that although it was Chang Yuan’s relative, there was no guarantee it wouldn’t suddenly decide to eat her one day. In this valley, she was alone with this snake – if she died here, hardly anyone would know.
She had to be wary of it.
So when Er Sheng wanted to play, she wouldn’t let it continue cultivating. She would pick up a wooden stick and poke at the black snake’s tail until it finally raised its head to look at her helplessly. Only then would she be satisfied enough to throw away the stick and command like a tyrant: “Play with me.”
The small black snake would just look at her with a hint of grievance.
Er Sheng would grip the Yi Lin sword in one hand and give another small stick to the black snake, telling it to wrap its tail around the wood and spar with her. Her intention was to make the black snake recognize the difference in their strength, so it wouldn’t dare trouble her easily.
However, what she never expected was that after just two moves, the snake’s tail, wielding the small stick, knocked the Yi Lin sword from her hand, sending it flying far away to embed itself in the earth.
Er Sheng was dumbfounded, staring at the black snake. For a moment, she thought she saw a dazzling smile in its eyes. Realizing she had lost face badly, she immediately flew into a rage, gathering energy in her palm to strike at the black snake. The small black snake flicked its tail, sending the stick flying at an odd angle to strike Er Sheng’s ankle. She felt her ankle go slightly numb, her legs immediately gave way, and she fell face-first into the mud.
The black snake swayed its tail rather proudly at first, but seeing Er Sheng lying there motionless for so long, it worried it hadn’t controlled its strength properly and had hurt her. It slowly moved to the front of Er Sheng’s head.
“Ah… how embarrassing, practicing magic for so long and still can’t even beat a snake.”
Hearing Er Sheng’s muffled sigh, the snake thought, you’ve only practiced for such a short time, of course, you can’t beat me. If you could, I’d be the one truly embarrassed.
Er Sheng continued complaining to herself: “How am I supposed to save Chang Yuan like this?”
The black snake’s heart softened at this. After staring at the top of Er Sheng’s head for a while, it stretched out and gently touched her head with its mouth. Er Sheng raised her dejected face, and the black snake nuzzled her forehead as if offering comfort or acting coy.
“What are you doing?” Er Sheng swatted its head away strangely.
The small black snake didn’t mind her rough behavior, just turned back to gaze at her steadily. Er Sheng’s black eyes were clear and pure, without a trace of worldly dust. The small black snake’s tail couldn’t help but twitch slightly, as if unable to resist an impulse, and it suddenly bit Er Sheng’s lips.
This unexpected action left Er Sheng stunned. Her eyes widened enormously, and it took her a long time to react: “Damn!” She grabbed the snake’s body with one hand and forcefully pulled it away from her mouth. The black snake didn’t want to let go but finally released her lips reluctantly, fearing it might hurt her.
Er Sheng touched her mouth, which was now bleeding slightly. She glared at the black snake, but the snake seemed shy, glancing at Er Sheng before quickly turning its head away, though unable to resist the urge to look back at her secretly.
Er Sheng angrily threw it to the ground, cursing, “Little Black! You are a sinister, evil snake! I knew it – you want to eat me!” Little Black hurriedly shook its head, trying to prove its innocence, but Er Sheng raged, “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking just because you won’t admit it.” Seeing Er Sheng’s fierce reaction, Little Black became even more desperate to clear things up, but once Er Sheng had decided it had ill intentions, she wouldn’t let it come near. She kept backing away while shouting, “Don’t come closer! Stay away from me!”
Little Black followed for a few steps, but seeing how intensely Er Sheng was avoiding it, it lowered its head in sadness and disappointment. It thought about how it had been told that “people who like each other can bite each other a little” – it had heard that before…
Was it because she didn’t like it anymore…
Er Sheng watched the motionless Little Black warily from behind a rock, thought for a moment, then picked up another stone to hold: “If you dare bite me again, I’ll beat you! Get away!”
Little Black didn’t look at Er Sheng, just hung its head after hearing these words, and did turn to slowly crawl away, rustling into the grass and not coming out again.
For the next few months, Er Sheng truly didn’t see Little Black’s shadow again. She had wondered if she’d been too harsh – after all, it was Chang Yuan’s relative… but she only had one life, and she couldn’t gamble with that. Better to be a bit too harsh than not harsh enough.
The time of solitary reflection in the Valley of Contemplation passed quietly and uneventfully.
When Ji Ling came to fetch Er Sheng, she was surprised by two things: first, by Er Sheng’s rapidly increased spiritual power, and second, by Er Sheng’s spirited demeanor…
“Senior Sister! Senior Sister!” Er Sheng bounced over to her side. “Are you here to take me home?”
The word “home” slightly jarred Ji Ling. She frowned slightly, glancing at Er Sheng, and said coldly: “Three months of reflection, yet not a hint of repentance.”
“But I have changed! I know now not to kill pigs randomly or fly around recklessly on swords. Senior Sister, let’s go home!”
Ji Ling’s brow furrowed again, though she couldn’t find anything specific to criticize. She waved her sleeve coldly and said: “Fly your sword.” Two months was hardly enough time to master sword flight, and Ji Ling had intended to see Er Sheng make a fool of herself and then pitifully beg for help. But unexpectedly, Er Sheng happily agreed and, though awkwardly, climbed onto the Yi Lin sword.
Surprisingly, while her posture was ungainly, she controlled the sword with remarkable stability.
“Senior Sister, shall we go?”
Ji Ling raised an eyebrow, muttering half sourly, half admiringly: “She truly has talent.”
Having spent so long in the valley constantly on guard against the black snake’s attacks, Er Sheng’s ears had become extremely sharp. Hearing Ji Ling’s sigh, she immediately laughed loudly: “Of course! Whose junior sister did you think I was?” With that, she flew her sword straight up into the clouds.
Ji Ling watched Er Sheng’s retreating figure and let out a light snort, though her lips curved up involuntarily: “Flatterer.” Then with a turn of her body, a gentle breeze rose, and Ji Ling vanished from the spot in an instant.
After they left, the Valley of Contemplation fell silent. Soon there was a rustling sound from deep in the dense forest undergrowth, but the valley quickly returned to stillness…
Returning to her long-missed small courtyard, Er Sheng bounced around happily.
Since Shen Zui was out today, Er Sheng jumped about tidying her room while repeatedly calling out to her senior sister about the nice weather and the pleasant warm breeze. She kept at it until Ji Ling grew thoroughly impatient and cast a spell that instantly cleaned the entire courtyard, snapping, “Focus on your cultivation and stop chattering.”
Er Sheng gazed in amazement at the instantly cleaned rooms, then shamelessly went up to Ji Ling, clinging to her and begging to learn this spell. When Ji Ling ignored her, she followed her around like a tail.
Ji Ling had a cold personality and was usually serious. Not only junior disciples but even her senior brothers and sisters felt somewhat intimidated by her. No one had ever clung to her so shamelessly as Er Sheng did.
Unable to concentrate on cultivation with Er Sheng’s disturbance, Ji Ling simply wrote the spell incantation on paper and threw it to Er Sheng to practice on her own.
But unexpectedly, Er Sheng stared at the paper for a long while before scampering back to ask about each character one by one. Ji Ling sighed helplessly and said disdainfully, “You look so clever, yet you can’t read a single character?”
“I can read!” Er Sheng clarified, picking up the brush from Ji Ling’s table and carefully writing the four characters for “Chang Yuan Er Sheng.” “See, I can write these.”
Ji Ling sighed: “There’s nothing to boast about knowing just four characters.” A thought suddenly crossed her mind, and she cleared her throat, saying, “Wu Fang has an academy for younger disciples to learn reading and writing. Would you like to go?”
Er Sheng’s eyes lit up: “Can I?”
“Of course you can, though you’ll have to stay there all day, and the teachers are very strict.”
“I want to go.”
“Alright, I’ll make arrangements for you. You can start at the academy tomorrow.”
Er Sheng jumped up excitedly, throwing her arms around Ji Ling’s arm and nuzzling against her while praising, “Senior Sister is so good, so good!”
Ji Ling was very uncomfortable with such intimate physical contact and turned away, pushing Er Sheng’s hands off: “I need to meditate quietly, don’t disturb me.”
Er Sheng obediently agreed. After she left, Ji Ling’s lightly closed eyes opened, and she touched her arm where Er Sheng had nuzzled against it, blushing slightly. She let out a light scoff: “Such a clingy little thing… who’s being good to you?”
That night, under the bright moon.
When Er Sheng fell asleep with a sweet smile, a slender black shadow secretly slipped into her room.
It silently climbed up the bedpost, rising above Er Sheng’s head. A pair of golden eyes carefully examined Er Sheng’s sleeping face – when she smiled, the black snake’s eyes narrowed; when she pouted, its tail twitched; when she turned over, its head tilted to follow.
When Er Sheng mumbled Chang Yuan’s name in her dreams, it nodded gently beside her, responding to each call even though it knew she couldn’t see it.
The next morning when Er Sheng woke up, the black snake was already gone.
When Shen Zui returned in a drunken state, he happened to meet Ji Ling taking Er Sheng to the academy. He waved his hand and said, “Learning some culture is good, but if anyone at the academy bullies you, just hit them – Master will take responsibility when you return.”
Ji Ling narrowed her eyes at Shen Zui, then took Er Sheng away. It wasn’t until they reached the academy that she coldly instructed: “If someone bullies you, let it go once, endure it twice, but if they push their luck, then follow your master’s advice. He’ll cover for you when you return.”
Er Sheng nodded solemnly.
However, life at the academy wasn’t as bad as they had imagined.
Among the children, Er Sheng was like a giant, and everyone was smart enough not to provoke her. Although she wasn’t particularly welcomed at the academy, at least she could study in peace. Being naturally clever, she learned very quickly. In less than half a year, she could write her own short stories. When she privately shared them with her classmates, the children were so captivated by Er Sheng’s stories that they gradually began to accept her.
Life on the immortal mountain became increasingly smooth, and Er Sheng even grew accustomed to this leisurely lifestyle. Each day she would practice magic for a while, read, practice writing, and in her spare time create small stories to share with her classmates. However, in every story Er Sheng wrote, there was always a character named Chang Yuan who was beautiful and powerful, living well somewhere in this world.
Time flew by, and time on the immortal mountain seemed to flow somewhat faster than in the mortal realm. Before Er Sheng knew it, she had spent three years studying at the academy and was already seventeen years old.
From the age of sixteen, Er Sheng would accompany Ji Ling down the mountain to eliminate demons and uphold righteousness, while also inquiring about news of Chang Yuan. Whenever she heard of dragon sightings anywhere, true or false, she would go to investigate, though she always returned disappointed.
Over time, cultivating immortality to find Chang Yuan seemed to become merely a simple notion, a persistent hope.
What truly occupied Er Sheng’s daily life now was practicing various techniques, accumulating and utilizing spiritual energy, better mastering the Yi Lin sword, and going demon-hunting with her senior sister.
She thought this life would continue indefinitely, but nothing in this world lasts forever.
This time, Er Sheng had again gone demon-hunting with Ji Ling. The demon was called Bone Mite, not deeply cultivated but cunning by nature, most skilled at tempting human hearts and feeding on their evil thoughts. Ji Ling caught it in the forest, but her hands were entangled by the Bone Mite’s multiple tentacles.
Given Ji Ling’s cultivation level, she shouldn’t have been harmed by such a demon, but during the struggle, the Bone Mite snickered quietly: “For a disciple of an immortal sect, you harbor such rebellious thoughts about your own master.”
Ji Ling’s mind was thrown into chaos, and in that moment of confusion, the Bone Mite seized the opportunity. One of its slimy, disgusting tentacles aimed straight for Ji Ling’s heart: “That’s right, that’s right, your feelings are unacceptable. Once anyone knows, it’s all over – you won’t even be able to remain master and disciple…” It smiled hideously, about to pierce Ji Ling’s heart.
Just then, Er Sheng arrived and, seeing the situation, shouted: “Senior Sister!” instantly awakening Ji Ling’s senses.
Ji Ling dodged sideways, avoiding a fatal wound but couldn’t escape having her shoulder pierced by its tentacle. Er Sheng flew into a rage: “You ugly monster covered in tongues, you must be tired of living!” With that, she gathered her energy and leaped onto the Bone Mite’s head.
Ji Ling cried out in horror: “No!”
Er Sheng was beyond hearing her warning. Raising her sword, she thrust it directly into the Bone Mite’s head. The demon let out a wail as blood sprayed out, spattering Er Sheng’s face. The tentacle piercing Ji Ling’s shoulder immediately vanished, and Ji Ling clutched her shoulder as she collapsed to the ground.
Under the Yi Lin sword lay a white pearl similar to a core crystal. Er Sheng was traumatized by such objects and hesitated for a long while, unable to bring herself to destroy them. She asked Ji Ling, “Senior Sister, should we destroy it?”
But Ji Ling didn’t answer Er Sheng’s question, instead looking at her anxiously and asking, “Do you feel any restlessness or unease?”
Er Sheng shook her head strangely: “No, but Senior Sister, your wound needs immediate treatment. How should we handle this pearl?”
Ji Ling looked at the sword in Er Sheng’s hand and sighed: “I must have underestimated the spiritual power of this sword. The Bone Mite’s blood can enchant people’s hearts and induce evil thoughts. Ordinary people absolutely cannot touch it. I didn’t expect your sword could dispel evil energy…”
“Senior Sister…” Er Sheng said worriedly, “you still haven’t said what to do with this pearl. We need to hurry back – you’ve lost a lot of blood.”
Ji Ling used her good hand to form a seal, containing the pearl in a barrier before putting it inside her clothes. “This object must be purified by the Immortal Lord.”
After briefly dealing with the battlefield and burying the Bone Mite’s bloodstains, Er Sheng obediently carried Ji Ling on her back and flew the sword straight back to Wu Fang, completely unaware that after they left, when the wind blew gently through the forest, turning over dead leaves, some blood-stained soil was revealed again.
A pair of elegant shoes stood quietly by the soil, kicking the moist earth with interest.
“Hmm, I’ve found you at last.”