Chapter 114: The Invisible Islands

Having logically established a connection with Qintai He, Ruan Xing naturally had to trouble him every now and then to assert her presence.

She wrinkled her small face and said pitifully to Qintai He, "Shixiong, Senior Sister Xu is too terrifying. Every time she looks at me, it's as if she wants to eat me. I don't dare step half a step into Artifact Refining Peak at all. How am I supposed to get my Dharma Sword repaired?"

For the past two days, Ruan Xing had been bringing this up in front of him from time to time, annoying Qintai He to no end. Today, he finally had a flash of inspiration and replied, "How about I accompany you to Xianyuan City to buy one? I'll pay for the Spirit Stones."

Ruan Xing's eyes lit up. "How could I be so bold? Hehe, are we going now?"

Qintai He choked, then said ungraciously, "Mm, let's go now."

If he resolved this matter early, this little girl wouldn't come to bother him anymore.

Qintai He was actually quite conflicted inside. He didn't know how to get along with people, nor did he want to establish any relationship beyond intimacy with anyone. But others were easy to deal with; if he kept a cold face and ignored them, they naturally wouldn't stick to his side. However, this little girl was someone his Master had told him to look after, and he simply didn't know how to take care of people.

He himself had also come to Yaoguang Peak at the age of seven.

Recalling how his Senior Sister had taken care of him back then... the memory seemed a bit blurry now. At that time, he locked himself in his room all day without interacting with anyone, spending his time either reading or playing with Yin Feng. Yin Feng was still tiny then, about the size of a puppy. His Senior Sister would come every day to deliver food and leave it at his door; the two rarely met. Occasionally, when they did see each other, if his Senior Sister noticed he had grown taller, there would be two new sets of clothes next to his food the next day.

It didn't seem to have much reference value; after all, he hadn't even drawn Qi into his body back then.

Qintai He stood up and sat on the white wolf. Ruan Xing took the opportunity to stroke the fluffy fur around the white wolf's neck. The white wolf bared its teeth at her with some dissatisfaction, but it didn't use its claws to swipe at her.

Ruan Xing chuckled twice, then contentedly took out her notched Flying Sword and stepped onto it.

She had long since scouted Xianyuan City in her Simulations. By now, she knew which shops had high-quality materials and which shops had cost-effective Dharma Artifacts like the back of her hand, so she led Qintai He straight to a shop.

She didn't cheat Qintai He. Given her height, most Flying Swords were not proportional enough for her to use comfortably, so there weren't many options for her to choose from. She was used to using a Short Sword, so she picked a silver, thin-handled Short Sword for eight hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones.

This price was considered a relatively moderate one among Mid-grade Magical Artifacts.

Qintai He paid the Spirit Stones, and Ruan Xing hung the new sword at her waist, unable to put it down, and even changed the Sword Tassel.

"Are you satisfied now?" Qintai He said.

"Satisfied, of course I'm satisfied," Ruan Xing replied happily. "Shall we go back now? Shixiong hasn't cultivated these past few days, why not go back and make up for it?"

"No rush," Qintai He shook his head. "In a few days, Senior Sister Meng Hui will be forming her Golden Core. She invited me to be her array protector. After all, we are from the same sect, and I have agreed. Let's pick out a congratulatory gift for her while we are here."

Hm? Meng Hui is going to form her Golden Core?

That makes sense. She had originally said she would form her Golden Core once the Soft Smoke Gauze was finished. Two or three days had passed, so the Soft Smoke Gauze was probably about done too.

It was just unexpected that Meng Hui would invite Qintai He to be her array protector.

Array protection was a tradition left over from the ancient times of the Cultivation world. Because a Cultivator was at their most vulnerable and could not afford any mistakes while undergoing the Heavenly Tribulation, if any enemy came to cause trouble, it was very likely they would fail the tribulation. Therefore, Cultivators would invite their sect elders or close friends to protect the array for them during the tribulation.

Of course, nowadays, protection for tribulation transcendence was very well-established within various sects. Inviting someone to protect the array was just a formality. If someone could actually sneak in to cause trouble while one was undergoing tribulation within the sect, wouldn't that be trampling the sect's face into the dirt?

The cultivation level of the person protecting the array needed to be higher than that of the person undergoing the tribulation. Qintai He guessed that his Master had protected his array personally back then. As for Meng Hui, she might have invited those close friends from Tianyan Peak, but since she was a disciple of Yaoguang Peak, it wouldn't look good for the Master if she only invited people from Tianyan Peak, so she had invited Qintai He as well.

The two walked side by side, with the white wolf following one step behind at Qintai He's side. People on the street cast looks of attention as they passed. Qintai He ignored them as if he were long accustomed to it, and Ruan Xing also calmly pretended not to see. She rolled her eyes and asked, "Shixiong, have you thought about what to send?"

Qintai He shook his head. "No, but she is a female Cultivator. Just sending her some things that most female Cultivators like and can use will suffice."

Ruan Xing recalled that Meng Hui was not like ordinary female Cultivators. She had an ordinary appearance and didn't dress up much on a daily basis. When refining artifacts, she would tie her hair up without even inserting a single hairpin. She probably didn't pursue pills for beauty and youth, beautiful Dharma robes, or cute spirit pets. Therefore, she suggested, "I heard Senior Sister Meng Hui is a senior second-tier Artifact Refiner, and her success rate for Mid-grade Magical Artifacts is already nearly fifty percent. Why not give her some artifact refining materials to give her more experience for when she advances to the third tier?"

Qintai He was stunned.

"Is she an Artifact Refiner?"

"You didn't know?" Ruan Xing scratched her head. The other Registered Disciples of Yaoguang Peak all knew.

However... apart from having to greet others when they occasionally bumped into each other, Qintai He never interacted with other disciples.

Qintai He said indifferently, "She never told me, but since you say so, I will send her artifact refining materials."

The two went to another shop and bought a few catties of smelted and purified ore, which they packed into a box and put away.

When they were about to leave, they passed by the Library Pavilion. Ruan Xing's heart stirred, and she opened the Real-scene Simulation, asking, "Shixiong, shall we go in and take a look?"

Qintai He was uninterested. "There's nothing worth seeing. I've seen most of it when I was young. Useful things wouldn't be placed in there."

"Then... Shixiong has also seen the map inside?" Ruan Xing asked tentatively. "Does Shixiong know what Tianxin Island and the Floating Island are?"

"Tianxin Island? Floating Island?" Qintai He looked blank. "What kind of places are these? Are they some Secret Realm? I have never left Xianyuan City... I don't know the situation outside."

Ruan Xing became a bit anxious. "Not outside, right here in Xianyuan City, in the sky, above our heads."

Qintai He looked up at the sky, still not understanding what she meant.

Ruan Xing forcibly dragged him into the Library Pavilion, found the place with the map, and pointed to the two gray, hazy islands on the map. "It's these two places."

Qintai He frowned. "Are you joking with me, or have you had a mishap in your Cultivation and are seeing hallucinations? If it's the latter, I'll take you to Chenshui Peak later to have them check your illness."

"Can you really not see them?" Ruan Xing said in disappointment.

"I truly see nothing," Qintai He said in a deep voice. "Chenshui Peak is skilled at clearing meridians; you should go and have a look. While you're at it, have them examine you. Since you entered the Dao so early, your Spirit Bone must be damaged. While you are still young, there might be a chance for remedy."

Chenshui Peak could certainly remedy it... otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to fall in love and marry Cheng Bi normally in the Simulation. It was just that she didn't think there was anything wrong with her child's body, and she knew clearly that her Spirit Bone had long been transformed by the ice pool water of the Snow Marrow and would not be damaged.

"Thank you for your concern, Shixiong, but there is no need," Ruan Xing said perfunctorily, then ended the Simulation.

Returning to reality, the two were still on the street. Ruan Xing blinked and saw Qintai He turn his head suddenly after passing her by a step. "Why did you stop?"

"Ah, it's nothing, I just zoned out for a moment," Ruan Xing followed him and looked up with a smile. "Let's hurry back, Shixiong."

Every time she used the Simulation, there would be a lag of less than a second. It was fine when her cultivation was low; she couldn't do anything in less than a second anyway. She could even simulate while controlling her sword, and she wouldn't fall off the Flying Sword when she came back to her senses.

But it didn't work well with high cultivation. Just now, Qintai He was too close to her and noticed it immediately. With the speed of the Golden Core Stage, a second was enough to strike seven or eight sword blows.

I wonder if there is any Magic Art for multitasking.

The name change was successful~ I hope the new book title brings good luck~ Thanks to Prosperous New Peace for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Clear Rain Moon for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to green'ying for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Quiet Orchid Heart for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to Blue Sea of Ghosts for the monthly ticket~ Thanks to ek0113 for the monthly ticket~(End of chapter)