Chapter 239: Oh no! Something went wrong!

"Eh? Is it going to end so soon?"

Hearing Shi Xue's words, Li Qiushui made no effort to hide her feelings of reluctance.

For Shi Xue, the hardships along this journey were not worth mentioning to outsiders.

But for Li Qiushui, the joy of this journey was worth more than a thousand pieces of gold.

It was so happy.

She did not want this unforgettable trip to end at all.

Finding joy here, she did not think of home.

Li Qiushui had never imagined before that the world outside the sect would look like this!

For Li Qiushui, who had always been determined to be a traditional woman at home, everything outside was fresh.

Things like market life or wandering the jianghu were as distant as the horizon to her former self.

Even when she saw stories in books about wealthy young ladies running away and pledging their lives to so-called heroes, she felt nothing.

To Li Qiushui, this held no attraction at all.

The education she received made her unwilling to even consider it, and she even subjectively looked down upon the outside world.

Be a wandering knight? Why roam the jianghu? What was so good about it?

But choosing to run away this time was not to reclaim her lost freedom.

It was simply rebellion...

Yet, after she truly escaped, she realized she had actually been wrong.

In the lives of ordinary people, there were indeed no servants to wash clothes, cook, or bring them tea and water.

It was not a life of idle romance, nor was it a life of luxury where one was fed and clothed by others.

The life of ordinary people was, just as she had thought, very difficult.

At first, Li Qiushui was disappointed, feeling there was nothing novel about the outside.

But after she shook off her initial discomfort and quickly integrated into this life, she no longer thought that way.

It's so good!

The colorful world outside is truly interesting!

The expert she picked up by the river outside the city made her journey much less troublesome.

Although Li Qiushui was inexperienced in the ways of the world, she was not completely ignorant.

Perhaps due to a woman's intuition, she could sense the emotions contained in the gazes others cast upon her.

Goodwill, malice, greed, indifference, wariness...

If not for Shi Xue accompanying and protecting her along the way, there would surely have been many troubles.

Therefore, Li Qiushui was full of affection for Shi Xue, this kind-hearted expert who was willing to take the initiative to protect her.

What Shi Xue did not know was that while she was still testing Li Qiushui back and forth...

The other party had already unilaterally maxed out her favorability!

Shi Xue, I like you!

I like you—

Therefore, as this journey was about to come to an end, Li Qiushui's heart was full of reluctance.

She pouted at the direction Shi Xue pointed, then tentatively asked:

"Um... I think that way is a bit dangerous, should we take another path?"

All Li Qiushui wanted was to prolong their final time together as much as possible.

But the speaker had no intention, while the listener took it to heart.

To Shi Xue, these words meant something entirely different.

Danger?

Shi Xue did not doubt it and frowned.

In her understanding, Li Qiushui's words meant something else entirely:

The expert is warning me!

There is danger ahead, and we need to avoid it!

Shi Xue had previously assumed that Li Qiushui was a powerhouse with astonishing swordsmanship.

Although she was unclear about the purpose of this expert specifically asking for her protection, she had never asked too much and had put her full spirit into arranging everything on the road.

Throughout this journey, Li Qiushui had never interfered with her arrangements, so this sudden suggestion made her feel uneasy.

Was there really some danger ahead that even she needed to be wary of?

That shouldn't be.

This place was not far from the Zhengqi Sect; could there be any powerful danger in these ten thousand mountains?

After lowering her head to think silently for a while, Shi Xue finally decided to play it safe, which also happened not to go against the expert's wishes.

She nodded and said:

"Then let it be as you wish; we shall... set off in a different direction."

And this decision by Shi Xue made Li Qiushui, who mistakenly thought she also didn't want the journey to end, exceptionally happy.

"Mm-hmm, okay!"

Yay!

We can stay together for a little longer!

But while Li Qiushui was happy, one person was not.

Ren Yidao:?

What is wrong with you all?

Are you rebelling?

You've gone too far!

To think you'd dare not act according to the script.

"Two cars depart from two locations, driving toward each other; how long until they meet?"

This is a meeting problem.

But what if it changes to another situation:

"Two cars depart from two locations, driving in the same direction; how long until they meet?"

Now that turns into a pursuit problem!

No!

I can't keep thinking about this, I feel like my brain is going to grow.

Mathematics has never spared me, and I have never spared mathematics!

Although he was a science student in his past life, Ren Yidao really has no fondness for mathematics.

I once thought I could do anything in a state of jealousy and anger, until I encountered mathematics.

This stuff, you either know it or you don't...

And I really don't know it!

Besides, after studying it for so many years, if it isn't for a corresponding major or job, it really doesn't have much use in life.

Fortunately, cultivating immortality doesn't require learning mathematics, otherwise Ren Yidao might have chosen to honestly and peacefully be a little fox in the mountains.

"You all cannot go that way!"

"If you leave, things won't be easy for me over here!"

Your good second brother Li Fengyao is still over here saying "don't bully the young because they are poor," how can you bear to abandon her!

Ren Yidao, who has always done good deeds, decided to take the initiative to point the way for these two lost children.

"Getting lost in the mountains is very dangerous! What if you encounter a bad fox?"

He threw the Dice in his hand and shouted:

"Repent and turn back before it's too late!"

(Sound of Dice rolling)

"Hm? The road here is blocked?"

"It's fine, let's just go the other way."

"Mm."

"Why is it blocked here again? I remember it wasn't like this before?"

"Oh, it doesn't matter."

"Let me check again..."

"Again? How strange! What is going on today?"

"Maybe there's a problem with the map."

"Wait, look ahead! What is that?"

"Is that a... sword stuck in the stone?"

Under the interference of the shameless Ren Yidao, Li Qiushui and the others unknowingly changed their direction of travel.

They returned to the correct path, walking toward Li Fengyao's hiding place.

And after confirming they were on the right path, Ren Yidao did not continue to observe, but hurriedly turned his consciousness to another perspective.

"Wait a minute! Aren't they going straight to the Zhengqi Sect? How did they end up here too?"

Watching a team of unexpected people appear, Ren Yidao blinked his eyes rapidly.

In his field of vision, Li Lingling and Yu Yu, the two sisters who were luckily accepted into the Zhengqi Sect, were currently heading toward the predetermined location under the leadership of Xie Linghua.

A third-party force has appeared!

Judging by their speed, the arrival time might be about the same as the other two groups.

Ren Yidao:?

"No, why are you all joining in the fun?"

Although he opened so many extra instances, Ren Yidao was not omnipotent after all; his spiritual power, while strong, was not enough to handle ten things at once.

He couldn't see every scene clearly, so he always had to make trade-offs and focus on priorities.

But the downside of opening too many instances meant he couldn't completely manage every situation...

This led him to ignore some seemingly insignificant details.

Li Lingling and her group were returning to their sect, but he simply didn't pay attention to such a small matter as which road they took.

But not paying attention didn't mean it didn't exist!

This kind of cutscene that would be naturally skipped in a normal tabletop game was perfectly recreated by a certain earnest, responsible, and meticulous little artifact spirit who wanted to show off in front of her father.

Heaven Mirror says: This bit of calculation? A piece of cake! Father! Watch me simulate it completely for you!

Ren Yidao:???

Who asked you to be so responsible?

Good news: the details are very spot-on, and the experience is very realistic.

Bad news: the details are too spot-on! The experience is too realistic!

Things like this should just be brushed off!

"No, this isn't looking good."

He felt as if he had bypassed decades of detours in an instant, like an old security guard sitting in a surveillance room watching walls full of monitors.

Everything had been fine before, but in the time it took to lower his head to pick up a pen, after looking back up, he could no longer understand what was before his eyes.

And then, everything went haywire.

And now, unknowingly, the situation seemed to show signs of spiraling out of control.

Ren Yidao wanted to give the Heaven Mirror a reminder, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he slammed it shut.

Before the competition began, he could order the Heaven Mirror to act according to his ideas at will, letting it provide him with some convenience.

But once the competition started, he could not do that.

He couldn't even actively show it so that the Heaven Mirror could figure it out on its own.

Because in order to lure the people of the Eastern Wasteland into the trap, Li Long had made a promise with them...

NO! CHEATING!

And colluding with the Heaven Mirror to modify the rules would absolutely count as an act of hacking.

No matter how bored Ren Yidao was, he wouldn't gamble on something like this.

Damn it.

Not happy.

This might not count as lifting a rock only to drop it on his own feet, but it definitely counts as spinning a cocoon around himself.

However, the depression in Ren Yidao's heart only lasted for a moment.

He adjusted his mindset very quickly.

Or rather, Ren Yidao realized one thing clearly.

"The development before my eyes seems even more exciting?"

Having everything proceed according to his own arrangements is certainly interesting.

But for a chaotic-aligned person like him who loves fun, the current uncertain and chaotic situation excites him more than a sense of control.

The unknown is the most interesting.

The disordered is the most worth looking forward to.

Since it can't be managed, haha!

Then don't manage it.

"Let the storm rage more fiercely!"

Not only will he not manage it, he even wants to add fuel to the fire.

"Since I'm pursuing excitement, then I'll see it through to the end!"

"Jie jie jie jie——"

……

……

"Hmm?"

Just as Ren Yidao was letting out a weird, cackling laugh, Yu Yu, who was walking behind Li Lingling while following the several Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, suddenly had her brow twitch.

Yu Yu:!!?

Turning her head back and forth to look, Yu Yu didn't see anything strange.

Auditory hallucination?

After pondering for a moment, Yu Yu gently tugged on Li Lingling's sleeve in front of her and asked in a quiet whisper close to her ear:

"Sister, how much longer do you think it will take for us to reach the Zhengqi Sect?"

Li Lingling actually wanted to ask this question too, but constrained by the pressure radiating from those few people, she hadn't dared to speak up.

Hearing her younger sister's question at this moment, she braced herself, turned her head, and said in a low voice:

"I don't know either, but we should be there soon, right?"

"Xiao Mei, are you scared?"

Sweeping her gaze across the dense forest around them, she also swallowed her saliva, but still pretended to be strong and said:

"It's okay, don't be afraid! With Sister and these Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters here, no matter what kind of wild beast there is, you won't be in any danger."

Watching Li Lingling's forced display of composure, the corners of Yu Yu's mouth twitched slightly, and she said in a low voice:

"... But, I, I'm still a little scared."

She wasn't really the village girl from the setting, so of course she wasn't afraid of wild beasts in this primitive jungle.

The reason Yu Yu couldn't help but speak up at this moment was because her instinct for vigilance had started to react again.

"I'm serious, I just have a feeling that something is going to happen..."

"It's okay, Sister will protect you!"

Li Lingling thought her voice was very small, but in fact, it all fell into the ears of those few people.

The few male disciples were fine and didn't react.

But Xie Linghua heard the two's conversation and smiled with disdain in her heart.

As expected of poor girls from the boondocks, they don't even have this bit of courage.

Once they reach the sect, I'll just send them both to the chores department.

Anyway, I only promised to accept them as Outer Sect Disciples; I didn't say they couldn't be the most ordinary laborers.

She thought sinisterly in her Heart Star, yet in front of outsiders, she still had to maintain that gentle Senior Sister persona on the surface.

She turned her head, smiled at Li Lingling, and asked in a soft voice:

"Is this the first time the two Junior Sisters have gone out?"

"Um... no, not really. I have often gone up the mountain to gather herbs before, but for Xiao Mei, it is her first time going out."

She had almost let it slip, but fortunately, Li Lingling reacted quickly and managed to maintain her persona with great difficulty.

Lies are just like this; once the arrow is loosed, there is no turning back.

One lie requires countless other lies to cover it up.

Perhaps because they never suspected them at all, none of the group took Li Lingling's nervousness to heart.

"Hehe, there is no need to worry or feel ashamed; in the beginning, everyone gets nervous."

"When I was brought into the sect by my Master back then, I was just a sheltered young lady from a wealthy family; how could I have ever seen a forest like this?"

"As for something going wrong? Hehe, on the territory of my Zhengqi Sect, what could possibly go wrong? You two are still too..."

And just as Xie Linghua was boasting and preparing to show off in front of the three Junior Brothers...

Whoosh—

A yellow light flew out from the woods without any warning.

The yellow light was extremely fast and its trajectory was incredibly tricky, arriving before the group in an instant.

"What!?"

In Xie Linghua's dilated pupils, the yellow light did not stop at all and slammed fiercely toward the center of her brow.

Slap!!!

"Ah—"

Yu Yu, who had witnessed the whole thing, sighed slightly at this moment and muttered in a low voice:

"I told you something would go wrong."

The pain brought on by a day of insomnia takes several days to smooth over... I still feel uncomfortable all over and listless today. I will make some adjustments over these two days. I have heard a lot of news about authors getting sick lately, so I am a little panicked; I don't want to kick the bucket too early yet...