Chapter 101

However, when Bai Axiu activated her "Wisdom Eye" and looked again, Shi Zhongyu's handsome appearance turned transparent, leaving only a beating heart.

This heart was hideously shaped and pitch black, as if kneaded from mud in a stinking ditch; the rotting flesh on it trembled, like maggots wriggling upon its surface.

Both ugly and disgusting.

111 Lustful thoughts made in public; Shi Zhongyu expelled from the Xueshan Sect.

Witnessing such a horrifying scene, Bai Axiu's face drained of color in fright; she nearly screamed but managed to cover her mouth in time.

She quickly withdrew her "Wisdom Eye to Know People" talent, yet her pupils still trembled uncontrollably, her limbs felt weak and sore, and her heart remained filled with lingering fear.

"So terrifying! This person... this person is truly a complete villain, just as the diary said."

"No, I must go tell Grandma; I cannot let him join the Xueshan Sect!"

Bai Axiu clenched her fists tightly, turned around, and went to find Shi Xiaocui.

The young girl came quietly and left quietly; none of the several people in the hall noticed, as they were still exchanging polite greetings.

After a round of mutual flattery, Shi Qing stated his purpose, and with Feng Wanli acting as guarantor, this matter was originally not difficult.

However, just as Bai Wanjian was about to nod in agreement, a voice rang out: "I do not agree!"

The atmosphere in the living room froze; everyone turned to look toward the sound and saw Shi "Two Nine Seven" Xiaocui entering with Bai Axiu.

"Mother!" Bai Wanjian hurriedly rose to offer her a seat.

A group of Xueshan Sect disciples also bowed in greeting.

Shi Qing and Min Rou both recognized this Sect Leader's Lady; seeing that the one opposing them was actually her, they could not help but feel deeply worried.

Shi Xiaocui was always decisive and swift in action, disliking dawdling; she got straight to the point: "Sect Master Shi, Lady Shi, your 'Black and White Twin Swords' Wu Gong is Gao Qiang; among the Xueshan Sect, few can compare to the two of you."

"But I wonder, why do the two of you not teach your son personally, yet travel thousands of miles to send your son into my Xueshan Sect?"

"This..." Shi Qing and Min Rou exchanged glances, speechless and stammering.

Shi Qing was an upright and honest man by nature, not skilled at lying; entrusting his son to Feng Wanli this time, he had claimed his young son was unruly and asked him to discipline him on his behalf, striking when strike was needed and punishing when punishment was needed.

However, how could Feng Wanli take that seriously? He merely took it as the modest words of an old friend.

One side did not explain in detail, the other did not probe deeply, and with their existing friendship, they easily passed this hurdle.

Now that Shi Xiaocui asked directly to their faces, it left Shi Qing not knowing how to answer.

He knew clearly what sort of character his own son was; he truly had no face to say it outright.

But if he lied, it would not take long for the truth to be exposed, not to mention it would violate his principles of conduct.

Thus, for a moment, he had no reply.

Min Rou had a weak and gentle temperament; if even Shi Qing could not manage, then she certainly could not.

Observing their expressions, Shi Xiaocui could already confirm that what her granddaughter Bai Axiu had said was true.

Turning her gaze to Shi Zhongyu behind the two, she sneered: "Your son is indeed handsome, but why are his eyes so lacking in propriety?!"

Hearing this, everyone turned to look at Shi Zhongyu.

They saw this young man's eyes shining with light; he kept staring intensely at Bai Axiu, his face flushed with excitement, his gaze filled with aggression and possessiveness.

He had lost his virginity long ago and tasted the wonderful flavor of women; now, seeing Bai Axiu's clear, elegant, and pure beauty, like an ice maiden without flaw, he knew she was a supreme treasure of the world.

Thus, lustful thoughts arose in him involuntarily.

He even forgot to restrain himself; just as usual, he displayed everything on his face, unaware that he had been mentioned by Shi Xiaocui and was the focus of everyone's gaze.

"Hmph!"

A cold snort containing thick internal power exploded beside Shi Zhongyu's ear, startling him so much that he finally came to his senses.

Before he could even see the situation, the back of his head received a slap from Shi Qing, accompanied by a roar: "You rebellious son! You never learn anything good! I will beat you to death!"

Shi Qing was simply furious beyond measure.

Arriving at someone else's territory, meeting for the first time, yet staring fixedly at an innocent young maiden; his lustful demon heart was obvious to all, which was simply trampling their parents' face into the dirt!

Regarding Shi Qing's punching and kicking, Shi Zhongyu was obviously accustomed to it; he instinctively crouched down and covered his head.

At the same time, he cried out: "What's wrong? What's wrong? Did I do something wrong? Mother, come save me, Mother!"

Seeing that he did not realize his mistake, Shi Qing became even more furious, while Min Rou wore an expression of heartache and inner conflict.

Feng Wanli was not a fool after all; seeing this, he understood almost everything and could not help but feel somewhat embarrassed.

He looked at Bai Wanjian beside him: "Junior Brother, I did not consider this thoroughly enough."

Bai Wanjian shook his head: "One may know a person's face but not their heart; who could have thought this young man, with such a dignified appearance, would have such an unbearable character."

Saying this, his cold and sharp gaze swept toward Shi Zhongyu.

Bai Axiu was his daughter; naturally, the look in Shi Zhongyu's eyes, which any man would understand, made Bai Wanjian furious; the cold snort just now had come from him.

Bai Axiu had long ago retreated behind her grandmother's back and did not even look at Shi Zhongyu.

Because seeing Shi Zhongyu would remind her of that pitch-black, ugly heart, which made her feel very uncomfortable.

Shi Xiaocui suddenly said: "Enough, Sect Master Shi; I will not say any more unnecessary words. When our sect recruits disciples, martial arts talent is one aspect, but we must also consider the disciple's character..."

"If Sect Master Shi has confidence in your son, then let him stay in the Xueshan Sect."

Although she spoke thus, given the situation, how could Shi Qing have the face to remain?

He immediately clasped his fists in apology all around, then grabbed Shi Zhongyu and left together with Min Rou.

As Shi Zhongyu was dragged out the door, he kept shouting: "That good sister, what is your name? Tell me, okay... Ah!"

The cries of pain grew fainter and farther away; the people in the hall looked at one another in silence.

Shi Xiaocui glanced at Bai Wanjian and Feng Wanli and warned: "In the future, be stricter when selecting disciples; do not accept just anyone into the sect, or you might let a thief into your home!"

"Yes!" The two hurriedly agreed.

Shi Xiaocui led Bai Axiu into the rear hall and said: "Axiu, you were indeed right; that Shi Zhongyu is truly 'gilded on the outside, rotten on the inside.' But can you tell Grandma how you knew?"

"Grandma, Axiu just... saw it." Bai Axiu could not speak plainly, but she was not lying either; she was just being somewhat vague.

Shi Xiaocui noticed something was off, but she didn't press further.

Her granddaughter was always obedient; if there was something she could say, she naturally wouldn't hide it from her.

However…

Shi Xiaocui's scrutinizing gaze swept over her granddaughter once, and she said, "Axiu, have you been troubled by something lately?"

Bai Axiu, caught off guard by Shi Xiaocui's question, couldn't help but pause for a moment, then shook her head repeatedly: "Grandma, Axiu 3.7 d-doesn't… it's nothing."

Shi Xiaocui had lived most of her life; seeing Bai Axiu speak evasively, her eyes darting away, her cheeks flushed red—how could she not understand that the girl wasn't being sincere?

She couldn't help but sigh inwardly: "After all, she's grown up. Even the most obedient child is starting to have her own thoughts now."

But then she felt puzzled again—just what matter or person had turned her well-behaved granddaughter into this?

Shi Xiaocui couldn't figure it out, so she decided to keep a closer eye on her for a while, lest her shallow experience lead to someone deceiving her.

"Axiu, if anything difficult comes up in the future, be sure to tell your grandma. Don't keep it bottled up inside, understand?"

"Yes, Grandma. Axiu will remember."

Bai Axiu saw that her grandmother didn't press further, and she too breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, the matter of Jiang Sishui and the diary copy was truly unspeakable, and not easy to speak of either; asking her to lie and fool people was purely tormenting her.

112 Teleportation Map, a thousand miles in an instant

When he had come to Leigu Mountain, the only person by Jiang Sishui's side with whom he could share intimate talk was Zhao Qiying.

Now that he had left Leigu Mountain, the number of women by his side had suddenly increased by four.

Because he had the strength and the backing, when he spent time with the women, he carried an extra measure of confidence he hadn't had before.

Even though the women before him were all of stunning beauty, he could still chat freely, his witty and humorous words frequently drawing peals of delicate laughter from them.

Their topics were also wide-ranging—martial arts, secret lore, gossip, outstanding figures… in short, anything under the sun; whatever came to mind, they chatted about.

Thus, as they laughed and teased over time, those who had been somewhat unfamiliar with each other grew several degrees closer.

Even the reserved and prim Wang Yuyan gradually loosened up, no longer putting on the Young Lady's aloof front, and began to mingle freely with the rest.

So this heavenly fairy who had descended to the mortal world, while losing none of her immortal air, gained a touch more "human flavor."

All the more captivating.

Jiang Sishui too found his heart stirring more and more.

As it approached noon, the few of them found an inn to eat, then continued on their way.

What left Jiang Sishui somewhat speechless was that he had originally "coaxed" Huang Rong along, intending to have her cure that tart-tongued Ah Zhu's sharp mouth. Who would have thought the "driving the tiger to devour the wolf" stratagem would fail, and instead become a "wolf in front, tiger behind" situation.

"No good, Rong'er is too wild! I have to take her in quickly, or the alliance will collapse on its own."

Jiang Sishui turned the matter over in his mind.

Happy times always flew by; before they knew it, the sun was already setting behind the western hills.