Chapter Ten: What Did She Do Wrong?

Huo Shiqing forced himself to steady his emotions and asked, “Master Ji, is there any chance her meridians can be healed?”

Master Ji shook his head. “Your cultivation level is a whole tier above hers, and you struck with lethal force. It’s a miracle she survived. How could you expect anything else?”

His words landed on Huo Shiqing like a harsh slap. Instinctively, he tried to defend himself.

“I didn’t act with murderous intent, I only wanted to teach her a lesson…”

The apology from Qingling Hall had already spread quietly, and Master Ji had heard about it.

He had originally been reluctant to interfere in the internal affairs of other sects, but the behavior of those few was truly excessive, and Master Ji ultimately could not hold back from speaking.

“A lesson? What did she do wrong that you need to teach her?”

“If she dragged your junior sister into danger, and your junior sister instinctively fought back to escape, would you blame your junior sister?”

Huo Shiqing instinctively followed Master Ji’s hypothetical scenario, his face turning pale at once.

Jiang Heng thanked Master Ji and stood to leave.

Just as she stepped out of the courtyard, Huo Shiqing called after her.

Jiang Heng turned back. Huo Shiqing pressed his lips tightly, struggling as if with great difficulty, before softly uttering an apology.

But Jiang Heng said nothing and turned away.

Her cold reaction felt like a needle piercing Huo Shiqing’s heart once more.

In frustration, he hurried after her and grasped her wrist, forcing her to face him. “I already said sorry.”

A trace of mockery flickered on Jiang Heng’s face. “I heard you. So what? Do you want me to kneel and thank Second Senior Brother for deigning to apologize?”

Huo Shiqing took a deep breath, desperately suppressing the storm of emotions within him. “I will seek out a healer more skilled than Master Ji. I’ll find other solutions. So you don’t need to look like you’re dying. I will take responsibility for this.”

Jiang Heng pried his hand away coolly. “There’s no hope in this from the start. Why waste time? You might as well give me the compensation pills and spirit stones directly so I can quietly spend the rest of my life, with no further entanglements.”

Huo Shiqing was left breathless and could only watch her leave.

Shen Yanchu was concerned about Jiang Heng’s meridians. Hearing that Huo Shiqing had taken her to the apothecary, he waited in Huo Shiqing’s dwelling after finishing his own sect duties to inquire about the situation.

But when he saw Huo Shiqing return with such a dejected look, Shen Yanchu realized things were likely not going well.

“How did Master Ji respond?”

Huo Shiqing sat down at the stone table and recounted, after a long pause, the conversation with Master Ji at the apothecary, as well as Jiang Heng’s words.

Shen Yanchu felt a burning flush on his face.

Though not as extreme as Huo Shiqing, after hearing the full story, he also grew discontent and resentful toward Jiang Heng.

Hearing Master Ji’s pointed questions as an observer made him realize he had indeed been biased.

This matter was not Jiang Heng’s fault at all; it was Xu Ning’an’s actions that were somewhat improper.

But thinking of Xu Ning’an’s innocent, lovely face, Shen Yanchu found himself unable to blame her.

After all, An’an was young and inexperienced, panicked in such a critical situation, instinctively seeking survival. She grabbed whatever was at hand, not intentionally targeting Jiang Heng.

Shen Yanchu comforted Huo Shiqing, but in truth, also comforted himself. “Once Master leaves seclusion, we will ask for his help. His cultivation is profound, and he has countless treasures. He will surely find a way.”

Huo Shiqing’s expression brightened a little, and he nodded.

Suddenly, he took out a storage pouch and handed it to Shen Yanchu. “Please, senior brother, help me deliver these spirit stones and pills to her another day. I won’t go myself.”

Shen Yanchu asked, “Why not go yourself? Giving them to her personally would show your sincerity in making amends.”

Huo Shiqing sneered, “I already apologized. She refuses to accept it. If I continue to grovel, she’ll only take advantage and push her luck.”

“She must have guessed that Master will ultimately resolve this. Now she’s putting on this act to manipulate us, to keep bullying An’an. I will never let An’an suffer even a fraction of her ill will!”

Shen Yanchu sighed and took the pouch.

A glance with his divine sense revealed the pouch held a considerable amount of valuables, including many high-grade spirit stones.

Though Huo Shiqing’s words were harsh, he still cared for his junior sister deep down.

After all, having shared centuries together as siblings, no matter how distant or estranged they had become, those bonds could not be erased overnight.

Shen Yanchu considered this and quietly added all the spirit stones in his possession into the pouch.

When the time came, he would tell his junior sister that these were gifts from her Second Senior Brother.

She had suffered enough lately; she deserved more. This would also help mend the rift between them.

By the time Shen Yanchu arrived at Jiang Heng’s dwelling, night had fallen. Sunset was a time of retreat, ideal for meditation, so most cultivators were inside their dwellings practicing.

But Jiang Heng was not there.

Strangely, where had she gone?

Just as Shen Yanchu was about to search for her, his gaze fell on something on the stone table.

It was a half-eaten red peach fruit, with faint teeth marks.

Holding the fruit, Shen Yanchu suddenly recalled something…

Jiang Heng had been searching for wild medicinal herbs with Zhu Zhu under the night sky, but had found nothing for a long time.

Perhaps because of her practice of the Path of Evil, her appetite had grown; a full storage pouch of herbs was consumed in just a few days.

Wild herbs on the mountain were limited, unlike ordinary wild flowers and grasses that grew quickly; with her method of gathering, it was inevitable that the supply would run dry.

Especially the sweet and tasty red peach fruit—Jiang Heng liked it, but so did the spirit beasts flying and running through the sect. Now, their traces had vanished, leaving only a few withered, bitter yellow grasses swaying desolately in the night wind.

Jiang Heng could only pick these and store them.

Bitter or not, as long as they had spiritual energy, they would do.

Zhu Zhu jumped a few times at Jiang Heng’s feet, then hopped toward a certain direction.

Having spent so much time with Zhu Zhu, Jiang Heng understood her temperament well and asked, “You want me to gather outside the peak?”

Zhu Zhu hopped happily up and down.

Jiang Heng hesitated briefly but ultimately followed Zhu Zhu beyond Snow Crane Peak, searching for wild herbs in the sect’s communal Moonfall Forest.

These kinds of herbs were not like the rare cultivated ones in the gardens, so their value was negligible, and no one in the sect paid them much attention. Taking some should cause no trouble.

Moonfall Forest was an immense woodland, far larger than Snow Crane Peak.

Its environment was well-suited for wild medicinal herbs to grow. Jiang Heng not only found red peach fruits but also many species she had never seen before, sparking a bit of hope.

Could these wild herbs perhaps be tastier than the red peach fruit?