Chapter 8: Call Me Master

“Junior Brother Meng Yingxing, are you awake?”
Perhaps she was truly concerned about Meng Yingxing’s health, as Liu Chenxin rushed to the side room where Meng Yingxing was resting right after her morning exercises to see him.
She moved with great strides, and upon arriving, she didn’t even knock, forcefully pushing open the door with a clang.
Unrestrained sunlight eagerly squeezed in from the wide-open door, illuminating the entire room without reservation.
Meng Yingxing, who had been about to further question Xiu Qingcheng in the room, swallowed back all the words he was about to say.
Seeing an uninvited guest burst in, Xiu Qingcheng was also startled, immediately closed her mouth, and dropped from mid-air to the ground, pretending to be just an ordinary long sword.

Thus, as soon as Liu Chenxin burst into the room, she saw Meng Yingxing sitting by the window-side bed, leaning forward with outstretched hands.
The long sword he had brought from the Divine Weapon Pavilion yesterday lay on the ground, looking as if it had been startled by her.
“Senior Sister Liu.”
Meng Yingxing turned his head to look at his senior sister, who acted with such flamboyance, and politely called her name.

“Junior Brother, you’re awake? Then I, your senior sister, can rest assured.”
Liu Chenxin happily walked in, picking up the Ting Tian Sword from the ground before Meng Yingxing could, and handed it to him, “My apologies, Junior Brother, I startled you.”
“I wasn’t startled.” Meng Yingxing shook his head.
After taking the Ting Tian Sword, he subtly placed it behind him, worried that Liu Chenxin might notice something amiss.
Liu Chenxin clearly didn’t notice Meng Yingxing’s subtle movement.
She stood boldly in front of Meng Yingxing, hands on her hips, scrutinizing his face from left to right.
Meng Yingxing lowered his head, not daring to meet Liu Chenxin’s gaze.
Moreover, with Liu Chenxin staring like that, he inexplicably felt a bit nervous.
Xiu Qingcheng, placed behind Meng Yingxing, was also like this, keeping her mouth tightly shut, not daring to make a sound.
Even her previous uninhibited gaze at Liu Chenxin dared not spare a glance now.

‘Strange… why am I feeling guilty?’
Xiu Qingcheng muttered, completely unaware of why she should feel guilty.
But this kind of scene, two people secretly plotting in a room, suddenly interrupted by someone bursting in, really makes one instinctively hide…
‘This feeling… it makes me feel like I’m having a secret affair? And almost got caught? Bah, bah, bah, I’m doing nothing wrong!’
Xiu Qingcheng thought for a moment and decided to continue playing dead sword.
She herself knew that an extraordinary weapon like her could easily cause Meng Yingxing to be hunted by various factions.
With Meng Yingxing’s current strength, anyone could easily crush him.
Without Meng Yingxing, how could she fly around freely?
Pretending to be an ordinary sword in front of outsiders was to protect Meng Yingxing, and more importantly, for her own benefit.

“Senior Sister Liu, why are you looking at me like that?” Meng Yingxing slightly suppressed the inexplicable guilt in his heart and asked.
Liu Chenxin reached out and pressed on Meng Yingxing’s shoulder, turning his upper body left and right a few times before replying, “Is there anything wrong with your body?
Do your wounds still hurt?
Should I ask Elder Mu Xin to heal you again?”
“E-Elder Mu Xin?”
Hearing that name from Liu Chenxin, Meng Yingxing was stunned for a moment.
“So, Senior Sister Liu, you found Elder Mu Xin to treat my wounds?”
“Of course!” Liu Chenxin folded her arms across her chest, looking somewhat smug, as if she were the one who had healed Meng Yingxing.
“Now, quickly say, ‘Thank you, Sister Chenxin!'”
“Th-thank you, Senior Sister—”

“So, what happened yesterday?”
Meng Yingxing touched his head.
The fragments in his mind only went up to Xiu Qingcheng defeating Lu Sanwan; he had virtually no memory of what happened afterward, likely having passed out around then.
When Meng Yingxing mentioned last night, Liu Chenxin was fuming again, her face flushed with indignation.
She said with a hint of anger, “That scoundrel Lu Sanwan!
Last night…”
Liu Chenxin then recounted, with much embellishment, everything that had happened last night: how she called Lu Sanwan over, how Lu Sanwan tried to force her, how Lu Sanwan escaped and attacked Meng Yingxing, and how Lu Sanwan was later judged and expelled from the Tianfeng Sect.
Meng Yingxing listened, utterly dumbfounded.
“Lu Sanwan… was expelled from the sect?” Meng Yingxing repeated, his vision blurring slightly.
“He deserved it!” Liu Chenxin pouted, turning her head and flicking her hand.
Then, Liu Chenxin squinted at the dazed Meng Yingxing, reined in her emotions, and continued, “I remember Lu Sanwan was a new disciple this year, wasn’t he?
He was supposed to participate in the Divine Weapon Trial just like you.
I heard he was quite talented.
Now that he’s been expelled from the sect, Junior Brother, your chances of winning a place in the Divine Weapon Trial have increased.”
“Mm.” Meng Yingxing nodded, noncommittally.
He knew that his talent and strength were both lacking.
Even if Lu Sanwan was expelled from the sect, it would not help him at all, because zero multiplied by any number is still zero.
However, he was never one to give up easily.
Even if there was only a one in a million chance, he would still try.
Moreover, he now had Xiu Qingcheng by his side.
Meng Yingxing clenched his fists.

“So, Junior Brother, is there anywhere else on your body that hurts?” Liu Chenxin still hadn’t forgotten to ask the question Meng Yingxing hadn’t answered.
“…No pain.”
“Senior Sister, can you take me to see Elder Mu Xin?
I’d like… I’d like to thank her in person.”
“No problem.”

After seeing Liu Chenxin out, Meng Yingxing changed into the simple clothes she had brought, and also returned the Ting Tian Sword to its sheath.
“This scabbard is a bit ugly; next time, get me a cooler one.” Xiu Qingcheng spoke belatedly, somewhat disliking the scabbard now covering her.
Meng Yingxing said nothing.
“I mean, if there’s a chance,” Xiu Qingcheng added tactfully.

After tidying himself up in front of the mirror, Meng Yingxing finally spoke to Xiu Qingcheng, “Can you really… help me?
Even if not, it’s alright; I will work hard to achieve a ranking in the Divine Weapon Trial.”
His words were somewhat ambiguous, clearly spoken to Xiu Qingcheng, but more like he was giving himself an out.
“Human kid, I never lie.” Xiu Qingcheng replied.
Xiu Qingcheng, despite having been human herself, now called Meng Yingxing “human kid” repeatedly; it seemed she had fully embraced her identity as a sword spirit.
And more so because… she enjoyed the feeling of playing tricks and acting mysterious.
Seeing Meng Yingxing’s bewildered reactions, Xiu Qingcheng found it amusing.
“Of course I believe you.”
Xiu Qingcheng saw Meng Yingxing in the mirror nod vigorously.
“Then can you tell me first? What do I… need to do now?” Meng Yingxing asked tentatively.
Meng Yingxing immediately asking what to do caught Xiu Qingcheng off guard.
To be honest, Xiu Qingcheng hadn’t quite figured out what to do yet.
Her confident declarations to Meng Yingxing earlier were merely for showing off.
‘Mm, just hadn’t thought it through yet.’
But Xiu Qingcheng couldn’t lose her imposing demeanor now.
She heard Xiu Qingcheng slowly begin:
“You now… how about… just… call me adoptive…”
“Cough, cough.”
“Now, how about you call me Master?”