Chapter 6
As the saying went—better to sacrifice someone else than yourself. At a critical moment, Si Nanren was the perfect shield.
Si Nidie leaned back slightly, her tone turning meaningful. “We were just talking about my brother. You know… he caught the eye of the Princess of the Wu Kingdom. She wanted him as her husband. He refused—and she chased him all the way to our sect.”
Lou Yuqing’s eyes lit up instantly. “And then?”
There was more?! This was premium gossip.
Si Nidie didn’t disappoint. “The Wendao Sect has a good relationship with the Bailing Sect. That princess became a disciple under one of Bailing Sect’s elders, and her master brought her here on a visit.”
She spoke vividly, clearly enjoying herself. “The moment she arrived, she kept asking about my brother. He said he had urgent matters yesterday—but in reality, he’d just found out she was chasing him and spent the whole time playing hide-and-seek.”
Lou Yuqing leaned forward. “Did he manage to hide?”
Si Nidie let out a small, wicked laugh. “When we were kids, we used to play that game. I always lost—he’d use any means necessary to win.”
She winked. “Guess where he hid this time.”
Lou Yuqing had a bad feeling.
“He hid in the composting area of the Spirit Plant Garden.”
“…” Lou Yuqing paused, then asked carefully, “Does it… smell?”
“It reeks.” Si Nidie grimaced. “The fertilizer there is made from spirit beast droppings. Think about it yourself. Anyway, he’s not getting within ten feet of me for the next three months.”
Lou Yuqing fell silent for a moment, then said dryly, “If the princess catches a whiff of that, she should give up, right?”
Si Nidie spread her hands. “Hard to say. My brother’s crafty—he never ran into her.”
Lou Yuqing thought to herself: In a way… Si Nanren is impressively stubborn.
Knock, knock, knock.
The sudden sound broke through the air.
Gu Buqi’s gaze flickered. The main character has arrived.
Lou Yuqing and Si Nidie, however, remained completely unaware.
“Come in!” Si Nidie called.
The door creaked open.
A woman stepped inside, draped in a flowing golden palace gown. Her features were exquisitely delicate, her hair arranged in an elegant cloud-like bun, as though she had stepped straight out of an ancient painting. Every movement carried grace and nobility.
Her gaze swept across the room—casual, detached—until it landed on Si Nidie.
Her pupils tightened.
After a long pause, she exhaled softly. “So alike… You must be his twin sister.”
Her identity needed no introduction.
The Princess of Wu—Wu Fengshu.
Si Nidie swallowed. Speak of the devil, and she appears. Since when had her words carried this much power?
She forced herself to remain calm. “You know Si Nanren? Then yes—I’m his sister.”
Wu Fengshu smiled, bright and composed. “Hello, sister. I’m your future sister-in-law, Wu Fengshu. Could you tell me where your brother is? We need to discuss the date of our wedding.”
“…Sister-in-law?” Si Nidie froze, caught completely off guard by the sheer audacity.
Wu Fengshu nodded, unbothered. “Yes.”
Si Nidie: “…” I’m being taken advantage of, aren’t I?
“My brother is… elusive,” she said at last, covering for him. “Even I rarely see him.”
Wu Fengshu narrowed her eyes slightly, suspicion flickering within. “Really? I heard he was near the Enforcement Hall yesterday. Strange how he vanished the moment I arrived.”
Lou Yuqing, eyes gleaming with gossip-fueled excitement: Princess, you’re absolutely right.
“My brother serves in the Enforcement Hall,” Si Nidie replied quickly. “It’s normal for him to be here. If you can’t find him, it’s probably because he’s out on a mission.”
Wu Fengshu studied her intently.
Si Nidie held steady, though her hands twisted behind her back.
After a moment, Wu Fengshu tilted her head slightly. “You really do look alike. If you dressed as a man… you’d be identical.”
Si Nidie: …Wait, is she flirting with my face? She’s a woman too!
“Fellow Daoist Wu,” Si Nidie said, irritation creeping in, “have you stared enough?”
Wu Fengshu blinked, then admitted readily, “My apologies. I missed your brother too much… I thought perhaps looking at you might ease it. I didn’t mean to offend.”
Si Nidie stared at her, momentarily speechless.
“I’ve disturbed you,” Wu Fengshu added softly. Then, with one last lingering look, she turned toward the door.
As she walked away, something strange stirred in Si Nidie’s chest—a fleeting impulse to call her back, to reveal Si Nanren’s hiding place, just to see that smile again.
“Wu—”
“Cough.”
Her voice collided with Gu Buqi’s quiet interruption.
Si Nidie froze, suddenly snapping back to her senses. What was she thinking?
Lou Yuqing blinked. “What’s wrong?”
“She used a bewitching technique,” Gu Buqi said calmly.
Lou Yuqing’s eyes widened. “But isn’t she only at the early stages of cultivation?”
“Her main technique is likely soul-binding,” Gu Buqi explained. “It allows her to influence even Foundation Establishment cultivators across realms—especially if they’re not on guard.”
He paused, concealing the rest. There’s more to her… but not something I can reveal here.
Wu Fengshu sighed faintly. Her technique had been exposed. And she could only use it on one target at a time.
Annoying.
Si Nidie’s expression darkened.
So that’s what it was.
From the moment Wu Fengshu entered, she hadn’t been admiring her face—she’d been targeting her eyes.
For a cultivator to use such a method upon first meeting… that was hostility, plain and simple.
Any ordinary cultivator would’ve already drawn their blade.
The faint goodwill Si Nidie had felt shattered completely.
Lou Yuqing glanced between them, her eyes silently asking: This is getting tense… what now?
Gu Buqi gave a small shake of his head. Let them handle it.
Lou Yuqing thought for a moment—then nodded.
“Fellow Daoist Wu,” Si Nidie called coolly, “wait.”
Wu Fengshu turned back immediately, hope lighting her gaze. “Have you remembered where your brother is?”
Si Nidie let out a cold laugh. “Don’t call yourself my sister-in-law. First, my brother didn’t marry you. Second, he told me himself—he doesn’t like you. Not now, not ever. Stop looking for him.”
The light in Wu Fengshu’s eyes dimmed.
“He really said that?” she murmured. “But… we almost got married. If he felt nothing, why did he stay until the wedding day?”
Her expression softened, fragile and sorrowful—beautiful in a way that tugged at the heart.
Si Nidie felt it—her resolve wavering.
“You…”
Not again.
Her mind snapped into clarity. She shook her head sharply, eyes turning cold.
Lou Yuqing, watching from the side, was deeply impressed.
That technique was terrifying.
“Fellow Daoist Wu,” Si Nidie said, voice low, “I tolerated your earlier behavior out of respect for the Bailing Sect. And yet you still dare use such tricks on me?”
“I only want to know where your brother is,” Wu Fengshu replied, completely unapologetic.
Si Nidie let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “Fine. Let’s settle this on the dueling platform. I’ll suppress my cultivation to your level.”
Wu Fengshu frowned. “Must everything involve fighting? How about this—you tell me where he is, and I’ll leave.”
Another attempt.
Si Nidie’s patience snapped.
“Get out.”
Wu Fengshu brightened. “You’ll take me to him?”
“No. To the dueling arena.”
Within the Wendao Sect, personal grudges were settled there. Fighting elsewhere meant a direct trip to the Enforcement Hall.
Si Nidie’s restraint was already impressive.
Wu Fengshu lifted her sleeve slightly, displaying her elaborate golden robes. “Do I look like I came dressed for a fight?”
Lou Yuqing silently agreed—she looked ready for a grand ceremony.
“Doesn’t matter,” Si Nidie replied flatly. “You have the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to change.”
Wu Fengshu’s expression darkened. “I said I’m not going. Didn’t you hear me? I am a guest of the Bailing Sect. Is this how the Wendao Sect treats its guests?”
“Guests should act like guests,” Si Nidie shot back.
“This princess is leaving. Do you dare stop me?”
“Try me. And don’t forget—there’s no princess here.”
The tension crackled.
Then—
A voice echoed.
[Wu Fengshu was extraordinarily beautiful, with exceptional talent… and yet, she would remain single her entire life.]
Wu Fengshu: ?
Si Nidie: “…”
Her anger… vanished.
Wu Fengshu turned toward Lou Yuqing, ready to snap back—but the words died in her throat.
Nothing came out.
Her face flushed red.
Through clenched teeth, she transmitted her voice to Si Nidie: “Why can’t I speak? And what are those thoughts? You knew about this?”
Si Nidie shrugged coolly. “You’re overestimating me. If you think she’s lying, the door’s right there.”
Wu Fengshu wanted to leave.
She should have left.
But her feet refused to move.
[The Emperor of Wu had three thousand concubines. Influenced by this, Wu Fengshu vowed to gather all the handsome men in the world as her husbands and attendants.]
[An admirable ambition. Unfortunately… reality is cruel.]
Lou Yuqing, blissfully unaware, continued scrolling through her system panel. She had just spent 500 points—expensive, but worth it.
Wu Fengshu’s gaze darkened.
Si Nidie sent a quiet warning: “Control yourself. Don’t you want to know how this ends?”
Wu Fengshu stiffened—and endured.
The thoughts continued.
[She values quality over quantity. If she can’t find someone suitable, she would rather remain single.]
[Then, on the day of the imperial examination results, she saw Si Nanren—disguised as a scholar—and fell in love at first sight.]
Wu Fengshu’s breath caught.
Every word… was true.
[He fled on their wedding day. Instead of anger, she became more determined.]
[She followed him into the cultivation world, tracked him to the Wendao Sect, and convinced her master to bring her here.]
Wu Fengshu’s heart sank.
Was this… really her future?
Si Nidie glanced at her, lips twitching. Now that’s effective.
[Wu Fengshu successfully used a bewitching technique on Si Nanren’s sister and learned his location.]
[She rushed to the Spirit Plant Garden, expecting a romantic reunion…]
[Instead—Si Nanren crawled out of the composting pit, reeking of something indescribable.]
Wu Fengshu’s eyes widened.
Composting pit.
Those two words hit harder than any blade.
Si Nidie’s eyes lit up.
Perfect.
She immediately pulled out a communication jade slip.
“Brother,” she sent, barely containing her excitement, “come quickly. I can help you shake her off. Don’t clean yourself—just come as you are.”
In the Spirit Plant Garden, Si Nanren hesitated.
He had spent the entire night in the compost pit. The smell clinging to him was… unforgettable.
If he went out like this, he might get beaten to death.
But his sister wouldn’t betray him.
…Right?
A streak of red light shot into the sky.
An instant later—
A stench exploded across the sect.
“WHAT IS THAT SMELL?!”
“WHO—who’s carrying that on them?!”
“Disgusting!”
“Stop him!”
“Take him to the Enforcement Hall!”
Colorful flying artifacts lit up the sky as disciples gave chase, creating a chaotic, dazzling pursuit.
Meanwhile, Lou Yuqing happily continued reading.
[Wu Fengshu’s first love… officially ended.]
[Learning from her mistake, she chose a clean cultivator next—the disciple of Medicine King Valley.]
[That relationship ended even faster. He was too clean. His mysophobia forced him to cast cleansing spells every fifteen minutes.]
[Including on her. Imagine being showered with purification spells mid-romance… repeatedly.]
Wu Fengshu: “…”
Absolutely not.
Blacklisted.
Si Nidie nearly burst out laughing.
[Her third attempt was a Yunxiao Sect sword cultivator. He had no bad habits. None at all. Except… he loved his sword more than anything.]
[Even with a beauty like Wu Fengshu beside him, he paid her no attention—only his sword.]
Wu Fengshu snapped, What kind of man is that?!
Another one—blacklisted.
Si Nidie smirked, sending a voice transmission. “That’s normal. Yunxiao sword cultivators treat their swords as their Dao companions.”
Wu Fengshu’s expression darkened.
For the first time, she hesitated.
…Perhaps Lou Yuqing’s words weren’t entirely wrong.