Don't Cause Trouble Chapter 33: Zhongnan Peak

Practicing swordplay?

Xin Shenzi immediately relaxed. He couldn't forge swords, but sword practice? That was his specialty.

As a sword cultivator who had spent centuries waking at dawn and hacking away at anything in sight with his sword, Xin Shenzi was extremely confident in his technique. Across the entire Sword Sect, there were few who could match him.

"Watch closely!" he said, drawing his Cold Spring Sword. The blade gleamed a jade-blue, glowing faintly with a cold light.

Though it was a straight sword, in his hands it flowed like a dragon in flight, leaving streaks of light behind.

Xin Shenzi moved with such speed that the others in the courtyard saw only a blur of countless sword shadows. The whooshing of the blade cutting through the air followed only after the technique had ended.

—The sword returned to its sheath.

Everyone else was still in awe of Xin Shenzi’s swordsmanship, but Ye Su’s ears twitched. Sensing something, she pressed a hand to the table and raised a protective barrier of spiritual energy.

A moment later, leaves rained down from the dense tree behind her. Each leaf had been neatly sliced through the stem, falling gently onto the barrier she had just raised.

At the same time, Yi Xuan moved too. He had been sitting beside Ye Su with Ming Liu Sha, but suddenly sprang up, drawing half his sword to block a wave of sword intent coming from the front.

He gritted his teeth and held firm, though he was pushed back three steps before hitting Ye Su’s barrier.

"No wonder you're my disciple!" Xin Shenzi shouted, unable to hide his excitement.

Though the sword was sheathed, he had deliberately left a lingering trace of sword intent.

Sure enough, Yi Xuan had caught it.

Even though the intent had been restrained, for a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Yi Xuan to take on sword intent from a cultivator in the Integration stage—it was gutsy.

Xin Shenzi was more satisfied than ever. He wanted to accept him as a disciple on the spot.

Yi Xuan: "……"

"Senior Sister," Xiyu looked up at the leaves clinging to the spiritual barrier and put down her chopsticks. "Did he do that on purpose?"

They hadn’t even started eating. If Ye Su hadn’t reacted in time, all their food would’ve been ruined.

Ye Su raised her hand, and the barrier collected the leaves from bottom to top. Then she flicked them all toward Xin Shenzi.

Of course, a Foundation-stage artifact refiner attacking an Integration-stage sword cultivator was bound to fail. Xin Shenzi dodged easily, and was about to speak—

But Ye Su had already taken out the Mistflower Fang from her Qiankun bag and aimed it at him.

A haze of fine mist filled the air like a light rain in spring.

Xin Shenzi first thought it was actual fog or rain. But almost immediately, his seasoned instincts screamed danger. His scalp tingled, and he jumped back.

Sure enough, the mist transformed. Each wisp elongated into a snake-like form, mouths wide open and fangs bared as they lunged toward him.

He reflexively slashed his sword to counter, but several snake-forms still came close.

In that brief moment before being bitten, Xin Shenzi thought to himself: I’ve really overdone it this time. I haven’t even gotten the disciple yet!

Then… he was bitten.

Xin Shenzi went silent. "…That’s it?"

He didn’t even suffer a scratch.

Still shaken, he looked at Ye Su. What kind of weapon was that? It looked terrifying. He, a sword cultivator in the Integration stage, had actually flinched.

Ye Su put away the Mistflower Fang and smiled politely. "Senior, I was just testing a magic weapon. Are you alright?"

Xin Shenzi recalled how panicked he looked just now and felt utterly humiliated. Still, he forced a tough-guy tone: "I’m fine. That thing’s like a back scratcher."

"As long as you're fine," Ye Su replied smoothly, picking up a slice of spiritual meat and placing it in her bowl. "Once it levels up, I’ll ask for your help again."

"…That won’t be necessary," Xin Shenzi muttered.

He kept glancing at Ye Su, finding this seemingly sweet girl deeply terrifying. Her reflexes were frighteningly sharp—she’d noticed and reacted every time.

Yi Xuan had also sheathed his sword but didn’t sit back down. He stood with his hand on the hilt, eyes fixed on Xin Shenzi, clearly ready to counter at any moment.

He was treating Xin Shenzi like an enemy.

Xin Shenzi, through and through, was a sword cultivator. His mind was all sword, all the time. He acted on impulse and rarely thought ahead. In the middle of showing off, he’d gotten the idea to test Yi Xuan. And the leaves? Just overzealous flourish—he hadn't reined in his aura.

Now that it was done, seeing his potential disciple glaring at him, Xin Shenzi instantly regretted getting carried away.

"Disciple’s senior sister, don’t get the wrong idea," Xin Shenzi said, a bit more tactfully this time. "I’ve cut down too many trees in Sword Sect. It’s a habit. I didn’t mean to ruin your meal."

"Senior, let’s talk about the apprenticeship in a few days," Ye Su replied. "We still need time to evaluate things."

"…Alright." Xin Shenzi was already calculating how to knock a few rival elders in the sect into closed-door cultivation so they wouldn't interfere.

He cast one last longing look at Yi Xuan. "Disciple, I’ll come find you the day after tomorrow."

Tomorrow, I’m off to beat people up.

He flew off on his sword. As he left, his voice echoed in the air: "Disciple! That busted sword of yours needs replacing! Once you reach the Core Formation stage, I’ll take you to the Sword Pool and get you a proper one!"

……

"He’s a good fit to be your master," Ye Su said, looking up at Yi Xuan.

Xin Shenzi was the type who did things his own way—strong, straightforward, and fiercely protective. That made him the perfect mentor for Yi Xuan.

"Don’t you mind that he insulted Qianji Sect?" Yi Xuan’s grip tightened on his sword—it had been a gift from his original sect master.

"Qianji Sect really is almost a ruined sect," Ye Su said calmly, brushing away You Fushi’s hand from the head of the Mistflower Fang. "But from now on, we’ll build it back up. One day, everyone will know that Qianji Sect is still standing."

She continued, "Xin Shenzi is strong. If it truly bothers you, then one day, fight him. Win, and we’ll call it revenge."

"Alright." Yi Xuan lowered his eyes and agreed.

Sword Sect – Sword Practice Grounds

"Senior Brother! Elder Xin’s gone crazy again!"

"What did he do this time?" Xu Chengyu had just returned. As soon as he passed by the practice field, junior disciples rushed over and began chattering.

"He waited until the Sect Master and the Grand Elders shut themselves away for a meeting, then went and beat up all the elders from every peak."

"Senior Brother, even your master got hit!"

Xu Chengyu: "…"

If any other elder had done this, Xu Chengyu would have panicked, thinking they’d gone mad or lost control. But this was Elder Xin—he was used to it by now.

"Did Elder Xin gain insight into some new sword technique?" Xu Chengyu asked.

The disciples in the field all began chiming in.

"Nope."

"It’s probably got something to do with that disciple he’s trying to recruit."

"Who knows what he’s thinking. He’s always convinced someone’s trying to steal his disciple. Seriously, look at how many disciples each peak has. Who would bother? He’s the only one with nobody on his peak."

Sword Sect had several peaks. The main peak, Zhongnan Peak, housed the Sect Master and Grand Elders, along with the core lineage disciples. Xu Chengyu was the Sect Master’s last personal disciple. The other peaks were each overseen by an elder who lived with their direct and inner sect disciples.

Then there was Xin Shenzi. He lived alone on Bahuang Peak, obsessively practicing swordsmanship, never getting involved in sect affairs, never taking disciples—and getting nagged about it every year by the Sect Master and Grand Elders.

"What kind of person could actually catch Elder Xin’s attention?" Xu Chengyu asked with curiosity.

"I heard it’s some disciple from a nearly-ruined sect. He stayed here for a few days with Elder Xin, but then turned down the offer to stay in Sword Sect." A junior sister quickly shared what she knew.

Xu Chengyu was surprised. Someone actually refused to become a Sword Sect disciple? Were they aiming to join Kunlun instead?

"But they came back in the end, didn’t they? I bet it was all part of a plan to play hard to get."

"Come off it. You guys don’t know? That person came here with his sect senior brother and sister—they made some kind of deal with the Sect Master."

"Wait, what? Seriously?"

A group of sword-obsessed cultivators, usually too focused to care about gossip, instantly crowded around the speaker.

The girl who had spoken held her sword and said, "Why else do you think the Sect Master and the Grand Elders suddenly closed the main hall?"

"Which sect were they from?" Xu Chengyu asked.

"I overheard Elder Xin mention it a few days ago. I think it was called Qianji Sect or something like that."

"Qianji Sect? Sounds kind of familiar…"

The moment Xu Chengyu heard "Qianji Sect," he remembered the group from half a year ago—the ones who flew in using chains—and his interest was piqued.

"Are they still staying here?"

"Yep. They’re living halfway up Zhongnan Peak. Elder Xin arranged for spiritual meals to be delivered to them every day."

Xu Chengyu told the disciples to resume their training, then mounted his sword and flew toward Zhongnan Peak. He was curious—did these newcomers know those interesting cultivators from before?

……

"What are you writing?" You Fushi stood next to Ye Su, noticing her scribbling something. He leaned over to look but didn’t recognize the symbols.

"They’re not words—these are talismans," Ye Su replied as her brush moved quickly across the paper. These talismans might come in handy in the secret realm later. Honestly, she wanted to learn new ones, but had no way to get access to more.

You Fushi didn’t seem the least bit embarrassed. He plopped down beside her, fidgeting and occasionally poking at things on the table.

"Do you need something?" Ye Su finally stopped after finishing a Vajra Talisman, turned to him, and asked.

You Fushi hesitated for a moment before saying, "I’ll trade you something for it."

"Trade for what?" Ye Su didn’t get it at first.

He pointed to the Qiankun bag at her waist. "That."

Seeing where he was pointing, Ye Su immediately understood and couldn’t help but laugh. She pulled out the Mistflower Fang—a black snake-shaped bracelet faintly glowing with gold—and asked, "And what exactly are you offering in return?"

"Once I get my stuff back," You Fushi tugged at her sleeve, took the bracelet from her hands, and carefully slipped it onto his wrist. Looking up, he added seriously, "You can pick one thing from my collection."

Though he treasured all his belongings, You Fushi had thought it over—one item was a fair trade for the Mistflower Fang.

Ye Su raised an eyebrow. Get his stuff back? Had her junior brother lost everything?

"Not trading," she said as she turned back and continued drawing. "If you want to play with it, I’ll let you borrow it for a few days."

To Ye Su, the Mistflower Fang was both important and not. She couldn’t recreate another one exactly like it and did like the artifact a lot. But this kind of situation was common for artifact forgers. Right now, she was simply amused by the rare sight of her junior brother looking awkward and hesitant.

—Very rare indeed.

Being refused again by this mortal girl made You Fushi sulky, but he still wanted to keep wearing the bracelet.

At first, he just liked the snake-shaped design. But after seeing the Mistflower Fang in action that day, he was dead set on having it.

"Then name your terms," You Fushi said, swallowing his pride. For once, he wasn’t acting cocky. "Whatever you ask, I’ll agree."

"Haven’t thought of anything yet. We’ll talk later," Ye Su replied, focused on her talismans and no longer paying attention to the boy beside her.

After a long pause—

"Ye Su," You Fushi said, pointing at the talisman she was working on. "I have a book about these. Do you want it?"

Her brush paused mid-stroke, ruining the talisman. She turned to him. "Didn’t you say you lost everything?"

"…I’ll give it to you once I find it," You Fushi muttered. He’d only just remembered that he owned such a book. Who gave it to him? He’d forgotten.

Ye Su stood up. "Fine—bring it to me once you find it."

Since the talisman was ruined, she didn’t feel like continuing. She headed outside.

Just as she stepped into the courtyard and greeted Lü Jiu, someone unfamiliar came in from the gate, calling out curiously—

"Fellow cultivator Ye?"