Chapter 26: Liu Qianqian

"Little Qin Xuan, I'm counting on you for this one," the girl in red said with a mischievous smile, then darted back to lean against a tree and watch from a safe distance.

"Are you joking?" Qin Xuan frowned slightly.

The girl in red was about seventeen or eighteen. Her name was Liu Qianqian, the sole disciple of the Tianshan Sword Sect. Thanks to the relationship between their masters, the two of them had met several times before, which was why Qin Xuan recognized her at a glance.

"Ahem, not at all. This isn't the time for small talk. Let's deal with the Blood Fiend first," Liu Qianqian replied with a cough, her expression adorably innocent. Yet Qin Xuan only felt an urge to teach her a lesson.

Blood Fiends were rare even in the cultivation world. When the dark overlords of the demonic path shed blood in their battles, sometimes the pooled blood would gain a will of its own, thus forming a common type of Blood Fiend.

"You released it, so you deal with it. I have no interest in cleaning up your mess," Qin Xuan shook his head and stepped aside.

The Blood Fiend, now wholly ignored, became enraged. Its voice reverberated low and menacing, "You two whelps dare to look down on me? Prepare to die!"

With that, a foul wind swept toward them.

"Qin Xuan, I don't have the Taiching Sword! You get in there!" Liu Qianqian squealed and hurried several steps farther back.

Qin Xuan sighed. At last, he drew the Taiching Sword before the Blood Fiend.

A ringing note sliced through the darkness—silver light flashed, instantly illuminating the shadowed forest.

In the blink of an eye, the Taiching Sword was sheathed once more. The Blood Fiend, which had just surged menacingly toward Qin Xuan, was now cleaved in two, drifting as twin clouds of red mist in the air. Under the special power of the Taiching Sword, the fiend’s sentience was utterly obliterated.

With a single strike, the fearsome Blood Fiend was vanquished.

"Collect it," Qin Xuan instructed.

Liu Qianqian drew a small antique porcelain bottle from her robes, recited a brief incantation under her breath, and the two mists of blood were swiftly sucked inside.

"All done! The Taiching Sword really is amazing," Liu Qianqian stowed away the bottle, clapped Qin Xuan on the shoulder, and beamed at him.

The Taiching Sword had a distinct advantage against fiends and spirits of this kind, though apart from that, it was simply sharper than an ordinary blade.

"Now speak—what are you doing here?" Qin Xuan asked, already turning to leave.

"Hey, wait for me!" Liu Qianqian called, hurrying after him, her steps as light as a butterfly’s. "I’ve come to join you! You can’t just leave me behind."

The headache that seized Qin Xuan was immediate and profound. If anyone could believe a word this girl said, he’d eat his hat. He stopped, turned back, and asked, "Did your master send you down the mountain?"

"My sword-heart is finally forged, so of course I have to go out and train just like you. I wanted to find you directly, but your home is so remote! I calculated for ages and still couldn’t pinpoint it, so I had to release the Blood Fiend and lure you over."

"You tried to divine my whereabouts?"

"Yes! I don’t know anyone in the mundane world. If I don’t look for you, who else? I’ve only just learned the Purple Star Divination—what do you think, pretty impressive, right?"

"With your half-baked divination, it’s a wonder you didn’t miss by dozens of kilometers and get eaten by the fiend yourself," Qin Xuan shook his head.

This girl really feared nothing. Releasing a Blood Fiend with so little skill—had he not arrived in time, something truly terrible might have happened.

"Don’t ever unleash things like that in the mortal world again. If you cause trouble, you won’t be able to shoulder the consequences."

Liu Qianqian fiddled with her sleeve and nodded meekly, "Alright, I won’t do it again. But it’s nearly midnight and I’m a girl alone, lost in the wilderness—surely you wouldn’t have me spend the night in a haunted forest?"

She glanced around. The shadowy woods behind the mountain sent a chill down her spine, and she shivered involuntarily.

"Fine, come with me," Qin Xuan relented. He didn’t want to take responsibility for her, but now that he’d found her, how could he leave her here? If their masters heard of this, he’d be in for a scolding—or worse.

To Qin Xuan, Liu Qianqian was the very definition of trouble. There was no one more troublesome. Though young, she was a striking beauty with a well-developed figure that would cause a stir even at Jinling University.

The first time Qin Xuan met her, he’d felt a secret fondness and had even asked his master who she was. But after she’d tricked him several times, he’d learned to keep his distance.

"What’s your trial supposed to be?" he asked as they walked. As fellow disciples of the Sword Sect, the forging of one’s sword-heart was a pivotal moment, and so he was curious about her trial.

"My master told me to enroll in school," Liu Qianqian replied with a hint of exasperation.

Qin Xuan was stunned. "School? What school?"

"University—Jinling University. I heard you’re there too?" Her eyes sparkled.

At her words, a heavy cloud seemed to descend over Qin Xuan’s head, casting his world into perpetual gloom. Go to school with Liu Qianqian?

What a nightmare!

He’d thought his training in the mortal world was rather pleasant—protecting campus beauties, getting close to attractive teachers, things many would envy. But now, with Liu Qianqian added to the mix, trouble was sure to follow.

As they walked to the villa, Liu Qianqian kept quiet, perhaps realizing her actions had been reckless. But Qin Xuan knew all too well this was only a temporary calm.

Sure enough, the moment they returned, Liu Qianqian’s true nature emerged.

"Wow, what a huge villa! There’s even a swimming pool out front!"

"Wow, the balcony is enormous! I can sunbathe here every day!"

"Wow..."

Qin Xuan could take it no longer. "It’s late—go to bed!"

"Qin Xuan! How dare you yell at me! Come here and let me teach you a lesson!"

Peering through the crack in his door, Qin Xuan saw Liu Qianqian brandishing a mop and darting nimbly toward his room. He shuddered and hurried to lock the door.

"It’s not even my villa—do what you like. I wash my hands of it. Master, you can’t blame me for this..." Qin Xuan collapsed onto his bed with a sigh of relief.

"I wonder what this place will look like tomorrow... Hopefully nothing too outrageous. Dongfang Qingwan will be moving in soon, after all."

With that thought, a new worry crept into his mind. What would happen when Dongfang Qingwan and Liu Qianqian lived under the same roof?

"Forget it, there’s no point thinking about such headaches now..." Qin Xuan shook his head and let the matter drop, focusing on getting some sleep.