Chapter 78

Qin Ye was in an excellent mood.

The sect exposition was proceeding smoothly, a sign that the cultivation world was developing with thriving vitality.

The period before and after it was the busiest time for their Sect Supervision and Administration Committee, but he found joy in the work.

He just did not know why his friend and his subordinates had suddenly started staring at him with strange smiles.

It made Qin Ye unable to resist touching his handsome face. Had he become even more good-looking again?

Qin Ye wanted to ask, but everyone kept their mouths shut. Being excluded like this felt awful. This was a sign that the highest-ranking officer was being sidelined!

After he pestered them for a while, his friend finally said meaningfully, “Everyone is expressing their reverence for you. You have boosted employment for quite a few sword cultivators. Everyone has seen your contribution.”

Qin Ye nodded in satisfaction.

The difficult old problem of employment for sword cultivators had given him a headache for ages. It was good as long as there were results now.

But halfway through nodding, Qin Ye felt something was not right. “But I don’t think I gave sword cultivators any special treatment this year?”

His natural stance was definitely to support the sword Dao, but even he could not abuse his power, such as forcibly requiring sects to recruit sword cultivators.

Within the scope of his authority, he might be able to increase support a little, but that was all. Without a specialized skill, the employment environment for ordinary sword cultivators had not changed. It would be very hard to prop them up.

Qin Ye felt that his existence, at most, had encouraged more people to treat him as an idol and take the sword Dao as an elective… and then there was no “then.”

The fact that they had not turned from fans to haters because of the cruel sword Dao employment environment proved that sword cultivators were all good people.

And now, somehow, he had driven employment for sword cultivators? What was going on? What had he contributed?

His friend could not bear to let him know the truth. “Anyway, you just need to know that this happened.”

But that clearly could not satisfy Qin Ye’s curiosity.

It made sense when he thought about it. If someone told you that you had done a good deed, but you did not feel like you had done it, wouldn’t you want to investigate the cause and effect?

During a gap in handling official duties, Qin Ye changed his face, disguised himself, and turned into a low-level sword cultivator before heading to the exposition site. The “accident” had probably happened at the exposition.

Qin Ye quickly locked onto the exhibition hall where Cloud Dream Sect was located.

That was because the traffic to this exhibition hall had risen like a dark horse. It had originally been nothing special, then the number of visitors suddenly surged. One glance was enough to tell there was a problem.

Qin Ye also noticed something odd. Some people seemed to enter in a fury, as if they were there to settle accounts, but when they came out, their faces were dazed.

Did that not make it even more interesting?

He naturally followed along.

The people walking in front of him were talking. “Is it really that mysterious? Anyway, I don’t care. I’m a supporter of Lord Qin Ye. If they dare slander his reputation, I’m going to smash the place.”

“Let’s take a look first. Didn’t they say this special-effects sword technique is a good thing for us sword cultivators?”

Qin Ye was utterly confused. What did they mean by affecting his reputation? And what was a special-effects sword technique? How had something he had never heard of become related to him?

Qin Ye suddenly had the illusion that he had been in seclusion for ages and, after finally going outside, could no longer keep up with the times.

Then he saw a line of advertising copy: Qin Ye. He does not understand the Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique.

And the one using this advertisement was actually Cloud Dream Sect, a culture-and-entertainment sect that had nothing to do with sword cultivators at all.

Qin Ye was not angry. He just found it a little funny. This was nothing if not touching porcelain far above one’s level.

A sect with barely any sword cultivators dared make such wild claims. What was there to care about? He would confirm the situation, then have the booth removed according to the law and regulations.

If such a tiny matter were enough to make him angry, he would have died of anger long ago.

No wonder the fanboy and fangirl in front of him had that attitude.

But at that moment, he heard the person ahead sigh in a complicated tone. “It really is a special-effects sword technique.”

That attitude was a little off.

Qin Ye could not resist leaning over to take a look, and he petrified. What the hell was this thing?

The scene was somewhat familiar, yet also very different from his Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique.

A thought surfaced in his mind. Yes, I really don’t understand the Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique.

All kinds of mysteries were solved at once. Why this booth had been bold enough to use his name for promotion and still remain here until now.

Why everyone’s attitude had been so strange.

At this rate, in the future, everyone would know only the special-effects sword technique and not the Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique. In the past, when people saw his strength, they sighed over how powerful he was. In the future, when they saw him use a sword move, they would probably sigh, “That fancy move of yours sure looks pretty.”

The moment Qin Ye imagined that scene, his blood pressure shot up.

No, no, no. He was a sword cultivator with excellent self-restraint. How could he possibly get angry so easily over such a small matter?

After enduring it for three seconds, Qin Ye thought, Forget it. Who needs self-restraint?

He should take a Clear Heart Pill first to calm himself.

But he did not have that kind of low-level pill in reserve at all. Ordinary matters could not anger him, and when something truly could anger him, he would not hold it in, so he had no use for Clear Heart Pills.

The fanboy and fangirl accidentally bumped into Qin Ye. He did not move. They apologized quietly. He still did not move, and a terrifying aura radiated from his entire body.

“Fellow Daoist, are you all right?” they asked cautiously.

This guy’s state was clearly off. He wasn’t preparing to touch porcelain, was he?

“I’m fine, but could you lend me a Clear Heart Pill?” Qin Ye asked, thickening his old face.

The two of them hurriedly offered up an entire bottle of Clear Heart Pills. “This hasn’t been opened. You can have all of it.”

In other words, even if there was something wrong with the Clear Heart Pills, it would not be their problem, and they could avoid being extorted by Qin Ye.

As a sword cultivator, Qin Ye had lived his whole life openly and honorably. This was the first time in his life that anyone had treated him as someone trying to touch porcelain. But right now, he could not care about that. He swallowed two Clear Heart Pills first to calm himself down.

After taking the pills, he said to the two of them, “I’ll transfer the money to you.”

They breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like this person had truly needed them just now.

“That’s not necessary.”

It was a small amount of money. As long as it was not some other kind of trouble, everything was fine.

Since they would not take money, Qin Ye handed them another bottle of high-grade pills. There was no logic in an elder taking something from juniors.

Then Qin Ye ignored their reaction and went to find the people from Cloud Dream Sect. “May I ask who modified this cultivation method?”

The people from Cloud Dream Sect had already heard this question countless times, so they answered with exceptional fluency. “Sorry, we can’t say.”

This was Song Yi’s request.

Although a certain Song was perfectly calm and did not think she had any problem at all, she also knew Qin Ye had quite a lot of fanboys and fangirls… After considering it from every angle, it all came down to one sentence: “I’m a low-profile person.”

Low-profile enough that she needed to borrow someone else’s name.

Chu Wen was now unable to look directly at the words “low-profile.”

Li Wenwen and the others were already used to Song Yi’s explanations. Only Chu Wen was still in the stage of having his worldview reshaped.

At Song Yi’s request, Cloud Dream Sect would not casually tell outsiders her identity. However, when Qin Ye, the original creator of the Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique himself, came forward, that was naturally a different treatment.

He silently revealed his true appearance.

It was impossible for the people from Cloud Dream Sect not to know this person. The moment they saw him, they were immediately startled. “Please wait a moment. We’ll arrange it right away.”

The fanboy and fangirl behind him were also startled. The two exchanged a glance. They had actually given Lord Qin Ye a bottle of Clear Heart Pills! Lord Qin Ye had even given them a return gift! This was absolutely the peak of their lives, right?

This bottle of pills could no longer be eaten. It absolutely had to be enshrined!

By the time the news was fed back to the Spirit Net, it had turned into: Qin Ye was angered to death, but fortunately he was rescued.

This had nearly become a major personnel change in East Continent.

Qin Ye still could not be bothered with the strange rumors on the Spirit Net. When he saw Song Yi’s familiar information, his mental state almost snapped. Why was it you again?

He had a deep impression of that little face.

She was a good seedling, but she was a little crooked.

She had a deep understanding of his sword intent, but she used it in bizarre places, which had wiped out the rare interest he had developed in taking on a disciple. Now this fellow had used his sword technique in a completely different place from before.

Do you have some grudge against me?

Qin Ye roared inwardly.

A person misusing the sword technique you had spread was not the most terrifying thing. The cultivation world was so large that you had to allow one or two oddballs to exist, right? The most terrifying thing was that after someone demon-modified your sword technique, everyone knew only the new version and not the old version.

This time, the effect Song Yi had created was exactly that.

So it was said: it was not scary for a child to be naughty; what was scary was a naughty child with culture. Ordinary naughty children made noise, caused a fuss, and the matter passed. But a cultured naughty child might single-handedly lead the entire cultivation world astray.

Qin Ye could not keep laughing it off.

And so, Teacher Yuan’s rest room welcomed an unexpected guest.

When befriending the sect master of Wanqi Sect, Old Yuan could still remain calm. But when this person personally came to visit, his mentality could not help drifting a little. Was he really about to be appreciated too?

This kind of encounter would definitely not be shabby if he bragged about it!

“Teacher Yuan, that student Song Yi, you’re the one who taught her, right?”

This was a question outside his expectations, yet also within reason.

Teacher Yuan’s heart immediately rose. “Yes. May I ask what she did…”

He racked his brains, recalling today’s schedule. After Song Yi reconciled with Chu Wen of Wanqi Sect, she should not have had any opportunity to cause trouble, much less any possibility of alarming this person, right?

“Don’t be nervous. She didn’t do anything wrong.”

Teacher Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Then he heard Qin Ye say expressionlessly, “She merely made me realize that I know nothing about the Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique.”

Old Yuan: ?

After a heart-to-heart talk with Qin Ye, Teacher Yuan regretted it. He should not have thought that Song Yi, who had just caused trouble, would settle down for a while and relaxed his vigilance. What kind of naive thinking was that?

“Please wait a moment. I’ll call her over.”

Little friend Song Yi failed to sense the crisis and came strolling over. This exposition had given her a pretty good harvest, so she was quite happy.

The moment she entered, Song Yi saw Qin Ye, who wore a smile, and Teacher Yuan, who stood holding a stick.

Song Yi turned and ran.

What was going on with big shots these days? At the slightest disagreement, they tattled to the teacher. This was simply elementary-school-student behavior!

Then she crashed into a spiritual power wall.

Qin Ye hypocritically stopped Old Yuan. “Teacher Yuan, no need, no need…”

As he spoke, he swapped Teacher Yuan’s stick out for his own sword. “This works better.”

Teacher Yuan and Song Yi: …

“Cloud Whale, let me out right now! Otherwise, there’s going to be a murder on the whale ship!” Song Yi urgently typed into the invitation.

She did not know whether it was her imagination, but the spiritual power wall seemed to become thicker.

Song Yi: ?

What was wrong with this artifact spirit? She did not think she had ever offended it, had she?

One could only say that cleaning up naughty children was the will of the masses.

Song Yi sent messages to her little friends: Old Yuan is hogging good stuff for himself. Come quickly!

However, trust between people was always extremely thin.

“Little Yi, next time, find a better excuse. If you said Old Yang was hogging good stuff for himself, that might be possible. Teacher Yuan isn’t that kind of person.”

“Have a good journey.”

“I’ll eat one bowl of rice less to show my grief.”

Damn it!

Song Yi had no time to lament the coldness of the world and the fickleness of human feeling. She urgently called Chu Wen, the silly son of the landlord’s family.

Chu Wen was at an age where he valued loyalty. Song Yi did not even need to find an excuse. One message asking for help was enough to fool him over.

Chu Wen assisted Song Yi in breaking open the spiritual power wall.

Song Yi slipped away with a whoosh and did not forget to draw him a pie. “From now on, you’re my friend!”

No one could stop her from befriending this kind of “good person” who could take lightning for her!

Before Chu Wen even had time to be happy that his relationship with Song Yi had achieved a qualitative leap, he met Qin Ye’s unfriendly gaze. That thoughtful expression seemed to say: should he beat this kid up too while he was at it?

Chu Wen’s scalp instantly went numb. Song Yi, you’ve ruined me!

Chu Wen, who had never experienced such a scene, was still hesitating. Should he throw away the restraint of a heavenly favorite and run away without any image, just like Song Yi?

Song Yi did not have that many thoughts. She nimbly darted toward the place with the most people.

An old ancestor had to care about face, but little children did not.

Her movement technique had helped her avoid layer upon layer of fatal crises in her previous life and survive by the narrowest margin. In this life… she used it entirely to match wits and courage with adults. Of course, it could also be said that she was using it to avoid fatal crises.

“The highest-ranking officer of the Sect Supervision and Administration Committee is doing inhuman things! He’s bullying a seven-year-old child!” Song Yi raised her arm and shouted.

However, the people nearby seemed not to hear anything and continued talking among themselves.

Song Yi immediately realized Qin Ye had used a spell formula on her. In the next second, she was like a string puppet, rapidly retreating and returning once again to Teacher Yuan.

Damn it. Was having a higher realm so amazing?

When this old ancestor had a higher realm, you people hadn’t even been born yet!

Since she could not dodge it, she could only face it. Song Yi lifted an innocent face and asked as though nothing had happened, “Teacher Yuan, are you going to beat me? But why?”

That was a good question.

It was also the important reason behind Qin Ye’s heart attack. This was the sort of thing he could not properly lose his temper over.

He and the Ten Thousand Rosy Clouds Sword Technique had only sacrificed a little reputation, but so many sword cultivators had gained real, solid jobs!

What bad intentions could a little child have? She only wanted to help sword cultivators.

As the guide and leader among sword cultivators, could Qin Ye really be unwilling to make even this tiny sacrifice?

Song Yi was heartbroken. “Teacher Yuan, I’m so disappointed. Relying on your high cultivation to beat a little child without distinguishing right from wrong—what difference is there between this and bullying the weak? This cultivation world is done for!”

Chu Wen honestly tugged at Song Yi, telling her to say less. Wasn’t this pouring oil on the fire?

Qin Ye smiled. “Mm, what you said makes sense. It isn’t advisable to beat a child without reason, but caring for a child without reason is acceptable.”

He took out a storage bracelet and gave it to Song Yi. “This is a gift from an elder to a junior.”

It was stuffed full of homework jade slips.

Song Yi glanced at the various exercise collections inside. The storage bracelet, light as nothing, seemed to weigh thousands of catties, making her want to collapse onto the ground.

She did not collapse because Qin Ye held her up. “Student Song Yi, you mustn’t neglect your studies.”

Song Yi’s eyes went round. So sinister. He definitely wasn’t one of their sword cultivators!

“Why must sword cultivators make things hard for sword cultivators?”

Qin Ye asked with a beaming smile, “Student Song Yi, what are you saying? Everyone is doing this for the future of the cultivation world.”

Song Yi thought for a moment, then sold out her teammates thoroughly. “I have several other classmates here too. If I have it, my classmates have to have it too! The future of the cultivation world cannot be carried by me alone.”

Someone who did not know better might think this was some kind of “sharing blessings together.”

And so, that night, whether in Spirit Capital or on Cloud Whale, everything was lively and bustling. Only one rest room was the exception.

A row of children were neatly and uniformly doing homework.

Chu Wen was also among the homework-doing ranks.

He watched helplessly as Song Yi dragged the others down with her. He did not even know whether to say their relationship was good or bad.

Li Wenwen and the others were not surprised at all. If it were them, they would have done the same thing.

Chu Wen’s studies were not a problem. Homework could not stump him, and the Guiding Spirit Brush moved with swish after swish.

But the others were model examples of dragging their feet. Once Qin Ye and the others left, their true natures were exposed even more thoroughly.

Chu Wen was just about to remind them to be quieter when Song Yi suddenly leaned over. “Thank you for today. As a friend, I’ll take you. Since you’re this reliable, I can also help you make plans.”

“What?”

“When you publicly supported Cloud City and sword cultivators, didn’t those words bring you some trouble? Don’t you want to solve that trouble?”

Of course he wanted to. “You have a way?”

“Have you heard this saying? You have to make the truth stand on your side.”

Chu Wen shook his head. “I’ve only heard that you have to stand on the side of truth.”

Song Yi spoke in a tone that pointed out mountains and rivers. “Actually, it’s very simple. They have opinions about what you said because they think you were wrong. As long as you can prove that what you said is true, everyone won’t have opinions about you anymore. Instead, they’ll regret not listening to your prophecy earlier. Who says the position of ‘reason’ can’t change? When it isn’t convenient for your own position to change, you have to move reason over to your side.”

Chu Wen carefully mulled it over. It did seem to make a little sense.

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