Leaving Casual Peak, Su Zhan summoned her natal spiritual sword.
She sat sideways on the blade and drifted leisurely through the skies above Qingyun Sect.
She felt somewhat melancholic.
She recalled how, right after transmigrating into this world, she had thrown herself entirely into cultivation, focusing solely on raising her realm as high as possible.
She had forgotten that cultivation was different from the leveling-up games she played in her previous life.
As a result, she had ended up in this sorry state.
She possessed the cultivation of a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, yet she could only exert power at the late Foundation Establishment level at best.
This was Lin Wan’er’s assessment—the reality might be even worse.
The girl bit her lip lightly and shook her head, refusing to dwell on this unpleasant matter.
She slowly raised the jade token clutched in her hand, lifting it above her head and tilting her head back slightly to examine the character for “Lead” that appeared almost naturally formed on its surface.
Upon closer inspection, the jade token still contained a faint trace of spiritual power capable of tracking location.
The energy felt scattered yet solid—it belonged to Lin Wan’er.
After playing with the token for a moment, Su Zhan slipped it into the inner pocket of her robe.
The mortal realm tempering was something almost every Qingyun Sect disciple had to experience.
Su Zhan was naturally no exception.
Qi Refining disciples would each choose a simple task, then set out under the leadership of two Nascent Soul cultivators.
After completing the task, they would return.
The duration varied from three to seven days.
The difficulty of the tasks was not high.
In Su Zhan’s memory, they were more like spring outings—a large group wandering around, sightseeing, eating, drinking, and having fun before casually finishing the mission.
“Relaxing, huh… Mortal realm tempering…”
Su Zhan sighed and muttered to herself.
She knew this was her master’s good intention and naturally could not bear to refuse.
However, when she had asked for more details about the tempering, Lin Wan’er had deliberately withheld the information, telling Su Zhan to go to the Merit and Virtue Pavilion herself to find out.
The so-called Merit and Virtue Pavilion was where the sect issued commissions internally, allowing disciples to earn spirit stones and resources.
Since the monthly allowance for inner sect disciples was sufficient, Su Zhan had rarely visited.
The few times she had gone were to help Lin Wan’er post commissions.
“Senior Sister Su~ Senior Sister Su~ Over here, over here!”
While lost in thought, Su Zhan suddenly heard someone calling her from afar.
Looking closely, she saw a girl with a falling horse bun waving at her from the mountain path on Unweary Peak.
It was Yun Li, and she was not alone.
Roughly a dozen beautiful and charming young girls were gathered in small groups.
Upon hearing the shout, they all stopped and looked up toward Su Zhan.
If she were not currently in the air, Su Zhan felt she might have been so embarrassed she would want to dig a hole with her toes.
There was no other reason—the feeling of being watched by so many people was simply mortifying.
Unfortunately, with so many people present, if she left without saying a word, it would likely spark unpleasant rumors or even cause trouble.
In the original story, this was exactly how Su Zhan had been misunderstood, leading to her being abandoned by everyone with no one to rely on.
It was troublesome, but if handled properly, it might also benefit her…
If anyone in Qingyun Sect had the most up-to-date information, Yun Li could at least compete for second or third place.
Sighing inwardly, Su Zhan lightly pinched a sword art, slowly descending beside the group.
She sheathed her spiritual sword and forced herself to ignore the surrounding gazes.
She softened her tone toward the girl in a rare display of gentleness.
“Junior Sister, what do you need from me? I have important matters to attend to on my master’s orders and cannot stay here long.”
As she spoke, her gaze fell on a piece of fluffy leaf on Yun Li’s shoulder.
She naturally reached out to brush it away.
Yun Li had been about to reply, but this sudden intimate gesture from her senior sister left her feeling both shy and bewildered.
Her eyes darted around to observe the expressions of those around her, and her pretty face flushed slightly.
If they were alone, Yun Li might have been bolder.
But with so many fellow disciples nearby, she felt embarrassed too.
The girl put her hands behind her back, pinching her own fingertips, and asked in a soft, obedient voice as if carefully confirming something.
“It’s… it’s nothing… I just saw Senior Sister and called out on a sudden impulse…”
“I see.”
Su Zhan paused.
“If it’s nothing, then that’s good. In that case, I’ll be going first.”
Even as she said this, Su Zhan did not leave immediately.
She knew Yun Li’s personality well enough to know the other girl would definitely try to keep her.
Sure enough, the moment she finished speaking, Yun Li hurriedly asked.
“Where is Senior Sister going? Did Martial Aunt Wan’er ask you to post another commission again?”
“I am indeed heading to the Merit and Virtue Pavilion, but not to post a task. Master wants me to lead a group for the mortal realm tempering. There are some details I still need to discuss with the steward.”
Su Zhan laid everything out openly.
There was no need for deliberate guidance—the silly, sweet female lead would naturally spill everything she knew.
“Ah, so it’s for the tempering…”
Yun Li pouted with some disappointment.
“I heard Second Senior Sister mention it earlier. She said the destination this time is quite far, and we’ll even get to ride a cloud boat.”
Yun Li’s mouth drooped.
“It’s a pity I just went on a tempering trip with First Senior Sister last month. I won’t be able to go with Senior Sister Su.”
“It’s fine. The tempering won’t take long. Cloud boats are rare, but you’ll get to experience one eventually.”
Having gotten the information she wanted, Su Zhan comforted Yun Li.
Qingyun Sect encouraged mortal realm tempering, but to prevent disciples from becoming too attached to the mortal world’s distractions, they had set a rule that Qi Refining disciples could only undertake one tempering every three months.
Whether the rule actually worked was debatable.
In any case, it had no effect on Su Zhan.
The sect was eager for their heaven’s chosen to go out and gain more experience.
If they achieved something noteworthy, it would also bring honor to the sect.
For Su Zhan, it was actually a good thing that Yun Li could not come along.
After all, it was well known that the novel’s protagonist had a constitution similar to Conan—they attracted trouble wherever they went, and the people around them would suffer as well.
If possible, Su Zhan still hoped this tempering mission could be simple and peaceful.
“It’s not the same… This is the first time Senior Sister Su is leading a tempering trip…”
Yun Li mumbled softly.
“With Senior Sister’s personality, I’m afraid once you lead this one, you won’t lead again…”
Su Zhan only caught the words “not the same.”
She didn’t hear the rest clearly, but she didn’t pay it much mind.
She simply assumed the girl was acting childish.
She reached out and ruffled Yun Li’s hair, then turned to leave.
Once she had gone far away, the previously quiet group gradually grew lively.
“Aaaah! Senior Sister Su is so gentle! I thought she would be really cold and aloof!”
“But Senior Sister Su cultivates the Ruthless Dao… Wuuu, I guess there’s no hope for me and Senior Sister…”
“Idiot, what’s wrong with cultivating the Ruthless Dao? Doesn’t that just mean Senior Sister Su is pure and self-disciplined? She’d make an excellent Dao companion!”
“Not only does Senior Sister Su cultivate the Ruthless Dao, she’s also a sword cultivator. People like Senior Sister are really popular in the Hehuan Sect.”
“The Hehuan Sect thinks every beautiful female cultivator is popular? Those wicked women love nothing more than corrupting the Dao hearts of Ruthless Dao cultivators!”
The girls who had just entered the sect were always full of curiosity about everything.
In the mountains, where day after day was filled with cultivation and training, gossiping was one of their rare forms of entertainment.
The more they talked, the more off-track the conversation became.
They went from Su Zhan to the Ruthless Dao, then from the Ruthless Dao to the Hehuan Sect, until the sound of their laughter was carried away by the wind as branches brushed past.