"You..."
Zhao Qian suddenly raised one hand and reached toward Qiyue's head.
"Ah! I'm telling you, d-don't try anything funny! Otherwise, m-my master and my senior brothers won't let you off!"
Startled by Zhao Qian's sudden movement, Qiyue instinctively took a step back. She clenched both hands into fists—one in front, one behind—and struck a fighting pose, her eyes filled with vigilance and tension.
Seeing Qiyue's reaction, Zhao Qian was stunned for a moment before she understood, and she burst into hearty laughter.
"What—what are you doing? Did you think I was going to hit you?"
After her laughter subsided, Zhao Qian asked, a trace of teasing in her tone.
"W-well, what else?"
Qiyue did not lower her guard. She kept her fists tightly clenched and stubbornly replied.
"I would never lay a hand on an ordinary mortal woman!"
Zhao Qian shook her head lightly, a look of disdain crossing her face.
"Nonsense! Just now you and the others were b-bullying that young lady!"
Clearly not believing Zhao Qian, Qiyue remembered the scene she had witnessed earlier, where Zhao Qian's attitude toward that young lady was nothing like the friendliness she was showing now.
"Her? She is no ordinary mortal. Although she falls far short of my background, she can still be considered a martial artist, and her family is regarded as an outer sect of the cultivation world. It's naturally a completely different matter."
Sensing what Qiyue was thinking, Zhao Qian explained.
Her voice revealed a faint hint of pride, as if she were showing off her extraordinary identity and status to Qiyue.
"In any case, you bullied the few with the many and forced someone to leave this place. That is clearly picking on the weak."
"Fine, fine, think whatever you want! Anyway, I have zero affection for anyone from the Liao family, and I am more than happy to bully her!"
"Look! You just admitted you were bullying someone!"
Not expecting Qiyue to lead her astray so easily, Zhao Qian couldn't help feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation.
Right now, however, she truly had no heart to bicker over such trivial matters; she had far more important business to handle.
"Hey! Are you really a prospective inner disciple of Daoist Yunhe of Ziyu Peak? As far as I know, he hasn't taken on any disciples for over a century, and since none of his previous disciples achieved anything notable, Ziyu Peak hasn't taken in anyone new for a long time."
Zhao Qian asked with a tone that was thirty percent skeptical and seventy percent incredulous.
"Every word I've said is true. If you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do." Qiyue replied with an expression of absolute certainty and solemnity.
"Fine. Let's just assume you're a temporary disciple of Ziyu Peak."
"I'm not temporary! I am—" Qiyue interrupted eagerly, wanting to correct the mistaken phrasing.
"Fine, fine! You are, you are..." Annoyed by her pedantic stubbornness, but unwilling to argue further, Zhao Qian simply humored her.
"Um..." Zhao Qian started awkwardly, as if she had another question she wanted to ask, but didn't know how to phrase it.
"If you have something to ask, just spit it out!" Sensing her hesitation, Qiyue prompted her directly.
"Do you happen to know everyone on Ziyu Peak?" Zhao Qian finally mustered the courage to ask.
"Naturally!"
Qiyue wore a proud expression, as if this were an extraordinary achievement. Secretly, she felt a swell of complacency, believing that being a disciple of Ziyu Peak was an honor and a proof of her own strength.
"Then... do you know Song Yifan?"
"Fifth Senior Brother? Why are you asking about him?"
Qiyue instantly grew alert, muttering inwardly: *Could this woman know Fifth Senior Brother? Is she planning to make trouble for him?*
"Fifth Senior Brother?"
Hearing Qiyue address Song Yifan in such a manner, an indescribable sense of discomfort welled up deep inside Zhao Qian. It felt as though she had been given a sharp prick, though she couldn't explain why.
"That's right, him. Are you close with him?"
Zhao Qian's tone noticeably stiffened and turned unfriendly. She stared intently at Qiyue, as if trying to read some clues from her expression.
"Of course I know him, I know all of my senior brothers. But why are you looking for him?"
Feeling Zhao Qian's hostility, Qiyue nevertheless answered firmly while trying to puzzle out the other woman's intentions.
Seeing Qiyue utter the words "all of my senior brothers" without the slightest hesitation, Zhao Qian couldn't help laughing at herself mockingly. Perhaps she was just overthinking things? After all, how could a stellar cultivator like Song Yifan ever take notice of a mortal with zero cultivation?
At that thought, Zhao Qian's tone gradually softened, losing its previous aggressiveness.
"I want to see him! Take me to him!"
There was a hint of firmness and urgency in Zhao Qian's voice, yet a subtle, imperceptible flush crept across her cheeks.
Her speech was so shockingly fast that even Qiyue nearby wondered if she had misheard.
"See him? Why?"
Qiyue's expression grew even more cautious as she fixed her gaze on Zhao Qian, trying to find an answer in her eyes.
Yet Zhao Qian's reply left her utterly perplexed.
"I told you to take me, so you take me. Why so many useless words?"
Zhao Qian's tone abruptly turned tough, and her usual overbearing attitude resurfaced. Her eyes betrayed an unquestionable majesty, as if telling Qiyue that she must obey her command.
Hearing this, Qiyue felt the anger in her heart instantly ignite.
She had never been one to be ordered around at will, especially by someone so unreasonable.
"You tell me to take you, and I'm just supposed to go? What makes you think you can order me around?" she widened her eyes and retorted without backing down.
"Because I'm stronger than you."
With that, Zhao Qian reached out and grabbed toward Qiyue. Seeing this, Qiyue quickly sidestepped to dodge. However, she was merely a mortal after all, and her physical fitness was far inferior to Zhao Qian, who had already reached Level 2 Qi Refining. In a split second, her wrist was firmly caught by Zhao Qian.
"Ah!"
Two startled cries rang out, with Zhao Qian's being particularly loud, as if she had suffered a massive impact. Her body was sent flying several yards away like a cannonball.
When she scrambled back up in a disheveled state, her once-exquisite hair bun was completely unraveled, and she stared at Qiyue with a face full of disbelief.
Qiyue's inner shock at that moment was no less than Zhao Qian's. She had thought she was done for, yet unexpectedly, the very moment the other girl grabbed her wrist, it was Zhao Qian who had been thrown flying so far away.
Trembling, she lowered her gaze to her wrist, only to find it completely intact, even the dragon-wood bracelet carved from some unknown timber was entirely undamaged.
"This is impossible! I refuse to believe it! I can't even subdue a mere mortal like you?!" Roaring angrily with her hair a wild mess, Zhao Qian lunged at Qiyue once more.
Just as Qiyue was inwardly fretting that she might not escape misfortune this time, an angry shout suddenly echoed from nearby:
"Vixen! Unhand her!"