The air fell into a brief silence. Seeing that everyone else remained silent, Luoyun Huan cautiously spoke up.
"Greetings, Eldest Senior Sister..."
Qin Yiqiu took a step or two forward, looking around the room. Most outer disciples lived in meager conditions, but this was the first time she had ever seen anyone living in such squalor.
It was even worse than the quarters where some personal disciples kept their spirit pets.
"The herbs used to refine Huanhuan Pill are rare, and the required Spirit Stones are not cheap. As a poor outer disciple, how could she possibly afford to buy Huanhuan Pill?"
Qin Yiqiu spoke in a voice as cold as frost crystals blooming on withered chrysanthemum stems in late autumn. It made people's hearts chill, yet at the same time, they found themselves drowning in the sound.
"In my view, you are framing a fellow disciple."
Luoyun Huan never expected the other woman to perceive so keenly that she was merely an innocent victim, and she immediately looked at Qin Yiqiu with eyes full of admiration.
Although Eldest Senior Sister cultivated the Heartless Dao, at this moment she was practically an upright and impartial judge!
The person who had planted the evidence clearly hadn't expected Eldest Senior Sister to be so perceptive about these details, nor that she would act unlike the rumors suggested—rumors that claimed she would arrest anyone caught in illicit acts regardless of right or wrong.
Cold sweat immediately broke out on the accuser's forehead.
As Luoyun Huan was hiding in the shadows to watch the show, the System's obnoxious voice rang in her ear.
[Host, going about it this way makes it very hard to have any further skin-to-skin interactions with your target!]
Luoyun Huan sensed that something was amiss. Immediately afterward, she felt a wave of warmth rising in her lower abdomen, and what was worse, her cheeks began to flush.
Originally, everyone had fallen into a dilemma, wondering whether they should hypocritically search the room to find traces of the Huanhuan Pill.
As it turned out, someone's actions had already exposed them: flushed cheeks and a feverish body—these were the initial symptoms of taking the Huanhuan Pill.
The person who had framed her instantly broke into a smile once again, because she remembered that she had already slipped the Huanhuan Pill into the dry rations Luoyun Huan consumed daily.
That was why she had been so confident in bringing Eldest Senior Sister here.
Although the Huanhuan Pill was expensive, low-grade Huanhuan Pills were cheap because they contained a massive amount of pill toxicity.
Even though this was a monastic sect dedicated to ascetic cultivation, there were always one or two who couldn't bear the loneliness, so someone would inevitably have a need for it.
*Luoyun Huan!*
*This time you broke the sect's rules. You certainly won't be able to participate in the selection for outer disciples to advance to inner disciples next month, and that way, I'll have my chance.*
Greed flashed in the accuser's eyes. Qin Yiqiu's gaze swept over the person inadvertently, and she knew in her heart that this pitiful young girl had most likely been framed.
"Eldest Senior Sister, this person must have stolen it from somewhere. Even for Huanhuan Pills, there are very cheap ones available."
A few male disciples nearby chimed in to smooth things over for Qin Yiqiu upon seeing this. However, Qin Yiqiu herself didn't seem to care much.
She lowered her eyes to look at Luoyun Huan.
"Take the one who planted the evidence away. I will deal with this matter myself."
With that, Qin Yiqiu reached out. Luoyun Huan thought she was about to be swept up in a bridal carry and resisted the idea in her heart for a long while. *No way?*
*Didn't the System say this person cultivates the Heartless Dao?*
*Could it be she's following the plot of a romance novel right from the start?*
*Always either rolling around in bed or on the way to rolling around in bed.*
The next second, however, her collar was grabbed. Before Luoyun Huan could react, she was hoisted out of the room just like a kitten.
"Eldest Senior Sister... I really didn't take it, and I don't know why my body is acting like this..."
Luoyun Huan was truly wronged. She had only read a novel and left a casual complaint, without even engaging in a fierce debate with online trolls—so why had she transmigrated into a book?
"I know."
Qin Yiqiu's voice was cool. She swept past the brightly lit sect buildings and arrived at her own stone meditation chamber. The place was exceptionally clean, with meticulously cultivated spiritual herbs growing by the entrance.
The dense Spiritual Qi was almost suffocating. Luoyun Huan felt as though she had plunged headfirst into an oxygen tank, her head spinning with oxygen intoxication.
Still, she couldn't help opening her eyes to look around.
The furniture in the stone chamber was extremely minimalist, mostly carved directly out of the stone walls in a completely natural fashion.
Qin Yiqiu placed her down on the bed.
"The Huanhuan Pill is difficult to dispel. I will channel my Qi to heal your injuries. Take off your belt now."
Luoyun Huan: !
*Damn it! True to its name as a trashy novel, the original book goes all out right from the start! I haven't even mentally prepared myself yet. Can someone tell her, does the first step of romance really require rolling around on a bed?*
[Ahem, while I would certainly hope for that, Host, you don't need to be nervous. Our target won't break character at this stage.]
The System's voice sounded. Even though it was a mechanical voice, Luoyun Huan could still detect a hint of reassurance in it.
Yet she always felt this fellow was unreliable, and couldn't help cursing inwardly.
"Get real, you didn't even give me a cheat at the start—what kind of System are you?"
[Fairy... you must not use vulgar language.]
The System merely gave a cold response. Before Luoyun Huan could continue arguing back, her forehead was flicked by a pair of cool fingertips. The force wasn't heavy, but it stung a little.
Qin Yiqiu narrowed her eyes, the icy aura around her growing heavier.
"Did you not hear what I said?"
*Terrifying.*
Fear welled up in the depths of Luoyun Huan's heart. Her fingers trembled as she fumbled with her belt, the coarse fabric sliding down past her snowy skin.
There wasn't the slightest ripple of emotion in Qin Yiqiu's heart. She wouldn't be swayed by such factors, otherwise her arduous cultivation of many years would melt away like soap bubbles.
"The pill toxicity has accumulated deep in your lungs and internal organs... I need to use my Cultivation Manual to force the poison out."
Qin Yiqiu's voice was very soft. As her words fluttered down, Luoyun Huan felt a chilling sensation wandering across her abdomen.
Realizing that this was Qin Yiqiu's fingertips, she felt completely embarrassed, wishing she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
However, that wave of icy Qi quickly traveled through her meridians, and Luoyun Huan became completely paralyzed, frost crystals even beginning to form in her hair.
Qin Yiqiu channeled her Qi for a moment, a thin layer of fine sweat beading on her forehead. Forcing out a massive amount of pill toxicity in such a short time was also a task that tested her skill.
"Done."
Qin Yiqiu stood up, pulled over a garment from the side, and intended to cover Luoyun Huan back up, only to find the other girl shivering violently from the cold, her face turning pale.
Perhaps her Cultivation Manual was simply too icy and yin in nature.
Qin Yiqiu's ears flushed slightly red, and an apologetic look flashed in her eyes. She shouldn't have been so rash, focusing solely on expelling the poison while forgetting that this outer disciple possessed very little strength.
After a moment of thought, she pulled the person directly into her embrace.
"Eldest... Eldest Senior Sister..."
Luoyun Huan had just been immersed in the shame of having her entire body seen by a beauty, as well as the pain in her meridians caused by the rapid expulsion of the poison.
Suddenly being pulled into an embrace made her pupils tremble slightly.
"I failed to consider that your realm is too low to withstand my Spiritual Qi."
Qin Yiqiu's voice remained flat, as if everything she was doing was nothing more than what a senior sister ought to do for a junior sister.
Yet, Luoyun Huan's heart was beating wildly.
[Haha, Host, don't tell me you didn't gain a single point of affection, but instead got conquered by the target? What a loser.]
The System's mocking laughter rang in her ear.
The romantic and lingering sentiment in Luoyun Huan's heart vanished in an instant.