Reverend Ecstasy

Left to her own device, Chun Xu pondered Zi Yao's words. All along, the Sword Fairy didn't doubt that somewhere in the White Immortal sect or beyond, her master hid corpses and secrets that could overnight bring a coalition of righteous zealots to the White Immortal sect's gates.

Zi Yao was a genius, in the purest sense of the term. Even in Qi Refinement, her scholarly and alchemical achievements had left her seniors slack-jawed, making several lower themselves to discuss results and experiments with the then teenage girl. However, the higher Zi Yao's cultivation, the less interested in alchemy she seemed to be. Only a select few knew that her achievements in that category had never stopped, but grew darker and more tyrannical as time went by, forcing her to conceal it all in a secret laboratory.

Chun Xu didn't want to care about Zi Yao's dubious business, but feared that later on, these activities would become the source of a greater scourge—dragging Zi, Dong and the entire sect into hellfire. Suppressing her apprehension, Chun Xu closed eyes, returning to meditation.

Unlike Dong Ling, she'd learned of everything that went on in the sect, from Xinzi's expulsion to his overwhelming display, and the spiritual changes that swept through the atmosphere soon afterward. Having experienced the clash between Xinzi's Divine Power and the True Devil's Evil Qi, Chun Xu didn't doubt that all these changes were somehow connected to Xinzi.

Better, she inferred his true background, but for her own safety, stopped her brain from delving deeper into the matter. And as Chun Xu's inner conflicts grew silent, a herculean silhouette appeared at the door that the rude Zi Yao left open. Immediately, the Sword Fairy snapped out of her meditation, and her eyes rose to meet the newcomer, who faced her with a wine gourd in one hand, and a roguish smirk plastered on his face.

"Don't say it, I've heard it enough for today," Xinzi said, then pulled the gourd to his lips, opening the lid for another sip. The enrapturing aroma fit for an immortal-level wine flowed out, pervading the air and rattling Chun Xu's senses. Still, her eyes didn't shift from Xinzi, whose entrance robbed her attention.

"I didn't plan to." Chun replied, aware that Xinzi referred to his obvious leap in height. A silence settled in, with Chun Xu watching as Xinzi took sip upon sip, and let the magic of the Wailing Immortal Blood Wine course through his veins. The Immemorial Blood Gu in Xinzi's main heart refused to let go of such prime resource, sucking most of it with voracious suction force. The slow bloodline evolution that, till now, mostly relied on blood energy cultivation, advanced by leaps and bounds, bringing Xinzi closer to the next level of his main heart's bloodline: the Heart Shifter.

"Congratulations on getting kicked out of the Clear Heart monastery," Chun Xu said, making Xinzi's eyebrows arc in surprise.

"That's a strange thing to congratulate a monk for."

"If you were any other monk, yes, but since it's you, we can both agree that it's a matter worth celebrating. Aren't you doing just that right now? Why pretend that you've not been looking forward to this day for years now. With that said, I'm surprised it took Abbot Qingxin so long to realize that you're not Clear Heart monastery material."

"Touché." Xinzi approved Chun Xu's quip and stepped into the room proper. Red mist oozed from his skin, rising alongside bright sanguine rays as his blood energy levels increased at a rapid pace.

"I'm about to leave for a long trip, and dropped by to say goodbye and pick up Xiao Hu," Xinzi said in a calm, leisurely tone. But the words didn't sit well with Chun Xu—her face twisted into a frown.

"Is that necessary?" For a while now, Xiao Hu had suffered no end of abuse. Chun Xu knew that at the root, all of it stemmed from her, and so, despite Xiao Hu's newly formed hatred for the Sword Fairy, she still hoped to reduce the grief that the green swordswoman had to bear.

"Yes, she's an important piece of this expedition. Even if I don't take her now, others will come to pick her up afterward, and there's nothing you can do to stop them. But don't worry, that cultivation method of hers is such a marvel that I won't allow anyone to prevent her from reaching her peak."

Chun Xu didn't know that the Green Immortal Sword Art had no "peak" and enabled its cultivators to grow infinitely. Still, she didn't doubt that, since Xinzi bothered to clarify his stance, he wouldn't let Xiao Hu suffer mishaps—at least not a major one.

"It is a rare marvel, indeed. The type of cultivation method that I thought only a deviant of your level could create. Makes me wonder if the creator isn't somehow connected to you. Alright, she's in the room nearby, go." Closing her eyes, Chun Xu aimed at an adjacent room and ignored Xinzi.

The behavior puzzled our monk, and in between two wine sips, he leaned towards the Sword Fairy.

"That's it?"

"What else did you expect? I can't be dropping my dress every time we meet—especially not when I can smell Dong Ling all over you." Chun Xu didn't mince her words, and as the bitterness in the Sword Fairy's tone grew more obvious, Xinzi's smile broadened.

"Oh? What if I tell you that we just had a drink?"

"Then I'd ask why you decided to share your first drink with her and not me?"

"Mhm…jealousy doesn't suit you. Breaks the virtuous mirage that you've tried so hard to create."

"Thanks to you, it has been broken a while ago. Now, I'm just another one of the cheap women that fell victim to the Liberation Abbot's evil clutches." Here, Chun Xu lowered her head further—almost as if trying to avoid Xinzi's gaze.

"You give Dong Ling all the fun, then bring the wearisome business to my feet. Even my soul gets pawned to whatever Blood Spirit you fancy. Xinzi, Xinzi…what must I do to become more than a mark in that stone-cold heart of yours?" Chun Xu's voice sank into a low pitch that mixed serious and helpless vibes.

Our monk's eyelids twitched, and he leaned back, tapping his storage ring to summon a tea cup. As the cup hovered by Xinzi's shoulder, Xinzi raised his gourd at Chun Xu and said:

"I want to share this wine with you. How do you want it?"

"What?" Though one didn't need to be a genius to understand Xinzi's offer, Chun Xu failed to make sense of the monk's motives.

"I just said it. I didn't give A'Ling a choice. But I'm giving one to you. How do you want it? You choose, and I will follow your wish," Xinzi reiterated his thoughts, but the clearer the offer was, the more rattled Chun Xu felt.

'Is he testing me?' In a flash, Chun Xu considered a myriad of options. What choice would help her enhance her image in Xinzi's mind. Cup? Lips? Hands? But the more she thought, the more she believed that Xinzi was using this offer to test her thought process. In that case, were all the answers not wrong by default?

As the Sword Fairy's inner doubts held her back, the Immemorial Blood Gu digested the wine, pushing Xinzi's heart past the last barrier of its current bloodline level. With the monk at the center, a bright column of sanguine light took shape, rising towards the ceiling. The Immemorial Blood Gu whistled in Xinzi's heart and the monk's Silkshifter heart evolved into a Heart Shifter.

From here on, if he so desired, Xinzi could read the emotions and desires of those around him like an open book, alter the thought process of the feeble, and become a flawless incarnation of the people he read.

The monk didn't use that ability on Chun Xu, and yet, he could still read her with no trouble.

"You're correct. All the answers are wrong. But it's not because of my standards. You're just thinking too hard." Xinzi started and tossed the wine gourd into Chun Xu's hands.

"A'Xu, not so long ago you were trying to get me killed. In that time of uncertainty, Dong Ling stood by me, unaware of whether or not I could contend with your tricks. If only for that, she deserves more of my affection. But unfortunately, the gap goes a step further. You're too lacking in…spontaneity." As the words rolled off Xinzi's tongue, Chun Xu caught the gourd. Xinzi vanished, reappearing beside the Sword Fairy and sitting at her left.

"Spontaneity defines all meaningful bonds. I might trick my master from time to time, but usually, my thoughts do not travel far in his presence. The bonds we've nurtured do the talking. It's a different type of bond, but my point still stands.

A'Ling too acts in the same way, spontaneous in all her actions—perhaps even too much. But you, A'Xu, are the exact opposite. You don't want to be wrong, and so, you are never right." Here Xinzi stopped, but his words were like a stampede of raging bulls ramming through Chun Xu's mind.. Her hands trembled around the gourd, and her eyes turned red.