Chapter 28: Provocation

Advancing in both body refinement and qi cultivation at the same time was something to be celebrated. After thoroughly cleaning the bloodstains from herself and the courtyard, Ji Mo walked out, coming to the edge of the cliff atop the peak. She tilted her head back and let out a long, clear howl. The piercing sound cut through layers of cloud and mist, carrying far into the distance.

She had sat in meditation atop this peak for five whole years. For someone as indolent and restless as Ji Mo, this was almost unimaginable. Startled by her call, Chi Yan swiftly flew over to the peak, landed, and scrutinized her with pleasant surprise. "Miss Mo, have you... have you reached the Transcendence stage in body refinement?"

"Yes, I just broke through," Ji Mo replied. "Uncle Chi Yan, if I recall correctly, with my current cultivation, I’m eligible to take on sect tasks, am I not?"

"That’s right," Chi Yan answered, "but Miss Mo, you've only cultivated for a short time. You could wait a while before taking on any tasks."

"No, I want to go now," Ji Mo said. "I’ve been sitting here for five years—my body’s almost rusted through. I’ve been in the sect for nearly six years now. For all that time, I’ve never made any contribution, simply consuming the sect’s resources. Even if I am considered a prodigy and given special treatment, I can’t keep eating for free and doing nothing. I simply can’t get past that, not in my own heart." She gave herself a respectable reason.

"Miss Mo, you’ve got it wrong," Chi Yan said, slightly disapproving. "Genius disciples do consume a lot in the early stages, but later on, they become the mainstays of the sect. All the true disciples of our Moonwatch Sect receive the same treatment as you."

Ji Mo wrinkled her nose, about to retort, when Chi Yan changed his tone: "But since you cultivate both body and spirit, and your body refinement has reached Transcendence, it wouldn’t hurt to try taking on the tasks reserved for disciples below the seventh level of qi cultivation."

"Below the seventh level? Uncle Chi Yan, you really have faith in me? I’m only at the third level of qi cultivation," Ji Mo looked at him in surprise. She had yet to truly show her hand, and hadn't expected Chi Yan to rate her so highly.

"Heh, Miss Mo is no ordinary person. Why judge you by ordinary standards? Besides, a body cultivator at the Transcendence stage is no weaker than any opponent at the sixth level of qi cultivation. Asking you to take on tasks for those below the seventh is already conservative," Chi Yan chuckled, believing his assessment of Ji Mo’s strength was not high at all. As a demon cultivator, his perception of people and things far surpassed that of ordinary folk.

"Thank you for your confidence, Uncle Chi Yan! I won’t let you down. Tomorrow, I’ll go to the Mission Hall," Ji Mo replied with a cheerful smile, patting Chi Yan’s wing.

Moonwatch Sect had only one peak dedicated to issuing tasks. Ji Mo was not a sword cultivator, and with only third-level qi cultivation, even though her body refinement had reached the initial Transcendence stage, she could not yet fly. Chi Yan personally took her to the task peak before turning back; since Ji Mo had decided to take on tasks herself, she should face everything on her own.

The task peak was not large, spanning only a few kilometers. The Mission Hall stood at its very center. Ji Mo soon arrived at its entrance, and just as she was about to step inside, a somewhat uncertain voice called out, "Ji Mo?"

Ji Mo paused and looked up to see several young female cultivators hurrying toward her. Two were especially eye-catching: one dressed in red, her face brimming with pride and stunning beauty, making her resemble a proud peacock from afar; the other, about sixteen, wore a pale violet skirt, her features exquisitely beautiful, and her gentle aura made her seem like a lily blooming in a secluded valley. This ethereal beauty was Jiang Ping, who had entered the Moonwatch Sect together with Ji Mo.

Ji Mo herself was now fourteen, noticeably taller than before. Her round cheeks, still carrying a hint of baby fat, had grown more delicate, her face, though still youthful, now bore the grace of a budding lotus. Yet, compared to Jiang Ping, she seemed much more innocent and immature.

"Hello, Jiang Ping," Ji Mo greeted her coolly. Though they had both spent three years in Zhao Family Village, their only interaction had been upon entering the Moonwatch Sect. Even then, though it was their first meeting, Ji Mo had sensed a strange hostility from Jiang Ping.

"It really is you? I almost didn’t recognize you. Time flies—it’s been nearly six years since we last saw each other," Jiang Ping said warmly, her eyes full of emotion.

"You’re Ji Mo?" The proud girl in red scrutinized her with a look of disdain and asked with clear contempt. Ji Mo didn’t answer, merely nodded.

"I thought you’d be some sort of prodigy, but seeing you now, what a disappointment," the red-clad girl sneered, her voice dripping with sarcasm. At her words, a buzz of whispered discussions arose around them.

The name Ji Mo was well known in the Moonwatch Sect. Six years earlier, during the sect’s recruitment, she had been the only one accepted as a personal disciple by the master of Thunder Peak after passing only the first round of tests. Many had been indignant, but more were envious; talent is not distributed equally, and jealousy was futile.

But soon, it became known that Ji Mo had failed to draw qi into her body for five whole months. When this spread among the six peaks, it caused an uproar. Some of her peers privately mocked the Thunder Peak master for making such a foolish choice—after all that drama, his chosen disciple turned out to be a useless one who couldn’t even complete the most basic step.

Of course, no one dared voice these thoughts before Lei Wei or his four main disciples, all of whom were notoriously ill-tempered. But behind their backs, the rumors flew, and Ji Mo’s name once again echoed through the Moonwatch Sect—only this time, in infamy.

Now, after more than five years, Ji Mo appeared before everyone once more, now a third-level qi cultivator. Yet this could not erase the bias and contempt the other disciples felt toward her. Of those who entered the sect alongside her, four had reached the fifth level of qi cultivation, and eight had reached the fourth.

The four girls with Jiang Ping were all from Ji Mo’s intake. Both Jiang Ping and the red-clad girl were fifth-level qi cultivators, while the other two were at the fourth level. Ji Mo, at only the third level, naturally attracted countless mocking gazes.

"And you are?" Ji Mo looked at the red-clad girl with a puzzled expression.

"Ji Mo, this is Zhong Yao from Spirit Sword Peak—Senior Sister Zhong," Jiang Ping interjected before the girl could reply.

"Oh, Senior Sister Zhong? Well, you’re from Spirit Sword Peak and I’m from Thunder Peak—what does it matter to you if I’m a prodigy or not?" Ji Mo raised an eyebrow, her tone light.

"You! How dare you speak to a senior sister like that?" a girl in green standing behind Zhong Yao snapped angrily.

"And how do you think I should speak?" Ji Mo replied, amusement flickering in her eyes.