Chapter 17 : Chapter 17
Chapter 17 – Deceptive Appearance
Ye Liuyun knew very well how difficult that staircase was to climb. Being forced to sweep it? That was practically asking for her life.
“Eh? Senior Sister, Senior Brother, I really have a reason for this. Please listen to my explanation.” Ye Liuyun immediately looked at the female disciple with a pitiful expression. When she saw that the woman was unmoved, she turned her gaze toward the male disciple instead.
The male disciple clearly could not withstand that look from Ye Liuyun.
“Uh… Junior Sister Liu, this Junior Sister Ye does not seem like someone who would deliberately break the rules. How about I take her to the Grand Elder and submit an appeal?” the male disciple suggested.
However, the woman surnamed Liu had no intention of listening to him.
“Senior Brother Song, this order was personally issued by the Sect Master. How could it be withdrawn just because you say so?” the female disciple surnamed Liu questioned.
Those words immediately extinguished the male disciple’s intention to plead for Ye Liuyun. He could only glance at her apologetically.
Seeing this, Ye Liuyun sighed inwardly and could only follow the two of them toward the Mountain Gate with her head lowered. Along the way, they encountered many entry disciples.
Among them was someone Ye Liuyun recognized—Xiao Hansheng, whom she had met before climbing the mountain two days ago.
“Eh? Miss Ye, you… what is this about?” Xiao Hansheng quickly greeted her.
“Brother Xiao,” Ye Liuyun responded awkwardly.
However, after exchanging a brief greeting, she was carried into the air by the two disciples and flew toward the Yunxia Sect’s Mountain Gate. After they left, Xiao Hansheng and the others began discussing the matter.
“This Senior Sister Ye is quite interesting. She did not even attend the official entry assembly on her first day and ended up being punished by the sect. I would never want to climb that staircase a second time. Now she has to sweep it for a whole month—I think she is going to suffer,” they said with amused smiles.
Meanwhile, Ye Liuyun was being carried rapidly toward the foot of the mountain.
This was her first time flying, and she immediately began screaming.
“Ah! Senior Sister, slow down! I am afraid of heights!”
At the moment, Ye Liuyun was tightly hugging the waist of the disciple surnamed Liu while standing on a flying sword, soaring through the sea of clouds.
Cultivators who reached the Spirit River Realm could control flying magical artifacts. The flying sword beneath their feet was precisely such an artifact.
Although flying felt exhilarating, Ye Liuyun genuinely could not handle it.
“Hey! Junior Sister Liu, slow down! Do not throw Junior Sister Ye off!” Senior Brother Song kept shouting.
The woman surnamed Liu seemed to be deliberately trying to torment Ye Liuyun. She twisted and turned repeatedly within the clouds, a sensation far beyond what someone experiencing flight for the first time could endure.
By the time they landed at the foot of the mountain, Ye Liuyun immediately began vomiting violently. Unfortunately, since there was nothing in her stomach, she could only throw up bitter gastric fluid.
“Alright. Here is a broom. For the next month, you must sweep from the foot of the mountain all the way to the Mountain Gate every day,” the woman surnamed Liu said as she tossed a broom toward Ye Liuyun.
After dry-heaving for a while, Ye Liuyun cursed the woman thoroughly in her heart.
“Damn it. Was that on purpose? How did I even offend you?” she grumbled inwardly.
Yet her face still carried an innocent expression, as if she held no resentment at all.
After adjusting her condition, Ye Liuyun reluctantly picked up the broom.
Meanwhile, the woman surnamed Liu took out a token and gestured toward the spot where the staircase had disappeared. In the next moment, the vanished staircase reappeared.
“Begin. We will be waiting at the summit. Do not think about slacking off,” the woman surnamed Liu said before glancing at Senior Brother Song.
Senior Brother Song immediately understood what she meant—he was to watch Ye Liuyun along the way. There was no need for both of them to stay here.
The woman surnamed Liu soared into the sky and left. Ye Liuyun glared at her departing figure before unwillingly picking up the broom and beginning to sweep the stairs.
As for Senior Brother Song, he simply followed behind Ye Liuyun the entire time.
The staircase was covered with fallen leaves. Sweeping all the way up—how long would that take?
Ye Liuyun felt that her luck was truly terrible.
“No, no… this is far too much of a waste of time.” She swept while thinking about how to complete the task more quickly.
After pondering for a while, she casually glanced at Senior Brother Song.
“Senior Brother, may I ask your name?” Ye Liuyun asked with a smile.
When Senior Brother Song heard her ask for his name, he figured there was nothing else to do anyway. Besides, his first impression of Ye Liuyun had been quite good, so he was willing to chat.
“My name is Song Shuwen. I heard that you are the elder sister of Senior Sister Lin Aoxue, the Sect Master’s direct disciple, correct?” Song Shuwen replied while asking a question of his own.
“Yes, but we are not biological sisters. We just come from the same town and our homes were directly across from each other,” Ye Liuyun answered.
Song Shuwen nodded.
The two of them continued sweeping while chatting. Having someone to talk to along the way was certainly much more comfortable than Ye Liuyun silently sweeping alone.
In truth, Ye Liuyun clearly had an ulterior motive.
First, she used conversation to grow closer to Song Shuwen. Then she casually explained why she had missed the assembly today, hoping to gain his sympathy.
Men, after all, tended to soften when they saw a beautiful girl. It was a common weakness among many men, and Ye Liuyun understood it perfectly well.
This body of hers might not have much other value, but when it came to deceiving others, it was the perfect tool.
Sure enough, after sweeping a section of the stairs, Ye Liuyun deliberately began to look exhausted.
“Ah… I cannot go on anymore, Senior Brother Song. Let us rest for a moment. I am too tired,” Ye Liuyun said while panting.
Seeing how exhausted she appeared, Song Shuwen felt a trace of pity. After thinking for a moment, he used his divine sense to scan the surroundings. Once he confirmed that no one else was nearby, he formed a hand seal and blew toward the staircase.
In an instant, the leaves and debris covering nearly a hundred meters of steps were blown away.
“Junior Sister Ye… I can only help lighten your burden a little. I cannot directly carry you up the mountain. I am sorry,” Song Shuwen said awkwardly.
Ye Liuyun immediately gave him a grateful look before continuing forward.
However, this time she did not need to sweep anymore. Along the way, Song Shuwen used spells to blow away all the debris on the steps for her.
Simply walking upward was naturally far less tiring.
Time gradually passed.
Since the staircase was no longer under examination conditions, there was no spiritual pressure attached to it. Climbing the mountain was therefore several times easier than before.
With the physical endurance of cultivators, it would take at most three hours to reach the top.
Five hours later, Ye Liuyun finally arrived at the Mountain Gate while pretending to sweep.
That Senior Sister Liu was already waiting there.
“Ah! Finished sweeping… I am exhausted,” Ye Liuyun said as she swept the final step and collapsed onto the ground.
“Hmph. Today’s punishment is finished. Continue again tomorrow.” After saying this, Senior Sister Liu turned around and left.
Song Shuwen chuckled at Ye Liuyun before departing as well.
Once the two of them were gone, Ye Liuyun’s exhausted expression immediately disappeared.
“Ah… this Senior Brother Song is quite nice. I should find an opportunity to thank him. Otherwise I would have had to sweep until dusk,” Ye Liuyun said as she stood up and dusted off her clothes.
“You brat… you even know how to take advantage of being a girl to lighten your punishment. Are you starting to like this body?” Lin Qingyou teased.
Ye Liuyun clearly did not agree with that.
“Nonsense. I am just making reasonable use of my identity. Besides, I cannot waste all my time sweeping every day,” Ye Liuyun replied before heading back to her residence.