Chapter 459 : Crystal Clear
459: Crystal Clear
In the following days, the situation at Xuanqing Sect was neither too good nor too bad.
After the first day's massive outbreak of demonic patterns, the vast majority of infected disciples had been sent to the lightning pools, but in the subsequent days, demonic patterns continued to sporadically emerge among disciples—the demonic patterns were extremely contagious, like a plague, but what made them more troublesome than a plague was that they wouldn't erupt immediately. They could lie dormant in a person's mind, perhaps for a day, perhaps for a month, or perhaps even longer, then burst forth when the person least expected it.
This was undoubtedly a troublesome matter, but not as dire as imagined. At least Jiang Mo still hadn't seen any important figures among the infected. In contrast, the Buddha Sect had experienced infected elders and a stabbed abbot, clearly suffering a worse fate than Xuanqing Sect.
Speaking of the Buddha Sect, they were truly plagued with disasters. The current situation at Mount Puhua remained unknown, as did whether Xuanqing Sect's reinforcements had arrived in time.
Jiang Mo and Yun Qingyue felt as if they had entered an information blackout zone. With Xuanqing Sect's protective grand formation activated, news from the outside world could hardly penetrate. They knew neither the Buddha Sect's current state nor the battle situation at Mount Xuanyin. They had heard that Tiandao Sect and Xuanqing Sect had previously experienced some friction, but they didn't know how it had been resolved, or if it had been resolved at all.
The two were busy every day, either patrolling or capturing people. When they caught disciples infected with demonic patterns, they would immediately send them to the lightning pools. In a short time, they had filled all ninety-nine partitioned lightning pools.
Jiang Mo had grown weary of capturing people. This morning, as Yun Qingyue was about to set out as usual, she was suddenly grabbed by Jiang Mo, who was sitting among the Purple Cloud Flowers.
Yun Qingyue turned around, her beautiful face illuminated by the morning light, as if her entire person was gilded with a layer of radiance, even dispelling the coolness that usually shrouded her features. Jiang Mo looked up at her, and she looked down at Jiang Mo, her voice carrying more warmth than usual, making it sound particularly gentle: "What's the matter? Why are you holding me?"
Jiang Mo stared at her for a good while, with amazement and infatuation in her eyes. After a long moment, with Yun Qingyue showing no impatience, she finally said softly: "Can we not go today?"
Her voice was so soft, almost dissipating in the morning breeze, yet Yun Qingyue still heard her: "Why?"
Jiang Mo's voice had been very soft just now, her words seemingly tinged with uncertainty, but as soon as Yun Qingyue responded, she seemed to gain confidence. She gripped Senior Sister's hand tighter, then her face fell, looking aggrieved: "There are so many elders in Xuanqing Sect. Capturing a few sick disciples doesn't require us specifically." Then she raised her arm to point at their surroundings: "We haven't even properly looked at these flowers we planted."
After hearing her words, Yun Qingyue wanted to refute. She wanted to say that they were fast and could subdue disciples before they fought and got injured. She also wanted to say that they had already carefully admired this patch of Purple Cloud Flowers—on the day they were planted, they had even sat among the flowers and watched the sunset together.
But in the end, she said none of these things, because when faced with the little tiger's pitiful expression, her heart softened.
Yun Qingyue had always been a resolute person, not one to easily change her plans. However, faced with Jiang Mo's coaxing, her resolution seemed to waver—the flowers were still in bloom, and it wouldn't hurt to appreciate this precious time once more. Moreover, as Jiang Mo had said, Xuanqing Sect was full of talented people and didn't lack just the two of them; without them, no chaos would ensue.
At this moment, Yun Qingyue wavered, and Jiang Mo noticed her wavering. So the little tiger sitting on the ground shook her arm, coaxingly saying: "Ah Yue, let's take a rest day, and spend time with me, okay?"
Yun Qingyue didn't say yes, but she felt a sudden force transmitted through her arm. Even with her cultivation, she couldn't maintain her balance and fell forward, predictably landing in Jiang Mo's embrace.
Jiang Mo fell back among the flowers, but held her firmly. Fine purple petals scattered down, falling between their intertwined hair.
Yun Qingyue lay completely on top of Jiang Mo, her right hand pressed against Jiang Mo's shoulder, her eyes slightly narrowed.
Jiang Mo naturally embraced her waist, pursing her lips into an innocent and ingratiating smile, her golden eyes bright with morning light: "If a whole day is too long, half a day is fine too. Keep me company, please..."
The little tiger was acting coquettish again. Yun Qingyue wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but she felt that this one had become clingier than before. She was less inclined to refuse her than before, so the displeasure in her expression gradually turned to resignation as she pushed against Jiang Mo's shoulders to get up: "Alright, alright, I'll keep you company. But don't do this next time. What if..." Never mind, it's not like she could be hurt anyway.
Jiang Mo had quite enjoyed the feeling of holding that fragrant softness in her arms just now, but she didn't dare stop Yun Qingyue from getting up. So after the other left her embrace, she also propped herself up.
As the rising Yun Qingyue shook her robes, a shower of purple petals fell.
Jiang Mo reached out and caught several petals, instinctively bringing them to her nose. Besides the obvious scent of Purple Cloud Flowers, it seemed that in that brief time, these petals had acquired a hint of Senior Sister's fragrance.
Yun Qingyue saw her action and, for some reason, felt her earlobes grow warm. She used the motion of fixing her hair to touch her ears and, sure enough, felt them burning. So she secretly applied some ice to cool them. The effect was immediate; her ears quickly cooled down, and Yun Qingyue lowered her hand, acting as if nothing had happened. She then sat down beside Jiang Mo and turned her head to ask seriously: "What are you doing?"
Jiang Mo hadn't noticed that Senior Sister had just been embarrassed, so she didn't understand the deeper meaning of this question. She acted quite openly, opening her palm to show Yun Qingyue: "Senior Sister, these petals smell so nice."
Yun Qingyue stared at her for several moments, seeing no sign of embarrassment or shyness, and could only say: "Of course, it's a fragrance."
Jiang Mo nodded: "I know. I was wondering, could Senior Sister teach me how to make a sachet?"
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Half a day is neither long nor short, but it passes quickly when whiled away.
In the span of a morning, picking flowers, drying them, and sewing a sachet would be easy for an experienced hand. They could make not just one, but eight or ten sachets... but Jiang Mo was clearly not experienced, and she wasn't very focused either.
While picking flowers, Jiang Mo was surprised to discover something different in the sea of Purple Cloud Flowers—a light blue flower, inconspicuous among the purple blossoms. Jiang Mo didn't know what variety it was, but seeing it bloom so brilliantly and gorgeously, she was inspired to pick it and pin it in Yun Qingyue's hair.
Yun Qingyue was quite knowledgeable, but she had never seen this kind of blue flower before, and couldn't help asking Jiang Mo: "Where did this flower come from?"
Jiang Mo, who was resting her chin on her hand and admiring, casually pointed behind her at the flowers: "I found it in the flower patch. I saw it was different, and it looked pretty, so I picked it to give to you."
Yun Qingyue looked in the direction she pointed, somewhat surprised: "Has this mountaintop already grown new flowers?"
It's worth noting that this Purple Cloud Peak summit had been sliced off by a sword, leaving nothing behind. This sea of Purple Cloud Flowers had been grown by Yun Qingyue, who scattered seeds and used small Spiritual Rain and Growth Acceleration techniques to make the flowers grow so quickly and bloom so abundantly. This blue flower had gone from seed to blooming in just a few days.
Jiang Mo also thought the flower grew quickly, but she didn't consider it significant, casually saying: "Wild flowers grow quite fast without anyone tending them. They're not as delicate as spirit plants." With that, she ended the topic and asked: "Ah Yue, do you think it looks nice?"
Yun Qingyue raised her hand to touch the flower in her hair. She hadn't worn flowers for many years and felt somewhat uncomfortable: "It's alright."
Hearing this "alright," Jiang Mo took it as praise and immediately smiled, her eyes curving.
Seeing this, Yun Qingyue also set aside her discomfort, her expression unconsciously softening. She withdrew her hand from the flower and began directing Jiang Mo: "Didn't you want to learn how to make a sachet? Hurry up and get started. Why are you daydreaming?"
Jiang Mo obediently began to sort the Purple Cloud Flowers she had picked. This wasn't difficult, and drying them only required a few hand seals. So while forming seals with her fingers, she still had the presence of mind to respond to Yun Qingyue: "Daydreaming? I'm admiring a beauty, of course." After saying this, she deliberately winked at Senior Sister, smiling with complete sincerity.
Yun Qingyue wasn't accustomed to such directness, especially when Jiang Mo's gaze seemed to carry a teasing quality that easily made one blush. She felt her ears beginning to burn again, but this time, under Jiang Mo's watchful gaze, she couldn't use ice to cool them.
"Focus on your task, don't fool around." Yun Qingyue glared at Jiang Mo with feigned anger, throwing a few Purple Cloud Flowers at her.
Jiang Mo knew when to stop, and incidentally caught all the Purple Cloud Flowers that were thrown, planning to put them all in the sachet.
The two worked quickly, and with the aid of magical techniques, they dried all the newly picked petals in just a moment. Next came making the sachet, so Yun Qingyue asked Jiang Mo: "What kind of sachet do you want to make?"
Without thinking, Jiang Mo made a gesture: "A little tiger, of course."
Yun Qingyue gave her a deep look—her intentions were crystal clear.