CBGC - ch148

Chapter 148 Offending Others

Su Tingyun came to Jinxiu City to buy jewelry. As soon as she mentions it to Wang Ningxi, the latter takes her to the second floor. Liu Feizhou and Bai Chengyu follow behind, and they all head upstairs.

The stairs of the Wang family's shop get progressively higher after each step, symbolizing advancement. In the cultivation world, there are few adults as short as Su Tingyun. For her height, she's like a child of twelve or thirteen years old. As she reaches the last few steps, it seems like she's floating. Liu Feizhou follows behind and couldn't hide his smile. He doesn't realize that the corners of his lips have been curled up all along.

There are no hairpins in Su Tingyun's black hair, only a cluster of white feathers. She looks at a double-disc gilt hairpin with embedded tourmaline. As she puts it next to her head, she hears Liu Feizhou say, "This hairpin has very little spiritual energy. It's just a low-grade hairpin. What's the point of wearing it?"

After speaking, Liu Feizhou glances at Wang Ningxi, "Bring out the best items from your shop."

"As long as it looks good," Su Tingyun waves her hand, "I don't need spiritual treasures, just something beautiful is enough." After all, she doesn't use those devices anyway, so there's no need to waste them.

She looks at the hairpin, quite satisfied, and is about to try it on in front of the mirror when Wang Ningxi says, "Let me redo your bun. Your bun is done quite delicately, but it looks a bit ordinary."

"Okay."

Bai Su doesn't know how to style women's hair. He only knows how to make flower crowns and grass spirit beasts. It's incomparable to a professional. After the bun is redone and paired with a beautiful hairpin, Su Tingyun feels even more beautiful. She admires herself in the mirror, her face almost blooming with a smile.

"How do you make this bun? Can you teach me?"

"Sure. Pay attention." Wang Ningxi looks around, then motions for Bai Chengyu to come over and sit down. She proceeds to undo his hair and gives on-the-spot instructions.

Su Tingyun glances at Liu Feizhou with ill intentions, only to see him snort icily and walk away.

"Hey, Master Liu, please."

Liu Feizhou humphs cooly, "I'll call a servant boy to come up."

"That would work, I'll just give him some compensation later." Su Tingyun nods, rolling up her sleeves to her elbows, revealing delicate arms like white jade, fingers as tender as spring onions, nails as pink as peach blossoms. Despite being just a pair of hands, they flex around like clawed paws. Liu Feizhou unexpectedly feels the heat of jealousy. He thinks, if those hands were to grab someone else's hair later...

How dirty!

Impatiently, he kicks the stool, then sits in front of Su Tingyun, his expression ugly as he removes his jade crown and lets his black hair fall over his back.

His features are already somewhat feminine, but now that his hair is scattered out, it adds a touch of devilish charm.

"You look quite dainty and cute. Let me teach you a hanging bun hairstyle. Divide the hair into strands, tie the bun at the top without supporting it, let it naturally hang down, and tie the hair tail, hanging it over the shoulder. It's also known as a swallowtail."

As Wang Ningxi speaks, she combs Bai Chengyu's hair. Su Tingyun follows her instructions, often having to learn each step several times, pulling out several strands of Liu Feizhou's hair in the process.

His face is gloomy as he sits there in silence, lips tightly pursed, eyebrows so furrowed they could trap mosquitoes.

Seeing his unpleasant expression, Su Tingyun's hands become lighter. She notices Liu Feizhou closing his eyes, which reassures her, and she follows Wang Ningxi's steps to style her hair.

Before long, the bun is done. Wang Ningxi takes a hairpin and inserts it into the bun. Su Tingyun tries to imitate her, but perhaps applies too much force, causing Liu Feizhou's eyebrow to twitch slightly when the pin is inserted at an angle. Annoyed, he opens his eyes, glancing sideways with phoenix-like eyes, those long and narrow eye lines reveal a charm not inferior to that of a woman's.

Liu Feizhou has his hair styled into a woman's bun. At first glance, it's hard to distinguish between masculine and feminine. While he appears slightly more on the masculine side, his eyebrows and eyes exude charm and allure.

Then a look towards Bai Chengyu, and one almost wishes to blind themselves.

Bai Chengyu is actually handsome. There aren't many ugly men in the cultivation world, but his features are rugged, with thick eyebrows and large eyes. With his tall and robust stature, styling his hair into a woman's bun makes him look like a pervert. Yet he still stands up with a smile, twirling around, with the hairpin swaying like a butterfly fluttering its wings, making people even more grossed out.

Liu Feizhou's face is as dark as water. "Idiot, have you learned it?"

Su Tingyun nods repeatedly. As soon as she finishes confirming it, Liu Feizhou quickly dismantles the bun in a few strokes, even tearing off the hairpin and throwing it to the ground, looking like he wants to trample on it.

"Thank you, Master Liu." Despite Liu Feizhou's sharp tongue, he's actually a nice person. After knowing him for so many years, Su Tingyun understands him well.

Liu Feizhou had initially intended to tie up his hair again, but hesitates, setting down the jade crown. "Have you really learned?" His lips tighten slightly, and his eyelashes tremble a few times, "You're so stupid. Shouldn't you try a few more times?"

"I've got it, I've got it." Su Tingyun says, then thanks him again. She proceeds to pick out a necklace and earrings. While choosing, Big Bai occasionally interjects with her opinions. Whenever Su Tingyun is distracted, she swallows another piece. Su Tingyun can't laugh or cry. Just as she's lecturing Big Bai about not taking other people's things casually, Liu Feizhou tosses a bag of spirit stones to Wang Ningxi, sneering before he says, "Big Bai, just take whatever you want."

Big Bai: "Chirp!"

"How can we take your spirit stones..." Wang Ningxi's words are cut short by a glare from Liu Feizhou. Bai Chengyu, however, is unhappy. "Liu Feizhou, why are you being mean to Ningxi? If you're mean to her again, don't blame me for being impolite to you!"

"You're bullying a Golden Core cultivator when you're about to be a Tribulation Transcendent, aren't you embarrassed?" Seeing Bai Chengyu exerting pressure, Su Tingyun says indignantly, "How long have you been at the peak perfect Nascent Soul stage? Even Master and the others are saying that you're not cultivating seriously. Don't you want to ascend and meet your elder brother?"

"How can breaking through to Tribulation Transcendent be so easy..." Bai Chengyu retorts in a quiet voice, "I can't compare with you."

Wang Ningxi has very poor aptitude. Despite taking many pills to improve, her cultivation is still at the Foundation Establishment stage. Without such aid, she wouldn't even be able to break through to Foundation Establishment. Moreover, her lifespan is not long. If Bai Chengyu were to retreat into seclusion for hundreds of years, by the time he comes out, Wang Ningxi would already be old.

It's not that he doesn't want to cultivate, he's just afraid of to be apart from her.

Wang Ningxi's cheeks flush red, as if blood might drip out. She speaks softly, "It's my fault..."

Su Tingyun is only displeased with Bai Chengyu using his pressure to suppress Liu Feizhou. They are all friends, and he should know Liu Feizhou's temperament. Liu Feizhou only gave Wang Ningxi a glare, without any malice. Bai Chengyu, being at the peak Nascent Soul stage while Liu Feizhou is only at the Golden Core stage, is treating Liu Feizhou as if they were not friends.

That's why Su Tingyun spoke a little harshly. It's just that she didn't expect her casual remark to make Wang Ningxi's eyes turn red. She suddenly feels embarrassed. Before she has a chance to explain, Liu Feizhou speaks with a dark expression, "What's wrong with being at the Golden Core stage? Are you looking down on me?"

With that, he throws his sleeves and walks away in a huff, leaving Su Tingyun dumbfounded where she stands, not knowing what to say at that moment.

She used to be more charismatic when she was an old lady, but now that she's turned into a girl, why has she become so inarticulate? Carelessly, she has offended everyone...

"Cultivation is not to be rushed, envy not the immortals, but the pair of mandarin ducks!" At this point, if Su Tingyun still can't see that Bai Chengyu and Wang Ningxi are in love, then she really must be blind. She grabs both of their hands and puts them together. "Stop overthinking. I heard that dual cultivation can also improve aptitude and help you progress together. You two should hurry up and set a date to formally become Daoist companions!"

Bai Chengyu's eyes widen instantly, while Wang Ningxi's face reddens even more. She lowers her head and stammers, unable to complete a full sentence. But Bai Chengyu excitedly grabs Su Tingyun's hand, saying, "Granny, Granny, I didn't dare say it, and you just blurt it out like this?"

He turns to Wang Ningxi, his new bun still on, and speaks with a blushing face, "I'll listen to Granny, what about you?"

Wang Ningxi, too embarrassed to lift her head, her voice as thin as mosquito feet, "I'll listen to you."

After sorting out these two, Su Tingyun goes to find Liu Feizhou, but when she scans with her divine sense, she finds that Liu Feizhou has already left the Rain Alley and is now on the bluestone street. She sees him kick away a hunched old man who's blocking his path.

The old man is kicked to a corner. When he lifts his head, he suddenly chuckles, then coughs up a wisp of black blood. A black mist emanates from his body, and he collapses backward, curling up in the corner. After convulsing for a few moments, he dies.

In the current world of cultivation, it's the most normal thing for people to simply die.

Jinxiu City is better. There are cultivators patrolling the streets. However, seeing that the one who hurt a person was Liu Feizhou, nobody got involved. Someone approaches to remove the hunched old man's body. The moment he gets near, a sudden anomaly occurs.

Su Tingyun immediately summons a spiritual barrier to firmly isolate the corpse, preventing it from bursting out and causing further harm to others.

She teleports to the side of the body and looks at the black poisonous insects crawling around inside the spiritual barrier. The dense swarm of insects is unsettling, and moreover, the black mist inside is filled with malevolence. It is similar to the demonic energy she sensed in the Qilian Mountains.

Liu Feizhou also walks up to Su Tingyun, the expression on his face changing indecisively. After a while, he snorts coldly, saying, "I didn't use any force."

He didn't use any spiritual energy at all. In a bad mood, he kicked casually. Who knew that the damned thing would actually die from just one kick.

People in the cultivation world would at least have the cultivation base of Qi Refining stage. How could they not withstand that kick?!

So, this person's death has nothing to do with him!

If Su Tingyun dares to say one word, he... he...

Now that he can't win in a fight, he really doesn't know what to do...

With these thoughts, Liu Feizhou's already gloomy mood becomes even darker, as if another bucket of ink is dumped into a pool of already-murky water.

People change, today is not like yesterday, mistakes are made upon mistakes.

She is the person he saw in the firelight, that was the real her. Even though her features were blurred by the fire, it left a lasting impression on him, appearing before him when he was dying, like a phoenix rising from the ashes.

He thought it was a dream, but it turns out, it was real. This woman, whom he had mocked a thousand times, is actually so gentle, so strong, and so lovable. Every interaction between her and Xiao Mei gradually warmed his cold heart. And it's only now that he realizes, she is the one who keeps flashing in his mind more and more.

He had treated her so poorly, and now, he doesn't have the power to treat her well. Because she has become much stronger than him, he has been left far behind.

The distance between the Golden Core stage and the Mahayana stage, even if he spent all his life and energy, he couldn't catch up. Liu Feizhou has always been confident, but at this moment, he feels a desolation in his heart.