lady cultivator
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Nie Wushang’s expression was very calm, and it seemed she wasn’t worried about being caught by Tianyan Sect at all.
Mo Tiange looked at her for a long while then she suddenly asked, “Did you find me in the Jade Qilin Pavilion that day?”
The smile froze on Nie Wushang’s face, and she looked back at Mo Tiange. “You mean to ask whether it was me who led them to chase you?”
“Sort of.” Mo Tiange admitted frankly. She was prone to suspicion, and since she didn’t intend to be enemies with Nie Wushang, she needed to figure out this matter clearly in case it became a thorn in her heart.
“No, it wasn’t me.”
Upon hearing this answer, Mo Tiange breathed a sigh of relief and asked again, “So when did you find me?”
“It was also at that time,” Nie Wushang said. “When I went out of the Jade Qilin Pavilion that day, I hid all traces of me, but who knew that those cultivators would pass by and start chasing you? I was curious, so I followed to watch the situation. Then I realized it was you and found out that you lived here just like me.”
Nie Wushang also found this matter inconceivable. She originally thought that the road she took was completely different from Mo Tiange, who had obtained great cultivation achievements and had a Dao companion beside her, who should be enjoying a happy and successful life in the Celestial Pole. However, she didn’t expect that Mo Tiange would come to Yunzhong ten thousand miles away, just like how she had escaped from the Celestial Pole in a difficult position.
Mo Tiange stared at her for a long time, long enough to make Nie Wushang feel strange, then Mo Tiange continued to ask: “Why are you sticking with me? With your personality, Fellow Daoist Nie, don’t you prefer to stay alone?”
Nie Wushang’s smile froze again. She looked at Mo Tiange silently for a long while then said, “Can I not answer this question?”
“…” Mo Tiange took a deep look at her then nodded and said, “Whatever you want.”
Then she straightened up and brushed her sleeves to sit down on her futon. “If you want to stay here, I won’t drive you out. Suit yourself.”
Nie Wushang watched Mo Tiange close her eyes and begin to meditate, ignoring her completely, and Nie Wushang suddenly felt quite blank when she looked down at her own fists in boxing gloves.
After all these years, she finally escaped, but how on earth was she going to go down this road? She couldn’t help but look at Mo Tiange, who was in meditation with her eyes closed as if she had no defenses against her at all. Could this person give her an answer?
Mo Tiange opened her eyes to see Nie Wushang was cultivating in the corner and couldn’t help curling her mouth.
The reason why she allowed Nie Wushang to stay here was of course because Mo Tiange was very confident about her own unique formation. If Nie Wushang acted unusual, she could kill Nie Wushang instantly. However, judging from the present situation, Nie Wushang really had no hostility toward her. She could even say that Nie Wushang was a little too close to her.
Ordinary people wouldn’t cultivate in the same room with other cultivators. Even friends wouldn’t be so close like this! And unless they were with trusted friends, cultivators would never want to be seen by others while cultivating. Mo Tiange dared to cultivate in the face of Nie Wushang without scruple because she could rely on her formation to have control over Nie Wushang’s life. But what was Nie Wushang relying on? Nie Wushang dared to enter her Cultivation Room in which she had set up layers of restrictions, dared to drink her tea, and even cultivated before her nose. Nie Wushang was Master Song Feng’s disciple, so she should be very vigilant. Why did Nie Wushang trust her so much?
This kind of feeling made Mo Tiange feel very strange. She had some friends—Luo Fengxue and Ye Jingwen—they were both considered her good friends because they all came from Xuanqing School and they formed good friendships as they shared similar temperaments, but what about Nie Wushang? Nie Wushang’s personality and experiences were different from hers; they had almost nothing in common.
Her Master was Master Song Feng, so presumably, she wasn’t lacking in spirit stones since childhood. But she was cursed and abused by her Master willfully and almost had no self-esteem. Would a person like her trust people easily?
While Mo Tiange, though she lived a displaced life and didn’t have enough medicinal pills when she was young, received thoughtful kindness from her Second Uncle. After her Second Uncle left, she met her Master and Qin Xi along with some other friends. It was because of such experiences that although she had developed a suspicious and cautious personality, she would still choose to trust others and believe in ties of friendship. She and Nie Wushang were two kinds of people.
What was even more strange was that theoretically speaking, Nie Wushang once saved her, and since she wasn’t averse to trusting others, it was normal that Mo Tiange held a certain kindness toward Nie Wushang. But considering her miserable life, Nie Wushang should be wary of Mo Tiange, so why did she look more at ease than Mo Tiange?
Mo Tiange felt it was impossible to guess Nie Wushang’s thoughts. She had never met such a person like Nie Wushang who just couldn’t be treated with common sense.
“Why are you looking at me?” Nie Wushang suddenly opened her eyes.
Mo Tiange smiled slightly and said, “I’m wondering—what exactly do you want to do?”
Nie Wushang was stunned. She curled up a faint smile and said, “Why don’t you just ask?”
“But you didn’t answer me before.” Mo Tiange looked at her and said, “I really don’t understand why you trust me so much.”
“…” Nie Wushang lowered her head and was silent for a long time then said, “I don’t know. Perhaps I want to try to live a different life after leaving Master.”
“Even so, why me? You cultivate at my place without scruple—aren’t you afraid I’ll do something to you?”
Nie Wushang chuckled at this question. She looked up at Mo Tiange. “Take it as my intuition. I just feel I can trust you.”
“…” Mo Tiange was silent and said nothing.
Nie Wushang sighed slightly, closed her eyes again and hid the loneliness within.
In fact, she didn’t tell Mo Tiange the real reason.
As a child, she had always dreamed of escaping from her terrible Master and living a new life, but when she did it, she found herself at a loss. She wanted to live like a human, but what was a human like? She wanted to walk in the sun, talk and laugh with others, have a strong heart, and be willing to trust others. However, the Primordial Devil Aura was hidden deep in her meridian vessels now, so she still couldn’t be regarded as a human being.
Over the course of the year, she restrained her spiritual breath and hid herself in the inn, searching for a way to dissolve the Primordial Devil Aura while wondering what she could do.
After so many years, she didn’t know how to get along with people, so how could she start the life she wanted?
Then, right at this time, she met Mo Tiange again, the one whom she envied and was jealous of, who made her feel ashamed of herself. Nie Wushang suddenly thought that maybe this was her beginning.
Mo Tiange was her rare “old friend” who knew her background clearly and Nie Wushang didn’t need to explain anything to her. Most importantly, she had saved her life, so she wanted to take a gamble on whether there was goodwill between them or even friendship.
What if Mo Tiange didn’t believe her? She thought about this before, and at that time, it evoked a deep sense of boredom in her heart. If so, then… she would just disappear.
She laughed at herself for having such a world-weary thought. She had undergone all conceivable hardships to flee from the Celestial Pole and narrowly escaped death, but in the end, she wanted to leave her life in someone else’s hands.
However, she didn’t want to change her decision. In all these years, she had never been in control of her own destiny, so she would still be at a loss even though she broke free. That being the case, what if she just left it to others to decide for once?
Now it seemed she might have won—Mo Tiange didn’t intend to make an enemy of her.
This gave Nie Wushang a little sense of the meaning of life. It seemed her life wasn’t such a failure. At least, there was someone who was willing to accept her trust.
Upon thinking this, she suddenly felt a little hope growing from her enormous loneliness. This didn’t seem to be a bad new start.
Three days passed. Nie Wushang stopped cultivating and looked at the bright window.
“Are you leaving?” Mo Tiange opened her eyes and looked at her.
“En.” Nie Wushang didn’t turn her head and just responded: “It’s time.”
Mo Tiange thought for a moment and finally asked, “Do you have a safe way out?”
Nie Wushang turned to look at her and asked, “Don’t you leave?”
Mo Tiange smiled and said, “If I go with you, will I really become your partner?”
Nie Wushang shrugged and said indifferently, “Are you still worried about getting implicated by me?”
“I’m not that powerful to offend two Nascent Soul cultivators,” Mo Tiange said. “But I can’t get away from this matter anyway, so I’d better leave North Pole Island ASAP.”
Nie Wushang laughed. “So you’re also planning to leave today?”
Mo Tiange smiled but didn’t answer.
Nie Wushang then didn’t say anymore either. She began to disguise herself in the face of Mo Tiange.
She took a bunch of strange things out of her Qiankun Bag and began to smear them on her face. All kinds of red and yellow powder were patted on her face, and after she finished, her face turned into a strange yellow. Then she began to draw moles, trim her eyebrows, and attach a beard to her face. When she was finished and had rearranged her hair and changed her clothes, she at once turned into a thin, withered man.
Mo Tiange witnessed the whole process and was very curious. “You…”
“It’s called the Art of Shapeshifting from the secular world.” Nie Wushang put away the things on the table and picked up a compact to shake at her. “You want some?”
Mo Tiange shook her head. She sized up Nie Wushang carefully and couldn’t see any flaws, so she couldn’t help gasping in admiration. “This is a good method. The Illusory Transfiguration Technique is easy to see through by high-level cultivators, but the secular world’s Art of Shape Shifting could only be distinguished by eyesight. A high cultivation level won’t help.”
It was also for this reason that in those days, she disguised herself as a man to join Yunwu Sect. Cultivators possessed powerful magic powers and often relied on their divine senses, but they would ignore the fundamental technique of disguise. However, Nie Wushang’s skills were much more qualified than hers; she almost changed into another person.
“I’m getting out.” After putting away her things, Nie Wushang looked up at Mo Tiange. “Thank you for taking me in this time.”
Mo Tiange smiled slightly and asked, “Any plans after leaving North Pole Island?”
“Naturally, I’ll go to inland Yunzhong,” Nie Wushang said. “The Transporting Formation on North Pole Island has some connections with Tianyan Sect which isn’t easy for me to use, so I can only disguise as a cultivator going to sea and fly there directly. I think I’ll go to Eastern Tang State first. I hope we can meet again then.”
Mo Tiange nodded. Since she had crossed the South Sea to come to Yunzhong, she could of course fly directly across the strait from the North Pole Island to inland Yunzhong, and there would be no need to worry.
“Well, farewell.”
Nie Wushang sighed and smiled. She took out a bamboo hat from her chest and put it on her head. After waiting for Mo Tiange to open the restriction, she pushed the door open and went out, soon disappearing silently.
Mo Tiange looked at the place where she left, saying nothing for a long time.