I Ruined the Long Ao Tian Script

Bai Roushuang snapped back to reality and threw her arms around her in delight, "Senior Sister, you're amazing!"

Xu Shulou humbly replied, "It's not me who's amazing—it's mainly that the opponent was weak."

"Let's go!" Fan Yang wiped the blood from his lips and cast a venomous glance at the Dustless Island group. "Well done, Xu Shulou! The humiliation you've dealt me today—I will repay it in the future!"

After leaving this threat, he turned and took two steps before Xu Shulou hurled her sword, embedding it into the ground just three inches from his toes.

"Oh? If that's how you feel, should I cripple you now to save myself the trouble of you coming back for revenge later?" Xu Shulou thought he hadn’t been beaten enough for someone so arrogant despite his lack of strength.

Fan Yang stiffened. "You—"

Fan Zhi fumed, "Miss Xu, you’re going too far! I’ll have to report this to the Sect Leader. If you dare bully your elders like this now, what will you do after you’re married into the family?"

Xu Shulou, still brimming with battle spirit, turned to her and asked succinctly, "Would you like to fight me too?"

Fan Zhi, knowing when to yield, promptly shut her mouth and instead shot a meaningful look at Lu Beichen—clearly signaling, *Your fiancée, you deal with her.*

...*You overestimate me.* Lu Beichen, caught in the middle, could only look up at the sky and pretend he hadn’t seen anything. These two Fan elders weren’t particularly strong, but they were skilled at scheming and were close confidants of the Lingxiao Sect Leader, rumored to have handled some of his dirty work. Lu Beichen’s master had little respect for them, and by extension, his own attitude toward them was complicated.

Now, he cursed inwardly. *You don’t want to lose face, so you expect me to back down?*

Clearing his throat, he forced himself to speak. "Shulou, we’re all here to slay demons. Can we set aside our disputes for now?"

"Senior Brother Lu makes a fair point," Xu Shulou said, seemingly recognizing his predicament and, to his surprise, granting him some face. "But if we’re talking about setting aside disputes, I’d like to hear Elder Fan say it himself."

Fan Yang’s face cycled through shades of red and green before he finally gritted out, "Fine, fine! Let’s... set aside our disputes for now. How about that?"

Xu Shulou smiled. "So you *can* speak properly."

Fan Yang’s expression darkened. "Does Miss Xu have any further instructions?"

"My point is simple. Demon-slaying is the priority. Even if we don’t cooperate, I hope we won’t hinder each other."

"Agreed."

Fan Yang gave her a long look before leading his group away. Bai Roushuang watched their retreating figures, lost in thought. "Seeing people like them makes me understand why cultivators are so obsessed with pursuing greater power."

"Why?"

"Senior Sister is right. The cultivation world respects strength. Against those who refuse reason, strength *is* reason."

"Junior Sister, you—" Xu Shulou studied her closely, then pressed two fingers to her wrist. "Junior Sister, you’re about to break through to Foundation Establishment."

Bai Roushuang blinked, stunned. "Foundation Establishment?"

"That’s right," Xu Shulou said, delighted for her. "You can attempt the breakthrough now. If you succeed, you’ll enter the Foundation Establishment stage—the true path of cultivation lies before you."

Bai Roushuang’s joy was tinged with panic. "And if I fail?"

"Even if you fail, you’ll still be my junior sister," Xu Shulou reassured her, ruffling her hair. "You’re young. There will be plenty of chances. Just relax."

"But... what about the demon hunt? Won’t this delay things?"

"Second Brother, escort Junior Sister back to the Joyous Harmony Sect and stay there to guard her during her breakthrough," Xu Shulou instructed before turning back to Bai Roushuang. "Focus on your cultivation. Don’t worry about the rest—leave it to me."

"Mm!" The words *leave it to me* miraculously soothed all her anxiety. Bai Roushuang nodded firmly. "Senior Sister, I’ll do my best. Next time we meet, I’ll be in Foundation Establishment!"

"You will."

After seeing off the Dustless Island group, Xu Shulou slung her un-sheathed sword across her back. The casual way she carried herself, paired with the blade, finally gave her the bearing of a true sword cultivator.

Following the Joyous Harmony Sect’s reports of corpse-dumping sites, Xu Shulou visited each location, piecing together clues to map out the demon’s hunting grounds. But after a day of stakeouts, there was no sign of it.

Pondering, she waited until nightfall, then used a face-changing artifact she’d snatched from the Void Abyss Secret Realm to adopt the appearance of an ordinary man. Dressed in male attire, her sword hidden, she swaggered back and forth through the desolate mountains, hoping to lure the demon out.

No luck. Not surprising—earlier that day, Fan Yang and the Lingxiao Sect had made a grand spectacle of their sword-flight departure. With such a commotion, any demon with half a mind would stay hidden.

She’d likely have to wait until it grew desperate enough to hunt again. Judging by the frequency of past killings, it wasn’t yet starving.

Xu Shulou wasn’t in a hurry to claim credit for its capture. As long as no more innocents were harmed, taking things slow was fine.

With no trace of the demon for miles, she headed to Frostless City, removed the face-changing artifact, and changed back into her usual robes.

That night, the moon was full, the sky clear.

Xu Shulou descended from the heavens, alighting outside a small window where lamplight flickered.

Inside, a Scholar looked up from his books and saw her, unsure if she was real or a dream. Dazed, he murmured a line of poetry: *"A fairy such as this belongs in paintings, not the mortal dust."*

"Silly," Xu Shulou laughed. "I frightened you last night—my apologies. Are you all right?"

"I—I’m fine, thank you for your concern, Fairy," the Scholar stammered, flushing. "About last night... everyone I told said I was dreaming. But I know it was real."

"What were you doing in the mountains so late?"

The Scholar lowered his head sheepishly. "I couldn’t bear the thought of those poor souls dying without justice. I wanted to see if I could find any clues."

"Ah, so you were grave-digging too," Xu Shulou realized. "You’re brave. Weren’t you afraid of running into the demon?"

"So it *is* a demon causing this?" The Scholar looked troubled.

"Don’t worry. Cultivation sects have sent people to deal with it. The people will have peace again," Xu Shulou assured him. "You don’t need to sneak out at night anymore."

The Scholar sighed in relief. "Then you shouldn’t go to the mountains at night either. It’s dangerous."

Xu ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‍Shulou met his gaze solemnly. "All right. I won’t go."

"Miss... have we met before?" The Scholar reddened again. "Forgive my boldness, but the way you look at me seems... strange."

"I..." For once, Xu Shulou hesitated. After a moment, she answered truthfully, "You remind me of someone I once knew."

"Oh?"

"He was a Scholar too—one with the talent to top the imperial exams."

If that man had reincarnated, he’d be about this one’s age now.

The Scholar’s eyes brightened. "Was he your sweetheart?"

Xu Shulou didn’t answer, only smiled. "I should go."

The Scholar pressed urgently, "Might I... have the honor of seeing you again?"

Xu Shulou shook her head. "Most likely not."

The Scholar stood there, his heart heavy with a sense of loss, gazing wistfully as she drifted away into the night, soaring toward the moon. Her sword gleamed like snow, her sleeves fluttering like wings, as if she were Chang’e herself, ascending to the heavens—leaving the mortal world behind forever.