Xin Xian, the second-generation disciple of Huashan Sect, first met Juling Hua about ten years ago.
It was around the time when winter was just ending and spring was beginning. Plum Blossom Immortal, the head of the sect, suddenly brought in a young girl, introducing her as their youngest junior sister, marking their first meeting.
She was also their junior sister and a disciple of the famous female knight, the Sword Empress, from the Central Plains.
At that time, it was the period when the third-generation disciples had just completed their initiation, and since she entered as a second-generation disciple, there was considerable resistance.
The main issue was that she was a young girl appearing at the third-generation disciples' initiation.
It seemed problematic to handle her as a second-generation disciple and to balance the relationship with the third-generation disciples.
However, due to the firm stance of the head of the sect and the elders, the sect members had no choice but to accept it.
If the head of the sect said it was right, then it was right.
If it was wrong, then it was wrong.
The trust the disciples placed in the head of the sect was that strong.
A few days later, Xin Xian heard that Juling Hua had arrived at Huashan Sect, but he could only visit her later because he had to listen to some matters from the elders.
As he approached the dormitory where the second-generation disciples stayed, he saw his fellow disciples surrounding something.
Their large builds made it easy to see from a distance.
â...Theyâre really too big, arenât they?â
He had heard that as one's realm advanced, their vessel and physical body would change, but some still lamented the loss.
âThese broad, rugged shoulders and muscular arms...? I canât let them go, Senior Brother... I have to stop my cultivation from today!
âRight...! How can I give up these solid thighs!
â...Please, donât move your chest while talking. I feel like Iâm going to throw up just looking at it.
They were clearly mad...
Unaware of his presence, they continued their murmurs, so Xin Xian cleared his throat loudly.
Ahem...! Ahem...!
Usually, they would notice by now, but there was no reaction at all.
In the end, Xin Xian had to push his way through the group of muscular men.
In the center of the murmurs was a child.
It was a young girl, trembling, either from the cold or the unfamiliar situation.
She was in the arms of one of the few female disciples among the second-generation, her eyes wide with fear, her ears red.
"Back off a bit...! Sheâs scared, isnât she!"
The female disciple, Xin Mi, shouted.
Only then did the men start to back away slowly.
Even with some distance, the child still had teary eyes.
While they wondered what they had done, it was understandable that a young girl would be scared seeing dozens of men with such intimidating builds.
The others just didnât realize it.
"Why is she scared...? We didnât do anything."
"Isnât it comforting to see these rock-hard arms?"
"Right, the feeling that they can protect anything... Sheâs just too young to understand."
How did it come to this?
Even when he was a third-generation disciple, it wasnât this bad.
Xin Xian sighed as he looked at his fellow disciples.
Then he slowly approached the girl, bending down to meet her gaze.
He remembered his mother saying that making eye contact made children feel more at ease.
"Hello. You must be Juling Hua. Iâm Xin Xian."
"...!"
For some reason, when he spoke, Juling Hua burrowed deeper into Xin Miâs arms.
Is this not right...?
"I... Iâm..."
"Ah...!"
Trying to show that he wasnât a bad person by raising his hand, Juling Hua shuddered.
Soon, tears began to stream down her large eyes.
"Ooohhh...!"
"Wow... Senior Brother made her cry."
"She made us back off and then cries... What a troublesome person."
"No, what did I do...!"
Moreover, it wasnât even Xin Xian who told them to back off.
Feeling quite wronged, but knowing it was meaningless in front of the childâs tears, he had to spend the day comforting her.
Of course, it was the female disciples like Xin Mi who took charge.
The next day, Xin Xian still couldnât easily approach Juling Hua.
Her eyes were puffy, as if she hadnât slept well.
Had she been crying all night?
Seeing this, Xin Xian was puzzled.
â...Why isnât Senior Sister here?â
Usually, if she were a direct disciple, the Sword Empress would personally guide her training, but for some reason, she didnât appear.
The head of the sect didnât say much about it either.
He only said to take good care of her.
The main issue was how to take care of her...
They tried to work together, but it wasnât easy.
One day, while watching Juling Huaâs training, a fellow disciple said:
The disciple, who had been restless, finally spoke to Xin Xian, looking very troubled.
"...Iâm afraid to touch her... Iâm worried she might break if I do."
"...What the hell?"
At first, it sounded like nonsense.
Juling Hua was small and frail, and it did seem like she might break if mishandled.
Moreover, she still cried when approached, making it difficult in many ways...
But still.
"Thatâs right! Like this! Good job!"
"Wow! She picked up the sword! Junior Sister picked up the sword!"
"Oh, what should we do! Maybe Junior Sister is a genius?"
The disciples seemed pleased.
After all, this was the first time a young girl had been accepted among the third-generation disciples, and the second-generation female disciples were all as tough as men.
Especially Xin Mi, who could probably even defeat Xin Xian, the eldest senior brother, in a fight.
Gender was meaningless to martial artists.
So, seeing such a delicate and refined young girl as a junior sister, it was understandable that they were all flustered.
But would this kind of treatment really help her training?
âWhen dealing with disciples, theyâre like devils. Whatâs going on here?â
While cursing inwardly, Xin Xian also found it difficult to handle Juling Hua.
At this rate, there would be no training at all.
No matter how late she joined, treating her like a pet would only obscure the essence.
So, Xin Xian thought of a way to have Juling Hua train among the third-generation disciples.
Instead of being among these older men, it would be better for her to train with the younger disciples.
The head of the sect had told him to handle it as he saw fit, so he decided to try something that might help.
Seeing Juling Hua, despite her fear, trying to do various things, he thought it might work.
Then he discovered the problem.
It was the fourth day since Juling Hua started training among the third-generation disciples.
Someone ran up to Xin Xian, who was training, and shouted:
"Senior Brother!"
"Whatâs the matter now?"
The disciple was one of those who thought it was a waste of time to watch Juling Hua train among the third-generation disciples.
Despite his constant complaints, he refused to give up, so Xin Xian had left him be.
The disciple, out of breath, said:
"J, Junior Sister Juling has fainted."
"What?"
There was an unexpected problem with Juling Hua.
Fortunately, she woke up after a short while, but she curled up in fear.
Xin Xian asked the third-generation disciple who was training with her what had happened.
The disciples only said they were wronged.
They claimed they hadnât done anything, and when they tried to teach her something, she cried and screamed, making it difficult.
One of the disciples accidentally touched Juling Hua, and she fainted.
The Huashan Sectâs medical experts said there was no physical problem, but it was a mental issue.
Xin Xian, who was gradually becoming famous as a skilled swordsman in the Central Plains, was weak in this area.
What was the problem?
What was making this small child so distressed?
Although she had joined suddenly, she was still a junior sister.
The head of the sect had said so, and he had decided to treat her as family.
"Senior Brother, what should we do...?"
"Since pampering her is harmful, letâs give it some time."
The doctor said that getting too close too soon might not be good.
They could only watch as time passed.
After some time, Xin Xian learned something about Juling Hua.
What she feared was not just the unfamiliar environment, but people, especially men.
The younger the person, the more she seemed to be afraid.
âIs it fear...?â
At first, he thought so, but as time passed and he observed Juling Hua more, he realized it wasnât a simple emotion.
Her gaze was filled with countless things.
From fear to resentment, from terror to despair, a mix of negative emotions could be felt.
Xin Xian could also sense a faint longing.
It wasnât a simple emotion that could be easily defined.
Given this, he couldnât leave her with the third-generation disciples, and since she seemed uncomfortable with men, he had to entrust her to other female disciples.
Time passed, and the seasons changed several times.
Juling Hua grew into a young girl, but the line was still clear.
She seemed to have improved, but it was still a struggle.
The good thing was that there were days when she seemed happy.
âProbably because sheâs going to see Senior Sister.â
He had heard that she lived on a mountain peak, but she climbed up whenever she had time, as if it wasnât tiring at all.
The other disciples were forbidden to climb up, so there were many rumors.
Most of them speculated that there was something wrong with the Sword Empressâs health.
But there was no point in spreading rumors, so he didnât bring it up.
In the midst of this, an incident occurred, and a search party had to be formed.
Some of the Plum Blossom Swordsmen who had gone out on missions had gone missing.
They searched urgently, but the clues were scarce given the time and distance.
While returning with a heavy heart, Lingfeng, who had been searching with them, suddenly felt something and left the group.
Lingfeng often acted on instinct, so Xin Xian sighed and followed to help.
This wasnât the first time.
Upon arriving, Xin Xian met Guyang Qian.
At first, he thought Guyang Qian had lost consciousness, and he was scared.
Fortunately, it wasnât the case, and the misunderstanding was quickly cleared up.
While talking to Guyang Qian, Xin Xian learned that he was related to Juling Hua.
When he heard that Guyang Qian had come to take Juling Hua back to the family estate, Xin Xian felt a bit relieved.
Seeing Juling Hua, who seemed somewhat anxious recently, he hoped she could take a break away from Huashan.
He believed the other disciples felt the same.
Xin Xian didnât know much about the family, but he knew it was the famous Sword Peak family.
The family head, Huoxie, was well-known.
A woman who could even teach the monstrous talent, Lingfeng, a lesson.
Xin Xian had never met her, but it was hard to believe the story.
It was hard to believe that someone could surpass Lingfeng, who had made plum blossoms bloom at the tip of his sword before reaching adulthood.
The more surprising situation was that Lingfeng had lost to Guyang Qian in a sudden duel.
â...Lingfeng... lost?â
Seeing Lingfeng vomiting on the ground and Guyang Qian watching, Xin Xian was shocked.
Before scolding Lingfeng for his rudeness, he was stunned by the fact that a younger boy had burned the plum blossoms.
â...The plum blossoms burned, what...â
Seeing the plum blossoms in the air being consumed by the flames from the boyâs body was a sight that left Xin Xian, who had dedicated his life to Huashan, speechless.
He was certain.
â...This child will be the future Divine Dragon.â
There was little known about Guyang Qian because he was young.
More precisely, he had never attended the Young Heroesâ Assembly.
Originally, Pang Wujin, known as the Divine Dragon, had stepped down to become the young head of the Pang family, so the title naturally went to Sword Peak.
This title would eventually pass to Lingfeng.
Xin Xian had thought so, but after seeing Guyang Qianâs martial prowess, he had to change his mind.
â...Thereâs nothing to say, heâs truly a monster.â
The precise and decisive movements, supported by powerful and fast internal energy, were hard to believe for someone his age.
The calmness he maintained while controlling the fierce flames was something hard to find in a young hero.
Guyang Qian already possessed the skills and instincts that could only be gained through extensive practice or real combat.
What else could this be if not talent?
â...What does the Guyang family do...?â
He had thought it was just a famous family from Shanxi, but to produce someone like Sword Peak and such a monster...
âScary...â
Gradually, his interest shifted from the sectâs heirloom that Guyang Qian had brought to Guyang Qian himself.
His strangely detached eyes, despite his sharp gaze, and his ability to interact with his attendants without showing any hierarchy, and his consistent practice despite the tiring journey, made Xin Xian think he had a good character.
âMaybe heâs a good older brother for Junior Sister Juling...â
Xin Xian had wondered if something had happened at the family estate that had affected Juling Huaâs state.
He remembered her crying in Xin Miâs arms at night, calling for her brother.
But after her last visit to the family estate a few years ago, such scenes had almost disappeared.
He thought that perhaps something had helped her regain her composure.
Of course, the distance between Juling Hua and the disciples hadnât decreased, but he hoped it had improved a little.
However, after Guyang Qian joined Huashan Sect, Xin Xian noticed a change in Juling Hua.
The complex emotions in her gaze, which she had held as a child, reappeared.
Resentment, fear, longing, and sadness.
Xin Xian finally realized that the source of these emotions was Guyang Qian.
âAm I wrong...?â
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Xin Xian thought that the boy, Guyang Qian, hadnât done anything to harm his junior sister.
He prided himself on his ability to judge people, so this was even more confusing.
While he still didnât think Guyang Qian was a bad person, the doubt had already arisen.
Xin Xian, being a martial artist of Huashan, didnât like hesitation.