Why did it turn out like this?

  Even though I deliberately chose a different path down the mountain than the female protagonist, I still managed to collide with her in the airspace where she was practicing sword flight near the back mountain. This kind of luck is truly indescribable.

  In the original game, the female protagonist could choose different routes up the mountain, encountering different types of female leads.

  By the way, The Path to Immortality is a niche game with a locked female protagonist. All the romanceable characters are female, with no male options. The back mountain trail was designed so that pyers wouldn’t encounter any characters, and the triggered events were inconsequential, having no impact on the story progression.

  However, the worldline has already shifted, and Ying Wuyou, the viliness, has now met the female protagonist here.

  "Bang—"

  The two collided head-on. Shen Xibai's mediocre sword-flying skills couldn’t keep her steady, and she lost her footing, plummeting toward the ground. Below was a bottomless abyss, at least a thousand meters above the ground. A mortal body falling from such a height would undoubtedly die.

  At the critical moment, Ying Wuyou grabbed Shen Xibai with her right hand and held onto the sword with her left, suspending them both in midair.

  The edges of the flying sword weren’t sharpened, precisely for such emergencies.

  Suppressing the urge to vomit a mouthful of blood, she used all her strength to fling the trembling Shen Xibai upward, letting the sword’s surface support her body.

  Then, amidst the gasps of the onlookers, she swung herself back to the safety of the cliff edge in a suspended manner.

  If this were the original story, such a scene would have been impossible. In the original, Ying Wuyou would have just watched the spectacle with the other disciples, hoping for this junior sister to become even more humiliated.

  A few junior sisters who recognized Ying Wuyou hurried over to help, expressing their concern.

  Because Ying Wuyou had built good retionships and diligently avoided choices that would tarnish her reputation, she was highly regarded among the juniors, earning the praise of being "virtuous and talented."

  "Senior Sister Ying, are you alright?"

  "Senior Sister, do you want me to carry you back?"

  "I have medicine in my room..."

  They chattered noisily, creating a cmor.

  "I’m fi—"

  The word "fine" got stuck in her throat, but the blood she’d been holding back sprayed out first.

  The newly made white and silver-cloud-patterned cultivation robe was stained with a spreading crimson. The pungent smell of iron filled the air.

  The junior sisters panicked, pulling out their handkerchiefs to wipe the blood from Ying Wuyou’s face and helping her sit down in a nearby pavilion.

  The culprit, Shen Xibai, stood pale and helpless to the side, gncing at Ying Wuyou several times but immediately averting her gaze, as if afraid of being skinned alive.

  This pitiful appearance was exactly the same as in the original story.

  After a while, one of the junior sisters finally realized that Shen Xibai had been practicing sword flight but, cking skill, had collided with Senior Sister Ying. This collision was so severe that it caused the senior sister to vomit blood.

  "Why are you just standing there? Hurry up and apologize to Senior Sister Ying!"

  "Senior Sister... I..."

  The group pushed and shoved the newcomer, making Shen Xibai look even more pitiful than in the game’s cutscenes. It wasn’t the fake, white-lotus kind of pitifulness, but a genuinely broken, heart-wrenching kind.

  Someone gave a forceful shove, and Shen Xibai stumbled, kneeling at Ying Wuyou’s feet. Her brand-new outer disciple uniform was stained with dirt, and her pale face was clouded with distress.

  Not all of the onlookers cared about the senior sister’s condition; at least half of them just wanted to take the moral high ground and bully the newcomer, venting their pent-up negativity.

  Don’t ask, it’s just how the story goes.

  Bullying exists everywhere, even in the world of cultivation.

  "Senior Sister, it’s all my fault for being impulsive. I knew I couldn’t handle sword flight, yet I insisted on trying, causing you trouble... I don’t know how to seek your forgiveness. I only have a little silver on me. If you want it, please take it."

  Shen Xibai untied the pouch at her waist. It was a hand-embroidered item, though the thread and fabric had faded, it was still quite unique.

  According to the game’s lore, this pouch was a keepsake from her te mother. Taking it would spell doom. In the original story, Ying Wuyou had ruined the female protagonist’s beloved possession, which was witnessed by another female character, leaving a terrible impression and leading to constant conflicts.

  Damn the female protagonist! Was she trying to push her into a pit of fire?

  "That won’t be necessary, cough..."

  Ying Wuyou coughed a few times, then grabbed the wine gourd at her waist and took several gulps of strong liquor, letting the spicy, mellow fvor fill her mouth and steady her mind.

  Making a big deal out of this would bring no benefit. In the future, when Shen Xibai rose to fame, someone would surely dredge up this incident, exaggerating it to cim that Ying Wuyou had abused her authority as a senior sister to bully her.

  No one would care about the truth; they’d only believe what they heard and saw.

  In short, she mustn’t do anything that could be used against her.

  "Don’t give her a hard time. Everyone knows I’ve had a weak constitution since childhood. It’s only thanks to Master’s tireless efforts, gathering eighty-one rare treasures every month to brew medicinal baths, that I’ve survived to this day. This has nothing to do with the new junior sister."

  "But, Senior Sister..."

  "Junior Sister Li, thank you for your concern. There’s only one incense stick’s time left before the Sect Leader meets the new disciples at the mountain peak. You’ve always been favored by the Sect Leader and the elders. You mustn’t be te for such an important gathering."

  "How could I forget about that? Thank you for reminding me, Senior Sister!"

  ...

  The onlookers scattered, remembering they had a morning assembly to attend. They hurriedly mounted their flying swords, speeding through the clouds toward the summit of Grand Sentinel Peak.

  Ying Wuyou, on the other hand, took her time, using a simple spell to clean the blood and stains from her clothes.

  Shen Xibai didn’t know whether to leave or stay, standing there with her head bowed, waiting for her fate. The closer those white boots came, the faster her heart raced, and her breath seemed to freeze in that moment.

  She was nervous.

  Perhaps the senior sister just didn’t want to embarrass her in front of so many people.

  Behind closed doors, she might not be so understanding. Her half-sisters had pulled this trick often, acting all friendly and sisterly in front of servants and guests, only to reveal their true colors once the crowd was gone, joining forces with their maids to torment her.

  Having experienced the harshness of the world from a young age, she was always wary of outsiders. When Ying Wuyou raised her hand, Shen Xibai knew she was about to suffer again. She closed her eyes and clenched her teeth.

  The next second, something soft touched her cheek.

  It was a light blue handkerchief, embroidered with some crooked patterns that looked rather comical. Beside the patterns was the character "Ying," apparently Ying Wuyou’s own handiwork.

  Though the embroidery was poor, the fabric of the handkerchief was soft and comfortable.

  Ying Wuyou gently wiped Shen Xibai’s face, almost forgetting why she was here in the first pce.

  "Tears are only for those who truly care about you. Don’t show your vulnerability in front of those who want to ugh at you, they won’t pity you. Of course, I’m not one of those people, so don’t worry."

  "Thank you, Senior Sister..."

  Shen Xibai’s cheeks warmed, and a surge of warmth flowed toward her heart.