Heaven’s Shadow

Lu Chen lay on the ground, adjusting his position to lie flat and gazing at the sky. The sky was a deep blue, as clear as if it were transparent.

Then, he gave a slight smile.

Nearby, Su Mo, who had been kicked away by Su Qingjun and had rolled down the hard stone wall, appeared to have lost his senses instantly. His eyes were rolled back, and his hands flailed wildly as if trying to grasp at some elusive lifeline. He mumbled incoherently, with no one able to understand his ramblings.

On the other side, Su Qian and Su Wen were completely stunned, standing frozen and wide-eyed, staring at Su Qingjun as if they had witnessed the most terrifying and unbelievable sight of their lives.

After a long moment, Su Qian stuttered, “Sister Jun, you, you… why did you… kick Su Mo?”

Su Qingjun turned to look at Su Qian, her gaze so icy it felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him, instantly chilling him to the bone. He swallowed his words and broke out in cold sweat.

Su Qingjun walked up to Su Qian and Su Wen, standing before them with an expressionless face. She asked softly, “Do you have any objections?”

Her five words were spoken slowly, each one clear, but for some reason, Su Qian felt a chill run down his spine under Su Qingjun’s cold stare. He instinctively shook his head.

At that moment, Su Wen, who perhaps had not been directly confronted by Su Qingjun’s strange gaze, still had a trace of courage left and muttered, “Sister Jun, you shouldn’t… you can’t hit us…”

A crisp sound rang out as Su Qingjun’s fair, beautiful hand suddenly swung up and slapped Su Wen’s face.

Su Wen was sent flying backward, clutching his face and wailing loudly as he hit the ground, rolling several times.

Lu Chen, still lying on the ground, noticed another strange detail. After Su Qingjun delivered that satisfying slap, she clenched her fists as her hand came back, biting her red lips and breathing heavily, even gasping a few times.

Her expression seemed to show a sense of relaxation after a moment of tension. Taking a deep breath, Su Qingjun looked at Su Qian again and asked softly, “Can I hit you?”

Su Qian, pale-faced, immediately dropped to his knees and stammered, “Yes, yes! Sister Jun, please spare me…”

—

Su Qian and Su Wen, who were both terrified and had just gotten up from the ground, dragged the unconscious Su Mo, who was frothing at the mouth, clumsily up the mountain path.

After watching them disappear in the distance, Su Qingjun remained silent for a while. Her expression shifted through various emotions, and her chest heaved as if struggling to calm the intense emotions inside her.

After some time, she silently turned around and walked over to Lu Chen, who was still lying on the ground. She glanced at him and asked, “Are you alright?”

“I’m not alright. I got kicked in the stomach. Look, there’s a footprint on my clothes!” Lu Chen pointed to the footprint left by Su Mo and said.

Seeing his tone and expression, Su Qingjun’s worry finally dissipated. She couldn’t help but smile but then felt it was somewhat inappropriate to look down on Lu Chen from above. So she simply crouched down next to him.

Resting her hands on her knees and propping up her chin, Su Qingjun wore a somewhat strange smile, hesitating as if wanting to ask something, and fell into a daze.

“Hey.” After a moment, she suddenly called out to Lu Chen.

“What is it?” Lu Chen, lying on the ground, glanced at the beautiful woman squatting beside him.

Su Qingjun smiled before she spoke, her cheeks turning slightly red with a hint of mischievous joy. She said, “Um… did I look very impressive just now?”

Lu Chen nodded earnestly and replied, “Extremely impressive!”

Su Qingjun sighed, looking at one of her hands and said, “That feeling… how should I put it, it was so strange.”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

“Even though there was a voice in my heart telling me not to hit, that I shouldn’t, but after kicking and hitting, I suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of relief…”

Lu Chen smiled at her and said, “Is it as if all the things weighing on your heart suddenly disappeared?”

Su Qingjun took a deep breath and nodded, “Yes, it felt like my whole body was much lighter.” After a pause, she lightly waved her hand in the air, her face showing a hint of longing, and murmured to herself, “I really wish… I could hit again.”

### Chapter 162: Farewell at Sunset

“Hey!” Lu Chen was startled and sat up, “You can vent your frustrations, but that’s a bit over the top.”

Su Qingjun’s lips curled into a smile as she laughed, “Just saying. I really didn’t expect that your method would actually, actually…” She was momentarily at a loss for words, seeming unable to find a particularly good way to describe it.

Lu Chen waved his hand and said, “Forget it. As long as it’s effective, that’s all that matters.”

Su Qingjun, hugging her knees, looked like a young woman who had returned to her childhood. She giggled, her face glowing with a beautiful, unusual joy.

“Will there be trouble later?” Lu Chen stood up from the ground and dusted himself off.

Su Qingjun thought for a moment and said, “There will probably be some. They’ve all been pampered since childhood, so they’ll definitely go back and complain.”

Lu Chen asked, “Have you thought about how to deal with it?”

Su Qingjun shrugged playfully, looking somewhat lazy and indifferent. “Who cares? We’ll deal with it when it happens.”

“Oh…”

—

It seemed that the news of Su Qingjun’s unexpected outburst, where she had fiercely beaten up the three Su brothers, had spread quickly. In the following days, the Flying Wild Goose Terrace was unusually quiet, and no one came to bother them anymore.

Lu Chen, in his frustration, again repaired the dilapidated roof of his grass hut and then went to the forest behind the Flying Wild Goose Terrace to chop some wood and make a table. This time, he simply placed the table outside the door.

When Su Qingjun saw this, she was surprised and asked why.

Lu Chen said seriously, “From now on, if you want to overturn the table, just go ahead. After all, you’re at the Golden Core stage, so you’re the biggest. But please don’t destroy the house again. It’s just a shabby hut, and it can’t take much more damage!”

Su Qingjun’s face turned red with embarrassment, looking like a flower in the wind—bright and delicately beautiful. She was very annoyed and complained to Lu Chen for a long time, refusing to agree. She was upset that the table was ugly, poorly made, and unsightly, and feared that if it was left outside, someone might see it and let the matter leak out. What face would she have left on Kunlun Mountain?

Coincidentally, a hawk fruit had ripened, and when they went to the spiritual field, Su Qingjun ate it directly, her cheeks puffed out. She then grabbed Lu Chen and wouldn’t let him leave, angrily telling him to wait.

Lu Chen had no choice but to wait. He sat on the ridge of the field, enjoying the scenery. As the wind blew over the cliff, he suddenly noticed that the rocky cliffs had seemingly blossomed with beautiful wildflowers overnight.

Later, after Su Qingjun catalyzed the medicinal power, she used both threats and persuasion, saying all sorts of things until Lu Chen, unable to resist, agreed that she couldn’t casually destroy his house in the future.

Su Qingjun waved her hands repeatedly, smiling, saying she wouldn’t destroy it anymore. Lu Chen looked at her with some doubt and asked if she would keep her word. Su Qingjun assured him she definitely would and told him to believe her.

Lu Chen, skeptical, shook his head and sighed as he moved the very ugly and poorly made table back into the hut.

Su Qingjun immediately became happy, strolling around the Flying Wild Goose Terrace with a great mood. The fiery red beautiful shawl on her shoulders shone brightly, accentuating her flower-like beauty. As the sun set and they watched the sunset, she jokingly said to Lu Chen, “If I had known it would be so peaceful now, I should have beaten them earlier.”

Lu Chen naturally chose not to comment and merely smiled in silence.

These pleasant and carefree days passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, more than twenty days had gone by, and the hawk fruits on the Flying Wild Goose Terrace were finished. Su Qingjun’s cultivation at the Golden Core stage had finally eliminated all hidden dangers and flaws, becoming completely stable.

Then, it was time for Lu Chen to leave.

On that day, he picked the last ripe hawk fruit and handed it to Su Qingjun, who was standing by. He smiled and congratulated her before turning back to pack his things in the hut.

Su Qingjun, holding the last fruit, seemed a bit emotional. She quietly stared at the fruit in her hand and slowly ate it after a while.

As they descended the mountain, Su Qingjun came to see him off. It was the moment when the sun was setting, casting golden light over the boundless sea of clouds and stretching their shadows long.

They smiled at each other and waved goodbye.

Just as he was about to leave, Su Qingjun called out to him, “If you ever need my help with anything, you can come find me.”

Lu Chen laughed, “Really?”

Su Qingjun smiled slightly and said, “Yes, I still owe you a lot of favors.”

Lu Chen laughed heartily, nodded at her, and then strode down the mountain path. As he was about to turn the corner, he looked back and saw Su Qingjun’s beautiful figure still standing on the mountain path under the sunset.

Seeing him look back, she raised an arm and waved at him, smiling.

At that moment, the sunset painted the sky with brilliant, fiery colors.