Chapter 65: Arrogance

"Stop being so arrogant with me." Senior Sister Tao Yu's beautiful eyes widened. "Who do you think you are?"

With his head pressed against the boulder and the young woman above him looking at him with a hint of madness in her eyes, Junior Brother Bai Ming felt a chill in his heart and was momentarily speechless.

"No rebuttal? It seems you really do think that way. It looks like I've truly been underestimated." Senior Sister Tao Yu sneered.

"No, Senior Sister, that's not what I think. I just wanted to help you." Junior Brother Bai Ming dared not remain silent any longer and quickly spoke up.

"You dare to talk back?" Senior Sister Tao Yu applied a bit more force with her foot.

What exactly do you want from me?

Feeling his face being wantonly trampled, Junior Brother Bai Ming was truly on the verge of madness and had no choice but to use his final resort.

"I was wrong, Senior Sister."

Hearing this somewhat breathless voice, Senior Sister Tao Yu slowly lifted her foot, allowing Junior Brother Bai Ming to get up.

She curled her lips. "Finally realized it was your fault, have you?"

"Tell me, what did you do wrong?" Senior Sister Tao Yu's expression was calm.

Junior Brother Bai Ming bowed his head, looking ready to accept punishment. "I was wrong to approach Senior Brother Wei, and I was wrong not to listen to Senior Sister."

Senior Sister Tao Yu nodded slightly. "Not bad. If you had listened to me earlier, wouldn't it have been better, Junior Brother?"

Her soft voice echoed in his ears, accompanied by the sound of the wind. Junior Brother Bai Ming lowered his head to look at the boulder covered in greenish-blue moss, his mood indescribable.

He had been saved by Senior Sister from Medicine Peak, and it was only through her care that he was able to stand again.

But why had their situation turned out like this?

It had actually forced him to bow his head and admit his fault.

He had already tried his best to avoid interfering with Senior Sister, being as careful as one could possibly be.

Yet, he still had to be treated this way. It was an utterly groundless accusation, and he was forced to accept the blame.

The gap in cultivation, combined with the debt of saving his life, made it difficult for him to resist, leaving him with no choice but to endure it in silence.

Senior Sister Tao Yu's eyes returned to calm. "It's good that you know you were wrong; just change it in the future. What I fear is that you wouldn't even know what you did wrong, Junior Brother."

"Senior Sister, I definitely won't make this mistake again," Junior Brother Bai Ming promised.

Senior Sister Tao Yu leaned forward, staring into Junior Brother Bai Ming's eyes. "However, if you make a mistake, you must be punished. You surely understand this principle, right?"

Junior Brother Bai Ming was momentarily at a loss for words. "I…"

"Since you are admitting your fault, you need to show the right attitude." Senior Sister Tao Yu spoke in a commanding tone, her voice brooking no argument. "First, kneel for me!"

Junior Brother Bai Ming pleaded, "Senior Sister, please don't."

"I wonder if you don't want those legs of yours, which have only just healed." Senior Sister Tao Yu raised an eyebrow.

Under the woman's playful gaze, Junior Brother Bai Ming got up from the boulder and moved inch by inch to the dirt ground below.

Even though he was extremely reluctant, he had no choice but to submit at this moment.

His knees bent slightly, his body as stiff as a rusted gear, moving closer to the ground bit by bit.

When his knees were still a foot away from the ground, he suddenly stood up.

"No, I beg you, Senior Sister. This is the only thing I cannot do. I will accept any other punishment, but not this. I really can't." Junior Brother Bai Ming's eyes flashed with pleading, containing a hint of pain.

For some reason, when his knees were still a foot from the ground, they began to tremble uncontrollably; his body had a strong resistance to this action.

It felt as if the moment he knelt, those memories would come flooding back to his heart all at once.

Senior Sister Tao Yu's expression was cold. "Junior Brother, do you really understand your current situation? Under these circumstances, you still want to defy me?"

Junior Brother Bai Ming's eyes were filled with bitterness. "Senior Sister, I really don't want to kneel. As for the reason, I cannot say."

Senior Sister Tao Yu curled her lips in disdain. "Forget it. Looking at you like this makes it seem like I'm the bad guy."

"Thank you, Senior Sister." Junior Brother Bai Ming breathed a sigh of relief.

"However, since you don't want to kneel, you can be stepped on under my feet instead." Senior Sister Tao Yu flashed a sly smile and leaped up from the boulder.

Before he could straighten his back, Junior Brother Bai Ming was trampled to the ground again, his face buried deep in the damp soil.

"How is it? If you want to change your mind, it's not too late." Senior Sister Tao Yu had a playful expression on her face.

Although this position might seem more humiliating than kneeling to an ordinary person—and even Junior Brother Bai Ming felt the same way deep down—

for some reason, he would rather perform such a wretched act than kneel.

"Senior Sister, I'm fine." Junior Brother Bai Ming managed to speak with difficulty, a bit of soil slipping into his mouth as he did so.

Senior Sister Tao Yu's expression was calm as she slowly lifted her foot, murmuring, "Clearly you didn't want to… how boring."

"However, you don't think this counts as the punishment, do you?" Senior Sister Tao Yu wore a meaningful smile.

"Ah." Junior Brother Bai Ming's body suddenly felt weak.

…

The night was dark, approaching dawn; it was the darkest moment of the day. Lacking the illumination of sunlight, it was difficult even to see the dirt beneath one's feet.

A handsome young man was shirtless, his upper body covered in unknown leaves. From a distance, it looked like a 'grass cloak'.

His head was covered with miscellaneous leaves, leaving only two small holes for his eyes.

Arriving at his cozy cottage, Junior Brother Bai Ming clutched his shirt and spat out a leaf from his mouth. He opened the door, his mind replaying the scene from just moments ago.

["Didn't you like wearing leaves? Then wear plenty for me!"]

["At the same time, as long as a single leaf falls from your body, then you'd better prepare yourself to kneel and accept punishment!"]

A cold wind blew, and Junior Brother Bai Ming shivered, not daring to linger outside any longer.

The geographical environment of Medicine Peak was truly unique; even the wind carried a trace of spiritual energy, to the extent that even he, a cultivator at the Second Level of Qi Refining, could feel the cold.

"That was truly perilous." Junior Brother Bai Ming felt a sense of relief, like someone who had survived a disaster.

Just now, there were several times when his spiritual energy was suddenly cut off, and the leaves on his body, no longer held by the spiritual energy, were about to fall.

Fortunately, he was quick with his mouth.

The familiar environment of the cottage allowed his mind to relax, and warmth gradually returned to his body.

Junior Brother Bai Ming pinched his fingers, using his spiritual energy to dispel the leaves from his body, and a large number of leaves fell off him onto the floor.

The leaves were emerald green, emitting a unique aura, and even looked somewhat familiar.

He casually picked one up and observed it closely. "Isn't this a Jade Light Leaf?"

After hesitating for a few breaths, he collected all the leaves scattered on the floor into his storage bag.

After all, they were precious medicinal herbs and shouldn't be wasted.

"It seems my attention was entirely on preventing the leaves from falling, and I didn't notice that these were actually Jade Light Leaves." Junior Brother Bai Ming shook his head, finding it somewhat amusing.

Thinking of his strange, clandestine relationship with Senior Sister, Junior Brother Bai Ming lowered his brows and sighed involuntarily.

He didn't know how long this twisted relationship would continue.

Not to mention, day after day of this, how was he supposed to face Senior Brother Wei during the day, and with what eyes should he look at Senior Sister Tao Yu?

Lying down on the soft mattress, Junior Brother Bai Ming was momentarily troubled.

He didn't know how much time had passed when some immature sunlight hit the window sill.

Junior Brother Bai Ming suddenly sat up. "If the two of them just became Dao Companions, wouldn't that be the end of it? Then I wouldn't have to suffer anymore."