Undress...?
Why should she undress?
Meng Shuying instinctively followed her sister's instructions, her fingers moving to her clothes. However, the strange request made her hesitate, holding onto her collar without letting go. Even her ears turned a faint shade of red from embarrassment.
As she hesitated, Su Luowei took matters into her own hands, untying Meng Shuying's belt and pulling open her robe. With a quick tug, the outer garment fell away.
Along with the outer robe, a small wooden box dropped to the ground.
Su Luowei recognized this box. It was the same one Jiang Ye had distributed to the Qionghua Peak disciples when they first entered the Ten Directions Blessed Land, meant for storing the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb. She glanced at the box on the ground, intending to move it aside.
Meng Shuying quickly picked up the box, carefully brushed off the dust, and handed it to Su Luowei.
What's this?
Su Luowei accepted the box, puzzled.
"The Nine-Turn Spirit Herb is inside," Meng Shuying said calmly.
But Su Luowei, having spent so much time with her, could see right through her. Beneath her calm demeanor, she was hiding a little pride, hoping for some praise.
It was such a childish mindset.
Su Luowei suddenly felt like laughing.
She held the wooden box, a smile tugging at her lips, and then asked, "How did you come by the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb?"
Meng Shuying had gone to great lengths to obtain the herb. Now, faced with her sister's questioning, she hesitated between brushing it off and telling the truth. After a long moment, she finally confessed, "I took it from the Azure Dragon's lair."
Su Luowei was quick-witted and immediately understood.
"You knew the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb was in the dragon's lair?"
"I did."
Meng Shuying hadn't known the green-clad girl was the Azure Dragon at first. It was only after entering the spirit herb garden that Xuanfeng suddenly reminded her there was an Azure Dragon within the garden.
Meng Shuying had seen some pages of the Bestiary while at Yanmo Peak and knew a bit about the habits of the Azure Dragon. She guessed that the dragon would hide the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb in its lair.
But how could she enter the lair?
Meng Shuying remembered Jiang Ye's plan.
Jiang Ye thought she was being discreet, but Meng Shuying had already figured it out.
Traveling with Youwen and being led into a trap to lure the Azure Dragon—all of it was part of Meng Shuying's plan.
Even knowing the danger, Meng Shuying had not hesitated to proceed.
After all, it was the only way she could think of to enter the dragon's lair.
The only thing she hadn't expected was how powerful the Azure Dragon was. A casual sweep of its tail had left her seriously injured.
Meng Shuying had gone through all this trouble to get the spirit herb, so why was she suddenly giving it to Su Luowei?
Su Luowei didn't understand. She had never mentioned wanting the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb.
Faced with her sister's confusion, Meng Shuying found herself uncharacteristically shy. She bit her lip, hesitated, and finally blurted out, "Jiang Ye said the Master wanted the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb. I figured if the Master valued it, it must be very precious, so I thought I'd bring it back for you…"
Embarrassed, she turned her head away, avoiding Su Luowei's gaze. Her ears quietly reddened again.
Such sincere and heartfelt honesty made Su Luowei feel a warm glow inside.
Since the Nine-Turn Spirit Herb was part of her side quest, she had no reason to refuse. Taking the wooden box seriously, Su Luowei stored it in her storage pouch, already thinking about how to reward Meng Shuying. Once they returned to Qingxu Sect, she would see if she could find a suitable weapon for Meng Shuying.
Meng Shuying might seem mature and steady, but that was only on the surface. In a crisis, she could be more reckless than anyone.
Su Luowei knew she couldn't always keep an eye on her, so she thought it best to get her a good sword, at least to give her better odds in future challenges.
Remembering her original purpose, Su Luowei cleared her throat and softly said, "You still need to undress."
By now, Meng Shuying had taken off her outer robe and was dressed in a white undergarment. The undergarment was soaked through, nearly transparent, clinging to her body and revealing her delicate figure.
While they had been discussing serious matters earlier, it hadn't seemed awkward. But now, talking about clothes again, Su Luowei found herself unsure of where to look.
Meng Shuying stiffened, bowing her head and hesitating for a long time without moving.
With a slight tremor in her heart, Su Luowei reached out, gently hooking her finger under the waistband of Meng Shuying's undergarment and pulling it loose. The undergarment slipped away.
Underneath was a thin inner layer, barely covering Meng Shuying's rounded chest while leaving her white collarbones and shoulders exposed.
Meng Shuying hardly dared to breathe.
Fortunately, Su Luowei stopped there.
She rummaged through her storage pouch, pulled out a thin piece of fabric, and quickly stuffed it into Meng Shuying's hands. Then she turned away, setting up branches by the fire to dry their wet clothes, leaving only her back and the tips of her reddened ears visible.
"The one you're wearing is completely soaked. Put this on instead."
Meng Shuying unfolded what Su Luowei had handed her and blushed even more.
It was an undergarment.
The undergarment was embroidered with lily-of-the-valley flowers in blue thread. Under the firelight, the flowers seemed almost alive, as if they might leap from the fabric and into Meng Shuying's hands.
This…
Even Su Luowei felt a bit embarrassed to be giving someone her own undergarment.
She pressed her lips together, lightly coughing to dispel the awkwardness.
"It's new; I haven't worn it."
Six years ago, when Meng Shuying first came to Yanmo Peak to take care of her daily needs, Su Luowei had avoided awkwardness by keeping her undergarments in her storage pouch, leaving only her outer robes and underclothes in her room.
After Meng Shuying left, she kept the habit.
So now, her storage pouch had no proper robes… just a few undergarments.
There was a rustling sound behind her, and soon she heard a soft voice say, "I'm done."
The firewood crackled, sending out occasional sparks.
The thought of wearing her sister's undergarment left Meng Shuying so flustered that she was stiff with embarrassment. Luckily, her blood loss had left her so pale that her face didn't betray her feelings.
Su Luowei ignored the awkwardness between them, pulling out some herbs and crushing them. "This might sting a bit."
She lifted the hem of Meng Shuying's undergarment.
Earlier, when she had changed clothes, Meng Shuying had seen the wound on her abdomen. The wound left by the Azure Dragon's tail was still bleeding, and soaking in the water had turned it a ghastly white.
Realizing Su Luowei was treating her wound, Meng Shuying quickly reached out, trying to cover her abdomen to keep Su Luowei from seeing.
"What's there to hide? I've already noticed."
Su Luowei gave her a chiding look, displeased that Meng Shuying hadn't taken better care of herself.
Meng Shuying closed her eyes, then opened them again, trying to suppress her embarrassment as she lifted the hem of her undergarment, allowing her sister to apply the medicine.
Fortunately, the wound was on her lower abdomen. If it had been any higher, she would have had to remove her undergarment completely.
Her mind raced with wild thoughts, her shame deepening. When Su Luowei finally finished applying the medicine, she said, "Give me your hands."
Both of Meng Shuying's hands were covered in fine cuts, undoubtedly from trying to pick the spirit herb. Su Luowei carefully applied the crushed herbs to each of her ten fingers before asking, "Are you hurt anywhere else?"
Meng Shuying didn't dare mention that two of her ribs were broken, but somehow Su Luowei seemed to notice. She gave her a few more pills and instructed, "I'll set your ribs for now. You can use your spiritual energy to heal them, but when we get back to Yanmo Peak, make sure to have Uncle Master Yunfei take a look."
Meng Shuying obediently agreed.
But Su Luowei wasn't satisfied, and she warned, "You must take care of yourself. Don't slack off just because no one is watching."
Meng Shuying agreed again, her eyes soft and her demeanor obedient—completely different from how she was around others.
The clothes drying by the fire were almost ready. Su Luowei had Meng Shuying put on her underclothes and spread the now-dry outer robe on the ground for her to rest on.
Meng Shuying thought her sister was leaving and tugged at her sleeve. Su Luowei sighed and explained, "I'm just going to dry our clothes."
Only then did Meng Shuying reluctantly let go.
Unlike earlier, Su Luowei removed her own damp clothes, leaving only her undergarment as she sat by the fire to dry herself. Meng Shuying watched her without blinking.
At first, Su Luowei didn't think anything of it. After all, in this world, undergarments covered everything necessary, exposing only the shoulders and back. So she sat there naturally, feeling at ease.
But the intense gaze from behind made her feel uneasy. Unable to take it anymore, she turned and asked, "Aren't you going to sleep?"
Meng Shuying had lost a lot of blood, and even though she had taken the pills, she hadn't fully recovered.
Sleepiness was indeed creeping in, but Meng Shuying was afraid that all of this was just an illusion—a fleeting dream that would disappear once she fell asleep.
She wanted to see her sister for just a little longer, one more glance.
Su Luowei had let her hair down, and the dark strands cascaded like a waterfall, hiding much of her skin.
The parts that weren't covered—her neck, shoulders, and arms—seemed even more delicate against the backdrop of her dark hair.
With her clothes off, the slender, supple lines of her waist were fully exposed, and water droplets slid down her hair, trailing down her body and disappearing into the folds of her skirt.
The flickering firelight cast a soft, ambiguous glow over her.
Meng Shuying had always known that her sister was beautiful.
They had spent three years together, and every time they met again, she was struck by her sister's unintentional grace.
There were countless disciples in Qingxu Sect who admired her sister. Meng Shuying had often overheard them whispering about how lucky one would be to share a night with her.
Meng Shuying had never fully understood what they meant by those things. Having lost her mother early and received little guidance, she was, in many ways, still as innocent as a blank slate.
The closest she had ever come to understanding desire was on Wenxian Platform.
But even then, she had realized it was all an illusion meant to confuse her, a trick to weaken her resolve.
She had fought hard to maintain her clarity of mind and hadn't paid much attention to those things.
Now was no different.
Meng Shuying closed her eyes, refusing to let herself be drawn into the illusion. Her feelings for her sister were pure respect, free of any impure thoughts.
The underground cave was silent, save for the faint sound of water and the occasional crackle of the fire.
Meng Shuying soon fell into a deep sleep. Su Luowei, noticing her drying clothes were warm, gently placed her outer robe over Meng Shuying.
Meng Shuying was still weak and would need a few days to recover.
In the darkness of the cave, with no sense of time, Su Luowei began to feel drowsy.
But just then, she heard a soft whimper.