Chapter 4: Yue Ji
Jiang Li's old friend was named Yue Ji.
Yue was her surname, Ji her given name. She was the sole disciple of the most enigmatic sect in Xuantian Daoji Sect, the Heavenly Mechanism Sect, making her, in a sense, its saintess.
She was also one of the sect's two renowned fairies, known as the Warm Moon Fairy.
The Heavenly Mechanism Sect was shrouded in mystery, with only one heir per generation. Yue Ji's master had ascended to immortality after passing the sect's legacy to her. Though only twenty, Yue Ji was already its sect leader.
Heavenly Mechanism Mountain used to be quiet and desolate, but under Yue Ji's leadership, it buzzed with activity—something Jiang Li found jarring.
Yue Ji had a knack for business. She'd rallied a group of alchemists, array masters, and talisman crafters to found the Praying Moon Pavilion, a chamber of commerce famed for quality goods, fair prices, and attentive service. It met nearly seventy percent of the sect's disciples' needs.
She and Jiang Li had been friends for eight years.
He missed the old Yue Ji—back when she was young, naive, and easily fooled. Two candies could coax a kiss on his cheek. But now, grown and leading the Heavenly Mechanism Sect, she'd become sharp and cunning, no longer the gullible girl. She'd evolved from a sweet woman into a sly one.
With her transmission jade, he arranged to meet her at dusk. As instructed, he arrived at the sixth floor of Praying Moon Pavilion, drank an entire pot of tea, and waited. Yue Ji arrived half an hour late.
Jiang Li looked at the woman before him.
She wore neither a daoist robe nor a palace dress but a form-fitting, dark red, off-shoulder mermaid gown—a style from Jiang Li's memories, its design drawn by his own hand.
Yue Ji and Mu Bingning were the sect's two fairies for a reason. If Mu Bingning was the Ice Mountain Fairy, Yue Ji was the enchantress. Her slender yet curvaceous figure, paired with her flamboyant style, captivated countless male cultivators with every smile and glance.
Unlike Mu Bingning's aloofness, Yue Ji was approachable, chatting easily with anyone—yet always keeping a calculated distance. A classic move of a cunning woman, one Jiang Li understood well.
His gaze swept over her from head to toe. A delicate chain adorned her collarbone, and a silver anklet with a tiny bell jingled faintly as she moved.
Though her dress only bared her smooth shoulders, it hugged her figure perfectly, blending elegance with allure. Jiang Li lingered a moment, and her eyes met his boldly for several seconds before she smiled.
"Busy man like you—how'd you find time for me today?"
"Why don't you explain why you're half an hour late?" Jiang Li shot her a sidelong glance.
He was used to making others wait, not the other way around. If he didn't need a favor, he'd have left already.
"You need me. What's wrong with waiting a bit?" Yue Ji's tone was playful. She sat across from him, toying with her fingers, her voice casual.
"I need a sword. Got anything decent and cheap?"
Despite needing her help, his tone was far from polite, as if he were the boss. Yue Ji raised her head. "Casting Sword Mountain sent two recently for me to sell. One's Mandarin Rainbow, an Earth-tier spirit sword, eight thousand spirit stones—I can give you an eight-point-eight discount. The other's Blue Bird, also Earth-tier, same price. Want to see them?"
Jiang Li pointed to his face. "Do I look like I've got more than a hundred spirit stones?"
He'd always been broke.
Even when wooing sisters, he never splashed cash. If money could buy their affection, it'd be too dull.
True masters always aimed to get things for free.
"What kind of sword then?" Yue Ji tilted her head.
Jiang Li slapped twenty spirit stones on the table. "A normal one."
"Twenty stones'll get you a sixth-grade spirit sword at best. Sure about that?"
"Positive."
"How'd you fall so low?"
"Gave my last sword to a woman."
"Serves you right." Yue Ji's leg flicked under the table, kicking him lightly. Anticipating it, Jiang Li caught her ankle, slipped off her shoe, and brushed her foot's arch. Her body shivered, and though she tried to pull back, he held firm. Giving up, she let him toy with her delicate, pale foot.
It was her most sensitive spot.
Yue Ji's eyes locked onto his face, not angry but amused, her lips curving. "Beg me, and I'll sell you a Starfall Black Iron sword I got cheap—twenty stones, for our eight years of friendship."
"Sure, I'm begging," Jiang Li said, looking up innocently.
"That's not how you beg." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"How then?"
"Kneel, kiss my foot till I'm satisfied, and I'll give you the sword." Her tone stayed playful, but Jiang Li caught a hint of coldness.
Their relationship was complicated. Friends, yes, but Yue Ji harbored resentment toward him.
He knew it. She knew it. Neither acknowledged it.
"A man's knees are worth gold. Pick another way," Jiang Li said, sensing room to negotiate.
"Let me ride you around this room once, and the sword's yours."
"No deal." Jiang Li spread his hands helplessly. Yue Ji pulled her foot back. They locked eyes for a moment. She pocketed the twenty stones, sent a message through her jade, and said, "Someone'll bring a sixth-grade sword soon."
"Fine."
Yue Ji was a merchant—the shrewdest kind. She never took a loss. Jiang Li knew he'd gotten a deal; a sixth-grade sword usually cost twenty-five stones.
She cleaned the teapot, brewing a fresh batch with graceful movements. Jiang Li watched quietly, not interrupting.
"What's the sword for?" She poured herself a cup, leaving the pot on the table, clearly uninterested in serving him.
He wasn't thirsty anyway.
"Hidden Sword Peak's competition is in a month. No sword, no fight," he explained simply. Yue Ji hummed. "Why not trade some of your Praying Moon Pavilion shares for Blazing Fire Spirit Beads and get a better sword?"
"No way."
"You're too good to Jin. How much cultivation have you wasted for her?"
"Don't care." Jiang Li shook his head. "When we were brought to the sect, I promised to protect her forever. A man keeps his word."
That set her off. Yue Ji kicked his leg hard. "You said you'd marry me at twelve!"
"Kid talk doesn't count. If I wanted to marry you now, would you say yes?"
Stone-faced, Yue Ji grabbed her tea and splashed it in his face.
Jiang Li calmly wiped it off with a handkerchief, chuckling without a hint of anger.
Yue Ji's face still burned with fury, her lips curling into a cold smirk. "Scumbag!"
"Eh." Jiang Li shook his head. "I don't think I'm a scumbag."
"So?"
"My heart broke, and every piece fell for someone new."
She kicked him again, harder this time, making him wince. "That ruthless?"
"Four years ago, I warned you Mu Bingning was dull and arrogant—you'd get nothing good chasing her. Did you listen? No, you had to try, so devoted. And what'd she say? Tell me!"
"You're not worthy of being my partner," Jiang Li said helplessly.
It hadn't mattered to him, but everyone else thought it was his lingering pain.
"Serves you!" Yue Ji spat coldly.
"Alright, my bad." Jiang Li surrendered, knowing he was in the wrong.
They'd met at twelve, both outer sect prodigies, training and sparring together. He joined Hidden Sword Peak, she Heavenly Mechanism Sect.
Then…
He chased Mu Bingning, got brutally rejected a month later, and sparked Yue Ji's resentment.
Yue Ji and Mu Bingning were half-rivals. Yue Ji despised Mu Bingning's haughty air; Mu Bingning scorned Yue Ji's flashy charm. Constantly compared, they were at odds.
Your best friend chasing your nemesis? To Yue Ji, that was betrayal.
This mess was all Jiang Li's doing.
"I heard you've been cozy with several sisters this month. What kind of woman would it take to make you settle?" Yue Ji's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
He looked into her eyes, fingers interlaced, chin resting on his hands, thinking.
"Someone like me…"
He flashed a harmless yet infuriating grin.
"Best to just rot like this."
"Can't give up a whole forest for one tree, after all."