Chapter 18: I’m Going to Play with He Yimo!

“Wait, I slept in your room last night?”

“Then where’s my room?”

“Hold on, does Dye Ink Peak even have a place for me to stay?”

He Yimo stopped in his tracks, inhaling sharply as he realized the oddity of waking up that morning.

No wonder the bedding smelled so nice…

The white-clad fairy carefully tucked away the Go manuals and walked over to lead He Yimo.

“If you don’t mind, you can set up a bedroll in the living room.”

With that one sentence, she answered two of He Yimo’s questions.

“Is it really appropriate for a man and a woman to live alone together on Dye Ink Peak?”

He Yimo’s gaze shifted as the image of her dance from last night resurfaced in his mind.

Mo Yuyan sighed, shaking her head with a hand on her sword.

“You really can’t handle a compliment.”

After spending time with He Yimo, Mo Yuyan had grown tired of treating every conversation with him as a minefield. She couldn’t tell if he was genuinely clueless or just pretending to be.

To deal with He Yimo, she realized she couldn’t use normal logic; otherwise, she’d end up being led astray by his bizarre thought process.

With that in mind, Mo Yuyan hugged her Yinshuang Sword to her chest. Her cold gaze carried an unspoken authority as she said, “Today, because of the Go manuals, I won’t argue with you. When you wake up, come find me to learn swordsmanship.”

“Oh.”

Not only was He Yimo bad at taking compliments, but he also didn’t take Mo Yuyan’s lectures seriously.

Instead of worrying about her opinion of him, he was more intrigued by her mention of learning swordsmanship.

“Wait, you’re teaching me swordsmanship?”

“Who else?”

“You… you’re teaching disciples? Isn’t that the Sect Master’s job?”

“Taking you as a disciple was just a verbal agreement between the Sect Master and the Grand Tutor’s elders. The Sect Master is busy managing the sect. Do you really think he has time to teach a useless person like you?”

When it came to her master, Mo Yuyan’s expression darkened. It seemed like all the disciples under the Sect Master’s lineage were left to fend for themselves.

Meanwhile, He Yimo’s expression turned strange.

In the original story, Mo Yuyan wasn’t a beginner’s guide. She was the powerful sword fairy who served as a combat powerhouse. She didn’t even bother teaching the protagonist with his innate sword saint physique. Her role was mostly to rescue disciples in peril or carry out missions to suppress evil forces.

“Senior Sister, you’re being too kind to me.”

He Yimo couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty as he blurted this out.

Mo Yuyan’s elegant face showed a flicker of confusion and suspicion.

She wanted to distance herself from him again and tell him not to overthink things.

But as she opened her mouth, she stopped herself. Instead of following He Yimo’s lead in conversation, she decided to change tactics.

After some thought, she turned her face away with a sigh:

“My swordsmanship doesn’t follow conventional paths.”

“If you lack talent and determination, don’t get your hopes up. Consider it a gesture of reciprocity for teaching me Go.”

Leaving those words behind, Mo Yuyan prepared to leave.

But before she could take a step, He Yimo called out:

“What if I manage to learn it?”

“……”

Mo Yuyan’s lips twitched slightly. She was genuinely exasperated by him.

It felt like He Yimo could talk endlessly about absurd topics once he got going.

“Less talk, more action.”

“If you’re sincere about learning and perform well, I won’t let you down as your Senior Sister.”

Mo Yuyan clearly wanted some peace and quiet.

After leaving those parting words, she turned and left, leaving He Yimo alone.

He shrugged. Although she had dismissed him again, his cheerful mood remained unaffected.

“I’ve made it to Dye Ink Peak and can learn swordsmanship from Senior Sister~”

“Who would’ve thought such good fortune exists in this world~”

He spread out his bedroll in the living room and hummed a tune loud enough for Mo Yuyan to hear as she flew off on her sword.

Once she was gone, the smile on He Yimo’s face vanished instantly.

He held up the jade pendant Mo Yuyan had given him, his cold eyes flashing with cunning—

“In two days, it’ll be time for the entry exams.”

“By now, the protagonist Chen Jianxin should’ve been brought up the mountain by Senior Brother Gu Wanglan.”

“Gu Wanglan… Wuji Sect’s senior sword brother and the main antagonist of Volume One in the original story…”

“He’s definitely more interested in Chen Jianxin than I am. Maybe I can use him to test whether this timeline’s protagonist can actually be killed.”

…

…

…

“Senior Brother.”

“I’ve only been learning swordsmanship from you for seven days. Can I really pass the entry exams?”

At the back of Wuji Peak, an ordinary-looking boy stood with a worried expression but continued practicing his stances diligently despite sweating profusely.

Behind him, leaning against a tree in the shade, was a tall man with gray hair.

“You’re a genius chosen by me, Gu Wanglan. Getting first place in the entry exams is your duty.”

Gu Wanglan lazily rested his face on his hand.

In the morning sunlight, his handsome yet cold features were half-illuminated and half-shadowed under the tree canopy.

“Chen Jianxin, there’s something I need to tell you in advance.”

“The first-place winner of the entry exams gets priority in choosing their master.”

“When you were registering yesterday, you must’ve heard about that woman named Mo Yuyan.”

Gu Wanglan spoke casually but with an undeniable authority in his tone.

Hearing this, Chen Jianxin quickly responded sincerely:

“Senior Brother, you’re my savior and my guide on the path of swordsmanship. Please rest assured! No matter what rank I achieve, I’ll definitely choose your lineage!”

“Heh~ What an obedient child.”

Gu Wanglan smiled faintly. His narrow eyes glinted with intrigue as he stared at the boy’s youthful face.

“It seems saving your life from that witch wasn’t in vain after all.”

…

…

…

“It’s already noon. How long are you planning to sleep?”

At Dye Ink Peak’s elegant residence, Mo Yuyan knocked on her sword sheath as she stood at the door, raising an eyebrow at the boy still lying on his bedroll in the living room.

He Yimo rubbed his eyes lazily:

“I’m still recovering; just sleeping a bit more…”

“Nonsense. I already asked Junior Sister Yun Jin to heal you last night.”

Whenever Mo Yuyan spoke to He Yimo, her delicate brows furrowed slightly. Her beautiful eyes held both disdain and helplessness.

Hearing Yun Jin’s name instantly perked He Yimo up.

This Yun Jin wasn’t just any random character.

In Fallen Immortal, she served as Wuji Sect’s beginner guide—a sweet junior sister who introduced players to many aspects of the sect with her cheerful smile.

“Junior Sister Yun Jin treated me?”

He Yimo sat up thoughtfully.

Seeing him awake, Mo Yuyan turned away to give him some privacy to tidy up his bedding.

“You should remember her. That night at the Grand Tutor’s residence, she was the one who called herself Jin’er.”

“Of course I remember. That night she almost got falsely accused by that senior brother.”

As they chatted casually, He Yimo recalled Zhong Yuhe’s behavior that night.

Mo Yuyan paused briefly but didn’t defend Zhong Yuhe. Instead, she continued discussing serious matters:

“Later, I inspected the Grand Tutor’s residence again and found traces of suspicious demon clan scents. So your claim about a mastermind wasn’t fabricated—but the real culprit definitely isn’t Junior Sister Yun Jin.”

Moments later, He Yimo had finished dressing and washing up. He followed Mo Yuyan into Dye Ink Peak’s courtyard.

“I told you I wasn’t lying.”

“If it really was the work of demons, there might be an infiltrator at the Grand Tutor’s residence.”

Discussing rumors about demons infiltrating the Grand Tutor’s residence made Mo Yuyan rest her chin on her hand thoughtfully.

She analyzed seriously while He Yimo responded politely: “That’s possible.”

There were so many things he could’ve said but didn’t know where to start.

In Fallen Immortal, demons and humans were mortal enemies. If demons were inherently guilty by association… then He Yimo himself was an infiltrator at the Grand Tutor’s residence—and so was his aunt Yuan Xinyao.

And more abstractly…

He Yimo was certain that Jiang Jinyue—the true culprit from that night—was currently hiding within Wuji Sect disguised as a junior sister. No one knew what schemes she might be plotting behind the scenes.

Instead of suspecting infiltrators at the Grand Tutor’s residence, Mo Yuyan should be questioning whether Wuji Sect had any moles.

After all, Jiang Jinyue was even more troublesome than Gu Wanglan.

Until he dealt with the protagonist’s inevitable death flags, He Yimo had no intention of provoking her. It was best to stay under the radar and let her torment the protagonist as she did in the original story.

Thirty years east of the river; thirty years west of it.

Once He Yimo survived his destined death events, he’d figure out how to properly deal with Jiang Jinyue—the troublesome fox.

…

…

…

“Achoo!”

At Wuji Sect’s back mountain, a flirtatious fox girl lounging on a tree branch sneezed unexpectedly.

She rubbed her delicate nose and stretched her jade feet while narrowing her enchanting eyes toward a white-haired fairy below.

“Hey old hag! Were you cursing me just now?”

Resting her chin on her hand impatiently interrogating tone

The white-haired fairy raised an eyebrow coldly: “Are all witches from your cult this self-absorbed?”

“Boring. You’re just as dull as your junior sister.”

Jiang Jinyue pouted dramatically before turning her gaze toward Dye Ink Peak in the distance returning focus

“So Mo Yuyan really brought that seventh son from Grand Tutor’s residence up Dye Ink Peak yesterday?”

“Hmm.” The white-haired fairy nodded silently leaning against tree trunk

“Heh… how curious.”

Recalling that handsome boy from that night Jiang Jinyue’s bored eyes lit up with intrigue

She pondered deeply clicking tongue lightly:

“I still can’t figure out… how did He Yimo convince Mo Yuyan not kill him that night?”

Lost thought gaze fell back white-haired fairy below

Jiang Jinyue leapt gracefully tree landing softly ground—

“Tomorrow marks your sect’s entry exams right?”

“Hmm.”

“Then remember what I said—have some disciples give Chen Jianxin trouble during exams preferably cripple him…”

Her lips curled faint smirk casually instructing

White-haired fairy frowned veins twitching muttering under breath: “The organization doesn’t need your advice.”

“Fine fine keep scowling like that no wonder nobody likes you… Anyway leave prophecy child me.” Jiang Jinyue waved dismissively uninterested arguing further

“And what about you?”

Seeing Jiang Jinyue about leave fairy called after curiously

“Me? Oh~ I’m going play with He Yimo!”