Chapter 68: If He Understands That, I’ll Jump Off This Cliff!

Jiang Jinyue was, fundamentally, someone who enjoyed chaos. But she was also, technically, a hired hand. She’d honestly wanted to goof off around Northfall Snow Mountain for a few more days, but damn, Mu Yanran was getting suspicious way too fast. To buy herself some time and keep Mu Yanran patient, Jiang Jinyue had basically just fed her a line, making vague promises. Now, if Jiang Jinyue didn’t actually do something productive soon, Mu Yanran was definitely going to snitch on her to the Organization.

Sigh. Thinking about it made Jiang Jinyue yawn, bored. She watched Chen Jianxin hunched over the compass, studying it intensely for ages without getting anywhere. `Gods, he’s dense,` she thought idly. `If it were that cunning bastard He Yimo, he’d have figured this out ages ago.` Oh, wait… He Yimo had already stolen the Nine-Colored Deer, hadn’t he? He probably didn’t even need to decode this stupid thing! Tch.

“Chen Jianxin,” Jiang Jinyue called out, interrupting his intense concentration. “Gimme that compass for a sec.”

“I think I just noticed something~♡” she continued, reciting her next ‘helpful hint’. “When you inject spiritual energy into it… those trigram symbols on top seem to rotate in different directions… Kinda neat, huh~?”

With Chen Jianxin making zero progress, Jiang Jinyue had no choice but to feed him clues. Ugh. She felt so tired. According to her original plan, Yun Jin should have been part of this investigation team. If Yun Jin were here now, she would definitely understand all these clues related to the Nine-Colored Divine Deer artifacts. Jiang Jinyue would only need to give a tiny hint, and Yun Jin would have an epiphany, connecting the dots all the way back to the Wuji Sect’s rear mountain. Then, Jiang Jinyue wouldn’t have had to use her own brain at all! Yun Jin would have eagerly dragged Chen Jianxin along to investigate the real truth behind Snow Village’s destruction.

But… Jiang Jinyue had waited around the messed-up hot spring camp all morning, and there’d been no sign of Yun Jin or He Yimo anywhere. Knowing Mu Yanran’s patience was limited, and fearing more suspicion if she slacked off further, Jiang Jinyue had reluctantly ditched her search for the missing pair and tagged along with Chen Jianxin’s group. Now, without Yun Jin—the knowledgeable ‘local’—to decipher things, Jiang Jinyue was stuck figuring out these clues herself. Groan.

“You’re right! It does activate when you put spiritual energy in!” Chen Jianxin exclaimed suddenly, his eyes widening. “And Senior Sister Jiang! Look! No matter how much energy I put in, or how the symbols twist… the main needle always points in the same direction!” He analyzed it excitedly for another minute, then declared triumphantly, “Hey! You think… maybe this is just a compass?!”

“A… compass?” Jiang Jinyue repeated, blinking slowly. “Hahaha! Junior Brother Chen, your… your imagination is truly… something else! Wow!” She pressed a hand to her forehead, forcing a polite, strained smile while mentally picturing him with donkey ears. `Gods, being stuck here with him is actual torture.` Honestly, she wasn’t a local expert either! She only knew the general story beats because of the Prophecy.

When it came to analyzing specific clues…? Jiang Jinyue was completely out of her depth. It was just like back at the Mountain God Temple—she didn’t know where any of the traps were, she’d just had to blunder through them.

But when she was solving puzzles with He Yimo… everything felt so easy! He was smart, always spotting the mechanisms first and warning her, and if they ran into trouble, He Yimo could solo the boss… Sigh. Jiang Jinyue had gotten used to being carried. Switching to puzzle-solving with Chen Jianxin was proving to be a stark, painful reminder of how hard doing things alone actually was.

“He Yimo… where the hell did you run off to…?” she muttered under her breath. “Seriously… even just lending me Yun Jin for a bit would be a huge help right now…” Feeling utterly drained, Jiang Jinyue slumped down by the shrine entrance, staring blankly into the distance, feeling completely hopeless.

Suddenly—Gasp! Jiang Jinyue’s eyes shot wide open. “Chen Jianxin! Wait! Hold on!” she exclaimed, scrambling to her feet. “I think… I think I actually found someone who can help us figure this thing out!”

Persistence paid off! After staring out from the shrine entrance for ages, Jiang Jinyue finally spotted a familiar pair—a boy and a girl—emerging near the ‘Heavenly Ladder’ path leading down from the peak. They both looked like they’d just woken up.

“Those two!” Jiang Jinyue fumed inwardly, planting her hands on her hips. “They definitely snuck off into the woods last night to set up their tent! I knew it!” Her lips pursed, a strange glint in her enchanting eyes. “Wonder what they were doing… sleeping clear through till noon! Hmph!”

Hearing her shout, Chen Jianxin and the other Wuji Sect disciples gathered around, curious.

“Look! It’s Young Master He! He’s finally here!”

“And Senior Sister Yun is with him! Isn’t her hometown right here on Northfall Snow Mountain? She must know some local legends about this place, right?”

“Definitely! Senior Sister Yun Jin’s family lives right at the foot of this mountain!”

A buzz of hope went through the previously discouraged group.

Chen Jianxin, however, still clutching the compass, just looked even more annoyed than before, the puzzle headache mixing with his festering resentment. “Tch. Figures this suspicious guy would follow us up here,” he muttered sourly. “What’s so great about He Yimo showing up? He doesn’t know anything! He’s just coasting by, monopolizing Senior Sister Yun’s knowledge…”

Thanks to last night’s events, combined with Jiang Jinyue’s subtle nudges, Chen Jianxin was now drowning in suspicion and jealousy towards He Yimo. He couldn’t understand why everyone trusted He Yimo so readily! His behavior last night was sketchy as hell, but nobody else seemed to care! They were all just blindly praising ‘Young Master He’s amazing skills’. Idiots!

So, earlier that morning, on the way up to the shrine, Chen Jianxin had confided his suspicions to Jiang Jinyue. He figured that since she was the only one willing to investigate with him, the only one patiently helping him analyze clues… surely she, being so smart, must have noticed some of He Yimo’s suspicious behavior too!

But after Chen Jianxin had poured out all his theories… Jiang Jinyue had just looked at him with wide, innocent eyes and asked, “Hmm? Are you just jealous of He Yimo because Senior Sister Mo won’t teach you swordsmanship~?”

THAT hit a nerve. Chen Jianxin had instantly flushed red, completely losing his composure. He’d wanted to lash out, but looking at Jiang Jinyue’s guileless expression… he figured she was just thinking the same naive things as everyone else. It wasn’t her fault.

After all… He Yimo was disturbingly good at making things look like coincidences. First, using the blizzard as an excuse to ‘lose’ Jiang Jinyue halfway up the mountain… then conveniently leaving Yun Jin alone at the hot spring while he vanished… and when he reappeared? His cultivation had mysteriously skyrocketed, his demeanor was weird, and he was chatting casually with the cultists during the fight like they were old buddies!

If Chen Jianxin had to guess? He Yimo was probably a Miyue Sect mole! He likely let those cultists onto the mountain himself! And during the time he ditched Yun Jin and Jiang Jinyue? He was probably feeding the cultists information, leading them right into the village for the slaughter… All of it just an elaborate act to gain everyone’s trust!

Thinking about it now, Chen Jianxin swallowed hard, feeling a heavy sense of lone responsibility settle over him. `Dammit… Am I really the only one who sees this?! Is everyone else really that blind?!`

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Jinyue asked, turning back towards him, her enchanting eyes—still faintly reflecting those crimson patterns—holding an unreadable expression.

Chen Jianxin, convinced he was the only sane one left, decided against sharing his conspiracy theories again. After being shot down multiple times, he knew Jiang Jinyue wouldn’t believe him anyway. She’d probably just mock him… And while Senior Sister Jiang was undeniably cute and pretty… her tongue was sharp. She had an uncanny knack for saying things with perfect innocence that instantly shattered his defenses!

“Nothing, ” he snapped curtly. “If you want to wait for He Yimo, wait by yourself.”

“I’m going back to investigate the shrine further!” With a cold hmph, Chen Jianxin turned, intending to distance himself from these ignorant fools.

He hadn’t taken two steps before Jiang Jinyue called out again, “Chen Jianxin!”

“Wh-What now?!” he grumbled, reluctantly turning back, though his heart gave a stupid little leap despite himself. He half-expected her to ask him to stay…

But the pink-haired girl just planted her hands on her hips again, looking slightly put out. “You can leave if you want, fine! But give me back that compass first!”

“The… compass?” Chen Jianxin froze, his brief hope plummeting. Oh. Right. Jiang Jinyue had found it first. Technically, it belonged to her.

“Yeah~!” Jiang Jinyue chirped, her expression shifting back to starry-eyed admiration—though a playful glint lingered deep in her eyes. “You clearly can’t figure out the symbols on it… Maybe Young Master He can~?” She deliberately emphasized He Yimo, pointedly not mentioning Yun Jin this time.

predictably, that single sentence poured gasoline on the fire of Chen Jianxin’s conspiracy-fueled resentment.

“Tch…” he scoffed under his breath. “Everyone trusts him like he’s some kind of cult messiah… Acting like he’s some omnipotent god who holds the key to eternal life… Pathetic…” He clicked his tongue silently. Remembering how easily Jiang Jinyue had dismantled him before, he restrained himself from voicing his sarcastic thoughts aloud this time. He simply marched back, thrust the compass into her hands without a word, and turned to leave again.

Just before walking away, though, he shot Jiang Jinyue a meaningful, cold smirk. “If He Yimo can understand that thing… I’ll jump off the summit right now!”

“Ah?! Y-You… Y-Y-You…” Jiang Jinyue gasped, genuinely taken aback, stammering slightly.

“Don’t try to talk me out of it!” Chen Jianxin declared haughtily, puffing out his chest. “I, Chen Jianxin, always keep my word! And I’m saying this based on solid reasoning!” He maintained his ‘lone sane man’ expression, full of profound certainty.

Hearing his dramatic declaration, however, Jiang Jinyue’s lips curved into a mischievous smile. “Ooooh~? You said it yourself now~♡” she teased playfully. “What if… what if He Yimo really does figure out the secret of this Nine-Colored Compass~? Hmmm~?”

“Ha!” Chen Jianxin scoffed, feeling his face heat up again under her playful, knowing gaze. Being toyed with like this repeatedly was starting to seriously bruise his ego. “‘What if’, sure! You keep saying that!” He waved a dismissive hand, radiating contempt.

“He Yimo grew up pampered in Luocheng! A young master who’s never had to lift a finger! He probably doesn’t even know where Northfall Snow Mountain is on a map!”

“If someone like him can casually understand some ancient artifact from a remote mountain village like this… then that just proves he’s even more suspicious! It proves my earlier theories were RIGHT!”