The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Lu Sangjiu turned in surprise, only to see Bai Heng stalking toward her with murder in his eyes.

Qin Yu, who was behind him, hurried to get in his way. ”Master, don’t be rash! This really isn’t Junior Sister Lu’s fault!”

But the enraged Bai Heng wouldn’t listen. With a single slap, he sent Qin Yu flying.

”Silence! Your junior sister is grievously injured, and yet you defend an outsider? You traitorous whelp!”

Qin Yu was knocked backward, crashing heavily to the ground.

His cheek swelled instantly and the corner of his mouth split open. He was a pathetic sight.

The injury itself may not have been severe, but for someone as proud as Qin Yu, being treated this way by his own master in front of so many people was unimaginably humiliating.

The atmosphere instantly froze. The crowd fell deathly silent.

Master Qian He’s good mood from moments ago vanished completely.

He had never liked Bai Heng. The man was hot-tempered, arrogant, conceited, and acted with reckless abandon.

He constantly put him, the Sect Leader, in awkward positions, not to mention forcing him to clean up his messes.

But Bai Heng’s strength was truly outstanding among his peers in the sect. Moreover, his master was a Supreme Elder of the Seven Emotions Sect, and his grandmaster was none other than the Tribulation Crossing Ancestor who watched over the sect. This meant that even Master Qian He, the Sect Leader, had to treat him with a degree of deference.

If it had been anyone else, Master Qian He would have already lost his temper and given them a stern reprimand.

But this was Bai Heng, so he had no choice but to swallow his anger.

”Junior Brother Bai, what’s gotten you so worked up?”

Bai Heng snorted. ”This Lu Sangjiu severely injured my disciple, Ayao. She still hasn’t woken up. How could I possibly be in a good mood?”

”Sect Leader, Senior Brother, I know you’ve always been on good terms with Senior Brother Duan, but you cannot let this slide!”

Master Qian He frowned and looked at Lu Sangjiu beside him. ”You injured Ye Zhiyao?”

Lu Sangjiu timidly shrank behind Master Qian He. ”Sect Leader, I...”

She was just about to put on an act of feigned innocence when Li Qiancheng stepped forward.

”Sect Leader, if I may. In the Secret Realm, Junior Sister Ye fell under the influence of a Demon Art and launched a lethal attack on my junior sister.”

”The situation was perilous for everyone. My junior sister had no choice but to knock her unconscious to get free.”

”Junior Brother Qin Yu can attest to this as well.”

With that, he turned to Qin Yu. ”Junior Brother Qin, please speak the truth.”

Qin Yu was still kneeling on the ground from Bai Heng’s earlier reprimand. Hearing this, a flicker of life returned to his numb expression.

He looked up at the Sect Leader, then at his master.

But Bai Heng simply stared at him, his face devoid of expression—no apology for the false accusation, no trace of concern.

A fresh wave of pain washed over Qin Yu’s heart. ’Why has everything suddenly changed?’

’It’s as if nothing is as I remember it. Everything before me feels terrifyingly strange.’

’Especially Master’s gaze... He’s threatening me, warning me not to speak up for Lu Sangjiu.’

’But this really isn’t Lu Sangjiu’s fault! Why is Master so determined to twist the truth and sling mud at her?’

Pressing his lips together tightly, Qin Yu finally spoke.

”Sect Leader, what Senior Brother Li said... is all true.”

The moment the words left his mouth, he felt Bai Heng’s gaze on him change completely.

It was sharp and bone-chillingly cold, not at all the way a master should look at his disciple.

In that instant, Qin Yu even felt that his master might want to kill him. ’He might actually want to kill me...’

’Of course, that’s probably just my imagination. Even though I went against his wishes, Master raised me. How could he possibly want to kill me over such a small thing?’

Regardless of the cataclysm raging in Qin Yu’s heart, the Sect Leader breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing his testimony.

’I knew it,’ he thought. ’Lu Sangjiu seems like a good child. How could she do something like that? It was all a misunderstanding.’

Seeing Lu Sangjiu looking so frightened she seemed on the verge of tears, he raised a hand and patted her shoulder reassuringly.

Then he turned to Bai Heng. ”Junior Brother Bai, you heard him. It was just a misunderstanding caused by the younger generation falling for a trick. Why raise such a fuss?”

”If Ye’s injuries are severe, I’ll send over some Elixir Pills and have a Medical Cultivator examine her.”

Lu Sangjiu could see that the killing intent in Bai Heng’s eyes hadn’t faded in the slightest. ’He really seems to want me dead,’ she thought.

’Perhaps he knew the real story all along,’ she mused. ’He struck Qin Yu to warn him against speaking out, planning to feign ignorance and use this as an excuse to cause trouble for me.’

But he hadn’t expected Qin Yu to be so disobedient today, spilling the truth even after being slapped.

His mood was clearly foul now. But in front of everyone, his justification had evaporated, and with the Sect Leader playing peacemaker, he couldn’t press the issue further, no matter how furious he was.

He ignored the Sect Leader, fixing Lu Sangjiu with a cold stare. ”You’d better pray nothing happens to Ayao.”

With that, he flicked his sleeve and turned to leave.

Qin Yu wanted to say something to Lu Sangjiu and the others, but as he opened his mouth, Bai Heng’s voice drifted back, though he never turned his head. ”Get your disgraceful ass back here now!”

A look of humiliation flashed across Qin Yu’s face. He pressed his lips together, ultimately saying nothing as he turned and walked away.

Seeing the state he was in, Li Qiancheng couldn’t help but mutter, ”I’m starting to feel a little sorry for him...”

’Before we entered the Secret Realm, he was an arrogant, insufferable jerk who looked down on everyone. How did he change so much in there?’

Once Bai Heng was gone, Lu Sangjiu quickly thanked the Sect Leader.

After a pause, she added nervously, ”Sect Leader, it seems Master Bai really has it in for me. Do you think he’ll...”

”Don’t be afraid,” Master Qian He said. ”You are a disciple of the Seven Emotions Sect. He wouldn’t dare do anything to you.”

That was what he said, but he couldn’t help wondering, ’What’s gotten into Bai Heng? Why is he so hostile to Lu Sangjiu, a disciple who’s only at the Foundation Establishment Stage?’

’He wouldn’t actually do something rash, would he?’

Still feeling uneasy, he added, ”Try to avoid him from now on. If he continues to give you trouble, you can come to me with any problem you can’t solve yourself.”

This was exactly what Lu Sangjiu had been waiting to hear. She immediately beamed, her smile sweet and her voice docile. ”Thank you, Sect Leader-Uncle!”

Master Qian He found this a little odd. ’She’s never called me ’Uncle’ before, has she? It’s always just been ’Sect Leader.’ Why the sudden familiarity?’

After reassuring Lu Sangjiu and the others, Master Qian He led everyone back to the Seven Emotions Sect’s encampment.

The disciples had risked life and limb in the Secret Realm with no time for proper rest. Now that they were out, none of the Major Sects were in a hurry to leave. Instead, they decided to stay an extra night to allow everyone a chance to recover.

Luo Linlang, who hadn’t run into them inside the Secret Realm, immediately started pestering them for details once they were back at camp.

After hearing the whole story, she gritted her teeth in anger. ”That Ye Zhiyao is putting on one hell of an act, isn’t she? According to you, Little Junior Sister, she just took one hit from a Spirit Beast and was then knocked out by Qin Yu. Does she really need to be unconscious for two or three days?”

”You were so badly hurt, Little Junior Sister, but you were mostly recovered after just a day and a night. Why is she being so melodramatic?”

”I bet she’s doing it on purpose to make her master feel sorry for her so he’ll come and make trouble for you, Little Junior Sister!”