There was a hint of relief in Lin Chaoyu's soft voice. Su Mei, who had keenly picked up on this relief, suddenly stiffened. The flushed, infatuated look on her face instantly collapsed.
"You bastard!" Su Mei shrieked, her face turning even redder than before.
She grabbed Lin Chaoyu by the collar, furiously pulling her in front of her. "What were you thinking just now? Did you secretly..."
"Junior sister, don't talk nonsense," Lin Chaoyu said calmly with a smile on her face, not even stopping Su Mei's insubordinate behavior, just looking at her peacefully.
Su Mei, being stared at, took a deep breath, her whole body puffing up.
"Call me Su Mei! Don't call me junior sister!" she said fiercely, a sharp blade in her hand, making one have no doubt that she would use the Peerless Sword in her hand to carve a new pattern on Lin Chaoyu in the next second.
But it was precisely because she saw this malicious expression on Su Mei's face that Lin Chaoyu's smile became even more unrestrained, to the point where a hint of provocation appeared on her usually indifferent face.
At this moment, Su Mei was on the verge of exploding. Her face was so red it looked like it was about to drip blood. The charm on her body had completely disappeared. It was only then that Su Mei suddenly realized that she was exactly half a head shorter than Lin Chaoyu.
Don't think she didn't know why Lin Chaoyu had suddenly said such a thing to her.
Fu Hua was the closest person to Lin Chaoyu. And now, the "strangeness" brought about by Fu Hua's change had given her a sense of crisis. The uncertainty of the major changes that were about to happen made her very uneasy.
But this bastard—this bastard had let go of this uneasiness after discovering that she was still the same as before, and was even glad that she hadn't changed...
Wait, why the hell did you suddenly feel at ease just because I haven't changed? Did the others change? What do you mean by specifically staring at me?
This person is a yandere!
Of course, it was because everyone's nature was out in the open. Everyone knew what they were like. Only Su Mei's true nature was a secret known only to the Seven Swords, a common secret among the seven of them.
Although Su Mei herself was the only one who didn't admit it.
Everything in the world seemed to be changing. And Lin Chaoyu, in her panic, had opened her treasured secret, and only felt at ease after discovering that she was still the same.
After using threats, glares, teeth grinding, demonstrations of power, and other methods, Su Mei finally threw her with a forceful push, creating distance between herself and Lin Chaoyu.
"Perhaps you're right, junior sister," Lin Chaoyu's voice was soft as she was pushed away, as if she were convincing herself. "In the face of an incomprehensible disaster, perhaps only by abandoning the indecision and warmth of a 'human' can one find a glimmer of hope.
"Master has just chosen the most difficult, and most necessary, path."
She paused, then her tone quietly changed, carrying the stability and steadfastness of the eldest martial sister. "But, Su Mei, understanding does not equal blind obedience, and admiration does not equal agreement."
Lin Chaoyu turned her head, but Su Mei was now facing her with the back of her head. Lin Chaoyu smiled and said, word by word, "I admit that master's current 'Dao' has its power and inevitability.
"But I believe that no matter how the form changes, no matter how difficult the path is, some things can never, and will never, be completely severed."
"For example?" Su Mei turned her head and raised an eyebrow, a hint of indignation in her voice.
"For example, the intention with which she stands here now, 'teaching' us," Lin Chaoyu's gaze became firm. "Even if the method is cruel, even if the process is painful, its root is still the desire to protect us, for us to 'survive'.
"Isn't that precisely the warmth of a 'human' that you said was abandoned?
"If it were, as you say, a completely pure 'Dao', an 'obsession' that transcends the mundane, why would she care if we lived or died? Wouldn't pursuing greater power for herself be more in line with the definition of 'pure'?"
"Tch," Su Mei showed no sign of being convinced. Instead, she was quite dismissive. "You're only good at spouting these grand principles."
Su Mei had a hundred excuses to refute Lin Chaoyu here until she was speechless, to completely collapse the "empty words" she had spoken. But even though Lin Chaoyu had handed her the words on a silver platter, Su Mei's choice was still to change the subject.
Because there was no need. Su Mei knew she couldn't convince Lin Chaoyu, and Lin Chaoyu also knew that Su Mei would never listen to her.
The communication between the two had already deviated from the essence of "communication." In fact, both of them were just outputting to the other on their own. The difference was that the other would remember, but would never obey.
...Lin Chaoyu is just a nagging old woman. What a good "eldest martial sister."
Su Mei thought with disdain, but did not refute.
And Lin Chaoyu continued to speak, her voice carrying a沉淀ed power. "What I fear is not that master has become stronger, nor that her methods are cruel.
"I fear that... we won't be able to keep up with her, won't be able to understand her choices, and eventually... even this last thread of connection born from 'protection' will be lost, and she will truly become a lone... 'god' or 'monster'."
"So," Lin Chaoyu took a deep breath and tightened her grip on her sword, "I will not, like you, admire this cold 'beauty'.
"I will use my own way to understand, to follow, even if I stumble, even if I can never reach her height.
"I want her to know that on this path, she is not alone. This bond of a 'human', perhaps clumsy, perhaps a burden, but it... exists."
Her gaze swept over Ma Feima, Cheng Lingshuang, and the others struggling to get up from the field, and finally returned to Su Mei. "And this is also the meaning of our existence as the Seven Swords of Taixu.
"Not to become cold tools, but to be 'people' who can understand her, support her, and even bring her back when she is lost."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Su Mei impatiently cleaned her ears, looking like a complete delinquent, not a bit of the mature woman she had been when she first returned.
The contrast was so great that one might even doubt if they were the same person.
Lin Chaoyu looked at Su Mei's impervious appearance, laughed helplessly, and when she got up again, she had returned to her original state.
"Since you've recovered, let's get back into position," Lin Chaoyu swung "Light Dust Willow," took a deep breath, and her fighting spirit surged again. "Our junior brothers and sisters have already gotten far ahead of us."
Su Mei glanced casually, then her gaze lingered on Ma Feima for a moment. "Indeed~ our junior brother has almost progressed to the point of replacing me as the second martial sister and becoming the second martial brother."
Although she was still talking smack, Su Mei had already assumed a fighting stance along with Lin Chaoyu.
She hated this person the most.
But she also liked this person the most...
Heh... just like her master, a slow-witted fool.