4 - Dungeon Growth Log

The young man named Leaf Ze wore the white maple attire that marked him as an inner disciple of the Scarlet Maple Sect. His hair, as dark as black jade, was tied up with a red headband. With a serious expression on his face, he placed the Xuan paper on the pearwood table beside him, remaining silent. "Why are you here reflecting on your actions too?" Xia Ge teased him with a wink. "What did you do to get punished by the senior sister?" Veins popped up on Leaf Ze's forehead immediately. Xia Wu Yin had the nerve to ask?! How could he have the nerve to ask?! "Big brother, why aren't you saying anything? It's lonely copying scripts by yourself." Xia Ge was excited to have a companion for copying scripts. "You must have been very lonely sneaking into the back mountain in the middle of the night, dressed in dark clothes." Leaf Ze picked up a writing brush and said in a cold voice. Xia Ge asked, "How do you know?" "Our big young master Xia Wu Yin's antics are known to everyone. Caught peeping at the girls on Sword Peak bathing in the middle of the night, failed the Scarlet Maple entrance exam seven times, got bitten by a beast after stealing eggs to roast from Beast Peak, then spent three days unable to get out of bed, and once even got drunk and wanted to do a strip dance... when hasn't it been you?" Xia Ge tried to salvage some dignity from the incontrovertible facts, "Well... the seventh Scarlet Maple exam hasn't started yet..." Leaf Ze shot her a side-eye, "Do you think you’ll pass the seventh time?" Xia Ge fell silent. Trying to appear serious again, Xia Ge attempted to change the topic, saying exaggeratedly: "I really wasn't peeping at the girls bathing!" That time she just wanted to bathe herself, who would've thought the girls from Sword Peak would all be there! And she's also a girl, okay? What's the big deal about girls seeing each other? The weariness of disguising herself as a man was something no one could understand. Xia Ge heaved a great sigh. Leaf Ze snorted, clearly not interested in debating with her. Xia Ge, unbothered by his aloofness, naturally scooted closer to him, "You still haven't told me why you got sent here? You're not a regular here like I am." Leaf Ze's grip on his brush tightened, veins bulging on his forehead. He dared to ask again... Clenching his teeth, Leaf Ze retorted, "I saw you last night." Xia Ge blinked, confused. Growing impatient, Leaf Ze elaborated, “At the back mountain. I initially thought you were a thief and when I saw it was you... I feared for your safety and decided to follow, only to be caught by the disciples of Sword Peak—why were you there last night?” "You were caught by the disciples of Sword Peak?" Xia Ge's eyes widened, feigning indignation, "Are you okay? The dogs of Sword Peak love to bite indiscriminately!" In her heart, she realized that it was Leaf Ze who had stepped on a tree branch last night... "Stop diverting the topic—Senior Sister saved me, but she punished me to copy scriptures three hundred times... Why were you at the back mountain last night?" "What, three hundred times! I got three thousand times!" Xia Ge immediately burst into tears, "Why is Senior Sister so good to you?! She favors you just because you're the protagonist!" Leaf Ze was increasingly agitated by Xia Ge's effortless topic shifts, gritting his teeth, "What protagonist! Xia Wu Yin! When will you talk to me properly!" 【Ding! The Glazed Wood is getting closer...】 "..." Xia Ge straightened her expression abruptly, "I can talk properly right now—Brother Leaf, while copying scriptures, one should speak less, maintain a calm mind, and stay focused. Only then can one cultivate an exceptional brush technique..." With a crack, the bamboo brush in Leaf Ze's hand was crushed, "I asked you why—" "Leaf Ze, have you finished copying the three hundred times?" A cold and indifferent voice interrupted, freezing Leaf Ze's expression in an instant. The broken brush fell to the Xuan paper with a melancholy clunk, shrouding the room in oppressive silence. For a moment, Xia Ge felt a pang of sympathy for Leaf Ze’s stiff expression. Truly. But she quickly assumed a serious facade, breaking the deep silence without a shred of shame: "Good morning, Senior Sister. I have been diligently copying the scriptures." At the threshold of the Reflection Pavilion, a young woman wearing a white robe embroidered with delicate red maples on the sleeves stood aloofly. Her red belt highlighted her slender waist, and her black hair, akin to ink jade, was tied loosely with a red ribbon at the ends. Her posture was straight, and her eyebrows and eyes were like a painting. She was the leading disciple of Scarlet Maple, Gu Pei Jiu. Although briefly sympathetic, Xia Ge's inner thoughts were quickly filled with glee as she glanced at the sweating Leaf Ze beside her. She felt elated, almost laughing out loud. Hahaha, Leaf Ze, I've caught you today! Serves you right for showing off! "It's quite late already." Gu Pei Jiu's voice was as refreshing as morning spring water, "Leaf Ze, what were you just doing?" Leaf Ze grit out each word through clenched teeth, "Reporting to Senior Sister, I was... preparing to copy the scriptures." "Oh?" Gu Pei Jiu glanced at the broken bamboo brush in Leaf Ze's hand and the empty Xuan paper, frowning slightly, "Why did you break the brush?" Young and impetuous, with anger surging, emotions flaring, one misjudged move, and it snapped. Xia Ge, delighted at Leaf Ze's misfortune, imagined a string of reasons while laughing inwardly—Kid, remember, impulsiveness is a devil. Yet, Xia Ge’s joy was short-lived. "Why are you laughing?" Gu Pei Jiu turned her gaze to Xia Ge, her black eyes calm and unwavering. Xia Ge was taken aback, "Me? I wasn't laughing?" She had been inwardly gloating, but her face had remained stern and serious! Her task of upgrading the system required the crucial Glazed Wood, which was with Senior Sister. If it got spoiled because she laughed in Leaf Ze's face, that would be such an injustice! How did Senior Sister know she was laughing inside... Though she was a bit happy... Was it that obvious? Fortunately, Gu Pei Jiu didn't press further, only glancing back at Leaf Ze. Seeing the young man’s red face and silence, she commented, "Youth is easily angered, lacking steady temperament, more time is needed for cultivation." Silently she thought, "This child harbors hidden anger yet remains tolerant, with a determined gaze filled with sharpness, enduring while ensuring strategic retreat. With some steadying time, he can pursue the path of the sword." "Yes." Leaf Ze bowed his head in acknowledgment. "But you still have to be punished." Gu Pei Jiu added, "A month's stipend." A month’s stipend?! Of Leaf Ze’s?! Xia Ge, whose delight was cut short, panicked. "Senior Sister!" Her voice rang with an unheard-of righteousness. Gu Pei Jiu frowned, looking at Xia Ge, "What is it?" "Depriving someone of their stipend is as grievous as taking their head! Senior Sister, you... you can't... can't punish so lightly, too leniently..." Xia Ge's voice trailed into a mumble under Gu Pei Jiu's sharp gaze, "…you can punish me but..." Punish Leaf Ze? Where would she scrounge meals from?! Though Leaf Ze was the protagonist of a harem novel, always troublesome and occasionally obnoxious, making her want to trip him up, he was her brother in arms from the beggar gang for three or four years, and that was a fact. Sometimes, people matter more than terms like "protagonist of a harem novel." Also... She wouldn’t have the luxury of occasionally having a drink or some peanuts without mooching off Leaf Ze’s inner disciple stipend. Her few coppers had been fully fined due to her incident at the back mountain. Without relying on Leaf Ze, she might really starve to death. Recalling the overwhelming hunger she'd felt before, Xia Ge felt a shiver of fear. Fear brings courage. Thinking that Leaf Ze being fined equaled starvation on the streets, a surge of unparalleled bravery filled Xia Ge, "Anyway, even if you make me copy the scripture thirty thousand times, you can't dock a single copper from him!!" Leaf Ze: "..." Gu Pei Jiu: "..." Gu Pei Jiu seriously scrutinized this young man, carrying three thousand copies of the scriptures yet still righteously indignant, showing no fear at the thought of copying thirty thousand times. Truly admirable courage. Raising her chin, the young woman in the white maple attire spoke with a touch of iciness in her black eyes, "Oh? If that's the case, then you shall copy it thirty thousand times." Xia Ge choked—yet she had to brace herself and accept. Pride was nothing; money was everything! "And the stipend..." Gu Pei Jiu stated, "As you wish, I will not dock his stipend." Xia Ge sighed in vague relief but then heard Gu Pei Jiu's cold voice, "Leaf Ze, your three hundred copies, Xia Wu Yin will copy them for you. You may leave." Leaf Ze: "..." Xia Ge: "..." Wait a moment, is there some misunderstanding here?!! Why should she copy homework for the overpowered harem protagonist?!! Xia Ge watched in disbelief as Leaf Ze packed up his Xuan paper and left with a stern, refined expression. ...Wait, just leave? No acknowledgment? Hold on... ...I’m stuck copying your homework, and you leave with a stern face?! Is there no justice?! Leaf Ze left, while Gu Pei Jiu remained. Restraining the urge to flip the table, Xia Ge forced a polite veneer over her face, "Senior Sister, do you still have..." anything else to say, if yes, hurry up? If no, scram, I’m about to explode! Gu Pei Jiu quietly looked at her for a moment longer. “Just now…” Xia Ge struggled to keep her smile, suppressing the primal urge to flip the table, "Hmm?" "Just now, he, was real." Gu Pei Jiu's voice was indifferent. "Now, I, am fake." 【Ding! Congratulations on acquiring Gu Pei Jiu's "Hypocritical Outer Disciple" impression! This impression will make your credibility drop by 30% with this person. Please take note of this change.】 Xia Ge: ... Wait, wait, what just happened?! What did Senior Sister just say? She, Senior Sister? Fake? How is she fake? And what on earth is this "Hypocritical Outer Disciple" impression?! Also, how does the system even have this feature? Gu Pei Jiu turned to leave, leaving behind a thoroughly confused Xia Ge. "Hold on, Senior S..." Gu Pei Jiu halted, her voice cold as she interrupted Xia Ge, "Righteous at heart, but disrespectful to superiors, youthful arrogance." "A lone, foolish warrior still needs tempering." With that, she turned away with a final remark, "Thirty thousand times, not a single one less." Xia Ge: "..."