I Ruined the Long Ao Tian Script-Chapter 136

The Beauty of Symmetry

Lu Beichen seemed utterly dazed, lying on the ground for a long moment without getting up.

Of course, it might also be because Xu Shulou hadn’t controlled her strength well—after all, he was still far from reaching the Tribulation Transcendence stage at this point.

"Senior Brother Lu!" The group rushed to his side, and Bai Roushuang gasped, about to throw herself toward him.

"Stop." Xu Shulou called her to a halt.

"Se-Senior Sister…" Bai Roushuang stiffened, regret flashing in her eyes. It seemed she had pushed too hard today. But… seeing how Senior Brother Lu had always acted so domineeringly in front of Xu Shulou, she’d assumed he was far stronger than her. Who could’ve guessed he wouldn’t even last a single hit?

If you couldn’t even fight back, why act so arrogantly all the time? You gave me the wrong impression! Bai Roushuang bit her lip, terrified that Xu Shulou’s next kick would land on her.

"Who taught you to snatch things using such methods?" At this point, no irreversible mistakes had yet been made, so Xu Shulou couldn’t help but lecture Bai Roushuang a little more.

"I…" Bai Roushuang stammered, unable to respond.

"I am your senior sister. From now on, if you want something, just ask me directly," Xu Shulou said. "If a treasure suits you, I’ll give it to you. But if you ever try using Lu Beichen to pressure me again, I’ll hang both of you up and beat you senseless. Understood?"

"U-Understood." Bai Roushuang trembled.

Xu ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​‍Shulou then walked over to Lu Beichen. Having already killed him twice, she could now face him with perfect calm.

Lu Beichen was just getting up when she kicked the back of his knee, sending him crashing back down with a loud thud.

"Am I Bai Roushuang’s senior sister, or are you?" Xu Shulou scolded. "When a junior sister asks her senior sister for a treasure, why are you butting in? Making it seem like we’re fighting over you—does that amuse you?"

"Shulou, how can you misunderstand my intentions like this? I only—"

Before he could finish, Xu Shulou struck him across the left cheek with her sword sheath, infused with spiritual energy. Lu Beichen’s face immediately swelled.

The onlookers gasped. Some even smirked at Lu Beichen. Ever since entering the secret realm, this guy had been strutting around, especially after noticing how one male cultivator was awestruck by Xu Shulou’s beauty. He’d deliberately made all sorts of demands of her in front of him, as if showing off.

Did it feel good, watching the moon others admired become dirt beneath your feet?

Some had already thought he’d gone too far, but Xu Shulou had repeatedly tolerated it, leaving everyone to sigh at the dynamic. Now, though? They suppressed smirks. Serves you right. She’d already put up with enough—did you really have to push her to the breaking point?

Lu Beichen lost two front teeth, too shocked and furious to speak.

But Xu Shulou studied him for a moment, then struck his right cheek with the sheath as well.

Lu Beichen cried out in pain, clutching his face as he glared at her with a mix of rage and indignation—and even a hint of grievance. He hadn’t even said anything! Why hit him again?!

"My apologies," Xu Shulou said lightly. "It looked asymmetrical before."

"……"

The others stifled laughter. A quick glance confirmed Lu Beichen’s face was now evenly swollen—much more pleasing to the eye.

Bai Roushuang stood to the side, brows furrowed in a delicate, sorrowful expression.

Xu Shulou glanced at her. "Does it hurt your heart to see him like this?"

Bai Roushuang didn’t dare shake her head—afraid Lu Beichen would resent her later—nor nod, fearing Xu Shulou’s immediate displeasure.

Torn, she looked on the verge of tears.

Xu Shulou didn’t press her further. She turned back to Lu Beichen. "Get up."

Lu Beichen shot her a furious glare. "You’ve gone too far!"

Xu Shulou replied coolly, "If you’re unhappy, we can settle this in a fight."

"……" What fight? He hadn’t just stood there willingly for those two strikes—he’d tried to dodge but failed. As a disciple of a prestigious sect, Lu Beichen knew the gap between them. Why humiliate himself further?

But the others shook their heads inwardly. In their eyes, putting up a fight—even if he lost—would’ve been better than lacking the courage to even try. The legendary heroism of Lingxiao Sect’s top disciple seemed… exaggerated. Some who’d hoped to befriend him now hesitated.

"Senior Brother Lu, what should we do next…?"

This was a temporary team formed after entering the secret realm, originally led by Lu Beichen. Now, someone tentatively asked for instructions.

Clutching his face, Lu Beichen glanced stiffly at Xu Shulou. "Xu Shulou, do you have any suggestions?"

Xu Shulou smiled. "So Senior Brother Lu can be reasonable when necessary."

"Reasonable" was the word Lu Beichen had once used to describe her. The sarcasm wasn’t lost on him. Gritting his teeth, he swore to himself: Even if she grovels later, I’ll never forgive her!

"My suggestion is that we split up," Xu Shulou said, looking at him. "Stay out of my sight, and I’ll try not to kill you."

"……" Lu Beichen seethed silently, then turned to Bai Roushuang.

Xu Shulou cut in. "She stays with me."

Lu Beichen clenched his fists. "No! Who knows how you’ll torment her if she stays?!"

Xu Shulou twitched her sword sheath, making Lu Beichen flinch as if expecting another strike. But she only smiled faintly at Bai Roushuang. "Go on, don’t worry. If I really wanted to harm her, you couldn’t stop me anyway."

"……"

Bai Roushuang gave Lu Beichen a subtle, pleading shake of her head, urging him to leave. Their lingering gaze was so dramatic it might as well have been a farewell before death.

The group endured the drawn-out scene before Lu Beichen finally limped away, his figure both lonely and stubborn.

Xu Shulou watched him go. Just as they thought she might be softening, she turned back.

She was just… struck by the thought. The same person, yet walking such different paths in different worlds. How unpredictable fate could be.

Where had Lu Beichen’s turning point been? Surely not just because he’d missed a couple of beatings from her…

Xu Shulou turned to Bai Roushuang and tossed her the golden treasure she’d taken from Lu Beichen. Bai Roushuang stared in shock. "This… is for me too?"

"Mn. It’s a defensive artifact. Take it and get yourself out of this secret realm."

"B-But Senior Sister, I’ll die alone out here!" Bai Roushuang shuddered.

"You won’t die that easily. Go on." Xu Shulou shooed her away. "Think hard about how to survive. That brain of yours wasn’t meant just for scheming ways to please Lu Beichen."

"……"

Bai Roushuang gazed around with tearful eyes, her pitiful expression perfected by the tricks Sister Lan had taught her back in the brothel. Paired with her delicate, innocent beauty, it had always been enough to make men rush to her defense. At the very least, Lu Beichen had always fallen for it.

But this time, her strategy failed. Though the onlookers couldn’t help but sympathize, none dared defy the unyielding Xu Shulou, and they could only watch as Bai Roushuang was forcibly driven away.

Not long after arriving in the cultivation world, Bai Roushuang had met Lu Beichen. Since then, he had shielded her in every secret realm and adventure—she had never faced anything like this before. She wept for nearly half an hour before finally picking herself up and stumbling toward what she remembered as the exit.

She endured days of hardship, sleeping rough and jumping at every sound. At the slightest disturbance, she would activate her defensive artifact and cower inside, waiting for the monsters to lose patience and leave.

After days of hiding, she finally learned to fend them off with her sword while still sheltered within the artifact’s protection.

It took her far longer than it should have, and she wandered many wrong paths before finally reaching the secret realm’s exit. Just as she was about to weep with relief, she caught sight of Xu Shulou standing nearby, smiling faintly.

Hatred for Xu Shulou surged in her heart. "You’ve been following me?"

"Mm."

"Why?" Bai Roushuang’s resentment burst forth. "Why would you do this?"

Xu Shulou leaned lazily against a tree. "I just couldn’t resist seeing how different the Bai Roushuang here is from my junior sister when faced with danger."

"..." Bai Roushuang didn’t understand a word of it. "What does that have to do with you? If you hadn’t taken me away from Senior Brother Lu, I wouldn’t have had to face any of this!"

Xu Shulou chuckled. "Call it meddling if you like. I used to wonder—if he loves you and doesn’t want to lose you, how dare he take multiple wives and concubines? But now I understand. He’s certain you’ll never leave him."

"...What? What wives and concubines?"

Xu Shulou glanced at her but didn’t explain. Nurturing someone well was hard, but ruining them was easy. Human nature was lazy, always choosing the path of least resistance.

"I’m leaving now. We’ll... meet again in the past."

———

In a dimly lit corridor, Xu Shulou took a deep breath and pushed open the next door.

She felt herself falling, endlessly falling, only to be abruptly bound by a rope mid-descent. For a moment, she seemed to black out. When she came to, the first thing she heard was the grating voice of Lu Beichen.

"I choose Junior Sister Bai!"

"Senior Brother Lu!"

...Which point in time was this?

Xu Shulou opened her eyes to find herself and Bai Roushuang tied up side by side, while Lu Beichen pointed at the latter. "I’m taking Rou’er with me—release her now!"

"Are you certain?" a raspy, unnatural voice replied. "If you choose your sweetheart, your betrothed will die by my hand."

Lu Beichen turned to Xu Shulou, his face a mask of helplessness. "Shulou, you’re stronger than her. I know you’ll understand!"

Xu Shulou blinked. No matter how powerful the Immortal-Binding Rope was, it couldn’t restrain a Tribulation Transcension cultivator. She channeled her spiritual energy, and without lifting a finger, she summoned Quexie to sever the rope. Landing with effortless grace, she picked up the severed halves and wielded them like a whip. With a flick of her wrist, she yanked the stunned Lu Beichen toward her, ruthlessly suppressing his resistance before wrapping him up like a cocoon and tying him securely to a tree. Then, with a tone even more earnest than his had been, she threw his words back at him:

"Beichen, I’m stronger than you. I know you’ll understand!"

"..." Even the villain who had captured them was stunned by this turn of events.

Xu Shulou had to remind him: "Now you’re supposed to ask me which one I’ll save."

The villain, wisely adapting, asked, "Hero, which one would you like to kill first?"

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