I Really Like the Male Supporting Character (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 33

Ah Luo didn’t expect that, after getting poisoned with the scarlet lantern flower and acting so unrestrainedly towards her master, she would open her eyes again.

She put on her clothes, which she had taken off before she had fallen asleep, but allowed her hair to cascade loosely down her back. She lay alone in a sea of pink flowers and stared at the cloudless blue sky on top of her. 

After some time, she sat up and looked at the pile of dream flowers crushed beneath and around her. She couldn’t help but wonder, for a moment, if everything that’d happened earlier had all just been a dream. 

Soon, though, she realized that it wasn’t.

When she got up, she caught sight of a tall figure dressed in pure white. Not far ahead in the sea of dream flowers, he stood with his back to her.

Despite hearing her wake up, he didn’t turn around. He simply stood there in silence.

His black hair, which reached down his waist, was lifted by the wind. Its strands fluttered with the wind. The wide sleeves of his robe brushed against the flowering branches of the dream flowers, and their snow-white cuffs were now seemingly tinged with a delicate pink.

That solitary figure exuded an air of cold detachment and aloofness. To her, he resembled the eternal snow atop a mountain peak that inspired both awe and intimidation.

In just one glance, Ah Luo could tell he was unreachable. He was beyond her grasp.

However, she still steadily walked toward him with determined steps. As she approached, she realized that the discomfort she had felt earlier had completely vanished, and her cultivation, which had stagnated for a long time, had unexpectedly advanced—from the seventh level of the Energy Refinement stage to the late stage of the Foundation Establishment realm. (2-17)

That she had achieved such a massive leap in progress in just half a day was nothing short of a miracle.

Ah Luo understood that she had achieved this leap by performing dual cultivation with Lu Cang. His cultivation level was far superior to hers, and she had inadvertently absorbed his yang energy to replenish herself.

As this thought crossed her mind, her heart pounded so hard that she felt as if it would leap out of her throat.

She stopped two steps behind him and softly called out, “Master.”

There was an unmistakable shaking in her voice.

At this moment, there was no denying it anymore. Why hadn’t she died from the scarlet lantern flower poison? Why was he, a mere puppet, able to cure her?

Ah Luo now understood everything. The puppet before her was, in fact, her real master.

Though she had no idea how he had managed it, she was certain that she had truly shared a bed with her master—the legendary Daoist master, Lu Cang, renowned for his unparalleled talent and brilliance.

And worse yet, it was she who had forced him to it.

The girl’s rosy complexion began to pale. Her expression grew increasingly frantic, and her eyes revealed unmistakable despair and fear.

Lu Cang finally turned around. He lowered his gaze slightly to meet hers.

“M-Master…” she called out again. Her clear eyes shimmered. At this moment, they resembled a pool of shattered stars.

Lu Cang’s expression was indifferent as he calmly asked her, “Luoyin, who forced you to consume the scarlet lantern flower?” 

Hearing him say these words, Ah Luo froze on the spot.

Was her master not angry with her? Why did he act as though nothing had happened? Had she misunderstood something?

Her mind was in chaos. She couldn’t comprehend what was happening at this moment.

Logically, after what had occurred, the real Lu Cang couldn’t possibly be this composed. He was acting far too nonchalantly!

Despite her inner turmoil, Ah Luo obediently answered, “It was Li Jiaojiao. The last time you saved me, she was the one bullying me. There were three others with her, but I don’t know who they were.”

Lu Cang nodded and said, “Hm.”

With that, he waved his long sleeve. Ah Luo felt a gentle force lift her into the air, and the two of them suddenly ascended skyward.

In confusion, she said, “Master?”

Lu Cang remained silent. His strong, steady arm encircled her slender waist as his dark eyes narrowed slightly, and he swiftly flew in a specific direction.

He moved with astonishing speed, faster than a sword cultivator flying with their weapon. In mere moments, they had left the sea of flowers and arrived above a dense forest, hovering atop a tall tree.

“Is it them?” Lu Cang asked coldly.

Ah Luo followed his gaze and saw four individuals in the forest below battling a demonic beast. They were the same people who had stolen her storage bag and forcibly fed her the scarlet lantern flower.

She nodded blankly. “Yes, it’s them.”

Lu Cang uttered another flat, indifferent ‘Hm’ as he raised his hand towards the group. His hand was pale, slender, and elegantly jointed, which made it appear both beautiful and ethereal. Then, this exquisite hand made a gripping motion.

In the forest below, Li Jiaojiao and her companions were suddenly immobilized by an overwhelming pressure, and they couldn’t move even a muscle. The four were stricken with horror but lacked the strength to resist. They couldn’t even turn their eyes to search for the source of the force binding them.

The sword wolf beast they had been battling lost all its ferocity in an instant. It cowered on the ground with its tail tucked, and it let out low, fearful whimpers as if it were facing an insurmountable foe.

In the next moment, the force binding the group intensified abruptly. The four were overwhelmed by excruciating pain and couldn’t even scream before their lives were extinguished in the blink of an eye.

Even in death, they had no idea whose hand had ended their lives.

From Ah Luo’s perspective, she only saw Lu Cang’s outstretched hand suddenly clenching into a fist. Then, the immobilized figures below seemed to be crushed by an invisible force, leaving no bodies behind—only ashes scattering into the wind.

Ah Luo: ‘…’

How… ruthless.

Noticing his young disciple trembling slightly, Lu Cang glanced her way and asked, “What? Are you scared?”

Ah Luo cautiously peeked at her master. He had just killed four people in an instant—fellow disciples, no less—but his face remained utterly expressionless, cold, and detached as ever.

It wasn’t fear that she was feeling—not exactly. After all, those four had treated her terribly, and she hated them for it. She simply found it hard to adjust to such brutality… 

Lin Luoyin was, after all, a pure and innocent young cultivator. Her low cultivation level meant she hadn’t learned many spells, and she’d never even killed a small animal, let alone a person.

“I… I just, I’ve never seen anything like this before,” Ah Luo stammered.

Hearing this, Lu Cang remained silent for a moment. Then, while holding her securely, he descended to the ground. “Now that you’ve reached the Foundation Establishment realm, it’s time for you to start learning more spells. You’ll start today.”

He gestured toward the sword wolf beast, which was still trembling on the ground and too frightened to move.

“Use it for practice.”

Ah Luo was dumbfounded. She glanced at the trembling sword wolf beast, then back at her indifferent master. Suddenly, she felt a pang of sympathy for the creature.

When Lu Cang said he would teach her spells, he meant it—and without the slightest leniency.

At first, Ah Luo couldn’t stop wondering whether he was truly her master or just a puppet. But after being trained by him for half a day, she didn’t have the mental energy to think about it anymore.

Lu Cang was exceedingly strict, and Ah Luo’s natural aptitude was poor. She struggled to meet his standards during the lessons.

Time after time, she failed. Although Lu Cang said nothing, and his face remained as calm and indifferent as always, Ah Luo couldn’t handle the pressure.

After yet another failed attempt, she hung her head in dejection.

“Master… am I just useless? My sister must be so much better than me,” she murmured with her head bowed. “I can’t even learn something as simple as the Rejuvenation Spell…”

Lu Cang said nothing. A heavy silence filled the air.

Ah Luo felt utterly dispirited, and she was now too afraid to look up at her master. She dreaded seeing disappointment or frustration in his eyes.

But then, a large hand descended gently onto her head and softly ruffled her hair.

Ah Luo was startled. She raised her head and stared at him with widened eyes.

Lu Cang’s expression remained unchanged as he slowly withdrew his hand. In his deep voice, he said, “There’s no rush.” 

After a brief pause, under her bright and hopeful gaze, he added softly, “I will teach you, slowly.”

Ah Luo’s eyes sparkled with newfound brightness. Overwhelming joy lit up her small, delicate face, and her cheeks flushed as two dimples appeared with her smile.

“Master,” she asked hesitantly, as though testing something, “why are you suddenly being so kind to me?”

Lu Cang’s gaze remained steady as he took in the hope shining in her eyes. He replied softly, “Because you are my disciple.”

“But, you didn’t even remember that I was your disciple…”

“I owe you much. That won’t happen again.”

“Is that… really the only reason?”

Lu Cang didn’t answer. Instead, he turned and walked toward a nearby tree. With a slight movement of his fingers, a branch detached itself and floated down.

Using his two fingers like a blade, he made a few precise strokes in the air, and the arm-thick branch transformed into a wooden sword.

He returned to his young disciple with the wooden sword. Then, he said in a cold tone, “If spells are difficult, we’ll start with sword control.”

Ah Luo beamed with delight and forgot all about her earlier concerns. “Alright! I remember how jealous I was when my sister learned how to fly with her sword—it looked so fun!”

That was what she said. However, when it came time for her to actually practice, her excitement quickly turned into fear.

“Master, will it suddenly drop me?” she asked nervously. She stood unsteadily on the floating wooden sword. The sword had only risen two feet off the ground, but she was already too scared to move.

Lu Cang’s calm voice came from beside her. “I’m right here.”

Hearing what he said reassured her. She relaxed a little and cautiously urged the sword higher. Once she reached the treetop level and gained some balance, she tried accelerating forward.

The sword shot forward abruptly, and before she could adjust, she lost her footing and fell off.

Her heart stopped as she plummeted. She couldn’t even let out a scream. However, before she hit the ground, she landed in a strong, broad embrace.

It was Lu Cang who caught her. In his arms, Ah Luo felt an overwhelming sense of safety, as if no danger could touch her while he held her.

At the same time, she suddenly noticed the faint, cool fragrance of his robes—the scent was fresh and soothing, like winter snow, and it seeped into her heart with every breath she took.

He said, “Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

Backlit by the sun, his handsome face seemed to melt into the warm spring light, save for his dark eyes, which remained deep and inscrutable.

Ah Luo clung tightly to his waist and whispered softly against his chest, “Master, if this is a dream, I hope I never wake up.”

At Guiyuan Sect’s main peak, within a cave residence, a man in blue robes, who was sitting cross-legged on a meditation mat, suddenly opened his eyes.

His sharp gaze shot toward a glass lamp on the table before him. The lamp, covered with a transparent shield, had an unlit wick inside.

Cultivators typically had heightened senses. At that moment, the man had felt the abrupt death of his daughter. The shock to his soul was so great it pulled him from his meditative state. Thankfully, her soul remained intact.

He said, “My daughter, Jiaojiao, return to me—”

The man formed a hand seal. A gust of wind swept through, and a small blue flame the size of a fingernail flickered to life within the glass lamp.