Chapter 17: I Do Not Need Anyone to Fend Off Bad Luck for Me

"What happens if I don't go?" Bai Qianzhou asked after a long, quiet pause.

"If you don't save them, even with the protection of accumulated merit, their luck will be exhausted, and they won't live more than a year. Your birth mother has, at most, one week left. As for you, Zhouzhou, if you don't descend the mountain, you will be plagued by misfortune, and your life will likely come to an abrupt end before you turn twenty. By then, your destiny and fortune will belong entirely to that thief. For your own sake, and even more so for theirs, you must go down and try to accept them."

Daoist Xuan Yu looked at his disciple with profound gravity. Though he couldn't bear the thought of her facing such misfortune, he had no choice. He could only hope his young apprentice wouldn't hold it against him.

"I understand!" Bai Qianzhou nodded solemnly.

"Understand what?"

"After all that talk, you just want to kick me off the mountain, don't you?" Her voice carried a hint of defiance as she raised an eyebrow at him.

Xuan Yu was suddenly struck speechless. He had a thousand words in his heart, but in that moment, he felt incredibly awkward. He only felt it was time for her to leave; how could he be trying to drive her away?

Although, he hadn't exactly lived an easy life these past few years because of her cursed luck...

"Ahem," he cleared his throat slightly, his tone turning into a heavy warning. "You must remember: only when you truly accept them in your heart can they shield you from your misfortune."

"And if they help me shoulder this misfortune, what price will they have to pay?" Bai Qianzhou stared at him with heavy eyes. He remained silent, at a loss for how to explain.

"I will save them, but as for my destiny, I will take it back with my own hands. It is just bad luck, not a death sentence. I don't need anyone to shield me from anything."

Bai Qianzhou stood up, gathered her things, and left. As it turned out, she had waited for three days at the very place she first met Pei Hexuan, which led to everything that followed.

Little Green: So, you intend to stay and see how things develop?

"If they hadn't discovered my identity, I certainly would have left. But since they already know, I might as well just let things take their course," Bai Qianzhou said lazily, her tone indifferent.

Little Green: But there is something very wrong with this villa. Haven't you noticed it too?

"Hmm. It wasn't convenient to say anything on the first day. You go and investigate where the source of the trouble is. I'm going to sleep. Remember, don't scare anyone."

She let out a languid yawn and drifted into a deep sleep.

The little green snake hissed beside her, seemingly complaining, "You only know how to enslave snakes."

Bai Qianzhou was already asleep and heard none of it. She was truly exhausted. During the three days she spent waiting, she hadn't eaten or rested well. Now, lying on the soft, plush bed, her eyelids simply couldn't stay open any longer.

Early the next morning, before Bai Qianzhou was fully awake, she was roused by the little green snake. It pointed out every problematic item it had found, and Bai Qianzhou, still groggy, placed them all on the coffee table in the living room.

Afterward, she collapsed onto the sofa and went back to sleep. Little Green quietly hid behind her, catching a quick nap to the rhythm of her breathing. It had spent the entire night exhausted, scouring the house for those objects while trying to avoid being seen by anyone.

The butler didn't understand what Bai Qianzhou was doing, so he simply brought a blanket to cover her. As for the items on the table, he dared not touch them.

"Why is Zhouzhou sleeping here?" Bai Lu and Pei Hexuan asked as they came downstairs, looking at the soundly sleeping girl on the sofa with bewilderment.

"The young lady got up early and started wandering around the villa. I don't know why, but she gathered all these things here and then just collapsed on the sofa to continue sleeping. I didn't want to disturb her rest, so I didn't wake her," the butler said softly, recounting what Bai Qianzhou had done early that morning.